* 5am - went to bed.
* 8.45am - waken up by yelling, banging... then realized the door couldn't be opened - something wrong with the lock!
So, my mom & sister called the security from downstairs to help & see if they can open the door from outside.
Here came the story...
(1) how to pass the key to the guy outside, provided that there is not even a 3-mm slit anywhere near the door.
(2) Solution was, keys were put inside the box, and I got to throw that from 5th floor my window to ground floor! [BANG!!!]
(3) Finally, lock was broken, door opened.
* 10am - New LOCK! New KEY! Already time to start working... so finally, couldn't go back to sleep.
Less than 4 hours sleep got me another EQ-training session - "How to control my temper under the 'lack-of-sleep' condition!"
Ok - kick start at 10am.
Emails... some voluntary work... some freelancer work... reading my final itinerary again to see what else i needa get ready...
* 12.35pm - Finally could step out, and go for lunch. Lunch with friend in Mongkok - across the harbour!
* 1.20pm - Arrived, 5 minutes late. [sorry, my friend.] Nice chat, inspiring again.
PLUS, happy to see the Tuzki exhibition there - and I read a line there 'Alcohol (I'll go mad if I have a sip!).
I couldn't stop laughing there... Thanks my friend for asking me to go lunch all the way there that far, where I spent most of my childhood years around there.
[To: my lunchmate, please move back closer to my area... although you gave me really good excuse to go all the way there to buy flowers.. enjoy exhibition... ]
* 3pm - Going back to Central. Walking there with the raindrops... and at the flyover in Mongkok...
Suddenly I felt like I saw CHAMPS ELYSEES in front! I was back to Paris - my beloved Paris.
Although this is probably not the No.1-favorite city, she has been really close to me.. in many ways.. and I miss her!
@Mongkok, Hong Kong
@Paris, France
* 4pm - back to Central. Finished some quick phone calls on the way... then settled down at coffee shop at IFC, Central.
By now, I had one cup of morning coffee, while watching the video clip - JK Rowling's speech at Harvard (2008).
Then coffee for lunch.
Should STOP there (I thought, because coffee made me sleepy!).
Yet I got to have meeting for another potential freelance job at 5pm there at this coffee shop.
Didn't bother to go here and there, so I came up here one hour earlier before meeting time.
Coincident, the one whom I was going to meet was there at the cashier when I was standing there, reading the menu, struggling if I gonna have another THIRD cup of coffee.
So there, we ordered. He went to his meeting at 4pm there, I went to the other end of the 'corner' to do my own reading & another freelancer thing...
So there, I was having my third cup of coffee - a latte.
I chose the bar side where I could have the streetview - under the rain.
Sitting there, looking around, I felt like I was there at the train station in Rome.
I turned back to the barside, ready to go through the documents in front. BUT,
the guy next to me caught me turning - then said HI.
AND, what's next...
he is one of the partners there, from New Zealand;
we started talking about coffee... italian espresso bar... my visualization of 'roma termini espresso bar';
we chatted... and chatted.. and he realized I was having a regular latte,
and he is so 'professional' - 'Would you like to try our special latte? It's double shot... (bla bla bla). It's free,
I make you one, and see if you have any comments. Like it?'
My braincells which take charge of the 'curiosity area' are always so active, so i said, 'Oh, that would be great!'
3 seconds, he jumped to the bar, and made me the 'double shot latte' - my FOURTH & FIFTH coffee!!??
While he was making the 'special latte' - I was sending sms to my lunchmate... telling him that I got like 3rd, 4th, 5th coffee...
his reply was 'where is the wine?'.
Stunned for few seconds, the 'special latte' was in front.
Two different types of lattes - Mr. New Zealand then asked me to try.
OKAY - 'wine tasting' became 'coffee tasting'!
* 4.30pm - I did nothing that I originally planned to do... kept chatting there... then phone rang,
and I spent like another 15 or 20mins chatting over the phone about a potential project to kick off later in May/ June.
After phone call, Mr. New Zealand has left.
I finished the 'special latte' finally, and I saw the South China Morning Post there,
I picked that up, flipped quickly to the horoscope page - CAPRICORN: "By next week's new moon, you could surprise yourself by what you decide to do."
* 5.15pm - My REAL meeting finally started. Partly business, partly personal sharing.
Ended up, I was asked why I like wine & travel so much.
HUH - I couldn't count how many times I have come across such question.
Everytime when I answered, I felt so grateful & happy that I am on the track putting together my interest/ hobby & my work/ living.
Frankly, no matter utlimately whether my 'vision' or 'dream' could be made true or not - and for sure, there is some kind of hardship out there on the path,
I still believe that I am living a life which is so wonderful and beautiful.
* 8pm - I was hungry. BUT, the bookstore next to the cinema there would be under renovation soon - discount there.
Too hard to resist this kind of temptation, so I spent another almost like 20 minutes there reading...
Lucky, nothing got me interested. Empty-handed out from the bookstore!
* 8.30pm - Hunger made me realize that I got to eat something. No more (window) shopping - so there, thinking what to eat..
I decided to cook tonight. So I bought the mushroom - small brown ones and some button mushroom...
Holding the brown paper bag of mushroom - I was finally on the way home after the LONG day!
Chilling there... wind on my face... nice harbour view...
However, I thought of the harbourview in New York City, the tall buildings of Manhattan,
I had the imagination of Sydney Opera House - that's another harbourview.
I thought of the Adriatic Sea, where I was watching the sunset over a glass of Croatian white wine...
* 9pm - Finally HOME. Couldn't work on anything... really...
Then I realized there's still some pasta in the fridge...
I just re-heated that, and finished that up. Got the 'keep-the-doctor-away' APPLE, ate it...
Finished my emails... facebook-ed a while..
Jotted down the notes about the meetings/ phone conversations I had...
Shower... washed clothes...
Spoke to my friend about welcoming her & my backpack... 12am*
***
After the long day - tired, but still with excitement.. and some thoughts to share:-
we'd better be thankful all the time, not to take things for granted,
and stay with the simplest belief that - everyone were born 'equal', we came here, living here, then eventually one day, we would move on to 'another world' for living,
Let it go, let it be - if anything seems like going wrong.
BUT while we are living here, we are all DIFFERENT individuals.
Everyone got their talent, and own interpretation of 'self', 'life', 'value'... etc. - how you want to live your life is ultimately your own choice.
Whether you choose to stick to your past, not to look ahead;
whether you choose to love the life you live, or live the life you love;
whether you choose to believe in your talent, and go out to create your own opportunities in order to make the way out to realize your dream,
or believe that your talent is not really fitting in the opportunities available and sit there thinking where to find the opportunities...
After all, it's all up to you - you live your life, you take hold of that, and you are responsible for that.
If you would say 'I have no choice, but xxxx' - that's actually your choice not to consider anything else at all. Fine.
Yet, once you go out to have a look, be open-minded without too much your ego, you'll see there are choices.
Back to the question why I like wine & travel. I made clear answer,
I like wines, because over the wines, I made wonderful friends, and I got to know people from all around;
and the subject of wines could keep me on the go all my life - both academic pursue & practical enjoyment!
I like travel, because that made me realize the difference in culture, and the understanding of 'somebody' I don't know - or even not speaking the same language at all,
but we could somehow communicate.
During my days away from my 'comfort zone' - I learnt truly a word - 'RESPECT'.
I don't speak French, no Italian, no Spanish, no Czech, no German...
but sometimes, just a smile, a nod, a handshake - could be meaningful - it gives all you met the 'respect' that everyone deserves.
Probably it's out of this 'respect', trust could be built and true friends were made.
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