The Ambassador’s blog has been upgraded (back-end)…if you are experiencing any quirks or problems please let us know.

Wanted to pass along a useful link to any other Americans living abroad. No matter your party or home State, www.votefromabroad.org helps you register to receive your absentee ballot. Just a few simple steps that should take no more than 5 minutes and you’ll be set. And postage of course. A small price to pay, especially when you think about all the freedom fighters past and present who risk, gave their lives for us to have this opportunity.

One note: It said I couldn’t vote in the primary, unless I selected a party affiliation. I am not affiliated with the Democratic or Republican parties.

Taking into account the time difference, by the time this gets posted and reaches the Ambassador’s eyes it will be Dec. 14th in Chengdu. And that means Birthday time for the Ambassador. And so on behalf of all of us here on staff, we wish our boss Jesse Ambassador Sestito a happy birfday!

From the Philippines. Some highlights:

The big pink thing. Positioned the sidewalks in parts of Manila, they offer a place for men to relieve themselves. Our cabby pulled over. You can see his feet.

Jeepney’s. Everyone custom built, tricked out.

The last picture. “Free service charge”. Weird English translation. Oxymoronic.

Also pics from my 36 hour train ride to Shanghai.

Think those new buttons down below are here just for the cute factor? Well, maybe, but they’re also functional. And you know who did it? You guessed it, the same man that gave us, this, this, and oh, this.

Feast your eyes on 52 new pics from Japan courtesy of Hella Friend

Keen on great design and painting?

Then you’d check out the newly released portfolio from my site’s creator, Paul Torres.

www.paultorres.net