i had the pleasure of meeting and having a lovely
lunch with sarah. she’s living my dream life, getting
a doctorate at cambridge AND also writing historical
fiction in the elizabethan era that i REALLY want to read.
i hope some smart editor buys her novel(s) soon!!!

mmm. the english fudge stand at camden town!

camden town is one of my favorite markets!
here, diners sit on moped seats along the
camden loch. i couldn’t find the antiques section
of camden town. was searching very hard for it
to find…a tarot card reader. yes! i had a very
interesting reading by her in september 2007
about my writing career. but she wasn’t meant to
be found! boo.

and no, i don’t usually get tarot readings. my best
friend and i did it on a lark and then got scared
by how accurate she was. haha!

fruits made from marzipan in the food hall at
harrod’s! also glimpses of turkish delights–which
i always buy. i love their turkish delights!

walking from piccadilly to leicester square.

a fancy version of the english breakfast.
always a favorite indulgence while on holiday
in england! just say no to bacon! i never eat the
stuff. bleah!

and this was a foto from our last day in london.
the bubs near liverpool street station. =)

have been working diligently to prepare for our art
show in balboa park’s spanish village in mid march!

will leave you with some great links :

kirsten lesko, a fabulous critique friend, launches her
blog “sell your novel, not your soul”. she discusses all things
regarding writing and marketing yourself and your books!
click over and say hi at disobedientwriter.com!!
(can’t decide which is cooler, her tag line or her url!)

we’re trying to raise some money for YABC (young
adults book central) so it can get a much needed make
over. there’s an auction going with signed books (including
Silver Phoenix and three of my note cards of your choice!)
as well as critique of pages by authors. so check it out!!

i also interview fellow greenwillowite david macinnis gill
on his great debut, Soul Enchilada, over at the enchanted inkpot!

february and i have yet to post my christmas
london fotos! today is my tribute to one of the
best greek restaurants i’ve ever been to. lemonia
in primrose hill. interestingly enough, we also went
to an excellent greek restaurant in vienna (ah, if
only i remembered the name?). we ate well in
crete of course (for the love’s 26th birthday, when
i was living in london). i’ve yet to find the delicious tomato
stuffed with ground lamb and rice dish anywhere since.

*a vegetarian version of keftedes made from zucchini.
and the cucumber yogurt dip, taziki.

*i ordered two appetizers as my main meal. dolmas, a favorite
of mine stuffed with rice and minced lamb wrapped in grape leaves,
and artichoke with beans. so so delicious!!

*my dessert that was the most heavenly thing i’ve ever
tasted. my first time trying greek yogurt! fresh fruit,
drizzled in honey with chopped almonds!

if you’re ever in london and in the primrose hill area,
GO TO lemonia!! the service is fantastic too!

on our last day in london, we went to spitalfields market.
alas, it was a weekday, cold and wet, and most of the stalls
weren’t there. so there wasn’t much to browse thorough. BUT
upon leaving the covered market, i came across this boutique.

it’s called Queens and absolutely insane.
i had to wander through it, altho the bubs weren’t
allowed, as it was a small intimate room crammed with
fragile things dangling and skewed from every nook
and corner!

if you are willing to take one travel advice from me, it
is this. ALWAYS buy something that you like while away
from home. because it will be a wonderful reminder of your
trip and most likely, you will never get a chance to buy the
same item again and regret it horribly.

i speak from experience. during my trip to hk, we had gone
to a nightmarket and i saw a set of little twin stars pajamas.
LITTLE TWIN STARS PAJAMAS!! i love little twin stars! so
much cooler than the newer sanrio stuff. i tried to bargain
with the merchant (as all tour books recommend and really
as required of me since i’m a shopping chinese girl in hong kong!)
and got shot down. the pjs were probably all of $25 but i refused
to buy them out of principle. and look at me, thinking about them
still over seven years later!!

this is my favorite purchase from london!
her name is iris and she is my new lucky writing
charm! she is clutching books and has them stacked
on her head, dolled up with glasses and sparkly lipstick
with a latte pressed to her side. she cost me 20# but i
didn’t hesitate to get her. =D i smile every time i see her!

thanks to all who entered the fantastic TGIFBM giveaway.
stephanie ruble was the lucky winner! i’m not so good about
announcing every time but i do choose winners! =)

currently reading :

mistwood by leah cypess

as i said, we made it safely back from england!
i won’t lie, it was one of the most stressful
and coldest jaunts ever. sweet pea was air sick
the entire eleven hours there and back. =( i was
hoping she would get better as she got older
but this trip was the worst yet. we gave her over
the counter medication on the flight back and it
didn’t help one bit. she’s traumatized over flights
now. =( we flew back with heightened security
which meant further stress and delays. i was just
so happy to be back home safe again!!

*to high 70’s weather and surfers galore!
those are my boys in the corner. =D

this doesn’t mean i didn’t manage to enjoy
my trip. i’m returning to my favorite city after all!
i went into london for the weekend by myself to
see my best friend, and we had such fun!

*i loved this “christmas tree” outside the
royal academy art institute on piccadilly.

*and right adjacent wedged into a tiny corner
of an arcade was this french macaron shop.

