Farewell to 2008 and welcome 2009 (再见2008;你好2009)

So we are going to say good-bye to 2008 and welcome 2009. My life has changed a lot during the year 2008. Below are some big events :

1) Quit job - leave Citibank after serving the bank for four years!
2) Obtain Japanese PR - Wow, I have been living in Japan for 10 years and Japan has become my second hometown!
3) Travel around Europe - my first time and I visited 5 schengen countries!

For many people, 2008 is a year full of turbulence and the year has seen a historic collapse in the financial market. we never know what will happen but let's do have a bright hope for 2009! :-)

VenusFort becomes a quiet town(台場维纳斯城堡的萧条)

Out for lunch with friend Gaojing at VenusFort last weekend. Normally it will be full of visitors on weekends but it was so quiet - we met up around 12:30 and there are very few visitors inside VenusFort. All the resturants look empty. Wow, this isn't good but we understand people don't want to spend lots of money during the recession. Hopefully things will become better as soon as possible!

周末和朋友高晶又去了台場维纳斯城堡. 馆内和以往相比显得特别冷清. 日本经济的萧条似乎蔓延到了每个角落. 以前可以看到很多韩国和中国游客在台場维纳斯城堡疯狂购物. 可最近好像只看到日本人了. 新年就要到来. 和往年相比节日的气氛没有那么浓. 大家都在期待着经济的复苏. 希望2009年能看到一些光明! :-)

COACH BAG (COACH包)

I have been in love with brand bags recently and purchased a lovely COACH handbag through Rakuten online shopping. Online price is much cheaper than shop prices. I was a bit worried about the quality at the beginning. It was delivered to me yesterday and it looks pretty good! The wrapping is not as formal as buying in the shops but the bag itself is 100% real. COACH bags are popular in Japan due to the lovely design as well as the lower price compared with other brands like LV, Chanel, CD, Gucci, Prada and etc...Women like brands and i'm one of them. i already have LV and COACH bags and thinking of buying something else. ;-)

Cold/Sore throat (喉咙感冒了)

I have got a cold/sore throat which caused me cough a lot. I thought I would be fine if i keep drinking hot water but it didn't help at all. Having a sore throat is painful and I could not sleep well at night... so I went to see a doctor and was told that cold/sore throat is popular recently due to the cold weather. I was told to wear a mask and take the medicine. Wearing a mask is a must in Japan if you catch a cold or suffer from hay fever(花粉症) . I think this is a good habit as it is good for you and others. Thanks to the doctor's medicine and advice, I'm getting better now.

Ginza Walk (银座散步)

My friends and I went to Ginza (银座)yesterday for a tea. we were supposed to go to the Mariage Freres but gave up as it opens at 11:30AM which is late! Unlike other Tokyo areas, Ginza deparment stores normally open at 11AM. We randomly chose another place but the tea didn't taste delicious although it was expensive - Well, everything is expensive in Ginza. After a good lunch at a Spain restaurant, we shopped at Printemps. I like the fashion and accessories at Printemps and things there are relatively cheaper than other department stores such as Ginza Wako, Mitsukoshi, Matsuzakaya and etc. I didn't shop that much and bought a muffler. Thanks to my friends Gaojing and Liuling, I enjoyed the girls' talk and had a good time! Let's get together soon!:-)

NY Dow Below 7600 (道琼工业指数大跌）

Bad news continues... NY Dow has fell below 7600 and Citi stock has plunged below $5. This is really horrible. The stocks has been so cheap but still going down. The investors are getting crazy and very less confident about the stock market. We don't know how long this situation will last (maybe 6 months or even more) but hopefully it will get back to normal as soon as possible.

Citi stock falls below $7 (花旗股票大跌)

Citigroup is struggling these days and its stock has fell below $7. I'm a bit worried about my portfolio in Citibank even though i believe that Citi has a strong capital, liquidity position. Recent news about Citigroup is not positive and there is a lot of criticism about the new CEO. I used to work for Citibank and i like this bank very much. Well, it will take time to get everything back to normal especially during this world financial crisis.

Japan officially in recession (日本经济开始衰落)

I watched the news yesterday and got to know that Japan is now in recession due to the strong yen and global economic slowdown. This was not unexpected. The strong yen is one of the main reasons. Japan&s benchmark Nikkei 225 index has fell dramatically during the last two months. Japanese people are now very worried about losing their jobs. Keeping the cash is now very important. I assume that there will be no big spending for the coming Christmas and New Year.

