November is National Adoption Month and a traveler’s tale

by Jamie Rhein on

Only today and tomorrow are left in National Adoption Month. If it weren’t for traveling, perhaps I wouldn’t have a reason to notice this detail. On my first trip to Vietnam with my husband back in the mid-90’s, we met two couples who were in the process of adopting a baby. One couple was French. I can’t remember where the other couple was from.

Every day they left the hotel where we were all staying to fill out paperwork–or take care of whatever details they had to finish in order to be able to take their babies out of Vietnam.

As a person who always wanted to adopt, there was a small seed planted the first time I saw the French mother lean over her baby and tuck a blanket around the sleeping form. My husband had the same seed start to grow as well.

Two years later, there we were heading to Vietnam again to see about finding our own child. This was a vague plan since we were living in Singapore at the time and weren’t quite sure what we were doing.

When we we first saw our daughter, it was the middle of December more than a dozen years ago. Seven months later, she became part of our family. Believe me, the story is a bit longer than that. Since that time we’ve been back to Vietnam many times and have had our world expand far more than we could have imagined.

Anyone who has spent time at an American or international school knows that ours is not an unusual story. Many people who live overseas adopt children. Perhaps this is because once families know several people who have adopted, adoption seems like a feasible endeavor. I don’t know if this is true, it’s just a thought.

The combinations of families I knew ranged from a single woman who adopted two children, to a family with several birth children who wanted to expand, to a couple with a high school-age son who was blessed with the addition of a young toddler-aged daughter. Each of these families were fantastic and the children have thrived. If it weren’t for my husband’s and my traveling ways, we wouldn’t have met any of them–and we wouldn’t have our own bundle of joy who is now 16. For any of you with teenagers, you know how that goes. Seriously, she’s a gem. Seriously. No, seriously.

For information about adoption, the National Adoption Center Web site might be a place to start.

Vintage Macy’s: A bit of the parade and a lot of movie clips

by Jamie Rhein on

Macy’s in New York City is one of those icons that features into many a trip to the Big Apple.

Our travel agent in Singapore told us when she visited the U.S. that Macy’s was her favorite stop in NYC. Of course, she also told us that one week in Disney World was not enough.

This video that spans several years shows just how much Macy’s has played into American culture. Ignore that it’s an ad for Macy’s. I was impressed by just how many movies have made reference to this store. There are shots of the Thanksgiving Day Parade as well. I haven’t seen this ad before. Perhaps, you have. At any rate, I am fond of movie montages, so here it is. Regardless of whether one likes Macy’s or not, this is sure an example of the cross between consumer economics, travel and culture.

How to save NYC’s Tin Pan Alley: Five ideas for the buildings where musicians thrived.

by Jamie Rhein on

The news that Tin Pan Alley’s half-dozen row houses [photo by edenpictures]may be torn down to make room for high rise apartments caught my attention for several reasons:

  • One–because a group of people are working to save the buildings by having them acheive historical landmark status.
  • Two–because 19th century buildings have more character than high rise apartments,
  • Three– because they have significance to Americana which means they have significance to tourists
  • Four–because Singapore almost destroyed all of its charm several years back by tearing down many colonial shop houses in favor of high rises until the Singapore government caught on that the shop houses offered charm. Tourists love charm. Charm can mean money. Several areas were earmarked for development where the shop houses were refurbished to create popular tourist destinations like Boat Quay and Clarke Quay–not to mention the streets in back of Orchard Road, one of the biggest commercial streets in Singapore.

My five suggestions for Tin Pan Alley’s salvation involve pepping up each building’s musical connection status by turning part of each building into a place that reflects Tin Pan Alley’s’ important history and contribution to American life.