*yes, please! we had to let the macaron
shopwoman fill our boxes for us. i bought
a dozen: pistachio, chestnut, praline, vanilla,
chocolate and coffee. yes, i remember! i tried
the praline and chestnut.

*and probably one of the highlights of this
trip, my best friend took me to the wolsely
for afternoon tea. oh, it was just gorgeous
inside and completely full our entire 2 or so
hours there! it’s a place i’ve walked past many
times with the love and bubs and said, we wouldn’t
be welcome there. ha! but it was more casual than
the ritz close by, which required black tie for tea!

*so so delicious. the restaurant had a no fotos
policy so i was trying my best to be quick and
surreptitious. meep!

i’m still a little jet lagged, but almost fully
recovered. i have a feeling 2010 will be a very
exciting year–tho 2009 will be a difficult one
to top, certainly!

it’s a special year as my publisher, greenwillow books
just celebrated 35 years! to mark the occasion,
we’ve started a blog, under the green willow. there
will be fun and interesting posts, including the
inaugural post by my fantabulous editor, virginia!
do check it out and say hello!

(my munchkin would LOVE that Fire Truck book!)

2010. wow.

http://twitter.com/cindypon

Cobbled Streets and gray skies
The smell of roasted chestnuts
Rubbing my mittened hands for warmth
as it pours from the café and shop windows
like sunshine on a summer day
But London is muted, dark too soon
beneath dense clouds
The Christmas decorations shimmer bright
colors: reds, golds and brilliant greens
Silver tinsel glitter like iced stars
I want a hot scone slathered in triple-clotted
cream and strawberry jam

-cwp 11/09

i have an email pen pal who is in elementary
school, and in our exchanges, i like to write
impromptu poems for her. i really enjoy it,
actually, because when i started writing, i began
with poetry. back then, i worried over each word,
each turn of phrase, recited them aloud hundreds
of times. (true story, i got a speeding ticket driving
home from college because i was too preoccupied
reciting a poem i had recently written.)

this one, of course, is just on a lark,
whatever came to mind as i thought about
my annual upcoming trip back to my favorite
city, london. =) but without my pen pal friend,
i wouldn’t have bothered writing poetry again.
it’s been…over a decade! so i always enjoy
our exchanges.

one funny thing about my household is
that we never watch dvds. but on black friday,
i saw The Tudors were on sale (marked down $50 for
the two seasons) and i could not resist. i have
a serious love and fascination for that time period.
of course, i see these people as “characters” in
a story, and it truly is a case of stranger than fiction.
could you concoct anything that could be so
wild and passionate and crazy as that time period?

if i could choose to go back and spy on anyone,
it would be on anne boleyn and
henry 8 together. as much as i admire and love
elizabeth I, it’s her mother that fascinates me
completely. i’m nearing the part where things
turn for her, and we all know her fate. i’ve read
it so many times. but watching it is different.
i’m anxious for her.

last night

me : what if i had sweet pea and
everyone wasn’t happy about it. then i have
another sweet pea and you chop my head off.
can you imagine that?

hub : laughing.

it sounds ridiculous right? but that was
what life and death hinged on for anne,
her ability to make babies and to make male ones.
even up to princess diana’s time, the sentiment
was the same. despite so many women who have
reigned over england so well, i think there is a
collective sigh when a boy is born.

how different history would have been if anne
boleyn had a healthy baby boy. but i can’t
imagine england’s past without elizabeth I.
her path to the throne and reign over england
couldn’t have made a better story!

now i have a huge crush on jonathan rhys meyers.
i mean just look at him! he’s absolutely dynamic
on screen. the writing isn’t to die for nor does the
story stay completely true to history, but seeing it unfold
is utterly compelling. you wonder why so many
fantasy stories feature kings and queens and those
in power, because they’re forced to make choices
and decisions commoners would never have to–
ones that can change history.
what would you be like if you believed you were
chosen by god to rule a country?
honestly, i don’t think you could pay me enough. ha!

we’re off to england on wednesday.
very excited but also anxious, as i always am
when i travel such long distances with the bubs.
i hope you all have a wonderful holiday break.
i couldn’t have had a more stupendous amazing year.
it’s a huge learning curve as a debut author, but a
hell of a fantastic ride.

wishing you much joyful surprises
in 2010! =D /bootay shake!

it’s the last chance for you to win
an awesome debs goodie bag from the
feast of awesome. =D just comment
to enter!

there was an ice skating rink outside
along with some stands for crafts, clothes
and food!

i’ve never been before, but was impressed by the
architecture. you can see the crowds snaking toward
the front entrance.

the foyer contained the dino skeleton.

i can’t remember what this was supposed to
be. something that is tiny now.

it’s beautiful, isn’t it? gorgeously clear day,
but frigid!

just to give you an idea of how crowded it was.
the museum was free, but took donations.

despite rainy weather, today was a good day.
i’m steadily working away on the picture book,
and the small critters make me very happy.
i will paint flowers tomorrow. i was hoping to
take a long weekend somewhere during the
bubs’ spring break. but it may depend on how
frenetic i feel. then again, maybe four days
away would be good for me? i’m thinking
seattle? nowhere far. and of course, we love
san francisco…

best quote of the day, from sweet pea :

mommy, jimmy told me he could speak
porkacheese.

currently reading :

the season by sarah maclean