The almost impossible had finally happen! I thought it would took longer but it really did happen!
No it wasn't that I finally got myself a man of my own (Darn!) But I finally cough up the dough to buy a new mobile phone :D
After much consideration and contemplation, I finally reach the conviction of buying Sony Ericcson w810i. It's price has surprising droping after the first week of May and seems to keep on decreasing which means I paid almost three thousand baht less than when it's first came out :D
I also bought the obligatory accessory of screen shield cover and black silicon protective case. I had add several game and a bunch of songs it to the phone :) It will also be my alarm clock as well :P
Portrait of the phone will be coming in a few days ;P
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Japan Trip in Restrospect and The Day at Disney Sea
At first I am had gathered some thoughts to be put into this retrospect post but those thoughts has elude me now... So I had come up with some new ones in regarding this post.
As I mention in my earlier post, I wasn't exactly thrill about this trip but rather the chance of being on a trip abroad. But I was thrill nontheless, it would be my second times in Japan and this times I would be old enough to remembered where I had been.
Overall I must say that it was a good trip. It was not a shopping tour but sightseeing tour so it seems that due to the currency and other factors the program seems somewhat crammed into the limited days to make the entire trip effordable. The results was that we felt rather beats by the end of the day to go out from the hotel to explore the city. Which is quite ashame thinking that I would be able to go into some ramen place and try the real Japan ramen, while in fact when I finally entered the hotel room I rarely came out at all.
One thing that you would notice while in Japan is how clean it is in all the places. I actually saw a few janitors diligently sweep cigarrett butts and small paper pieces to clean the place up. The cleanliness of the place also apply to most toilet as well. Also 99% of the urinal that I had been in (what can I say... I seems to have small bladder and the weather was cold) use light sensors at both the urinal and the washing sink. And some looks as though it's been there for 10 years at least.
Perhaps I might edit to add more thoughts but for now here is the link to see the photo we took during the trip.
I was not going into much details of my day at Disney sea in the early post because it was quite lengthy already, however I also want to describe it in more details regarding the rides so here it is. You can read about the event that lead me to wandering in the park alone here :P
If I remember correctly I began by walking toward the left side of the park from Mediterranean Harbor into the American Waterfront, and onwards to Lost River Delta and then into Port Discovery area, then going into the mountain in Mysterious Island to see the Little Mermaid's kids area. Then looking toward the Arabian Coast which would house Aladdin and Sinbad, I turn away toward the Mediterranean Harbor again. All the while looking around to see if I could find my family
I finally reach Mysterious Island again and decided to try the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride to get out of the rain for awhile. In the que, I met several people from our tour group as well. After waiting in lines for about 20 min. it's my turn. We went into a circular shape box that looks like the old brass submarine box and off we went. There was a narration as well but it was in japanese. The ride is quite pretty with bubble floating about on the looking glass. The ride seems to base from the book of the same name focusing on the part where caption Nemo took the professor out on the sea-stride session, with the lost city of atlantis, the giant squid and ship wreck ground. At first I was convince we're actually underwater, thinking it must be quite difficult to looking after the set underwater, but upon better inspection it turns out that the looking glass was double decked and filled with water to provide the illusion.
Next I was off to the Lost River Delta to the Indiana Jones rides. I had heard about this one before on TV but this would be the first times to try it. The que seems to be quite long but actually moving steadily, near the end of line into the ride there was a safety movie in silence black and white playing on the wall complete with sound affects to make it seems like it's from an old reels movie projector. The ride itself was on a jeep shape car, I have trouble putting my sizable backpack into the safety pouch in front of me as well as putting on the safety belt since I am not sure where it is! I started to panic slightly when the car started to took off but it seems that the alarm was set when the seat that has been taken but did not use the belt. So the staff came rush in and help me putting the bag away as well as helping me with the belt. The ride itself is quite grand, inside it was quite spacious and a lot of look at. The story itself is quite new although at the end of the ride it use the trademark giant rolling stone to did the drop down with photograph moment to be purchase at the exit :)
Then I walked through Port Discovery section into the Mediterranean Harbor and walk into the Fortress. I forgot to name but it was decked out Italian renaissance style with several rooms displaying the science and discovery of that era. They have one room that shows the Time-pendullum, illusion painting, alchemy, planterium with hand-crank for each planet that you can play with, and camera obscura which reflect the sight from the harbour area. It was also connected to the pier which has a small water playground for kids and a ship to explore. This is the place I regret the most for not having my camera with me T^T
After walking out of the Fortress, I walked toward the Arabian Coast and enter the Sinbad rides. This is not the Sinbad from the cinema featured but rather the traditional story from the Arabian Nights. The ride is on a boat which sail into different room with mechanic dolls performing on the story (think Smallworld here). There were a few room that was dark to represent stormy sea and night time which made me wish I have a hunky man for a quick make out session instead of just hugging my backpack...