Suggestion one: Turn one building into a music museum. The museum would have:

  • displays of instruments, photographs, and belongings of Irving Berlin, Scott Joplin, Fats Waller, George M. Cohan and others who got their start here
  • exhibits of publications, advertisements and sheet music
  • Interactive exhibits where people could try their hand at playing tunes, and composing
  • A small theater where a montage of movie scene clips that feature the music of these composers play and another film that shows the history of American music, similar to what is played at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland
  • Listening kiosks where people could listen to the tunes of the musicians who got their start at Tin Pan Alley. Also similar to what is at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
  • an auditorium for talks and concerts
  • a gift shop that sells CDs, movies, and music related items

Suggestion two: Part of one building could house a restaurant with food named for the musical greats such as the Scott Joplin Burger, the Fats Waller Fries, and the George M. Cohan Cobb Salad.

Suggestion three: Next door to the museum and the restaurant could be a music academy where people of all ages can go for music instruction on a weekly basis –or for a week or weekend of intensive instruction. Song writing workshops could be offered as well. Always wanted to play the banjo? Here’s where.

Suggestion four: Part of another building could be turned into a B&B or hostel where people could stay for their musical journey

Suggestion five: One building could be earmarked as affordable housing for musicians. They would pay for rent but, they could reduce their rent by putting in hours at either the restaurant, the museum or the music academy as part of their payment. This could help keep NYC’s musical talent in Manhattan. You try living in an apartment in Manhattan on a musician’s salary.

Suggestion six: Any ideas? Here’s your chance to change history too. Who knows? Maybe someone will listen to us.

By the way, the top few floors of each building could still be used for housing for any New York City resident so that the people who now live in these buildings who are trying to preserve them have the ability to live where they love. Some of these folks might end up on the governing board of whatever foundation needs to be set up in order to help run the place.

And, here’s another reason to save the buildings. It seems to me, it would be a great American success story.

Didn’t the people who would be honored by such a place achieve the American Dream? What better way to show that the American Dream can happen than by having this small piece of Manhattan real estate showcase where dreams came true.

For more Tin Pan Alley information, check out Tin Pan Alley Project. It includes song lists to take you down memory lane.

At Least One Country is Getting Tough on Hidden Airline Fees

by Josh Lew on

Hidden fees are ta reality of air travel. Fuel surcharges have finally dropped, but not gone away. then there are airport taxes, insurance charges and administrative costs. The small nation of Singapore is trying to crack down on undisclosed costs by forcing advertising to include a full disclosure of costs and fees. Eleanor Wong, chairwoman of the Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore (ASAS), said that a “media advisory” announced last year did not lead to the kind of full price disclosure that she had hoped. So more stringent measures had to be taken.

“The idea is that these are non-negotiable add-ons and should be treated as an integral part of the fare. With the practice of adding fuel and other surcharges becoming prevalent, we thought it would be useful to issue a specific clarification that would apply to the general principles of fair advertising specifically to the travel industry.”

To enforce this new law, ads that do not fully disclose prices will be suspended. For once, Singapore’s authoritarian bureaucracy might have actually done something useful.

[Via TTG Asia]

Hong Kong bird market: The sound of music

by Jamie Rhein on

I haven’t been to the Hong Kong bird market, but I’ve been to bird markets in Taiwan– and the bird market in Singapore.

When Taj Reid over at www.wejetset.com sent us a link to this lush post on song bird love in Hong Kong, and the delights to be found at the bird market, I was reminded of my own pleasures when I sat in a courtyard sipping on coffee, listening to birds sing on a Sunday morning.

Owning song birds is just not a matter of heading to the local pet store and picking up a canary, you see. In Hong Kong, as with my experience in Taiwan and Singapore, picking out the right bird and the right cage is an art that depends on personal taste.

As the post states, men are the ones who prize their birds. Like doting parents who show off their toddlers at a playground, men gather at a park with their birds in order to see which person’s bird sings the best. There is a certain order to how the cages are hung so that the owners can achieve the best responses from the birds. I never quite figured it out, but I loved trying.

As gorgeous as the birds are, the cages are just as fantastic. My favorite type of cage is similar to the ones pictured here. The white and blue floral porcelain food and water bowls are simply lovely. Check out the wetjetset post for more wonderful photos and details about birding Hong Kong style as well as the places to enjoy the singing.

(photos courtesy of wetjetset)