WOW

If you missed the Olympics opening ceremonies, you missed an absolutely incredible show!

Kudos to director Zhang Yimou...

Lunch @ Pho Avina

Had lunch at Pho Avina yesterday w/ a few of my co-workers.

I had a grilled pork banh mi ($3.50) and a "Three Color Sweet Beans" dessert (red beans, mung beans, and agar jelly with coconut milk; $2.99). Here are the pics:

Both were excellent! I love the banh mi at Pho Avina. The bread is great (~9 inch baguette), the veggies are fresh (daikon, carrots, cilantro, and jalapenos), and the meat is full of flavor.


Previous posts about Pho Avina: 1, 2

Places mentioned:

Pho Avina
4920 W. Thunderbird Rd, Suite 110
Glendale, AZ 85306

Two links to share

Two interesting links to share (via maoxian.com):

Room With a View: A photo diary of Beijing's Air

Passing the Torch: An Evolution of Form (from the New York Times)
make sure you hover over the graphic - very nicely done!

Spotlight on Beijing (only two and a half days to go!)

First the reports that China is censoring media internet access... (even though they promised unrestricted access)

followed by many stories about terrible air quality (even after the government has spent over $17 billion to clean up the air)

...today's news about members of the U.S. cycling team arriving in China wearing face masks:
U.S. Cyclists Are Masked, and Criticism Is Not (from the New York Times)

and now this latest news:
China revokes visa of gold medalist, Darfur activist Cheek (from Yahoo!)

Only in Phoenix...

Rain halts Sky Harbor landings, takeoffs (from AZCentral.com)

Phoenix's airport has been closed a few times due to excessive heat...but rain?!?
I was in the area when the closure was announced and didn't notice any severe rain.

National Geographic's Strange Days on Planet Earth: Plastic Plague

Another interesting (and equally frightening) video about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch:
Any parents with young babies, soon-to-be parents, and sometime-in-the-future parents definitely need to watch this...


Thanks to the anonymous person who sent this!

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Interesting video about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch - a "massive stew of unwanted waste" estimated to be twice the size of Texas, floating in Pacific Ocean...