weekends in shanghai

weekends in shanghai are never dull. in this city of 18 million bodies, it's hard to find a quiet corner. and there are always a thousand and one fun, interesting events happening that even if i did find a quiet corner, i would most likely be enticed out of it by an invite from a friend (or from a friend of a friend of a friend...). this past week was a classic example of all there is to do in this mind-boggling city:

last saturday, i enjoyed watching the Xgames asia for free (thanks, grayson!). decided i may have missed my calling in motocrossing.

last sunday evening, attended the opening of vargas grill, the latest brainchild of restauranteur extraordinaire eduardo vargas. the opening coincided with his birthday, which meant an amazing spread of canapes and delightful free flow of alcohol. the big man himself celebrated by pouring whisky down the throats of his guests (including yours truly....).

this past friday, started off the evening by attending whisky live, an international whisky tasting event making its debut in china, with a friend. oli was working the event and gave us the VIP treatment. :)

after dinner with friends at german restaurant paulaner (mmm....beer and sausages....), swung by cabaret on the bund to show some support for jazz singer friend jasmine chen. jasmine surprised me by inviting me up on stage to sing a duet with her (a little ditty called 'girl talk' that we performed at one of our gallery concerts a couple of months ago). sing in a swanky nightclub in shanghai? check.

saturday was a gorgeous day spent picnicking with arts group friends in century park. we actually found a grassy knoll with an orchard-esque cluster of trees next to a small stream. wow.

that evening, i attended an exhibition opening with a couple of friends. entitled dingbats brazil, the exhibition featured the work of contemporary brazilian graphic designers and their works of digital pictorial alphabets (aka 'dingbats'). finished the evening off with dinner at a new vietnamese pho restaurant followed by movie night at a friend's home (woody allen's 'annie hall').

one thing's for sure: can't complain about getting bored living here. and as much as this city drives me mad at times, i have to admit, i love living in this bustling, high-energy metropolis with so many options of things to do and experience in any given week.


cups of coffee: 1 1/2

mood: pretty good