Then I think I took the boat ride from around there back to Lost River Deltas to explore a bit more. Eventually I found my mom again as she was about to board the monorail. After a few discussion and pried my camera back from her only to found out that the battery has ran out. She recommend the Journey to The Center of the Earth rides that I avoid at first, thinking it was one of the *wet* ride but since she said that it was not and that it's quite good. I retreat back from the line and made my way to Mysterious Island again.
The Journey to The Center of the Earth rides was probabaly base on Jules Verne's book by the same name with a nice touch of the ride, for before we were to board the rides' car we were to go into the elevator to mock the descending 1,000 feets below the surface. The ride itself is like a minor rollarcoaster with some fast moving area and drop but overall it was quite fun indeed.
Then after thinking what the heck I decided to also try the StormRider rides. This one is in Port Discovery built and design with a retro modern Jules Verne style with lots of domes and brass fittings and futuristic design, it also the design of the StormRider ride which located in the Center for Weather Control building. This is a flight simulator with you sitting in the observation deck of an advanced flying laboratory into the eye of a storm with the mission to defused it with the new storm ray gun. I would not spoiled it for everyone but it is one of the Must-Ride rides in the park :)
As I mention in my earlier post, I wasn't exactly thrill about this trip but rather the chance of being on a trip abroad. But I was thrill nontheless, it would be my second times in Japan and this times I would be old enough to remembered where I had been.
Overall I must say that it was a good trip. It was not a shopping tour but sightseeing tour so it seems that due to the currency and other factors the program seems somewhat crammed into the limited days to make the entire trip effordable. The results was that we felt rather beats by the end of the day to go out from the hotel to explore the city. Which is quite ashame thinking that I would be able to go into some ramen place and try the real Japan ramen, while in fact when I finally entered the hotel room I rarely came out at all.
One thing that you would notice while in Japan is how clean it is in all the places. I actually saw a few janitors diligently sweep cigarrett butts and small paper pieces to clean the place up. The cleanliness of the place also apply to most toilet as well. Also 99% of the urinal that I had been in (what can I say... I seems to have small bladder and the weather was cold) use light sensors at both the urinal and the washing sink. And some looks as though it's been there for 10 years at least.
Perhaps I might edit to add more thoughts but for now here is the link to see the photo we took during the trip.
Click Here I was in one of the photo ;)
I was not going into much details of my day at Disney sea in the early post because it was quite lengthy already, however I also want to describe it in more details regarding the rides so here it is. You can read about the event that lead me to wandering in the park alone here :P
If I remember correctly I began by walking toward the left side of the park from Mediterranean Harbor into the American Waterfront, and onwards to Lost River Delta and then into Port Discovery area, then going into the mountain in Mysterious Island to see the Little Mermaid's kids area. Then looking toward the Arabian Coast which would house Aladdin and Sinbad, I turn away toward the Mediterranean Harbor again. All the while looking around to see if I could find my family
I finally reach Mysterious Island again and decided to try the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride to get out of the rain for awhile. In the que, I met several people from our tour group as well. After waiting in lines for about 20 min. it's my turn. We went into a circular shape box that looks like the old brass submarine box and off we went. There was a narration as well but it was in japanese. The ride is quite pretty with bubble floating about on the looking glass. The ride seems to base from the book of the same name focusing on the part where caption Nemo took the professor out on the sea-stride session, with the lost city of atlantis, the giant squid and ship wreck ground. At first I was convince we're actually underwater, thinking it must be quite difficult to looking after the set underwater, but upon better inspection it turns out that the looking glass was double decked and filled with water to provide the illusion.
