nykeiko plays: I was pretty festive for Christmas...PROOF!

Here's proof on HOW festive I was! Continue reading...

nykeiko eats: Hawaiian poke and donuts for the birthday boy

Hiiii 

I have been totally MiA but it IS the holidays and I am busy consuming lots of food, sweets and doing Christmasy things (which I rarely did before except write Christmas cards maybe) these past few days. Just not enough time spent in front of my computer except at work. 

Well three days before Christmas, it was Dave's birthday and I did buy him some thoughtful gifts (which he thoughtfully returned because he insists he does not want more stuff. The total opposite of me) but my main gift to him was to make him a delicious dinner that I know (and hoped) he would enjoy. 

nykeiko eats: Sushi Yasuda [NYC]

If you Google "Best sushi in NYC". What do you see pop up? There will be many 'Best Sushi in NYC' lists and Sushi Yasuda can be found on most of them.

Sushi Yasuda serves straight up sushi and sashimi with a no fuss menu. I recommend this place for sushi lovers and for special occasions (as it will definitely put a dent in your wallet.) We celebrated our five year anniversary (of our first kiss! Not marriage.)

nykeiko shops: One of those... [AllKnitwear, Of A Kind]

These are one of those hats where people would ask...hey, where did ya get that? So funky cool. I don't know if it's for me but I love the patterns. This one is from Of A Kind. Get it before they sell out forever!

nykeiko shops: Joie, Equipment & Current/Elliott sample sale [December 2014 NYC Sample Sale]

See my review about the sale here on Racked NY.

Joie raccoon sweater $60

I came out empty handed just because I've already purchased a few items I still wear from previous sales. But sometimes it's good to wait for the markdowns. On the last day of the sale last time, those Current/Elliott jeans were as low as $25 a pop which I totally took advantage. Dave even picked himself up a pair (which he hasn't worn yet). Too skinny says his parents! But who listens to their parents anyway (I do!..sometimes).

nykeiko plays: The North Face Speaker Series- Alex Honnold and Cedar Wright in Sufferfest2 [NYC]

If you don't know who Alex Honnold is, watch this and this. He is one of my husband's idol and I have never seen him so excited about meeting anyone before. Alex Honnold is definitely a celebrity in our books even though he's not known by many people (but definitely a superstar in the climbing community.) Not that I'm a climbing fanatic or anything but I just know who the awesome people are out there. I've had my share of blind stares when I talk about this guy. Keep reading to see pictures of me holding his hands ...

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #32: Perito Moreno glacier, Argentina

Hiking the Perito Moreno Glacier

If I had a bucket list, then hiking a glacier would be on it and then I could cross it off!

Another TBT of the glacier here.

nykeiko shops: Peek inside Alexander Wang's sample sale + price lists [December 2014 NYC Sample Sale]

Alexander Wang 'Parental Advisory' sweater on sale for $400

A peek inside Alexander Wang's sample sale. I got myself two bras from the clearance racks ($10) which are the same ones I got from the last sample sale. One for me and one for my sister who told me if I ever come across them again, to get her more. At $10, I didn't hesitate although I only found one small bra and most were extra small or large.

The crowd at the VIP event was relentless and the go-to section is where the bags are at. Just like always. A rainbow of bright colored Rocco bags line the table and lots of evening clutches were being picked up quickly. I don't really like the Roccos but the lilac bags with rose gold hardware were not too bad. Small leather goods start at $75, $150 for clutches, $250 for small bags, $300 for medium and $350 for large bags.

To take a look at what else was offered and price lists, keep reading!

Anniversary!

Modern Romance: Dave gave me this scratchie card revealing a smoochie emoticon (Someone needs a manicure...)

Dave and I just celebrated the five year anniversary of our first smooch. So today, it's 5 years + 1 day.
We had a sweet date on Saturday. It was dinner at Sushi Yasuda followed by a movie.

