Small things, mostly

Apple in China Apple in China A review of Patrick McGee’s Apple in China: The Capture of the World’s Greatest Company 01 Introduction The biggest transfer of manufacturing know-how in recent history.

Suddenly many women in Vietnam are posting photos in Khmer traditional dress.

IIn Singapore, I often host meets at cafes, libraries, or some ethnic food place in an ethnic neighbourhood.

A friend, Mai, invited me to host an un-conference as a part of a broader event they were running on AI and lifelong learning.

A friend, Mai, invited me to host an un-conference as a part of a broader event they were running on AI and lifelong learning.

I was walking along the new stretch of Burmese eateries at Singapore’s High Street and I was surprised to see a sign in Mizo language inviting people (Ka Thian =my friend) to come and try their food.

At a popular meetup I run, I get people to share interesting photos they have shot and tell us about what they observed.

Just as I landed in Da Nang, I had to get some clothes washed.

I knew the only shy girl in Saigon.

Trang says I will go anywhere if a smiling girl invites me.

Bangalore has a good number of people from other parts of India, specifically from the Northeast.

Introduction Patrick McGee’s Apple in China: The Capture of the World’s Greatest Company narrates how Apple, in trying to optimise it’s operations to escape near bankruptcy, ended up fuelling the greatest transfer of cutting edge manufacturing know how in…

Update: 5 August 2026.

When I was a kid (some may argue that I still am one), I read a story that has since stayed with me.

The Northern girl adjusts her coat and hat and strikes a pose.

We were reading in Benchakitti Park.

People in a city are like “large experience models” with whom we can engage and learn a great deal.

I hear about people not being interested in books or reading.

We were back in Saigon talking about our photos.

I spent a few days traveling with the Daylight DC 1.

I am testing the popular luggage trackers across multiple cities.

A bevy of Korean tourists sat across from me.

In the 2000s, I used to loiter around Sichuan University.

The aroma of khao soy and a new book in Bangkok reminds me of the corner bookseller in Yangon.

I was heading to my neighbourhood juice shop when I saw a woman, waiting for her drink, suddenly break into a dance.

In Vietnam, people often contact me for “love advices” or travel queries.

If you love Japan and visit often, don’t ever read Ian Buruma’s A Tokyo Romance - you’ll regret not being born a few decades earlier.

For me, home isn’t the house itself.

I saw a question on Reddit that reminded me of my adventures in Chengdu.

Apparently, there is only one adjective in English that has a male form and a female form.

A colorful alley in Hong Kong reminds me of a similar alley in Yangon.

The cafe below my stay serves Jolof Rice from Nigeria.

She comes to pray for a loved one who has moved away to a far away land.

Among the Malaysians, I stopped going to Malaysia about seven years back when my co-explorers of interesting things, Lan Anh and Trang, both left Malaysia.

I was in Astana.

I spent a few days among the Kachin.

I frequently travel between Southeast Asia and Japan, using my iPad Pro for work and leisure.

Saigon has many men who walk around with a box of tools in tow looking to fix and clean sneakers.

Locals often use PP as an abbreviation for Phnom Penh.

In Phnom Penh, one of my favourite places is the IB Taphouse in the little alley off Pasteur Street across Patio Hotel.

The Indomie that I got for my lunch near Singapore’s Arab Street was a good companion for the short stories book that I bought in Jakarta a few weeks back.

A few weeks ago, I met a bookseller from Osaka at Post Bookshop in Jakarta.

In my travels, I always end up at cafes or bookshops near campuses or actual campuses.

The Post is a smallish book store but I have never seen so many people trying to get in and actually buy books.

We revived the Readcamp in Phnom Penh after a gap of several years.

While preparing for a class on information design, I remembered a travel book titled Asia Overland.

Back in 2015, I still sometimes stayed in the backpacker enclave of Pham Ngu Lau in Saigon - they were a bit more flexible with check-in and check-out times compared to hotels in other parts.

Yugoslavia and Indonesia, two places that were built with diverse pieces coming together.

So SK is showing off this new phone made by Apple.

Back in my neighbourhood, I met a poet who makes typewritten poems based on our mood/current feelings.