While Brad Cooper, played by Parry Shen, is calling Port Charles and General Hospital home once more, the actor himself has visited many locales throughout the world. Soap Hub chatted with the fan-favorite for our current installment of Travel Tuesday.
Parry Shen Shares His Travels Across the Globe
Recently, Soap Hub talked to John McCook (Eric Forrester, The Bold and the Beautiful) about his travels throughout the world. Now, we’re chatting with Shen about his unique journeys and the advice that he has for travelers!
Soap Hub: What has been your favorite place you’ve visited so far and what inspired you to go there?
Parry Shen: My extended family recently went on an Alaskan Cruise to celebrate my in-laws’ 50th wedding anniversary. That was very special because we got to spend it with so many loved ones and also see so many beautiful cities, each with their respective histories right here in our own country.
For example, in Ketchikan, there was a 109-year-old grocery store called Tatsuda’s Market [just closed last year] — and in 1942, when Roosevelt signed Order 9066 and interned Japanese Americans — the town continued to run the store while the family members were in the internment camps. When they were released years later, the town gave a check to the Tatsuda family for the profits the store made.
Soap Hub: If someone else were to go there, what places/sites would you tell them they must be sure to see while there?
Parry Shen: Juno — splurge to take the helicopter ride onto Mendenhall Glacier. The water melting there (that you can drink) was frozen during the middle ages! So cool (no pun intended) to land on untouched ground. And then there’s also an option to hop on a dog sled and be mushed across the glacier. Nothing else like it, so you have to do those things when you get the chance.
Soap Hub: What recommendations do you have regarding where to stay or where to go for food?
Parry Shen: I’m allergic to all seafood but had to try the fresh crab (I can eat like five pieces before my throat gets itchy). I had one tiny piece, and my lips swelled up as if I ate two whole crabs — I think it was because it was super fresh from the source — and it probably takes some time to get fresh seafood down here! So if you like crab — get some there.
Soap Hub: Can you speak any languages fluently? Have you ever traveled somewhere where English wasn’t the primary language? If so, how did you navigate in the city and ask questions?
Parry Shen: I’m fluent in Cantonese, which came in very handy when I visited Hong Kong [the native dialect] — it was like I tapped into this whole other side of my brain — that forced my Chinese to be a lot better [pulling out words I didn’t even know I knew] since I had to put it into practical use.
When I went to Taiwan, since I didn’t know how to speak Taiwanese or Mandarin, I made sure to hold onto my hotel’s business card for dear life so that at the very least, I could communicate with the cab driver where I was staying!
Soap Hub: Have you ever been on a solo vacation? If so, what is your biggest piece of advice?
Parry Shen: Yes. I was filming a movie where I got to live in Fiji for several weeks (with Day of our Lives’ Stacy Haiduk [who plays Kristen/Susan]. It was a lot of fun bonding and sharing experiences with the cast [example: Stacy and I drove a car with the steering wheel on the right side and on the opposite side of the road for the first time — well Stacy did, because I was too freaked out and just sat shotgun]. But I definitely also wanted to share those moments with my family as well.
So my advice is to take pictures — lots of them — because your memories will NEVER be as good or clear as the photos you take. You will never regret doing so, even though it may seem like a hassle in the moment trying to gather folks together or arrange a shot. That and never drink the local tap water — because it’s always suspect.
General Hospital (GH) airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Port Charles, check out all the latest that’s been posted on GH spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.
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