Memoirs of Shanghai

It's only been 6 days since I left Shanghai and I'm already feeling the after-effects. Last Friday, I was so excited to go home but I think now...I can say I am officially missing Shanghai.
Here are some of my cherished moments in Shanghai:

1. Looking for Starbucks - Because of my caffeine-addiction & limited Mandarin, I ended up demonstrating that I want to buy "hot coffee" because they cannot understand my English question - "Where is Starbucks?"

2. DVD nights - We have our very own DVD "suki" in Shanghai! And the best thing is that the DVD guy knows the specific movie genre we like. He even suggested to me the movie "The Sisterhood of Traveling Pants"! And who can ever forget the questions we always ask the DVD guy --- "Is there Eng-won (English) translation?" or "Is this clear -- DVD9?"

3. Ascott Breakfast - Free breakfast...free music --- all-time hits of Britney Spears, Michael Learns to Rock, & Backstreet Boys. This got us to think -- what would be the perfect music you want to listen to when you eat breakfast?!

4. Xiao Long Bao - the most famous Shanghainese delicacy which should be pronounced according to Cathy's tone --- xiao (normal tone) long (low tone) bao (high tone).

5. Take Me To Your Heart - the infamous Michael Learns To Rock single that is heard all over Shanghai --- supermarkets, shopping malls, ringback tunes, videokes, mp3s, F1, etc.

6. Weekend Brunches - weekends will never be complete without our satisfying brunches --- Element Fresh, Westin, Azul, Crystal Jade, M on the Bund, New Heights, Mesa, etc.

7. The so-called ABC (American-born-Chinese) - one of life's little surprises.

8. Photo shoots with V (Victory) sign - Have you ever wondered why almost every person in China puts up the V sign whenever they have their pictures taken?! According to them, the V sign is for victory. My colleague taught these Shanghainese that they can also do it the Filipino-way using W (for wagi). Check these out...

9. Welcome to take my taxi - Thanks to Ann for teaching me the Mandarin terms for left turn (zou chwan), right turn (you chwan), straight (ichi zou), receipt (fa piao), and of course thank you (xie xie).

10. Last but not the least....How could I ever forget my fractured-wrist-experience in Shanghai?! This was the highlight of my China stay! I will forever remember this because of the 6 pin scars or should I say dots (because they look like mosquito bites which will never go away) on my left wrist. I am thinking of having a tattoo to cover the scars...

I don't think I can say tai tien (good bye) to Shanghai...