merry xmas Rare mare....

The other day at Target, Nester bought Rarre this lion head for christmas
Smita bought Rarrre a present too.....her first litter box!!! We want to try it out. Can she move into an apartment with us in a couple weeks? She really is an outside kitty, although she loves lounging in the house for hours...sometimes she will be sitting by the door wanting to go out. NO! Mare mare, you stay here! We wont be able to let her out whenever she wants unless we get a leash....she would be easy to train im sure!

Smita filled the box with litter, and picked Rarrre up to "show her" It was so funny, no sooner did her paws touch the litter..she started digging in it...and BAM!! took a shit right there on the spot!! Well, there ya are....shes potty trained!! Next, we may train her to go IN the toilet.

Rarre, you are such a good kitty!! You little mare mare!Neto bought me this parrot for xmas. I have been wanting another parrot ever since Loquito died...pobre sito Loquito! Since we dont know where we will be living, it really isnt a good idea to get one now...right? Anyhoo, this one is funny, actually talks and you can record things too. Nester Brrrian and Bill put some funny things on there....one says "hey blog ass"

When he senses movement or noise he will start talking, moves his wings. its pretty cool. Neto put him on the floor near Rarrres food hoping to start a fight, but Rarrre just rubbed against him scratching his head on his beak. aaaaaaaawwwwwwwww!

Sorry Neto, your attempt to scare my pet didnt work this time!!

Christmas in Ohio

My whole family teased me about being a BLOG ASS xmas weekend....my brother Brrrrin even blogged about me blogging on his blog

It is damn funny, I must admit! Yes, maybe I am addicted.....But It's so fun!

We flew up to Ohio a few days before xmas just to hang out, it was perfect! Sunday we were at Bill and Barbies house for 12 hours just enjoying eachothers company. They made a delicious brunch including mimosas, and all 10 of us crowded around the table. There is NOTHING better, guaranteed fun and laughter when we are together, I am so lucky!

They got a Wii for xmas from Barbies mom and we played it all day. Bowling, tennis, boxing, and more bowling...everyone played, even my parents. Here Bill and Barbie settle their differences in a boxing match.

Here two Ohio State fans wait their turn

My mom does THE BEST christmas! She is the best mommy ever!

I love you too Dad!!! It wouldn't be the same with any other shuttle driver!

There are so many traditions, mostly with food...mushroom soup, homemade bread, lepeny, a hungarian sort of pizza with sourcream and tapioca sauce and cherries on top.......and all the decorations...snow outside (almost without fail)....the stockings hung by the chimney with care.....My mom made our stockings probably 15-20 years ago.....They are special.Now, xmas morning has been the same for years....me, Nester, Bill, Barbie and Brrrian stay at my parents house on xmas eve and the SCHAFFNERS (jenny, scott & kelli) stay at their house. They open gifts in Wooster and we wait and wait and wait for them to arrive in Canton so we can FINALLY open our gifts all together. The suspense kills me EVERY YEAR...another thing I am harrased about....they say I act like a "little kid" what?? ME?? Here, Brrrian and I await their arrival....of course he is making fun of me.....Once we do get started, it gets pretty crazy! Wrapping paper everywhere! We try to take turns so we can all see who got what....it lasts a couple hours!I got some exciting gifts this year. I love this turquoise sports watch that Ernesto bought me. Im really excited to tray out the Nike+ipod too. It is a pedometer you put in your shoe, and it tracks your running workouts and talks to you through your ipod. There is also a great website to download all your workouts. There are 5 million people doing it, so I think it will be very motivating......I do feel motivated because the last 2 months I haven't done ANYTHING workout wise.....that is a long time for me. I am now looking for a 1/2 marathon to sign up for in the next few months. new running clothes too...is he trying to tell me to get in shape??
Although turquoise is still my favorite color, orange is my new love. Ernesto called me when he was out shopping..."Cindylou, is orange your color now?" While I was "xmas shopping" I did go a bit crazy and bought myself an orange leather bag and gloves. Something for me, something for them. I love the shirt and crocs he chose...

Ernesto, not surprisingly got COOKING stuff. A Food Network cookbook from Scott and I started a new All-Clad pots and pans set for him. I only got him 3...they are a bit pricey...even at TjMaxx.