By the way, this was our first movie in a movie theater this year. Being able to stream movies at home has rendered us (mostly me) unable to get my butt out of the house and go watch movies with a bunch of strangers in a dark room. Our comfy couch, popping my own delicious popcorn and snuggling in our PJs has made the option to stay at home a better one. Maybe 2015 will be better. We're also glad we got to watch Interstellar in the movie theater. Action movies are meant to be watched on a big screen. It's just so much better!

Our most recent shot together on December 2

Dave, I love you with all my heart and you're my black hole. I just can't stay away from you.

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #31: Cloud Gate, Chicago

Looks like a big drop of water!

nykeiko shops: Alexander Wang sample sale IS happening next week! [NYC]

Here's the precious piece of info I got in my mailbox today!

LOCATION: 151 Wooster Street (between W. Houston and Prince Street)

PUBLIC HOURS: Tuesday, December 9 – Saturday, December 13

Tuesday, Dec 9                                  9AM-8PM       Public

Wednesday, Dec 10                           9AM-8PM       Public

Thursday, Dec 11                               9AM-8PM       Public

Friday, Dec 12                                    9AM-8PM       Public                                    

Saturday, Dec 13                                9AM-8PM       Public

AVAILABLE COLLECTIONS

WOMEN’S RTW – Fall 2010 through Spring 2014

MEN’S RTW – Fall 2012 and Fall 2013

HANDBAGS – Fall 2010 through Spring 2014

SLG – Fall 2012 and Spring 2014

WOMEN’S FOOTWEAR – Fall 2010 through Spring 2014

MEN’S FOOTWEAR – Fall 2013 and Spring 2014

WOMEN’S T BY ALEXANDER WANG – Fall 2010 through Spring 2014

MEN’S T BY ALEXANDER WANG – Spring 2014

PRICE REDUCTIONS 

RTW (Mens / Womens) – up to 75%

T BY ALEXANDER WANG (Mens / Womens) – up to 75%

HANDBAGS – up to 65%

FOOTWEAR – up to 75%

nykeiko plays and eats: Where Brooklynites play and eat - BERG'N and Brooklyn Flea [Brooklyn, NYC]

There's a new beer hall in town and it's attracting all the cool cats in Brooklyn!

Berg'n is brought to you by the same people behind the widely popular Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg. First thing that stood out about the beer hall was not the amazing venue nor the insane amount of people drinking on a Saturday afternoon, or the copious amount of craft beer flowing from a beautiful antique bar but, it was the sight of all the young hip parents hanging out and drinking with their babies/children in tow! Why? It gave me hope that having kids one day might not be the end of my social life or coolness (wait, I have to be cool first).

Berg'n is a true adult playground and I love it! Of course, you can't have beer without some food. Smorgasburg staples such as Asia Dog, Mighty Quinn, Pizza Moto and Ramen Burger are permanent fixtures and serving their most popular plates. If you haven't tried the famous Ramen Burger yet, here's the place to try it without the hour-long queue you must endure at Smorgasburg. That day, we went in with a full belly so I have yet to try Ramen Burger (I hear mixed reviews..)!

nykeiko travels and eats: Weekend getaway not too far away in Hackettstown NJ

Our Thanksgiving plans extended to an impromptu weekend getaway with three other couples to Hackettstown, New Jersey. My friend's cousin was generous enough to loan us her house for the weekend. We drank, we ate, we "hiked".  Quick and perfect. When we got back home on Sunday evening, we went straight to Laurie's apartment (with our travel bags and all) to taste some of her Thanksgiving leftovers which we missed out on since we had other plans last Thursday. It satisfied our hunger and we were SO THANKFUL!!!

I've known this girl for almost 25 years ...

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #30: Purple Cloud Temple, Wudang Mountains, China

On set shooting a documentary called "The Way of Tai Chi" ...

When you're thankful, you're happy!

I'm thankful for my close family (papa, mama and both sisters) still being on this planet with me today, despite living in different parts of the World. I'm thankful I got to visit my parents in Taiwan last month and I'm thankful I got to touch base with most of my friends in Montreal this past month. I'm thankful for my life in New York. I'm thankful that I can eat good food. I'm thankful I can't overdrink and save a lot of money on alcohol when I go out. I'm thankful all my socks match. I'm thankful that I have so many things to be thankful for that I can't fathom finishing this list right now.

