New Mexico

I have been away for a week visiting Albuquerque with a college friend for a wedding and some general sight seeing. I have never been in the Southwest before. Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and the few places in between I visited really live up to the state's nickname, "Land of Enchantment." I can't imagine what it's like to live in a city with such gorgeous weather, gorgeous sunsets, and gorgeous mountains (Sandia) right there, everyday. I have never seen an area with architecture that is so consistent (or try to be consistent), from the historic city centers to the suburban outskirts! This is one of my favorite sights from my brief trip, taken somewhere in Jemez Mountains. Just beautiful.

Anyway, I got back just in time for the insanity of CMJ Music Marathon. I'll upload a few more pics from the trip before all the CMJ stuff (and Muse!).

Still on Break

Delayed | Incheon Int'l Airport, South Korea | March 22, 2010

I had spent a week abroad doing some thesis research.
This image is straight out of the camera, taken on the way back to New York.

Don't Mess with Texas

I had to skip the Drums and Gang Gang Dance because of a family trip to Sugar Land and Houston, Texas. Here's my favorite photo:
Kinda crazy, right? As a urbanite who doesn't know how to drive, I felt extremely out of place there. I always forget how spacious America is and how that space is often poorly planned. How many strip malls and cul-de-sacs does this nation really need? I know it is unrealistic for every American to subscribe to high-density city living, but I couldn't help but be disheartened by the urban sprawl and car culture I encountered in the southwest.

Hong Kong Hustle

Hong Kong was ...different. Vibrant. Nocturnal. Having grown up in New York City, I've always enjoyed traveling to other big cities but I've never felt at home at any of them. Until Hong Kong, that is. For one, I enjoy the night life a lot more over there, as malls and stores stay open until 8, even til 11 for youth-oriented micro-malls, and pubs much later. Taxis are so cheap. The public transportation infrastructure is amazing and inexpensive. There are all these great dessert chains dotting the city, like Hui Lau Shan and Honeymoon Dessert (I went on a holy grail quest for the best black sesame roll to no avail, though I did taste THE BEST red bean yellow sugar sticky cake). The one thing that I really don't like about Hong Kong, and the reason why I would waste away there, is that there is practically no independent music scene. Only big names play in Hong Kong (before I left, I saw advertisements for upcoming Placebo and Keane shows) or Macau, the neighboring former Portuguese colony a. k. a. East Asian Las Vegas (Fall Out Boy played at the Venetian during my trip). I was starved of English-language entertainment! Nevertheless, it was a fantastic month abroad, with much thesis-musings and general merriment. To see my Flickr set of travel photos, click here.

A Respite Abroad

Doing a bit of traveling right now, so no music photos for now. I was in Vancouver and Coquitlam, nestling in the unsettling comforts of suburbia, but now I'm in Hong Kong, where malls are futuristic and luxurious. I don't foresee going to a concert anytime soon, save a possible Leon Lai gig in Kowloon (ONE OF THE ORIGINAL FOUR KINGS OF CANTO-POP!). Definitely no concert photography anytime soon, but some nice travel snaps.

From suburbia disturbia...

...To a major Asian mega metropolis