A Great Trip Home

I'm sitting at my kitchen table right now, having just finished one of my dad's delicious Italian dinners. It's the last night of my trip home, and it's been one of the best. In fact, I spent the last five days in Las Vegas, Nevada, with my old college roommates celebrating our friend Joe's bachelor party. As the final leg of my visit, it was an amazing way to get together with old friends to create new memories.

Sandy Hook Light House, icon of my family's favorite Jersey beach

It's been a very full two-and-a-half weeks. I landed in the U.S. in the early evening of July 12th, and I crammed in many of the things I miss most about home over the days that followed. I spent days down the Jersey Shore, enjoyed some great nights in New York City, and of course got to savor special time with the people I miss most. I ate at my favorite restaurants and drove around the places where I grew up. And I got a lot of quality time with my family in Brooklyn and Staten Island, which was amazing.

Aptly named Delicious Orchards, a local market with delicious food

Vegas was the crown jewel of the trip. Joe asked our entire junior year apartment to be in his wedding party, and he also asked two others as well—his freshman roommate Dave and his sister's boyfriend Nic. The seven of us had a blast soaking up the fervor of Sin City. We stayed at the Signature at MGM Grand, and we filled our five days with casinos, dinners, a pool party and nightclubs. It was my first time in the desert oasis, and I already am thinking about going back.  

Ryan, Shea and Dave on the balcony of our hotel in Vegas

It was interesting to compare the world's most famous gambling destination with two others that I know much better—Atlantic City, which I have been visiting since I was a little kid, and Macau, the Asian version of Las Vegas that has become one of my favorite things about living in Hong Kong. I couldn't stop comparing and contrasting the many differences among these three famous gambling Meccas. 

Following our weekends in New Orleans in 2010 and Austin in 2011, I'm so glad we were all able to get together and see another new American city during my 2012 visit. I hope we keep up the tradition for many years to come.

At the Vegas airport

While I was home, I also made a couple of trips to visit our New York office. Located in the heart of the famed Financial District, literally steps from the New York Stock Exchange and Federal Hall, our company headquarters is full of colorful characters, and I always enjoy paying a visit to check in with everybody. They are usually full of questions about life in Hong Kong, and it's great to catch up. After all, I worked out of the New York office for about five months before making the trip out to Hong Kong, so I know most of the people who work there very well.

On the ferry ride from Highlands, NJ to NYC 

On one such visit to the New York office a couple of weeks ago, I had a big meeting with my bosses, and I have some important news to share. My days in Hong Kong are sadly numbered. Singapore is calling my name. My firm has been talking about opening a second Asian office in Hong Kong's main economic rival for over a year now. And they have finally committed and decided to send me down to open the office. At that meeting, we set a tentative date of December 1st for my move. I am devastated to leave Hong Kong but humbled by the awesome opportunity and trust my bosses have put in me.

Basically, I will go down by myself to start up the new branch. After a few months or so of ironing out technical issues and getting things running smoothly, we will begin to expand the office by adding new employees. Although I could have insisted on staying in Hong Kong, this is the type of opportunity that only comes up once in a while, and I jumped at the chance to be a part of it.

Luckily, we will be keeping our Hong Kong office, so hopefully I can go back fairly often, and even work out of the office when it's appropriate. Hong Kong has been such a huge part of my life, and I know I'll go back as much as I can, especially since Singapore is only about four hours away and flights are frequent. (Another interesting piece of trivia—the direct flight between Singapore and Newark, New Jersey, operated by Singapore Airlines, is currently the world's longest regularly scheduled direct flight, clocking in at almost nineteen hours! I'm really glad I'll be able to fly direct to my home state when I need to come home in the future.)

My beloved Jersey Shore

Heading back to Hong Kong, I know I will enjoy every last minute I have there, and I'm really looking forward to savoring my last four months living in the pearl of the Orient.

But first...