But I can't go without mentioning this...I'm thankful for my husband every day (awww). He's my family now.

Happy Thanksgiving!

At Marche Jean Talon in Montreal

nykeiko shops: Veronica Beard sample sale [November 2014 NYC Sample Sale]

Totally diggin' these Veronica Beard sample pants ($65)

I was asked last minute last night to cover the Veronica Beard sample sale early this morning. Here's my review for RackedNY. I never really shopped this brand before and didn't know what to expect. I blindly agreed to cover it since I told I could preview the sale at 7:30 a.m. and still make it for a 9 a.m. meeting today (Barely! Stupid train delays!) I also like what I saw on their website. Classically cool clothes for women with some sophisticated taste.

The showroom was small and it looked like a well-curated sale. I liked most of the sample pieces but prices were still a bit too high for my budget. I mean, I really liked the pants above but $65 is not cheap especially when I was able to score $30 lambskin skirts a few weeks ago at the Rebecca Taylor sample sale. I came out empty handed but the savings were steep compared to retail price so I am sure die-hard Veronica Beard fans could appreciate this.

In pictures: The American Fine Art Craft Show at the Brooklyn Museum +Killer Heels exhibition [NYC]

Vase by Leonoff Art Glass of NY

Dave and I ventured back into Brooklyn this weekend as we were invited to the American Fine Craft Show at the Brooklyn Museum. The word 'fine' intimidated me since we're not fancy people who like fancy art pieces (i.e. expensive) in the house but the word craft is what got my attention. I was looking forward to seeing the craft but especially about meeting the talented artists and designers at the show. Almost all the artists were on hand and it was a pleasure chatting with a few that were present. Of course I couldn't meet them all nor love all of their creations (some of the clothes were just too wacky for me and some of the jewelry were not fit for my age no matter how much I tried) but for the pieces that I did love, I took pictures to share on the blog.

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #29: Torres Del Paine, Chile

Walking towards Glacier Grey...

nykeiko eats: Aquatic Addiction Development [Taipei, Taiwan]

If you are craving some nigiri and sashimi then keep scrolling down. My pictures are making me all drooly inside my mouth (not sure why I had to specify that. Where else can i drool?) I crave sushi all the time. Except maybe right after finishing a big sushi meal. And maybe for a couple days after a meal like we had from Aquatic Addiction Development. 

All those snow crabs...

nykeiko travels and eats: A trip to Montreal does my body good...

A trip to Montreal does my body good (Or bad? Because the result of eating large poutines, cakes, multiple bagels, popping cheese curds straight up ...) We drove up with a couple of friends (another couple!) and met up with a friend who flew in from Boston and spent a long weekend in Montreal. We spent 4 days and 3 nights in a super large house in the heart of the Plateau that Dave found for a super good deal. It was $200 per night for the entire house which has four bedrooms, two full bathrooms, two living rooms, a solarium, garden, huge kitchen- basically two houses that merged into one big unit. I very much enjoyed going up and down the stairs.

Our first meal was at Maison Publique. Always a pleasure for a tasty homey meal. Since it's the first time to Montreal for two of our friends, we did some sightseeing. Top of Mont Royal was one stop and Old Montreal was another. We then visited Fairmount Bagel,  St-Viateur bagel (and a St-Viateur Bagel et Café), Poutine La Banquise, Schwartz's deli, Café Olimpico, Marché Jean-Talon...and other well-established foodie haven. Eating was on our itinerary for sure...

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #28: Kauai, Hawaii

Overlooking Kalalau trail

Our Kauai travelogue. Click here.

nykeiko shops: Lafayette 148 New York warehouse sale [November 2014 NYC Sample Sale]

Something new I picked out at the Lafayette 148 New York warehouse sale which starts tomorrow at 9.a.m. at 148 Lafayette Street, 2nd floor. Two days only!

