San Francisco Trip Day 2: What I'm Thankful for.

The wonderful photographer! Love her <3

Sweater Dress: Sweater Market, Shanghai ; Coat: Burberry

Tights: DKNY; Leg Warmers: China; Beret: Forever 21

Rings: Flea Market; Earrings: Macy's

Boots: Macy's

It's day 2 of the Thanksgiving trip, and it's Thanksgiving Day! Thanks again to Phoebe for all the amazing pictures! Like her page here. and Check out her flickr!

So we started off the day craving for breakfast. As San Fran is known for its China Town, we headed over to Golden Gate Bakery for some delicious traditional Chinese Pastrys :) They're know for their egg tarts, and everyone knew that-- the line winded a couple of times outside the store. Once I had a bite of the tastiness, it was worth every minute of the wait. 

 蛋挞 ； Egg Tarts 

叉烧酥；cha siou su (bbq pork pastry) 

Once our stomachs were sustained, we took the opportunity on the bright and beautiful Thursday morning and explored around China town. Like I said, there's so much character and culture in this part of city, I couldn't help but falling in love. There's beautiful aesthetics, like the street art below. It really looks like I'm walking up the stairs, right?

This is just like the markets in Shanghai, I miss shanghai now...

Next up, Golden Gate Bridge! As touristy as this attraction maybe, it's definitely a must-stopped destination when you go to San Francisco. It's like when you go to Shanghai, you HAVE to stop by the Bund! 

The girls!

It was Thanksgiving, but it's never too late to give thanks. I'm so blessed and honored to have these people to make the wonderful memories I've had. They're like my second family! Alpha Alphas till the end.

Next up on the itinerary, The Palace of Fine Arts, yet another absolutely beautiful place!

 It's Odette!

Now that we've devoured enough scenic candies for our eyes, it's yet again time to send food down our growling stomachs. We were lucky to have our pledgemaster join us on this memorable trips, and his relatives were so kind to open up their homes to a bunch of starving teenagers for the Thanksgiving occasion. I had one of the best Thanksgiving meals of my life--no exaggeration! 

Crack Pie from NYC-- claimed to have crack in it, might as well! 

Took a bite from it and I felt like I've gone to heaven!

Flan- Definitely one of the better flan's I've tasted

Our pledgemaster's aunt is actually starting her own business, check out her page here.

Ever since I began the pledging process for APO, I grew very close to my pledge class. Obviously, considering I almost spent my entire break with them, and I couldn't have asked for a better break! Being that we were in San Jose for the evening, we couldn't resist not meeting up with some of the others who are back home. Despite our exceptionally full stomachs, we still made a stop at Fantasia Cafe. 

I was too full to even take a sip, but from what I heard, they were pretty bomb!

This brings us to our final destination of the evening: Twin Peaks--one of the most eyegasmic experiences I've had in my life. And this is coming from someone who grew up in the city that houses The Bund! 

  

Feel your heart racing? Mine, too. Words won't do justice to this amazingness. And how this girl was able to capture it in such low light, without a tripod. I don't even know. All I can say is, I am so proud. 

Even with the sea of lights, I was able to see the bright stars and the illuminating moon. I am a sucker for a beautiful night time sky. That night, I gazed at the stars. And inhaled the night air. To be able to breathe in the cool crisp air that encompasses that evening was a privilege. Which is why I am thankful for everything. It was a perfect conclusion to a perfect night.   

If you're going to San Francisco: Day 1

If you follow me on twitter or Facebook, you'd know that I went to San Francisco for this past Thanksgiving break. Now that I'm back, and have internet, I'm so excited to share with you my trip, every step of the way.

First off, I would like to thank my friend Phoebe for being the official photographer of the trip. Most of the pictures from this and the future San Francisco posts are taken by her! Yes, this is the same Phoebe that did the shoot for my New York Fashion Week post. I'm so proud of her! She was recently selected to have her photography to be showcased at rawcultureLA. Like her Facebook page. and check out her Flickr!  

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A beautiful, scenic view of a lake while cruising on the I-5! 

Now, I got to warn you. The entirety of this trip is 90% revolved around food. There will be lots of pictures of food, so brace yourself. 

With that said, after six hours of being on the road, our first stop after arriving in San Fran was of course to fuel up on food!

Hot Cookie in Castro

Spiffy Iffy from Ike's Place Sandwiches

The cookies were really great, especially because I was eating them as I ravenously awaited my sandwich. But the sandwich was amazing! It has chicken, avocado, AND pesto, all of my favorites :)

My outfit for the day.

Sweater, shorts & shoes: Forever 21

After exploring castro, we finally checked into our hotel and explored Union Square, which was amazingly beautiful during this time of the year. 

Here are some of the lovely people that was a part of this awesome trip!

A type of cuisine that I've grown to love is fusion, which is why I was super excited to try out The House restaurant, located at the heart of China Town. It was recommended by one of our friends who's from San Francisco. 

Ribeye Steak from The House Restaurant

I can honestly contest that this steak from an Asian American Fusion restaurant was better than a lot of steaks I've had from steak houses. 

That concludes our first day at San Francisco. 

