Old Shanghai Jazz Club

I thought I'd start sharing some of my photo captures from my China trip in July.  I have so many photos that I've been dragging my feet on sifting through all of them.  

Here's a few from a really cool jazz club Henry took me to one evening.  It was called JZ Club and it's supposed to embody Old Shanghai.  It was beautiful and one of my favorite experiences while I was out there.  The band was great; the female singer had the most crystal clear and beautiful voice you could hope for and there was even this Santana-esque Japanese guitar player who would really rock it.

Unfortunately, my camera skin got stolen right from under my nose while I was snapping away!

Singapore's Sands Hotel

When Alva and Crystal were here, I was super excited because it gave me a great reason to take them to the new Sands Hotel.  It's this surreal looking hotel that has this giant boat/surfboard sitting on top of three sleek buildings.  It looks photoshopped into the scenery, really.

(Photo not by me)

It was built by the same Sands in Las Vegas and is apparently the world's most expensive casino (another "World's Most/Greatest/etc." for Singapore to add to its list*).  

It's pretty cool, seriously, and it finally opened up to the public in the past few weeks.  It costs $20 to go up to the top, but for a one time thing, I guess it's worth it just to say I've gone...so here's what my $20 got me a view of:

The Esplanade are those two shiny, spikey looking mounds in the upper right.  We also call them "The Durians."

Overlooking the ships and sea...lots of construction always going on in Singapore.

The incredible view from the infinity pool (that is only allowed for guests).  The photo doesn't do it justice; it really is a sight to behold!

The walkway between the Skypark and the Pool Area.

Nighttime view.  I really wonder what they are building down there?!  That blossom-looking thing...

All the tourists...

The Singapore Flyer is that giant, massive ferris wheel on the left.  It takes probably an hour to make one full circle.  They advertise it as a sort of location to throw birthdays and proposals...that sort of thing.

Welcome to the family of Singapore Sights, Sands!

Duck Face (OFFICIAL Support GAMBLE edition)(with lyrics)

I thought this was really funny...and catchy! I kept wondering what a duck face was...apparently I do this face as well...how did it start?! No idea.

I LOL

HAHA!  This vertical made me laugh out loud and I'm still chuckling to myself.  Stuff like this is what makes me miss bits of Tumblr...much easier to "repost"...maybe I will keep Tumblr around for this sort of thing.  Ah, can't we have the best of both worlds??

Sentosa Weekend

This past weekend has been a great highlight for me…a couple visiting friends made it memorable and I’m sad that the girls are already gone!

I also visited Sentosa (the commercialized island resort of Singapore), finally, and wish I could have stayed longer!  It’s quite an ordeal to get there if you’re not taking taxi…but it’s a worth-while change from the usual city.  Despite the coarse sand and my reluctance to go into those import/export waters, it was still wonderful to walk on a beach, see people playing volleyball and lay out with a few girl friends.  As with many things, it looked even better at night.  Many of the bars have pools, so you dont have to go into the ocean if you want to cool off, which is a nice touch, I think.

I actually went to the new KM8, which was a fun beach bar I used to go to when I was studying abroad 4 years ago.  It’s now been completely redone and renamed as Tanjong Beach Club.  It’s beautiful, but definitely lost its old charm as being that low-key, fun, party beach bar.