Do seagulls care for pasta al dente?

Fort Baker, just on the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Blossoms were blooming at Filoli Gardens today - thankfully, the allergies weren't! Full gallery after the break!

Peter and Jinping got married in Vegas...more pictures can be seen here.

A nice walk in our neighborhood with a blurry lens that hides imperfections - not that there are any to hide, of course.

A recent popular activity amongst my newly officiated nephews: sleep-overs at our house. Of course, there's not very much sleeping.

Here's a little snapshot of what the holidays look like at our house. May's nephews and niece have a lot of fun when they come over. Clean-up is not as fun. Each one of those weapons has a different kind of nerf ammo.

Late 2009 I decided dabble in something referred to as "macro photography". It turned out to be just another avenue for annoying my wife, which shouldn't come as a surprise to most people.

Here's how I spent my Christmas. These were all the range in Hong Kong. The gyroscope apparently helps with stability, making these little helicopters highly maneuverable. It turned out to be just another avenue for annoying my wife, which shouldn't come as a surprise to most people.

The highlight of this trip was finding my grandpa's old village - and the house where my Dad was born. This rooster above has nothing to do with that.

Most of the old people in China are old despite lacking the health care we have here. Here are some random shots of a few of them before they chased me away.

Day Three: Xiǎolóngbāo (aka "XLB" aka Shanghai Dumpling aka Soup Dumpling): Some of you might not realize this but we've have become XLB snobs, having traversed through the depths of San Francisco, braving Shanghai Dumpling King, Kingdom of Dumpling, Shanghai House, etc, etc. (NB: Out of towners, inquire now about reserving one of my SF Dumpling Tours for your next visit.)

Day Two: Saturday, December 5: What would you do if you found a van full of noodles?

Nothing beats a 13+ hour flight than a brisk walk with the locals along Nathan road. This is the first in a series of postings from our trip to Asia in 2009. Click the "read more" link below to view each day in excruciating detail, captured for the world to see.