With only one full day in Shanghai, my parents and I sated our urge for instant gratification at a couple exceptional museums. Shanghai Urban Planning Museum (上海城市规划展示馆) We were traversing the People’s Park (人民公园)when we stumbled upon a staircase with a sign that said “Step back to Shanghai of the 1930s.“ Peering down the stairs, …
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Ancient city of Dujiangyan (都江堰)
I’m on vacation with my parents Sichuan Province, China. They love marauding for tales of the past and for delicious eats. I tag along for the surprise, and this visit to Dujiangyan definitely qualifies. We arrived from Sichuan’s main metropolis, Chengdu, via long-distance bus in less than an hour’s time. (You can actually also get …
Public Parks in Dense Urban Cores
As cities see more and more skyward growth, from highrises over single-family detached homes, the value of space also experiences astronomical escalation. Like São Paulo and Buenos Aires, China’s megacities are comprised of towers, where people live in high density. With much less private space at home, the realm of public space and community centers …
How you get there is everything
This past Saturday morning, I had to get to Plaza del Valle in Van Nuys for a Metro community event. Two journey options: one achievable in 28 minutes by car and the other, 1.5 hours by transit, and I chose the latter — and that has made all the difference. Why, Eileen, why? Manifold reasons: …
Landfill & Sewage Plant Tour
This past Saturday morning until noon, my friend Michael and I, along with about 100 others of all walks, participated in a public tour led by the Los Angeles Department of Sanitation at Puente Hills Landfill and San José Creek Water Reclamation Plant. I was very excited to attend this tour because, five years ago, …
Sequoia National Park
I needed to hit reset by way of adventure, nature, and novelty. It”s so weird that I could actually achieve that in such a short period of time! I”m spending my night at home now, typing on my laptop on the dining table, even though the morning of this very day began atop the Sierras …
Death Valley National Park
The desert is a strange place. It is where the hardiest of creatures can live and the rest just die trying. A few Saturdays ago, I bit down on a long-lived desire to visit Death Valley. I recall my elementary school days, in geography class, seeing its outstretched name over a big swath of eastern …