Next I was off to the Lost River Delta to the Indiana Jones rides. I had heard about this one before on TV but this would be the first times to try it. The que seems to be quite long but actually moving steadily, near the end of line into the ride there was a safety movie in silence black and white playing on the wall complete with sound affects to make it seems like it's from an old reels movie projector. The ride itself was on a jeep shape car, I have trouble putting my sizable backpack into the safety pouch in front of me as well as putting on the safety belt since I am not sure where it is! I started to panic slightly when the car started to took off but it seems that the alarm was set when the seat that has been taken but did not use the belt. So the staff came rush in and help me putting the bag away as well as helping me with the belt. The ride itself is quite grand, inside it was quite spacious and a lot of look at. The story itself is quite new although at the end of the ride it use the trademark giant rolling stone to did the drop down with photograph moment to be purchase at the exit :)
Then I walked through Port Discovery section into the Mediterranean Harbor and walk into the Fortress. I forgot to name but it was decked out Italian renaissance style with several rooms displaying the science and discovery of that era. They have one room that shows the Time-pendullum, illusion painting, alchemy, planterium with hand-crank for each planet that you can play with, and camera obscura which reflect the sight from the harbour area. It was also connected to the pier which has a small water playground for kids and a ship to explore. This is the place I regret the most for not having my camera with me T^T
After walking out of the Fortress, I walked toward the Arabian Coast and enter the Sinbad rides. This is not the Sinbad from the cinema featured but rather the traditional story from the Arabian Nights. The ride is on a boat which sail into different room with mechanic dolls performing on the story (think Smallworld here). There were a few room that was dark to represent stormy sea and night time which made me wish I have a hunky man for a quick make out session instead of just hugging my backpack...
Then I think I took the boat ride from around there back to Lost River Deltas to explore a bit more. Eventually I found my mom again as she was about to board the monorail. After a few discussion and pried my camera back from her only to found out that the battery has ran out. She recommend the Journey to The Center of the Earth rides that I avoid at first, thinking it was one of the *wet* ride but since she said that it was not and that it's quite good. I retreat back from the line and made my way to Mysterious Island again.
The Journey to The Center of the Earth rides was probabaly base on Jules Verne's book by the same name with a nice touch of the ride, for before we were to board the rides' car we were to go into the elevator to mock the descending 1,000 feets below the surface. The ride itself is like a minor rollarcoaster with some fast moving area and drop but overall it was quite fun indeed.
Then after thinking what the heck I decided to also try the StormRider rides. This one is in Port Discovery built and design with a retro modern Jules Verne style with lots of domes and brass fittings and futuristic design, it also the design of the StormRider ride which located in the Center for Weather Control building. This is a flight simulator with you sitting in the observation deck of an advanced flying laboratory into the eye of a storm with the mission to defused it with the new storm ray gun. I would not spoiled it for everyone but it is one of the Must-Ride rides in the park :)
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Into Oblivion and The Journey into Dreamfall
Oblivion
After much contemplation, I eventually bought The Elderscrolls IV: Oblivion. Due to the fact that it's predecessor Morrowwind give me motion sickness when played it over a period of time.
However, when I play Oblivion it does not happen once. I guess it's because of my better than average video card GF6600. The experince is quite similar to Morrowwind although I felt less *lost* than in MW.
As it seems to be a tradition in Elderscrolls games, you will began your journey as a prisoner before being release into the world where you can make yourself into whatever you wants to be. It is one of the more hardcore RPG game style than let's say Final Fantasy series. In ES series you can ignore the main quest and just roaming the world as you please.
The graphic in this game is phenomenal. The forest is so lush and green, add that to the Distance land feature (which allow you to see the land far away when the weather permits) the world looks alive and fresh. You will get all that only if you have good graphic card, I guess mine is quite decent and that's help with the motion sickness as well.
