Winter Leggings= Brilliant

I recently picked up a pair of winter leggings from American Apparel aka my favorite economically-moral American store and I am in LOVE. I already asked my Grandma to buy another pair for me in black. The reviews on the website say that the other colored tights are not as thick as black, and since I grew up in the warm tropical weather of South East Asia, warmer is always better in frosty up-state New York. They are definitely the most expensive leggings I have ever purchased at $38 each, but their texture is comparable to that of pajama pants or jazz pants.

While you are on the website, you should also check out their must-have winter selection. It is important to keep warm during these months and avoid getting sick like I did!

Things to do in Shanghai

When I was in 上海 one of the coolest things I did was hit a blossoming art district called M50 or Moganshan lu. I spent several hours alone checking out galleries and outdoor instillation pieces. In one gallery, this man turned to me and asked what thoughts I had about the painting- in Chinese. My putonghua has remained at an elementary level for, oh, just six or seven years, so I responded to him simply "it's like a dream to me". A couple minutes later I asked him if he knew the meaning behind the fantastical and nature-inspired works. He told me he was the artist and then proceeded to talk about each of his paintings in the gallery. It was awesome.

This author does a pretty good job of describing the area so I will leave it to her:

http://unearthingasia.com/uniquely-far-east/50-moganshan-shanghais-art-district/

Food, food, and more food!

Today I went to New Jersey with my grandparents and two of of neighbors to buy lots of yummy treats. Our first stop was the Japanese supermarket Mitsuwa in Edgewater, NJ. I was nom-noming on free samples from practically every spotless and well-organized aisle in the market. I picked up some of my childhood favorites like Yakult and Japanese butterscotch along with some miso soup ($2) that will be easy to make at school. I also bought a fat piece of green tea red-bean mochi ($1) and a strawberry dessert that comes with Japanese instructions ($2).

Afterward we stopped at Balthazar's wholesale bakery in Englewood, it is the factory where they make the goods for Balthazar's in Soho, NYC. However the place in New Jersey is probably three times cheaper than the NYC franchise. At Balthazar's we picked up a whole slew of goodies including cinnamon buns, strudels, foccacia bread, cookies, and butter scones that are to DIE for. We probably ordered 15 pieces and it came out to around $30- not bad for top quality baked goods.

Next door to Balthazar's is an amazing Italian gourmet grocery called Jerry's Homemade. My grandparents have been coming here for years for their delicious cooked pasta, quiches, chicken fillets, and crab cakes. They also love to pick up Jerry's homemade tomato sauce for pastas and the like. The store is well stocked with all sorts of goodies from Italy like biscuits, chocolates, sauces, cheeses, salamis and there is an entire back section for wines. Jerry's is an absolute destination for the ultimate foodie and Italian cook!

Cinderella and Team Manila

Over the past Christmas break I was lucky enough to visit some family in the Philippines and to do some shopppppping as well. I bought a lovely pair of faux leather summer sandals at my favorite Singaporean store Charles and Keith (see previous posts).

Team Manila is a really hip store that carries tee shirts, mugs, and little trinkets with a little bit of Filipino flavor. The store's logo is the national hero Jose Rizal with sunglasses printed over his face and is printed on many of their tee shirts and items.

I also popped into Cinderella, a home-grown store that has been around since my mom was a girl, that is known for their dresses and formal wear for teens. I purchased a classy/sexy one shoulder top with draping down the front for around US$15- what a bargain! I've worn it with jeans and pants, sandals and heels, under winter jackets and alone in the short time that I have owned the top.