*1033 - the first leg

While I could have much more quickly done this through the 3G network on my phone, here's proof that this bus has free and functional wifi, in addition to its comfy seats, stunning emptiness (10 of us, at most), an adorable driver who comes round offering bottles of water, and negligible cost of $15 per ticket from Boston to New York. How is that not a bargain?

This marks the first leg of my little vacay that is sucking up more than half my days off for the year--two days in NYC, three in Hong Kong, and three weeks at home. Awaiting happy reunions with friends and family in each of the above three. Being away (sadly so) makes one appreciate people better.

On the agenda,
... Walking the familiar streets (and smelling the familiar subway stench heh heh) of NYC
... Some last minute shopping, unless I restrain myself
... Portuguese egg tarts, vegetarian Buddhist meals, and dim sum
... Being in Vienna when actually in Macau
... My customary chilli crab family welcome dinner
... A haircut by Asians who actually know how to cut Asian hair (and perhaps my usual reddish tint, though that might mean being mildly matchy matchy with the redhead)
... Facial, eyebrows, all that good stuff
... Regular swims (and none of that silly indoor swimming pool at the gym nonsense)
... Roasting at the beach by day and sipping sangrias at the shore by night
... Fancy lunches and hawker dinners
... Tooty frooty party plans in the making (hint: a FB event needs to be created ASAP)
... Wine, cheese, fruit under the stars (sounds like an atas family tradition, but really, we're just sitting around in our PJ's on the roof getting mildly sticky from the humidity)
... Attempting to play the same songs on the piano that I attempt to play during each short trip home
... Live music at outdoor bars by the river
... Perhaps taking advantage of the offer of an express Universal Studios pass ... Hmm ...
... Cooking and baking and making the family plump with the goodness of EV's home cooked delights
... Laska and hokkien mee and chicken rice and char kuay teow and prata and baby kailan and har cheong gai and mee sua and yong tau foo and ban mian and omgomgomggomgg the list goes on how to eat so many things in such little time?! Who wants to go hawker centre-ing with me?
... And besides all the food, simply: to see all of you who matter.

The last point is the most important one, and really is the only reason for my trip home.

Home home home.

It's nice to be able to say that I'm finally returning home. Home is not a word I would use for anywhere else.

Yup. Home.