The real strenght of this game is the free roaming in the beautiful terrain, doubling that with the vast mod community that churn out thousands of mods to date. This game will have longer play time than most games. I enjoy visiting the ever robust Oblivion Mod forum on the official site. I must have downloaded close to 1Gb content from custom weapons, armors, quests, buildings, including graphic tweaks. One guy has made Cloud's sword from the movie Final Fantasy VII: Advent children into the game and another guy apply Dwarven texture on it. The result is one very cool looking bastard sword ever :)
Dreamfall
I have been waiting for this game eversince I heard the news of it. It finally arrive one day after I found that it is available to be download on eMule (of which I would not do since it's the size of one DVD!) as my regular game shop ring me up to tell me that it will be available tomorrow (from the dya that they call) which would be my day off as well, Yippie!!
After a quick trip to MBK mall where the game shop is, well not so quick since a friend of mine, Musicman, told me he would be in that area around the time that I go to the mall so we agreed to meet and catch up. But when I call him as I arrive at MBK, he SMS to tell me that he still in his apartment and will arrive later by one and half hour... Anyway this is about Dreamfall: The Longest Journey so I will quickly going into that :)
DF is a sort of sequal to the classic, one of the best adventure game ever made, The Longest Journey. The story take place 10 years after the first game, you will be playing as Zoë a young colleage dropout in South Africa who has a comfortable, yet without the drive to keep her going. Soon you (as Zoë) will stumble upon something that will forever change your life and had you travel Japan, US, Russia and to another world entirely in Arcadia where you will be in Marcuria, the Dark people city and a lot more.
The graphic looks great, although it seems static in some scene but overall it looks fantastic. The control take some getting used to as it is the case with most games that has been design for multiple platforms. Luckily I do own a gamepad and I ended up play the game with it the entire game. However, at first when I begin playing the game the graphic was all jumble up but the game still running. A quick search leads me to the official forum and found out that other people have the same problem as I do which came from the use of GF6600 card with the newest driver. After loading the older version of the driver and the game works fine.
The audio aspect of Dreamfall is top notch. The voice acting in particular is probably one of the best ever. Zoë speaks with distinct British accent while April spoke with her own American accent. While one male character in particular cause a slight stir in my groin with his handsome sultry voice in Irish accent ^^ To get a taste of his voice click here to download the guy's voice sample (not from the game)
The story touch on a lot of issues, it is mainly about faith which leads to many other issues up till the end. The playtime is quite short as I finish it in 3 days, probably spend about 15 hours or less. However, the ending is... it just leave things hanging loose in many levels but after I read some post on the official forum, I realize that Dreamfall meant to be just part one of the second part of the story. Hopefully, evetually part two will come out and tide up all the loose endS in this one. The writer/director of TLJ series Ragnar Tornquist has said in his blog that he will complete the story no matter what, whether through game or, god forbid, in case making the sequal is not an option he will do it by other means as he did owned it to us the fan to complete the story.
So to help making the sequal to Dreamfall (my I love that word) came as fast as possible please buy the game. Also to spread the words http://spreaddreamfall.ducaet.be/ please add this link to your site too :)
Friday, May 05, 2006
The Trip: Day Six, Tokyo->Narita->BKK
I woke up before the clock again... I guess I am getting used to the routine and then it's already time to go home... I had done all of my packing last night, and since I did not buy much (mostly small trinkets) I have rooms to spare although I think my mom forget my offers to store some stuff in my luggage.
Breakfast... If I remember correctly it's the same as the day before, we stay in the same hotel for a change afterall. This morning it is slight hectic, since it is our last day in Japan so we have to pack everything and load them into the coach bus.
Our first stop today is Narita-san temple, one of the oldest temple in Tokyo area. We arrive quite early that when I went into the main temple, there still performing the morning praying rituals. They put up floor to ceiling glass walls presumably to seperate the praying area from the front area which held the donation box and the shop.
