From JFK to Shanghai-Pudong

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Luckily, the subway ride from work to the airport is direct – an A express train from Manhattan to Queens is a surprisingly fast ride.  I find two open seats tucked away in an unwanted corner and quickly shove my suitcase in the space slightly too small for adult-sized legs and sit down before the train jerks into motion.

I arrive well before the appointed time to meet at the China Eastern airline counter.  A bevy of beauties in plum-hued, velvet track suits are waiting together for the rest of the contestants to arrive from Flushing.  We are wholly in the way of other passengers, so we try to adjust our formation with no luck.  Once the rest arrive, we start checking in one by one.  Checked baggage must be taken to the separate baggage security checkpoint to be x-rayed and, hopefully, placed in the correct cargo hold.  The girls are between the ages of 17 and 25, all wearing over-sized sunglasses and probably overheating in the velvet track suits.  Once we’re all checked in, we make our way to gate security.  After one or two incidents with inexperienced flyers and short-fused TSA agents, everyone safely gets through security, and we make our way to the gate not too far away.

Finding a seating area for 27 people was no easy feat, but we found a space at an inactive gate to all sit together.  I slowly introduce myself to some of the contestants and chaperones, warning them that I would be taking photos and writing about the experience throughout the trip.  I fill my empty water bottle at the nearby water fountain and start unpacking the remainders of my Korean-Japanese fusion bento box from Soma by Nature.  Passersby ask me where I acquired my food and mention that they didn’t realize that they were allowed to bring food through security.  Food is fine as it is normally in a solid state.  It is the beverages where TSA gets you.  Surprisingly, I was allowed to bring my empty water bottle through security.  Some of the others were not so lucky, which is more of what I expected.

After taking off almost an hour and a half after the posted time, I get a chance to break out my laptop and listen to music.  I start typing up a few paragraphs for this blog post and get accused of being a workaholic.  Is it work when you enjoy writing and documenting about your food and travel?  Well, if it is considered work, then sure, I’m totally a workaholic.  This will be my first time in the Mainland.  My 13-15 hour flights always end in Taipei or Kuala Lumpur.  This time, I will be arriving in Shanghai.  If the pilot can make up the time lost on the ground, I just might be able to meet up with college friends after settling into the hotel.

The flight attendant wheels the drink cart down the aisle.  I ask for ginger ale, and my request is met with a blank stare and a blurt of “gin and tonic” in the form of a question.  My traveling companions suggest I just ask for a 7-Up, which I do.  The Chinese flight attendants had never heard of ginger ale.  The girl across the aisle tells me that there is no ginger ale in China, and that the flight attendants probably only spend a few hours in New York sleeping in a hotel room and are marched back to the terminal on a flight home to China with very little exposure to American culture.  Though I do not find it out of the realm of possibility, for a culture that uses a lot of ginger in their cooking, not having even heard of ginger ale was still a bit surprising.  What else have Mainlanders not experienced?  Are they kept in the dark about cream soda and root beer as well?  I have traveled all over the Northern Hemisphere, and yet, this is the first time I’ve met a plane full of flight attendants who haven’t heard, seen, or had ginger ale.  Something you don’t necessarily think about as a first world luxury, I guess.

We landed with little ceremony, a lot of delay, and some confusion. We boarded our tour bus and made our way to dinner . . . a very late dinner at 11pm. Tomorrow, we start the rest of our adventures like finding a Chinese Construction Bank so I can get some cash and buying a SIM card so that I don’t pass out next time I see my mobile bill. There isn’t free internet in the rooms, so everyone has been braving the relentless mosquitoes for a bit of free wifi. It’s 2AM, so it’s time to head to bed.

Just glad to not be on a plane or bus anymore

The 10th Anniversary Celebration of the Miss NY Chinese Beauty Pageant

Friday, June 24, 2011

This is the first installment about my whirlwind tour with the Miss NY Chinese Beauty Pageant.  I’m kicking my blog off with a grand party.

Swag bags and smiles

Entering the newly opened Grand Restaurant on the top floor of the New World Mall, the space truly exemplifies the name.  What seems to be a football field-sized restaurant, the opulence almost requires sunglasses.  The doorway to the special dining room is decorated with a monochromatic balloon arch of a few different shades of violet.  Staff from La Peau Day Spa and Beauty Salon quickly check you in and hand you a shiny, gold-boxed gift.  When I am seated, I watch one lone violinist still practicing on stage while everyone else is buzzing around her.  I sit and listen to the practice as well as soak in all of the energy around me.

Dinner was full of laughs

I run into Everlyn Ho, artistic director of La Peau.  She is outfitted in an elegant, black silk dress modestly accented with lace and a train to boot.  This event also happens to be the 5^th anniversary of La Peau as well. She is on the board for the beauty pageant and rightfully so even though she was being pulled in a million different directions, she remained composed and took time to chat and compliment new arrivals. It seemed like she was able to be in several places at once with staff asking her questions, sponsors wanting to chat, and press wanting photos.

I am seated with the rest of the press who had been invited to cover the event. My colleagues are tasked with taking photos and selling ad space while I get to enjoy the food and just observe. Fourteen beauties take part in the 2011 competition.

Introducing the 2011 Miss NY Chinese Pageant Finalists

All fourteen are in attendance as well as all of the winners from the previous years. Everyone is perfectly coiffed with gorgeous, body-hugging dresses and perfect appointed makeup. The evening starts far later than expected, but over the course of the evening, we see multiple courses served family style in the Chinese tradition as well as many speakers and displays of talent.

Amazing talent all around

After a tribute to previous years of the pageant and a look at the future of the pageant with an upcoming trip to China for a friendship and goodwill tour of the pageant’s sister cities, the first course of appetizers roll in. Beautifully plated, there is a variety of small things to taste such as fried shrimp balls, sesame balls stuffed with meat, nuts, and mushrooms, and many more interesting nibbles. One by one,  contestants and past winners take the stage to serenade the crowd with her favorite Mandopop tune. The second dish of large, fried shrimp in a sticky sweet coconut cream sauce and candied walnuts and pecans appear on the lazy susan in front of us. With several songs down, the interpretive dances begin to delight the audience. The third course is a stir-fried lobster dish cooked to perfection. The audience is treated to the precision of ballroom dancing middle schoolers from a local dance school. The fourth dish are thin steaks pan-fried with precision as well to a perfect medium.

Celebrating 10 years of Miss NY Chinese Beauty Pageant

A pair of tango students from the school wow the audience as we drink dragon-phoenix style soup.  How apropos!  A delicately steamed fish kissed with hot oil with fresh spring onions and ginger graces the table next.  At this point, I’m really stuffed even though I know there are still two dishes left of fried rice and stir-fried, hand-pulled noodles.  The starches are left to the end just in case someone hasn’t stuffed themselves to the point just shy of bursting.  Beyond the traditional eight course meal, there is still a dessert plate of fancy gelatin slices with dried plums, dessert soup filled with baby tapioca pearls, coconut milk, diced mango, and slices of grapefruit reminiscent of Malaysian burbur chacha, and of course, fresh slices of melon.

The night ends with more gestures of appreciation and cake – Asian style sponge cake sandwiching fresh fruit cocktail and a whipped pastry cream.  A wonderful night was had by all, and this writer even got to take home a few things to remember the evening.

Celebrating 10 Years

Next up, flying to China.