 I was delighted to be invited to preview the sale and shop! My first reaction? Overwhelmed but in a good way. There are racks upon racks of clothes. Styles were organized by style and color. Looking for something red or blue? Just scan the room and go. It is after all, a warehouse sale and you'll find samples and tons of pieces from past as well as current collections. 

Keep reading to see my haul..

nykeiko shops: Rebecca Taylor sample sale #haul [November 2014 NYC Sample Sale]

this Rebecca Taylor sample dress. $75.

At last year's Rebecca Taylor sample sale, I scored these. So, when I got the VIP event for the sale this year, I was eagerly looking forward to shop it. Here's my review on Racked NY.

I was emphasizing on the samples section because that's where I spent most of my time. I got this dark blue (moss?) color lambskin skirt for $22.50 (with the additional 25% we receive on VIP night), a tweed leather jacket that can be a closet staple if I gave it a chance ($56.25) and a cute white knit top for $22.50. The top is actually my favorite piece. It's really girly (for me) which is what is lacking in my closet.

Pictures after jump..

nykeiko plays: A week in pics...

Here are some pictures from my iPhone and stuff I already shared on my instagram.

As we walked around Harlem and Williamsburg last weekend and Dave blurted out "I love this city" out of nowhere, I couldn't help but feel the same way about New York. We love this city. This city is truly great and for Dave (born and bred in the city) to keep feeling the same way about his city after so long makes me truly happy that I've decided to make it my home as well.

Last week was a busy one for me. Covering the Alexander Wang for H&M launch, three Vixen Workout classes in a week (one with no other than founder Janet Jones) and deciding to see Alex Winston play at a popup shop in Soho, I made no excuse to stay home (I'm kind of lazy sometimes).  

I also started walking to work or should I say, walking towards work while waiting for the bus to pass but is always late so I end up walking to work anyway. Never having walked to work before, I discover beautiful buildings and different facades of Harlem. Now that my jet lag is totally gone, I don't know if I'll be waking up early enough to do this more often (takes about 45 minutes to walk to work) but I'm glad to know that it's totally do-able to walk 40 blocks and loving every moment (Well, the crispy Autumn air helps a lot. Not sure about loving winter freezer weather or sweltering hot summer days...)

Beautiful church on a cloudy morning

nykeiko plays: We went to the MoMa the other day...[NYC]

...and Dave came home, downloaded Sim City 2000 and played for hoursssss (the number of 's' I write, the more hours he played which was more than 5+ hours).  He might have skipped dinner. There was an exhibit called 'A Collection of Ideas' featuring inventions from the last few decades and Sim City 2000 was on display. That gave Dave an itch to play the game and he took care of that itch right away probably forgetting about everything else we saw at the MoMa that day.

We haven't been back to the MoMa since May of last year when we checked out The Rain Room. Dave was able to get corporate tickets for the Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs exhibit which is still on display now. We didn't enjoy it very much but very much enjoyed Robert Gober's 'The Heart is Not A Metaphor'. It was super unique and awesome. Totally recommend it for something weird. Definitely not one for the kids unless your kids like some nudity.

More pics after the jump...

Aziz Ansari - Modern Romancing New York peeps... [NYC]

Just before heading to the airport for Taiwan last month, we went to see Aziz Ansari live on tour (for Modern Romance) and this was his first show ever at Madison Square Garden. Here are some pictures I forgot to post! Hoping Aziz will find these when he Googles himself one day!

At the beginning of the show, as he has done so in the past, he lets people take pictures of him so that the audience is not tempted to take pictures in the middle of the show and distract others. He poses in front of different pictures and hundreds of flashes go off...