When we walk out, me and my mom notice a group of people (who turns out to be a family of Thais, presumably from another tour group) hurdling over a shop. I went to see what they were browsing it turns out to be a charm shop manned by an elderly man. The charm is a golden color miniture hammer, like the one the god of fortune use for blessing with money. It the hammer part was hollowed and inside contain tiny golden charms in the shape of turtle, frog, gold nuggets, money, your chinese zodiac and dice. The price tag is 1,000 yens per piece, however since there were 4 people hurdling over the shop plus me and my mom, he cut the price to 800 yens and handed out the tiny frog for everone. Then my mom haggle a bit more to 700 yens and we all got that price :P I was the last one to get my hammer (as he will open the hammer to show each people what's inside as well as we have to choose them according to our chinese zodiac) I gestures him to put my frog in my hammer as well but he gestures back that the frog was meant to be put in wallet. So I take my wallet out to show him the despire state of my wallet. He gestured for me put the frog in the coin pocket and then I open it to show him that it's already ripped apart. He got a hearty laugh out of it (as was I XD)
Then we off to Umihotaru (Sea Firefly: comes from the planktons in the area which will emit fainted glow when the water surface is disturbed), an undersea tunnel connection Kawasaki to Kisarasu. Our guide told us that it took about 10 years to built this as a relieve measure to reduce the traffic in the inner area of Tokyo. However, since it took 10 years to built, during that period other measures has to be use, as a results the tunnel has became more of a sightseeing spot (it has a rest area before the tunnel went under). On one floor there were a bunch of gajapong stands and I tried a few of them :) One of the mother in the group seems to take a liking to it as well as she tried quite a few machine :)
Afterthat we stop for lunch at a Shabu Shabu place. It was... not very tasty but then it is our last meal in Japan. I guess their pork is not as tasty but their meats are. The restuarant is on the second floor while the first floor was a supermarket. When we finish our meal we have a bit of time to check it out. And we found a young woman holding her baby who turns out to be Thais. The women in our group got to talk to her a bit and learned that she got married to a Japanese man at the age of 19 and move here where her husband open an Italian restuarant closed by.
Then we off to Aeon shopping mall, our last stop in Japan, our guide said this mall is like Central Ladpraw in BKK where there is a section that runs by the mall itself and the larger section that rented out to various shops. My mom stays in the supermarket section while I check out the mall a bit, before ran into information booth asking where can I find the gajapong machines :P The lady at information said they are in the toy department and boy there must be like 30 machines altogether. I think I got about five of them, while the mother was enjoying herself over this machines and has her son exchange more bank notes into coins for her :).
Much too soon it is our time to leave to make it in time for the Narita airport. Our guide bid us goodbye and compliment us for behaving like a seasonsed tourists in abide by the morning protocol to place the luggage in front of our room so they can be loaded into the bus. For being very friendly to each other that it helps when checking who's missing as well as taking each others for shopping without relying the guides too much. Also how we, at Disney Sea, just went off on our ways into the park without asking them to lead them to each rides, and they mention how one group decided to go together as a group of 40 tourists going from one rides to another and have them running around fetching people when they are missing from the group.
And regarding to that our guide also mention how lucky our group were on several accounts. First the baht was quite strong against the yens 33-31 baht against 100 yens, how the sky clear out the morning we were going up Mt. Fuji, how there were a lot less people going to both themeparks which enable us to pretty much play on most, if not all, the rides, and also how nice our driver is.
Our guide compliment our driver of how friendly, kind, good natures, and good attitude he is, who wasn't complained about the lateness or the long hours, saying that he understand how things goes when they are a trip.
The airport is quite crowded as several group of Thais tourists also leave on the same day. We when along quite smoothly and since my mom still need to buy a few more items as well as the fact that we will not be able to exchange our coins at the bank so I got stuck guarding our luggage at the gate while they went off checking ou the duty free shops. Of which they has not return until the time they open the gate :ppp
The flight back went quite smoothly and considerbly more comfortable than the flight to Japan. When we arrive at BKK airport it took us a while to get our luggage as they airport see fits to load the luggages from three flights onto one conveyer belt.
We then proceed through custom without a hitch, although I was concern over the obvious strawberry box we carried but we were not stop. Then we went in lines get the taxi and then we were back home.
