WE LOVE YOU MOMS!!!!

Although we are across the planet, know that we love you both and hope that you have a great MOTHER'S DAY! See you in the summertime when we are both back in Vancouver! Lots of love and enjoy the day!

RUSSIA WINS!!!

Check out this cool piece of TIKI BAR TV fan art from Matt! It's all the Russian characters from the podcast including mine, Mr. Ambassador! Pretty sweet stuff in my opinion!

48 HOURS IN CHINA

While we were in Vancouver, one of our favorite weekend getaways was the city of sin, Las Vegas. The gambling, the hotels, the food, the spectacle, it's guaranteed fun in a compact package!!! In Asia, it's much more difficult to go to Vegas for 48 hours since it's a days flight away but if the itch to gamble and live the high life gets too much, you can always visit Macau.

Considered the Vegas of Asia, Macau is the only area in China where gambling is legal, so as you can imagine, it's very popular. So popular that Macau has decided to follow in the footsteps of it's Big Vegas Brother and set up some monster hotels and casinos. You'll find familiar faces like the Wynn, MGM Grand, Sands, Hard Rock and Venetian plus a whole host of other places as well! The Macau versions are pretty similar to their Vegas-counterparts in most ways (decoration, lighting, fonts etc.) but the biggest different is the lack of booze. It seems that the Chinese don't drink when they gamble, they smoke like chimneys but alcohol consumption remains at a minimum and since the Casino has maybe only one or two bars, you have to find your own drink... and pay for it. That's right, you still have to pay for your booze even if you are gambling. Vegas this is not.

Okay enough about the Casinos, let's talk about the weekend...

Michelle, Cheng and I arrived in Macau at about 9am on Friday. We hooked up with Aamir, Denise, John & Lisa, dropped off our bags at the hotel and proceeded to get some breakfast at a local Dim Sum joint (awesome - the spicy green beans & pork were probably the best I've ever eaten). We then decided that today would be a Hong Kong exploration day so we went to the pier and took a 55-minute Turbojet ferry ride across the bay to HK (Turbojet is great and I recommend Super Class, more expensive but you get bigger seats and free food/drink).

HONG KONG is an amazing sight to behold, it's massive, dense, busy, loud, grimy and vibrant. It's grabs a hold of your senses and doesn't let go at all. We arrived on Hong Kong Island and proceeded to walk around the Central District, checking out some of Aamir & Denise's favorite shops. We walked, took photos, shopped and walked some more, eventually finding ourselves in the Lan Kwai Fong District. This is where you will find a good collection of pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants. After a rest and a few drinks, we continued to explore the area until we happened upon the Stanley Street Food Stalls. Think of this as a roadside Hawker Center and while you might think there are a ton of these, there are actually only 28 official food stalls left in HK and some of the best are here. We stayed for dinner, had an amazing street meal and then caught the Turbojet back to Macau. We ended the night with a few hands of Blackjack at the Wynn and then back to the hotel for 2am.

The next morning was MACAU day, so the whole crew got up and had brunch at a local Taiwanese place before separating. The girls went to explore the city, taking in all the sights, shops and bakeries that this Portuguese-influenced city has to offer while the guys gambled at a multitude of different casinos... and proceed to lose big. We then headed back to the Hotel to get dressed up for a night at the Venetian. I think out of all the Casinos, I saw, I was most impressed with the Venetian, as it is a bang on replicant of the monster Hotel/Casino in Vegas plus it was the only casino that had Star Wars Slots! We arrived in time to catch an amazing Cirque Du Soleil show there called Zaia, which I would heartily recommend. We then went for a fantastic Italian meal at their Portofino Restaurant, the food was amazing and since it was John's birthday, the staff sang to him and it was honestly, the best version of "happy birthday" I have ever heard in a restaurant. After that, the boys continued to gamble while the girls explored the hotel and the shops. We then headed back to our side of Macau to go for drinks & cigars at the Wynn, then topping it off with more gambling fun.

We got back to the hotel around 2:30am and got up at 6:30am to pack, shower and head to the airport for our flight home. 48 hours in China is over sooner than it starts it seems!

Great weekend people, great weekend. We both loved Hong Kong and cant wait to explore even more of this amazing city. And even though it isn't our beloved Vegas, Macau is as close as we are going to get over here and it's still a lot of fun so we will definitely be going back.

Pics from the weekend can be seen HERE!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHELLE!

At this time last year, we were in a mad dash trying to sell our house and packing up our life for a move to Singapore. This year, we are in Singapore and seem to be a little more relaxed. No house selling, no packing, no cross-planet travel, which means it gives us a lot of time to properly celebrate MICHELLE'S BIRTHDAY!

I cant express how much it means to me that Michelle came to Singapore to allow me a chance to live my childhood dream, she gave up her job to do that. Now, one could argue that we are married and that's part of the deal but you'd be surprised how many married people we know here who's spouses remained behind because of work, family etc. Not Michelle, she was up for the adventure, she was up for the challenge, she was ready to try something new.

It hasn't been easy either, it's a lot more difficult to find work here for the spouse than we were lead to believe, really difficult and she has been trying. She's made some friends, she's going to do some volunteering, she's done some of the "lady of leisure" lifestyle and ofcourse we have travelled: Bali, Thailand, Indonesia & Vietnam so far (Macau is next). But no matter what is going on with her, she's always supported me and my career here and for that I will always be thankful.

She's my lover, my best friend, my partner-in-crime, source of energy and I love her with all that I am.

The happiest of birthdays baby! Who knows where life's adventure will take us next but who cares, as long as we are together it's going to be a blast!!!!

GLEE: VOGUE

Michelle's favorite show (GLEE), one of my favorite comedic actresses (Jane Lynch) doing one of our favorite Madonna songs, shot for shot. Good stuff indeed!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!

Wow, my dad MARIO is another year older and it's weird for me to be on the other side of the world for his birthday.

I think this is the first time I haven't been around to celebrate with him, especially since my mom passed away. As I write this, he's enjoying his last day in Mexico with my stepmom Gina, where they went to a family wedding for two weeks of fun. I love the fact that my dad gets to travel more now. Growing up, he worked so bloody hard, he rarely had time for a vacation but now he's taking more time to explore the world, and I love that.

He deserves it, he deserves to see the world and to enjoy himself because he's earned every waking moment of happiness he gets! He deserves to fall asleep on the couch at 5pm on a Sunday or laugh with his friends at the Red Lion. I think that's the secret to a good life... enjoying the little things! And that's one of the great things about my dad, he takes pleasure in the little things, a snuggle with Laverne & Carmine, a good plate of pasta, talking to the family on Skype, traveling with Gina.

I look forward to seeing him in July, I look forward to swapping life stories with him, I look forward to enjoying a glass of wine with him and I look forward to wishing him a happy belated birthday in person. But for now dad, enjoy the day, enjoy your birthday and know that from across the planet we love you a lot!

UPDATED PIX

Lots of pics to look at including this one of my Dad Mario and his friend, also named Mario, enjoying some Olympic fun in Whistler!!!

A new set featuring updated pics from our favorite beasts LAVERNE & CARMINE

Pics from life in Singapore 2010: JANUARY, FEBRUARY, and MARCH!

Michelle's OLYMPIC odyssey in Vancouver!

Enjoy!