More pictures and video after the jump...

nykeiko shops: The Alexander Wang for H&M collab [What went down and my haul]

Alexander Wang for H&M keychain

This morning, I got up at around 5:40 a.m. to leave the door by 6 a.m. With a bit of jetlag left in me, daylight saving and urgency to pee, 5:40 a.m. was not as bad as I thought it would be. Dave does not support my shopping but he came out with me. Not to wait in line though. He insisted on coming out with me so that I would be safe leaving the door in the dark (aw!). It also makes him look really good showing up at work so early in the morning :) I got to H&M (on 86th street) at around 6:40 a.m. and was ready to report for Racked. Here's my line blog bit. The wait compared to last year's Isabel Marant wait, was a piece of cake (actually, last year I actually got a piece of cake!) The rain had today was tolerable. Windy freezing temperature is not. A little before 8 a.m., they started letting the first three groups of 30 inside the store. I was in the third group which is the 8:45-9:00 a.m. time slot. The next 45 minutes was enjoyable. Chatting up with new line friends about what they were going to buy and if the Wang outfit on Rihanna was hot or not.

Since I was there reporting, I might as well shop which is what I did. I finished shopping a bit before 9 a.m., tried on some of the clothes I snatched up like; the strappy yellow sports top (small around the torso, loose where my fake boobs are not present) and the strappy fitted dress (couldn't even pull it pass by hip). I left those behind and checked out with the boxing gloves keychain ($12.95), a water bottle ($12.95) maybe for someone's holiday gift?; a sports bra medium support ($39.95) for a friend in Montreal (She was in line early in the morning too for launch in Montreal but there's only one H&M in the whole city that stocked the collection and hundreds of people already lined up. I offered to pick up her top item because the chance of me getting it was higher.) and the gray cropped scuba sweater ($59.95) that looked ridiculous on me but since it's a highly-coveted item, I snatched it up. It's better to grab it then to regret later. So in all, I basically got nothing worthy! I didn't even miss work for this and actually got to work before most of my coworkers. Win!

More pics after the jump...

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #27: Viva Las Vegas, 2010

This was the first of two trips we took to Vegas when we got an 'All You Can Jet' Jet blue pass (unlimited flights for one whole month). We had forgotten our camera at home for this particular trip and we were bummed because I of course, absolutely wanted to take a nice picture of the infamous Vegas sign. Luckily, the taxi driver that took us from the airport to the hotel let us use his digital camera and even took multiple pictures of us to get this shot of us. I downloaded the pictures from his camera onto my laptop before we arrived to our hotel. Don't remember if we gave him a big tip but he sure deserved one!

In pictures: Cheering on at the New York City Marathon 2014 [NYC]

This would be the first time we made an effort to go out and cheer on the runners of the New York marathon since moving to New York. I'm not going to lie. I didn't think I'd give a darn about watching a marathon. I've seen enough pictures of Facebook friends running marathons that I thought I would be just as uninterested in watching the thing live as I am looking at pictures of runners in their bright tight outfits. But, it's the New York city marathon and this year, we had a couple of people to cheer for. Our avid marathon runner friend, Kino and Desperate Housewives actress, Teri Hatcher (We met the day before and I decided that we needed to support her too.) A guy from our building was also running the marathon and had the support of our building's community. It was great to see everyone out there. This year, the course cut right into Harlem and right down the block from our building. The Madison Avenue bridge marked mile 21 of the race. There was no excuse for us not to watch it. It was right there when we step out of our building so I'd have to blindfold myself if I really didn't want to see anything.

The weather on Sunday was beautiful albeit windy and chilly but the crowd was in high spirits and cheering non-stop. After seeing the women's leaders pass by our corner around 11 a.m. ish, I was hooked. What a high it was to see these awesome athletes running for the win. I am definitely not a runner but seeing all these runners was inspirational and those rare thoughts of "maybe one day I can too run a marathon" clouded my mind. But these came as quickly as Wilson Kipsang came and went (Winner of the men's race! Clocking in at 2hrs10mins59secs). I blame my knee and lack of discipline but blaming my left knee sounds less lazy of me.

Here are a couple of pictures I captured yesterday. My fingers were frozen from taking pictures but I didn't care. These people were running out there in the cold for hours in their skimpy outfits so I have nothing to complain about.