Brrrian was so happy whe he opened this belt buckle from Barbie....Its says TEAMSTER

I got kelli this bag in China, I thought of her when I saw it. She has also been creating beautiful jewelry and even has a website. I thought she would enjoy a Beadwork magazine subscription.This ugly-ass dog toilet paper holder has been a gag gift for years. Constantly being regifted. I think Barbie got it one year, but then took it out to Tim and Michelles house in NM and "planted it" when they were visiting....so here is was again ...

It Finally Feels like Christmas.....

Thank God our friends had a Christmas party the other night. I love to enjoy the holiday season, but we didn't even get a christmas tree this year. Ernesto was busy hanging lights and I was traveling, then we went to Cancun and now it's a few days before the big day......... If had been more organized, I would have loved to send out christmas cards to family and friends....e-cards are ok, right?Floyd and Richard have a FABULOUS christmas party every year, and we dont miss it. They had it catered with delicious food and 2 bartenders mixing anything you can think of. The house is totally decked out inside and out..... Ernesto has been doing their lights the last few years. It looks great doesn't it? Food and Friends and Family....let the festivities begin!

NEW HAIR ALERT!!!

OPINIONS??? Do I look Latina now ?? I feel Latina!!!!
Somethin' different...as my dad says

Riviera Maya with Rooooskis!

Ernesto and Roman have been friends since college. I got to know him when we all lived in Columbus. The last time that we saw him almost 5 years ago when he came to visit us just after we had bought our house. He and his girlfriend had a trip planned to Riviera Maya (just south of Cancun) and asked if we wanted to meet them there. ahhhh yes!! Neto's lights had died down since it was the week before Christmas......so he booked 3 nights for us at the same hotel as Roman and his girlfriend Tonya.

BIENVENIDOS A CANCUN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
There is this cute little bar as soon as you step outside. We had a corona while waiting for our shuttle to the hotel. Did you notice my new cute ass beach bag in the above photo?? It has little owls on it!! Once we got to the hotel I was loving all the wildlife..

LOOK AT THIS BIRD...Have you ever see a prettier one??

Que Lindo el pavo real!!
Maybe you are not as fascinated by the colors as I am...this next pic is the most amazing one. It looks so professional, verdad? The pink flamingos are so beautiful too!!

and of course, no beach paradise is complete without parrots....I bugged the shit out of these african greys everyday, and they still didnt get on my finger.....

Iberostar paraiso del mar is an all inclusive resort, and although it was beautiful, I really wouldn't recommend it, or go back. The buffet everday was good, a mix of mexican and european, which were the bulk of the guests. We were able to make reservations two nights at one of the 5 specialty restaurants, and neither one was any good.

Im not sure why, but one night we reserved a table for the Mexican restauant, where they welcomed us with tequila shots while we waited for our seats ... we had fun...my only complaint is that it wasn't a good tequila. That is one of the downsides to all-inclusive...when they are catering to a huge amount of people, it seems the quality of the food/drink goes down. The other restuarant was a Brazilian steakhouse, and that was HORRIBLE! The meat was dry as hell. I admit that I am a bit of a steak snob, but this was unacceptable! They even ruined the palmitos (hearts of palm) with mustard sauce!!! HOW DARE THEY!!! One of the days we rented a car a headed south to TULUM. The Tulum ruins are the third most-visited archaeological site in Mexico, after Teotihuacan and Chichen Itza. It is popular for the picturesque view of the Rivera Maya......We toured the ruins and then went swimming and hung out on this gorgeous beach. Before my camera battery died, I was able to take this picture.

After that, Roman took all the pics and promised to send. We took the BEST photos here..playing in the water, posing, creative shots with the ruins ......but Roman called Friday to say that they LOST THE CAMERA! UGGGGGGGGG!!!! Darn it, one of those I was planning to make the header of my blog!! Im so disappointed!!

Shanghai, Oriental City

WOW, WOW, WOW!

NANJING ROAD, SHANGHAI CHINAYou are looking at the next star of a "Shanghai Siteseer" similar to the siteseer video that Smita and I filmed in Mumbai last year. (Click here to view that and more cities that have been filmed by other Delta employees.)

God, I love traveling!! This is just craziness! I know, I know, I just got back from Asia.....why didnt I just stay there for the 3 days in between trips??....besides missing mi Neto, I HAD TO RE-PACK! It is darn chilly here! I am set to do my second "siteseer video" ......this time in Shanghai. I came with my Lonely Planet guidebook and a video camera (supplied by Delta) Things are a little more official since the we filmed the India video last year. I even had to sign some legal papers!! yada yada yada!