The End of my Japan trip :)
Breakfast... If I remember correctly it's the same as the day before, we stay in the same hotel for a change afterall. This morning it is slight hectic, since it is our last day in Japan so we have to pack everything and load them into the coach bus.
Our first stop today is Narita-san temple, one of the oldest temple in Tokyo area. We arrive quite early that when I went into the main temple, there still performing the morning praying rituals. They put up floor to ceiling glass walls presumably to seperate the praying area from the front area which held the donation box and the shop.
When we walk out, me and my mom notice a group of people (who turns out to be a family of Thais, presumably from another tour group) hurdling over a shop. I went to see what they were browsing it turns out to be a charm shop manned by an elderly man. The charm is a golden color miniture hammer, like the one the god of fortune use for blessing with money. It the hammer part was hollowed and inside contain tiny golden charms in the shape of turtle, frog, gold nuggets, money, your chinese zodiac and dice. The price tag is 1,000 yens per piece, however since there were 4 people hurdling over the shop plus me and my mom, he cut the price to 800 yens and handed out the tiny frog for everone. Then my mom haggle a bit more to 700 yens and we all got that price :P I was the last one to get my hammer (as he will open the hammer to show each people what's inside as well as we have to choose them according to our chinese zodiac) I gestures him to put my frog in my hammer as well but he gestures back that the frog was meant to be put in wallet. So I take my wallet out to show him the despire state of my wallet. He gestured for me put the frog in the coin pocket and then I open it to show him that it's already ripped apart. He got a hearty laugh out of it (as was I XD)
Then we off to Umihotaru (Sea Firefly: comes from the planktons in the area which will emit fainted glow when the water surface is disturbed), an undersea tunnel connection Kawasaki to Kisarasu. Our guide told us that it took about 10 years to built this as a relieve measure to reduce the traffic in the inner area of Tokyo. However, since it took 10 years to built, during that period other measures has to be use, as a results the tunnel has became more of a sightseeing spot (it has a rest area before the tunnel went under). On one floor there were a bunch of gajapong stands and I tried a few of them :) One of the mother in the group seems to take a liking to it as well as she tried quite a few machine :)
Afterthat we stop for lunch at a Shabu Shabu place. It was... not very tasty but then it is our last meal in Japan. I guess their pork is not as tasty but their meats are. The restuarant is on the second floor while the first floor was a supermarket. When we finish our meal we have a bit of time to check it out. And we found a young woman holding her baby who turns out to be Thais. The women in our group got to talk to her a bit and learned that she got married to a Japanese man at the age of 19 and move here where her husband open an Italian restuarant closed by.
Then we off to Aeon shopping mall, our last stop in Japan, our guide said this mall is like Central Ladpraw in BKK where there is a section that runs by the mall itself and the larger section that rented out to various shops. My mom stays in the supermarket section while I check out the mall a bit, before ran into information booth asking where can I find the gajapong machines :P The lady at information said they are in the toy department and boy there must be like 30 machines altogether. I think I got about five of them, while the mother was enjoying herself over this machines and has her son exchange more bank notes into coins for her :).
Much too soon it is our time to leave to make it in time for the Narita airport. Our guide bid us goodbye and compliment us for behaving like a seasonsed tourists in abide by the morning protocol to place the luggage in front of our room so they can be loaded into the bus. For being very friendly to each other that it helps when checking who's missing as well as taking each others for shopping without relying the guides too much. Also how we, at Disney Sea, just went off on our ways into the park without asking them to lead them to each rides, and they mention how one group decided to go together as a group of 40 tourists going from one rides to another and have them running around fetching people when they are missing from the group.
And regarding to that our guide also mention how lucky our group were on several accounts. First the baht was quite strong against the yens 33-31 baht against 100 yens, how the sky clear out the morning we were going up Mt. Fuji, how there were a lot less people going to both themeparks which enable us to pretty much play on most, if not all, the rides, and also how nice our driver is.
Our guide compliment our driver of how friendly, kind, good natures, and good attitude he is, who wasn't complained about the lateness or the long hours, saying that he understand how things goes when they are a trip.