New Mobile! (新手机)

I changed my Docomo mobile phone to SoftBank yesterday. Docomo has charged me a lot of money during the last 8 yrs with no good services. SoftBank offers some attractive price plans such as White Plan (basic monthly charge 98o JPY with unlimited domestic call between SoftBank subscribers) . The design of SoftBank mobile is stylish and I bought a lovely pink one this time. Apart from domestic calls/emails, I also subscribed the service for international call as well as international mails. In Japan, a mobile phone ('Keitai' in Japanese) has many functions and services, i spent almost one day yesterday to read all the information to understand how to use it correctly and effeciently. It will take me a while to get used to this handset but i'm so happy to change the phone. This is the third time I have changed my mobile phone since i came to Japan 10.5 years ago. :-)

SALE@JUSCO (JUSCO促销活动)

A lot of supermarkets start SALE due to YEN appreciation these days! A lot of imported goods are 30-50% off ! it's really a good thing for us. :-)

JPY Appreciation (日元升值)

Rapid JPY appreciation against most major currencies is now the hottest topic in Japan. If you take a look at the current FX market. E.g. one AUD is now worth 66 JPY . A few months ago, it was between 100 and 90JPY. Market is moving very crazily these days and JPY appreciation still continues. For money investment, it maybe a good time to buy some other currencies like AUD or EURO if you have a lot of JPY. :-)

Cosmos (秋桜)

美丽的秋桜!!

Hula Dance (夏威夷舞)

今天是三连休的最后一天. 我家对面的超市JUSCO又有一些娱乐表演活动. 今天的主题是 Hula Dance (夏威夷舞) . 夏威夷舞在日本非常流行. 老少皆爱. 这也许是因为日本人太喜欢夏威夷的缘故吧. 穿着一身夏威夷舞装. 偏偏起舞. 跳的人开心, 看的人也很舒服. :-)

日本的家

又是一个秋高气爽的三连休. 没出远门. 就在家附近的公园和老公散散步. 我们家住在东京都品川区. 周围环境不错. 家的对面就有海滨公园. 每天可以呼吸到新鲜的空气. 这几天天气真的太好了, 作为休闲娱乐的一种方式, 日本的中老年人非常喜欢钓鱼. 这一天有好多人来这里的海滨公园钓鱼. 真想加入他们. 可想一想我们对钓鱼真是一窍不通. 两人只好苦笑一番. 天很蓝海水很透明, 用手机从海滨公园的一角排下了这张比较满意的风景照. :-)

Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy (华尔街雷曼兄弟宣布申请破产)

The financial crisis is hitting Wall Street - Lehman Brothers, the fourth-largest U.S. securities house founded in 1850, announced the Chapter 11 filing last weekend.. Lehman's bankruptcy protection filing is the largest in history. Over 20000 Lehman employee lost their jobs... I'm so worry about my friends who are working in Lehman Japan. Hopefully everything works out all right for them....

浜名湖舘山寺温泉

Lovely baby! (可爱的小宝宝!)

My friend Gaojing just gave birth to a baby girl last month. and we went to visit her yesterday. Baby is so little and looks very healthy and lovely! The most difficulty thing is to put her to sleep as she cries so frequently. Gaojing has to look after her very carefully. Being a mother is not an easy job and you have to sacrifice your life for her... but it is also full of happiness having kids around you. A family with kids is complete and i want to have a baby as well as soon as possible.

The Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games (残奥会开幕式)

昨天是北京2008年残奥会开幕式. 和奥运会开幕式一样, 整个开幕式充盈温暖与感动. 在所有的表演当中, 最吸引我的就是那一项 芭蕾舞-《永不停跳的舞步》. 坐在轮椅上的那位小姑娘是因为四川大地震而失去一条腿的残疾孩子. 她真的是一个长的很漂亮的女孩子. 那一瞬间我的眼泪已经控制不住地往下流...为她好惋惜...但是她的笑容是那么的灿烂. 舞姿是那么的精彩. 她的坚强和对芭蕾舞的梦想让我感动. 做为正常人. 真的是应该更加热爱和珍惜自己的生命. 看残奥会开幕式不仅仅是为了欣赏表演的精彩, 更多的是去感受残奥会的精神. 祝愿北京残疾人奥运会取得圆满成功！

Beijing's opening ceremony (北京奥运会开幕式)

昨天是北京奥运会开幕式. 日本电视台NHK播放了现场直播. 总体感觉很好. 场面非常壮观. 璀璨焰火鸟巢完美绽放. 真的让人很激动. 张艺谋导演的风格再次在这次奥运会开幕式上得到体现. 今天正式进入奥运比赛. 希望这次中国奥运健儿能拿更多更多的金牌!! 加油!!