Top three winners of the men's race of the TCS NYC marathon 2014. Left to right: Gebre Gegremariam, Lelisa Desisa and Wilson Kipsang

Friday thoughts....Keep it real, keep it fresh...

Yawnnn 

I want to try for as long as I can, to keep my blog as imperfect as possible. There are just too many blogs out there with overly curated content ... almost too perfect. Once a blogger becomes popular, the personal touch and realism is gone; making reading them a bore. I get bored. Why do all the top fashion bloggers glee over the same brands, own the same bags or talk about the same sponsored event? Sure I would love that for myself, getting freebies here and there but that's not the reason I like to read these blogs. It's certainly not the reason why I started blogging more than 10 years ago. I have to remind myself this and only because I do get caught up in the oohs and awes of sponsored posts but then I realize, wait, this is not why I like the blogger in the first place! The Everywhereist is prime example of someone who never ever accepts sponsorships and still runs a very successful blog for just being her funny witty self. Kudos for her and every blogger like her. Now, if only I can be just as funny and witty too so that no one can notice my crappy content.

Thankful for you to visit my blog as always!

#TBT=My #ThrowbackTravels #26: Great Wall of China, Beijing, China 2005

My first trip to China. Also the first and only time I've seen part of the Great Wall of China.

nykeiko travels: A glimpse of Occupy Central seen on October 14 2014 [Hong Kong]

In Mongkok - Occupy Hong Kong

It has been exactly a month since Occupy Central began. When we decided to book a trip to Hong Kong with my parents, Occupy Central was non-existent. 

 It was right after we booked our flights and apartment in Wan Chai that the protests began churning and of course, it was too late to cancel anything (well, not without a fee). We weren't too worried about it and we were ready to back out if government issued some type of warning but that never happened. We just needed to stay away from the protest areas and everything should be fine (we had hoped). As days passed, there were waves of violence but closer to our date of departure, the number of protesters decreased and we were pretty assured that it was safe for us to travel to Hong Kong. Our only concern was, will these protests prevent us from eating yummy foods? (Nope!)

On the first day we arrived to Hong Kong, we needed to kill some time before dinner and while we were on the subway from Wan Chai to Central station,  I asked my parents if they wanted to take a peek at the protests at Admiralty subway station. That's where the root of the protests began right by the Central Government Complex. Dave assured them that the protests have died down and tourists were able to visit and at moment's notice, we hopped out of the subway train and on our way to visit the site. I reminded my parents...didn't we agree to stay away from these areas? Curiosity killed the cat. 

When we exited the station, we heard some ruckus yet it didn't stop us from moving forward. We were even more curious to see what was going on (common sense, out the window). Turns out, it was just anti-protester giving his piece of mind and a bunch of people swearing at him. It was all in cantonese. Despite it, the rest of the protest area was calm and quiet. It was a nice cool day in Hong Kong. It was actually cool the whole time we were there except on the last day contrary to the hot and humid weather we were expecting. Some people were napping, some were setting up their tents, a few were hanging out or reading and maybe studying (many of the protesters are students). There were electronic charging stations, first aid tents and a row of boxes full of donated supplies including food, water, blankets and some rubbish. What surprised me was the lack of authorities. We saw maybe a dozen policemen by the Government Complex but none inside the protest site. You know, to protect people in case shit goes down.

A woman was on a makeshift stage speaking about something which was broadcasted over loud speakers but we have no clue what she said. We applauded when everyone else did so we didn't look too out of place. Probably did not work since we were obviously tourists (My dad's big camera was a big clue.) There were many visitors on the site and signs saying "pictures are welcome but no faces to protect the students" were posted.

So here are some of the pictures we took in Central and Mong Kok (two out of six protest sites) on the same day. It was all very interesting to see. I didn't even check out Occupy Wall street in New York when it happened and here I was gallivanting Occupy Central while it's hot. That week, at night, there were some clashes with the police but we were far away and safe.