Unfortunately my usual "sleep the WHOLE flight" didn't happen this trip. Since the flight left at 10am from Atlanta, I was wide awake until the last 3 hours of the 14.5 hour flight to Japan (where I had to connect) Delta does not yet service Shanghai, but will start on March 30, 2008.

My first day here was just aclimating to the TIME for one, and the map of the city...this BIG ASS city! WOW! (again)
I went alone on this trip, but fortunately I did meet up with 2 fellow employees. Kai (right)works for DL in Tokyo and Mike in Atlanta. I met them the first night for dinner. They were staying at a hotel with a revolving restaurant at the top......what a great view it was!

My first adventure was to GO SHOPPING! Mike raved about a market he visited last month while here and said "YOU MUST GO!" His wife and daughter had sent him with a list 2 pages long! I decided to meet him the next morning to SHOP!!! Outside the CHI PU LO Market at 930 am and things are just getting warmed up. It may look crowded, but this is NOTHING compared to the crowd at 3pm when I came out ....Im talking CHAOS!!

The inside of the market was chaotic as well. EVERYONE was fighting for your attention....and trust me, I stuck out like a sore thumb!! But the good thing was that somehow you have people following you and they carry your bags while you shop. Mike had been there the day before and the same people were there to "take care" of him again. (ie. carry his bags and lead him to the shops witht the "best price")

They would call you into their shop and start bargaining with the little english that they knew, and they ARE persistant. The calculator is the major facilitator of shopping here. They give you a crazy price, you slash by more than half and then theywill act shocked "no money" they say. Just back and forth with the calulator. You will always get it to at least half the original price. I wonder how many people dont bargain and pay way too much? know there are a lot!! I bought quite a bit, way more than I have ever bought on a trip....I even checked a bag on the way home, which I never do! I can't say everything I bought because x-mas is around the corner, but I bought myself an Omega watch, Gucci boots, Versace blouse, and a silk robe!

These guys carried our bags and lead us from store to store

After 5 hours of power shopping and haggling.....I WAS HUNGRY! MMMMMMM....street food....there was so much to choose from...

... chili octupus on skewers? Yes...have some.....

Yuyuan Garden is a famous classical garden in Shanghai. The name means pleasing and satisfying and I would have to say that is a perfect description. I sat there for a while just watching the 5 million koi in the water, enjoying the view.

I hope one day to see it in the spring when all the flowering trees are in bloom. Even during the winter though, it was "pleasing" ....

I liked this carved dragon head that was at the top of the garden wall.

Lots and Lots of FUR!!!! I am such a sucker for anything soft and when this man on the street walked by with fox scarves and hats....I started modeling.

I didnt buy the scarf but, I did get this hat!

Going to see an acrobatic troupe in Shanghai is one of the most popular and enduring tourist attractions. I caught one at the SHANGHAI CENTER THEATRE located in the same plaza as the Portman Ritz Carlton. The show was very very entertaining. Balencing, swinging in the air, knives, and human rubberband kind of stuff.

I do believe this next pic is one of my favorites.....it came out so beautifully. This is the Pudong Skyline (new area) from The Bund (old area) The tall building with the balls is the Oriental Pearl TV Tower. It is 1,536 feet high and the 3rd tallest TV tower in the world.

I have heard many times that Shanghai is "not really China" mainly because it is such a modern, cosmopolitan city. But I definately got the feeling of being in China. Especially the day I spent exploring OLD TOWN (not to mention I stick out like a sore thumb) It is, as the name suggests, the oldest area in Shanghai, and also one of the biggest tourist atractions. Although many of the buildings are replicas to "create" old China, there are some that are over 100 years old.

This is Huxing Ting Teahouse, it has been there for 150 years and is Shanghai's most famous place to drink tea. I didn't actually drink tea there though, I was too busy filming out side.
I believe this building was a hotel but I can't be sure. I love all the gold!

One splurge I had to experience was a massge....anytime I go somewhere cheap, i like to treat myself...no it wasn't a "happy ending" as you might think when you hear of asian massages.

It was at a place called DRAGONFLY, and it was a true spa experience. Now when I say splurge, that means I spent more than I had to for a massage. Some other places I looked at were $6 and $8 for an hour to 90 minutes.....I paid $17. Worth every penny!