Tokyo Midtown (东京中城)

I went to Tokyo Midtown Medical Center for a full medical check-up today. After that I took a walk around the Midtown. Same as Akasaka Sacas, Tokyo Midtown provides a variety of facilities such as restaurants, offices, hotels and museums, surrounded by greenery. I had lunch there - food was expensive but not delicious...Anyway it is good to explore some new things.

2008 Beijing Olympic Games (2008北京奥运)

We stopped by Beijing for a couple of days during the trip to Europe. It has been over 10 yrs since I visited Beijing last time. Great changes have taken place during the last decade and it is so good to see the changes. Beijing is now ready for the Olympic Games. The National Stadium (the Bird's Nest) looks pretty awesome. It will host the opening/closing ceremonies of the Olympics and will be the venue for all athletics. August 8th is coming soon and we pray for a successful 2008 Beijing Olympics Games!!!

Trip to Europe (欧洲之行)

We made a long trip to Europe this July and visited five schengen countries. Europe is very far from Japan and it took us about 12 hrs to get there by air. France is the first schengen country we entered. We did the Paris sightseeing and then joined a local tour arranged by a Chinese travel agency called MANDARIN VOYAGES. The trip was a very good one with nice services - only cost 248 Euro per one person! Of all these five schengen countries, we had a better impression on Germany - a very sophisticated country just like Japan.We were shocked by the high prices in Paris. Everything including eating, living and shopping is huge expensive.

七月我们度假去了一趟欧洲. 对欧洲总体印象不错. 我们先到巴黎呆了两天然后参加了荷比卢德法四日风情之旅. 参观了以下城市- 布鲁塞尔 － 海牙 － 阿姆斯特丹 － 科隆 － 波恩 － 特里尔 － 卢森堡.
http://www.zhuojia.com/gallery/Europe

Shibuya 109 (涉谷109)

For some personal matters, I went to Shibuya today. After lunch, I went to Shibuya 109 - a famous shopping center at Shibuya where you can see a lot of Kogal (Kogyaru?) fashion . The saleswomen dressed very pretty and sexy and always smiled at you. I spent time walking around the shops and found a lot of lovely clothing which you can buy only in Japan even though it is marked 'made in China'. I found one Hello Kitty shirt and bought it. It is designed so cute and I'm going to give it to my friend's kid. :-)

Traditional Chinese Medicine (中医)

I'm a fun of OZ Magazine and like to read its articles related to women's health. I found that Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is getting much more and more popular in Japan. A lot of Chinese medicine are being introduced and used in Japan for women's health. I'm actually taking Chinese medicine now to keep healthy. It won't help immediately but slowly and slowly you will feel the effectiveness and there is less side effect. I'm quite happy that it's now getting easier and easier to purchase TCM without going back to China.

我喜欢读日本的OZ杂志, 尤其是关于女人健康方面的文章. 我感觉中医在日本越来越受到重视和广泛应用. 对于健康保健, 中医有着举足轻重的作用. 很多人越来越意识到这一点. 我本人就经常服用中医药来保健. 虽然没有西医药效果显著但是中医药的副作用小, 对女人的身体非常适合. 一辈子不服药当然最好但是在非常难做到! 多了解一下中医对自己还是有帮助的. 我很高兴现在不回国在日本也可以买到中药.

Odaiba VenusFort (台场维纳斯城堡)

I went to Odaiba VenusFort today with my friend. I'm actually very family with this place as I have been there uncountable times - I'm living very close to Odaiba and that is why i always choose to go there for shopping and eating. Venusfort Pre Bargain started end of last month and tomorrow will be the last day! Many brand goods are on 30%-50% sale. We stopped by the Bulberry store but it doesn't offer any sales. The prices compared with Gucci,LV,Fendi and etc are cheaper. A lot of Chinese and Korean visitors are shopping there. I guess it's cheaper buying in Japan instead of in China and Korea as there is no tax included (?)

