Being HK's First Female Astronaut: February 2008

Dear All,
I just got back from NYC and Washington D.C. on Jan 31 and would like to share with you an update on my space travels. Sorry for not having posted for a while, I have been quite busy (including all the traveling required by being an astronaut).

Unveiling Ceremony for Virgin Galactic White Knight 2 & Space Ship 2: On Wed 23^rd Jan in the morning at the Power House of The American Museum of Natural History in Central Park West at 79th Street. Sir Richard and Burt Rutan, the inventor, showcased for the very first time, the detailed scale models of WhiteKnightTwo & SpaceShipTwo, demonstrating the technology and revealing the new design and livery.

Press Conference: As Founders of Virgin Galactic, we had to wear our Galactic uniforms during the press conference, so that we could easily be identified. There were more than a hundred reporters from all over the world there. After the Unveiling Presentation, the Founders were interviewed live by CNN, Toronto Star, Japan TV, European TV, National Geographic etc.

The Year Of The Spaceship Party: On Wed 23^rd Jan in the night we attended this event at the Rose Center, which is part of the compound of the American Museum of Natural History. Sir Richard made a genuine and touching speech during the cocktail reception, thanking his parents and all of us involved, for our support and making our future dream come true, not only for ourselves, but our future generations. The party ended with almost everyone dancing bare-footed on the dance floor, till the early hours of dawn, I was told. Actually, my sister and I left a bit earlier thanthe bare-footed crowd viz. right after the Branson family.

HK Press: Soon after hitting the hotel pillow at around 3:50 a.m., I received long distance calls from HK Apple Daily, TVB, ATV & Cable TV. The TV stations wanted to interview me live for the evening news in Hong Kong and apologised, knowing that it was around 3:50 a.m. in NYC and that I was in the sack already. I took all the interviews in the toilet of my hotel room, so that I wouldn't disturb my sleeping sister. I had to refrain from using the tap or flushing the toilet because I was being taped live!!

University of Columbia: On Thursday Jan 24^th, I was invited to be one of the guest speakers at their Business School in the University Of Columbia. I was invited to share my life as an Asian woman VG Founder to a class of students who were studying about businesses relating to luxury goods, branding, space tourism and Virgin Galactic. With 30 pairs of eyes staring down at me, wondering what they were really thinking, quite honestly, made me nervous. After sharing my autobiography with them and throwing some humour into it, I was able to make most of them laugh. I had previously been invited to be a guest speaker for the 10th Anniversary of the Hedge Fund that was held last September 12 in Hong Kong, but, no matter how many times I speak in front of an audience, I still get butterflies.

Underage Drinking: After the class was over, I was surrounded by 4 or 5 enthusiastic young ladies, who said they loved my talk and that they wanted to take my sister and I out for a drink near their campus. I felt honoured and gladly accepted their invitation as I needed a drink after the session anyway! We all walked to the bar and before I could step foot into the door, an African American bouncer stopped me from entering and demanded to see my I.D. I wasn't sure whether to take it as a joke or a compliment, being the oldest in the crowd!! The dim lighting and my pony tail probably made me look underage??!! I showed him my H.K.I.D. card. He looked at it and then at me, with eyes bigger than saucer and his jaws dropped!!! He made my day!!

Washington D.C : After NY, we left for Washington D.C. and had a wonderful tour of the White House, the Pentagon, the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum, the famous Union Station which has been named the most beautiful train station in the world, the Kennedy Art Center, the giant Lincoln Monument, the theater that Lincoln was shot in and the house where he died. We also went to see the Arlington National Cemetery where JFK and Jackie are buried. The changing of the guard in Arlington Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers was very interesting to watch, too.

US Capitol Hill: With all the elections going on, unfortunately, we could only see George Bush on TV, even though he was only a room away from us at the U.S. Capital Hill. Washington D.C. is a very beautiful, historical and interesting place to visit and I recommend you to pre-book the White House Tour 6 months prior to your visit, if you're planning to go there. The F.B.I has to do a thorough background check before you're allowed into the White House. So plan ahead and dress appropriately i.e. no burkas or turbans!!

Next Stop - SWEDEN: My next adventure will commence on March 31, 2008. Virgin galactic has organised a trip for us to Sweden. We will stay at the Ice Hotel, go on the Husky pulled sledge rides, watch the launch of a Swedish rocket and hope to see the "Aurora Borealis/ Northern Lights" during our stay. I'll keep you updated after my trip.