More pictures after jump...

nykeiko eats: Aziz Ansari told us to eat here...[Kam Wah Cafe, Hong Kong]

We watched Esquire Network's The Getaway which is about celebrities visiting one of their favorite cities in the world and talking about things they like to do, drink, eat, shop and more in that city. You should watch it, it's a pretty good show. It is produced by Anthony Bourdain and all. Anyway, I have never heard of this show until last month. As we were anticipating Aziz's show at Madison Square Garden (on Sept 9th), I started looking up Aziz's materials on the internet and stumbled upon his Getaway episode where he was visiting Hong Kong! What a coincidence because we were planning to go there as well!

In the show, Aziz was visiting Hong Kong for the first time so he needed some guidance from local know-it-alls but he saw plenty. I watched the show intently and took mental notes of things he ate and places he went. One of these places was Kam Wah Cafe for Buo Luo Buns (pineapple buns). Aziz and that Canadian blogger who joined him (from That Food Cray) didn't lead us astray. Those buns were so yummy as they were freshly made and served warm. Crunchy on top and fluffly on the inside, they are actually not made with pineapple, just the top looks like one. We had just eaten dinner and were pretty full so we only managed to stuff two buns down. There was also a one drink minimum per person so we all ordered a cup of milk tea (steep price at 16 hkd). The buns were only something like 6-7 hkd. Dave and I kind of still think about these buns and wish we had more. We tried buns from another cafe but it just wasn't the same.

Mmm...If we ever go back to Hong Kong, I'll make sure to stop by and maybe try it with butter!

Just me and dad...[Taiwan]

Cherishing every moment I get with my parents...even the painful ones like walking barefoot over some smooth but spiky rocks (and getting a wedgie from being too chubby to fit into my shorts).

#TBT= My #ThrowbackTravels #25: Tian Tan Buddha, Ngong Ping, Hong Kong

Tian Tan buddha 

This was seen last weekend so it counts as a TBT right?

Picture taken by my dad

nykeiko shops: Black or White. How about both? [Taiwan]

Each piece cost about $13 USD! 

I have been shopping in countless stores here in Taiwan. I have picked up several items that caught my eye and from the looks of it, I am currently into bold patterns in black and white. With a price tag between 350-390 nt (that's about $12-$13 USD) on most of these tops/dresses,  it's a no-brainer and all I have to think about is how I will style them. Most of these night market stores have a no try-on policy (on tops and dresses only) so all I can do is hold the piece up to my chest, stare at myself in the mirror and see whether I like it or not, or if it might be too small on me. All the items in the picture above have no size and so it's a one-size-fits-all type of deal. Tricky but most of the time, it works out for me.

I already wore two of the dresses (one dress became a top because it was way too short on me) in Hong Kong and tonight, I wore this top (below) which is a bit oversized but I absolutely love the pattern. I already know that it's going to be one of my favorite pieces to pair with dark skinny jeans for a casual day or night out.

I have about a week left of shopping and I'm going to try to add some color in the mix and more warm weather clothing!

nykeiko travels: A century old journey in Hong Kong

From New York to Hong Kong, from one bustling city to another, I finally crossed Hong Kong off my travel bucket list.

During our four days stay in this eclectic city, we were pretty productive and feel like I could recommend some things to do and eat (oh my god, the food!) but one thing that made it to the top of the list is a ride on Hong Kong’s tramways. They are over a century old (just turned 110 years old this year) and pretty unique in the world. They are fully operated by electricity and run exclusively with double-decker trams making them a really fun and unique ride.  Oh, and the fare is darn cheap too (30 cents USD!) What was meant to be a 5-stop ride to our destination, turned out to be a full-hour ride from east to west and back to Central.

Riding on these trams is almost like time travel as you are riding the same routes taken by the trams back in the early 1900s.

Of course, everything around it has changed so it’s just incredible that with all the new mode of transportations available, the tramways are still heavily utilized.

Here’s a video (thanks to Instagram’s Hyperlapse app) I took of my journeys on the Tram:

Thanks for stopping by xx