Tickets to France

Japanese Yen is getting weaker and weaker, especially against EURO. I'm also too shocked to know from the travel agency that just an air ticket from Tokyo to Paris (direct flight) now costs around 13,0000~18,0000 Yen due to the rising prices of fuel oil. The oil surcharge for the round trip to France is around 40000 Yen-/person. Ooooouch!! I also read news that the high increase in crude oil prices is affecting the travel industry not only in Japan but also in China. My husband suggest we wait for a while till the price goes down a bit. But I really want to go next month as I have been looking forward to it... Sorry, I just booked the tickets!

最近欧元升值对日元已快突破1EUR=168Yen. 现在去欧洲旅游确实不是好时机. 在加上燃油价格不断上涨. 从日本飞巴黎的机票燃油价格就要花四万日币. 前前后后单纯一张飞机票就要花十几万! 我得好好计划一下如何安排这次旅行. 希望七月初欧元对日元能降一点. 但是可能性很小...

7.0-magnitude earthquake hit Northern Japan (日本发生7.0级地震!)

A powerful earthquake hit the north of Japan's main island this morning. The epicentre was in Akita prefecture. In Tokyo, we also felt the shaking when the quake occurred but not much affected. Japan is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries and we have experienced many of minor tremors during the past 10 years. However the quake like this is quite rare. There is already a lot of rumors that there will be a big one(7.0-8.0 magnitude) in Tokyo within the next 10-20 years. Scared...

今天早上日本本州北部岩手县发生了7.0级地震. 我们在东京也感到很明显的震感. 日本是地震大国. 我们在日本呆的十年里已经经历了无数次大大小小的地震. 虽然已经习惯了但是一直生活在一个地震国家有时候是感到有一些恐怖. 很多地震专家已经预测东京在未来的十年到二十年之内会有七到八级的大地震. 真的好可怕...

Schengen Visa (欧盟签证)

I went to France Embassy Tokyo this morning to get my Schengen Visa. it took me two weeks to get it. With this visa, I can visit Schengen countries (currently 24 countries have joined) . For your reference, below are the documents that I submitted to the France Embassy. Hopefully it can be of help to your case. :-)

. Certificate of employment (in English)
. Travel itenerary which is issued by the travel agency such as JTB, HIS and etc.
. Certificate of overseas travel insurance (it can be issued by the travel agency)
. Bank account statement
. Passport
. Alien registration card
. Two color photos (35ｘ45mm)

For more details, please also visit below URL:
http://www.ambafrance-jp.org/article.php3?id_article=1160#sommaire_1

今天到法国大使馆去领取了欧盟签证. 从申请到签证批下来花了两周时间. 去欧洲旅游最好办一个欧盟签证, 这样你可以一次去很多的国家. 以下是我办签证所递交的所有材料. 仅供大家参考. :-)

. 在职证明 *英文版
. 旅行社出的旅游日程表 *英文版 (住的宾馆地址, 联系电话号码要注明)
. 海外旅游保险 *旅行社出

. 银行的存款证明
. 本人护照
. 外国人登陆证
. 彩色照片两张 (35ｘ45mm)

Red lobster for dinner last night! (品尝美味奥洲龙虾!)

As usual, I went to JUSCO to buy food yesterday. I happened to see lobster imported from Australia were on sale! One cost 1000 yen and two together only cost 1800 yen! Lobster in Japan is very expensive food. I have never had it in Japan though I had a lot when I traveled to the North America. Without any hesitation, I bought two - one for me and one for my hubby. We cooked it in a Chinese style and the lobster tasted so yummy! We were both very satisfied with the dinner last night. :-)

昨天去家附近的超市JUSCO买菜, 超市正在促销奥洲产的龙虾. 一只只要一千日元. 两只才一千八百元. 在日本龙虾是很高级的食物. 一般的日本普通老百姓是吃不起的. 我们在日本也没有吃过龙虾. 以前去北美和奥洲的时候吃过很多. 出于价钱的便宜, 我毫不犹豫得买了两只. 老公以前在加拿大生活过, 做香葱爆龙虾可是老手. 不错, 他做的味道确实很好. 真好吃!! 在北美龙虾是家常便饭, 可在日本和中国就成了有钱人的山珍海味.

