sincerely apologize for the lack of updates! six weeks on the road; it’s been a whirlwind. i’m sitting on the floor at pdx now waiting for our delayed flight, unbelievably exhausted but utterly grateful for my life as it is. we’re three days from going home (baltimore + philly coming up), and i can’t wait! what i’ve seen and experienced and learned this time has seriously changed my life, and i have a ton to share. :) miss you all.
summer wedding season is over for me and i am on a 6.5-week long trip to get some fresh air, inspiration, and dirty street food.
here’s where i’ll be:
8/21-28: taipei, taiwan
8/28-9/1: shanghai, china
9/1-4: chengdu, china
9/5-7: jiuzhaigou, china
9/8: xi’an, china
9/9-14: beijing, china
9/15-16: orlando, fl
9/17-18: miami, fl
9/18-21: new york, ny
9/21-23: boston, ma
9/24-26: yosemite, ca
9/27-29: austin, tx
9/30-10/2: portland, or
10/3-4: baltimore, md
10/5-6: philadelphia, pa
reachable by email in all but a few of those places, and will be updating here with photos periodically, as well as on my tumblr if you’re interested in the inane daily stuff. :)
postcards! send me your address if you’d like one, and tell me which place(s) you want one from.
a snippet of tonight’s shoot with the beautiful tana! these lovely intricate hair accessories were made by genie of petit plume. she’ll be selling her goods at unique oc this weekend, so check it out. :)
chinese new year is a special time. store owners close up shop for an entire week and hundreds of millions of people embark on the journey home that sometimes takes several days. there is nothing like it… walking out on the usually unbearably crowded streets and finding them deserted. then out of nowhere, the silence is cracked by the sound of exploding firecrackers coming from all directions. it’s absolutely surreal.
on new year’s eve, audrey and i embarked on the 9-hour train ride to zhengzhou, the capital of henan, to spend a traditional holiday with kat’s family. and what an unforgettable experience it was… you don’t know hospitality until you’ve been hosted by a chinese family. your every need is taken care of from the moment you arrive at the train station, and it is truly a fact that chinese culture is centered around the dinner table. we were essentially force-fed all kinds of delicious food and new year’s candy from the time we woke up until the time we slept. days were spent coming and going to different relatives’ homes to exchange gifts and eat, eat, eat. audrey and i were treated like family to the point where it was almost embarrassing, even having to accept gifts and hong bao from people we had just met. i was blown away by their kindness and generosity. the bond of a chinese family is truly remarkable. kat, your family is just lovely :)
morning after; the remnants of firecrackers litter the ground
making jiao zi (dumplings) is a new year’s eve tradition. here, kat’s grandma is teaching audrey and me how to wrap them properly. i loved this moment of multi-generational bonding as we sat around the table with kat’s mom and grandma :) by the end, audrey and i were dumpling wrapping machines!! we could open up our own shop, i’m not even kidding. we made hundreds.
kat’s grandma also made homemade red bean bao zi… so good.
visiting the relatives on new year’s day
kat’s little cousin was the. CUTEST. ever.
the feng family <3
up next: day trip to kaifeng and shaolin temple… a preview:
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