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I think the last time I was in SF seemed like a lifetime ago. But, it really has been long enough of a time span that passed since I barely remembered being at any of the significant landmarks, and it's unfortunate that I never came to appreciate the unique character that San Francisco has!

Look at the aesthetics of the streets!

potentially Banksky! 

Also, I actually miss the city. Having spent over half of my life in Shanghai, I do consider myself a city girl. Even though USC is so close to DTLA, there's something different about the downtown San Francisco! It's almost as if it feels more friendly and relaxed, and not as business oriented. 

That's it for now! Day 2 coming soon :) 

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

...Not really. The weather in California (LA at least) is still as perfect as it can be. Warm sun and the chilly breeze. Does it get any better than this (did you catch the Friends ref?)

I pass by this beautiful church everyday as I go from school to my apartment. It's a newly constructed Catholic church, and I couldn't resist doing a shoot here! So, thanks to Caroline, my hope was turned into a reality.

But, winter is here. Or in the process of making its grand arrival. I can't wait--because I've got a cute outfit for one of those holiday/wintery days :D

Here's one of my favorite winter sweaters. It's white, and remind me of the glistening snow that I don't get to see. But, I got it last year when I randomly saw it in the Forever21 at the Fashion Show Mall in Vegas, and loved it ever since. In case you can't tell, it's got silver sequins!

The skirt is a thick material winter skirt. It's also from Forever21. It's the LBS (little black skirt) that can go with anything and still keep you warm and toasty :) 

Cute right? I've been looking for some booties/heels with that heel height for like forever! and I'm so happy I found them as I was looking for a dress at Forever 21. 

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On another note, I'll be road tripping up to San Francisco for the short break, and I am SO excited. I plan on making a travel journal, so hopefully I'll be posting here for each day of my journal. Hopefully it will happen, can't promise anything though. Don't know if I'll get wifi!

Be sure to check back for updates!

Happy Thanksgiving and goble goble goble! 

Xoxo,

Joanne

I ♥ PR

Public Relations, that is! 

It was fate that led me to chose my major. As cheesy as that sounds, it's totally true. I was the Public Relations officer for my high school Community Service club. It started out that I love the club, and wanted to do more to contribute my part for the club. The Public Relations Officer position was the only one in which I would run unopposed and it was the one that suited my personality the most. As a result, I ended up absolutely loving the position. 

When the college application came, I never considered anything but business. Again, after getting accepted to SC, I had a semester to reconsider my life's goals. I thought business wasn't something that I wanted and I was looking at the 150+ majors SC had to offer and stumbled across PR. And boy am I glad I did! 

It wasn't until this semester when I became fully exposed to the world of PR and what it had had to offer. Both of my PR classes are amazing! I know everyone thinks it's a super glamourous job with all the event planning, and the parties, but it really takes a lot to be successful at it! I've already written a few pitch letters and had mock-pitches. Believe me, it is NOT easy. Yet, I don't know why, there's just something about PR that draws me to it! 

But of course, the USC Annenberg Program certainly maximizes my academic experience. Great professors, great school, and great opportunities! Just today, we had our ground breaking for the new school ground breaking--I even got a free shirt! And President Nikias even said that with all the new technologies, it's going to be "the best journalism program in the world."PR is en route to being a complete independent program. But as of right now, it's still under the journalism program, and it's nice to share the limelight! :D

Photo taken by PRSSA USC

Anyways, I digress. As I was saying...opportunities. 

I'm a part of the PRSSA of USC, and they hold lots of panels for professional networking. Yesterday, I had the privilege of attending the Fashion PR panel which featured Alumnus from the Fashion PR industry--such as Bloomingdales, Monique Lhuillier, BCBG, and even Samantha Slaven! 

I learned some invaluable knowledge that I thought I'd share with you all :)

Here are some of the most important points: 

1. If you want to go to New York, go!-- As you know by now, my ultimate dream is to be New York, and one of the questions that came up was what did they suggest for those of us who dream to be in the big city. Two of the alumnus hopped on the plane as soon as they got their diplomas. They loved being in the city, but both of them eventually came back. However, they suggested that even if we have the slightest desire to be in New York, we should definitely try moving to the city--just to get the experience. Because New York is such a fast-paced city, it really boosts work efficiency. 

2. Get yourself out there by creating a blog- Well, I'm a step ahead! The ultimate paradox in the job world is that if you don't have an internship, you can't get hired. Then how do u get your first internship?! Cuit, the social media engagement director form BCBG, suggested to just create a blog. Because a blog can be a terrific platform to express yourself and show off your personality. And one can essentially blog about anything! I chose Fashion because I always have a love for it. And look at me now, I'm writing up a post about PR and the panel I went to yesterday. 

3. Be knowledgable -- If you apply for a job at a company, you should at least know some basic info about the company and the industry. For example, if you apply for a job in the fashion sector, and the interviewer ask what fashion magazines do you read? And you can't answer that question, then it's questionable why you would want to be in the industry then if you don't even have the most basic of knowledge. 

Basically, if you're interested in the marketing/advertising/PR industry, the gap that used to separate the three is closing, and PR should be definitely something worth checking out :)

Hope you enjoyed this slightly different post :D

XOXO, 

Joanne