Aakasaka Sacas (东京赤坂Sacas)

My friend and I went to Aakasaka Sacas for lunch today. It is a newly developped area in Akasaka. Similar to Roppongi Hills, you can eat, shop there and the TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System) is also located there. We had lunch buffet at JIM THOMPSON Table Thailand Akasaka. Food was delicious with good service. We had a walk to TBS after lunch and spent some time there watching the currently showing movies.

今天和朋友一起去了赤坂新街“akasaka Sacas”. Sacas为“樱花盛开”的日语发音. 它是一个新开发的商业城. 和六本木一样, 赤坂有很多高级俱乐部、一流的日式餐厅. 有名的TBS电视台也在此. 我们在那里吃了一顿泰国自助餐. 味道很好而且餐厅服务很周到. 午饭以后我们散步到TBS, 看了一下最近在上演的电视剧. 遗憾的是我们没有看到任何艺能人.

No Reservations (美味情縁)

Recommended by my friend, I watched the DVD 'No Reservations' today. It is about the life of a top chef acted by Catherine Zeta-Jones changes when she becomes the guardian of her young niece. Really it's a good movie! I like the phrase 'Life isn't always made to order'. I used to want to be a perfect career woman - do my job to perfection but ended up getting sick. We have to accept that life isn't getting better each day, then it's time for change! This movie is not just a love comedy but also a one full of life philosophy. Catherine Zeta-Jones is a wonderful actress and i like her movies very much. If you still haven't got a chance to watch it, have a watch. :-)

朋友推荐我看一部DVD叫'美味情縁'. 英文名叫No Reservations.看完以后感触很深. 觉得自己的性格太像电影里的主人公KATE. 无论在工作还是在生活上对自己要求很高/是一个完美主义者. 一旦遇到挫折和不顺的时候就非常苦恼不能自拔. 人生不是一帆风顺的. 要学会改变自己. 任何时候都要对生活充满信心!!

Hakone Kowakien Yunessun (箱根小湧园森林SPA温泉乐园)

As planned, we went to the Hakone Kowakien Yunessun. We tried more than 10 different kinds of spa such as The God's Aegen Sea, Turkish Hamam, Japanese Sake Spa, Green Tea Spa, Coffee Spa, Wine Spa and etc. - Very fun!!

终于去了箱根小湧園的森林SPA温泉乐园, 它提供二十多种露天温泉, 上帝之海, 古罗马浴池, 土耳其浴池 等等. 我喜欢那里的露天温泉. 第一次体验了咖啡温泉, 緑茶温泉, 日本酒温泉, 香槟酒温泉,感觉非常不错! 大家有机会一定去试一试!

Rainy Season （梅雨）

June is upon us and I can feel the smell of early summer. However the rainy season (梅雨） is already under way in Tokyo . It's raining this whole week...

日本的初夏总是有梅雨伴随. 今年的梅雨似乎比往年又提早了一些. 绵绵细雨让人心情舒畅不起来. 我喜欢蓝天白云, 风和日丽...真想这个时候离开东京去一个阳光灿烂的地方. 是的, 应该让自己High起来!

Wedding Photos

I finally got a chance to take the wedding photos this time back to China. It took us a whole day for all the pictures including make-up. Luckily we didn't choose to go outdoors to take pictures as it was freezing cold. It was fun to have such experience at least once in your life. The ablum we ordered will be delivered to us in a month or two and I can't wait to see it!

一晃结婚已快两年了, 一直没有机会拍结婚照, 这次回国休假总算抽出时间去拍了一套婚纱照। 前前后后忙了一整天累得快不行了!

2008新年快乐!

Happy New Year! I didn't post anything in 2007 and it is aleady 2008! To be honest, I didn't have much time and effort to write during last year। Work and many other things kept me pretty busy...2007 was a year without changes and I have been looking forward to a big change in 2008!

新年快乐! 因为工作的繁忙2007年我没有更新我的博客। 2008年对我来说是一个很关键的一年। 我的工作和生活将有一个很大的变化। 我期待的这一切的到来!! 努力加油!!