The airport is quite crowded as several group of Thais tourists also leave on the same day. We when along quite smoothly and since my mom still need to buy a few more items as well as the fact that we will not be able to exchange our coins at the bank so I got stuck guarding our luggage at the gate while they went off checking ou the duty free shops. Of which they has not return until the time they open the gate :ppp
The flight back went quite smoothly and considerbly more comfortable than the flight to Japan. When we arrive at BKK airport it took us a while to get our luggage as they airport see fits to load the luggages from three flights onto one conveyer belt.
We then proceed through custom without a hitch, although I was concern over the obvious strawberry box we carried but we were not stop. Then we went in lines get the taxi and then we were back home.
The End of my Japan trip :)
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
The Trip: Day Five, Tokyo->Shiba
Again... the hotel breakfast... At least they have fresh fruits this times. Although it's slightly better than other breakfast but still...
On to the bus again, this times we were off to Asakusa temple (the one with giant red lamp). The temple has a few big red paper lamps (by big I mean it's taller than me already) and the biggest one of all is at the main temple. The terms giant would be more accurate.
There is also rows of shops that began to open by the time we arrive. Shops after shops of goods and so on.
Then we were off to one of the main destination Tokyo Disney Sea! At first I didn't felt very trill about this visit since... well I am already a grown man. But when we arrive at the parking lot area and I saw the building I began to get excited because it looks like old Italian buildings. When we get off the bus it was raining lightly, but I came prepared with 100 yens folded umbrella and two 100 yens lipglosses also from the 100 yens shop :)
After our guide told us time to gather and meeting spot, we were off into the park. Around the entrance I saw my mom with the siblings went off to look at something, I did the same on another direction for a few seconds and when I turn around they were gone... I was slightly panic and after tried to look for them for a few minutes. They were no where to be found, despite their rather unique looking umbrellas, so I decided to took off on my own, I am a big boy afterall and I do have some money for anything I wants to buy.
So I began to walk around the park, not an easy task as I first thought. My woe began with the hinge of my fold umbrella snap right off, while it still raining in the park. I manage to make it usable until the time to leave since my alternative would be the Disney umbrellas of 1,000 yens and more. And then, since I got lost with my mom, who also taken my camera. I have nothing to take pictures with and there are A LOT of places to take pictures there. Morever, when I found my mom again it turns out that the camera was already ran out of power, apparently she forgot to plug the charger to the wall the night before...
My highlights of Disney Seas would be the mediteranian area, the Venicia corner and the Indiana Jones ride. What can I say, I just love the Europeans feels of that area. Too bad that I did not have my camera with me... Also the queing area has a lot of decorate and some props to check out as well. For lunch I check out the mediteranian area for some food, the restuarant do offer italians food but it cost like 2,500 yens per plate so I just go for black pepper pork rib and light snack at the near by booth. I also has a cheesecake in the Lost River Delta section :)
Due to the rain which began falling since morning the park is less crowd than usual. We were able to go on 6-7 rides by the time we have to leave, which according to the guide, a lot more than other group were able to manage.
Before we left I finally wrangle my mom older camera to do some last minute photo snapping in my favorite and close by section, The Mediteranian Harbour. Too bad that I did not have enough time to take photo in the fortress which shows many italian creations from the renaissance time.
While we gathered around the parking area bathroom building I got into a discussion with a couple who's looking to buy a mp3 player. I gave them my opinion, show them my latest acquisition and then agreed to go back to the shop with them to help them pick out the right ones.
Dinner tonight was all-you-can-eat giant crabs legs, of which it take some getting used to in getting the meat from the shell but we manage. Afterward I decided to do my last minute shopping in 100 yens store. The last times I bought umbrella and lipgloss but I also bought a pair of socks, which turns out to be really comfy so I went back to buy some more.
On to the bus again, this times we were off to Asakusa temple (the one with giant red lamp). The temple has a few big red paper lamps (by big I mean it's taller than me already) and the biggest one of all is at the main temple. The terms giant would be more accurate.
There is also rows of shops that began to open by the time we arrive. Shops after shops of goods and so on.
Then we were off to one of the main destination Tokyo Disney Sea! At first I didn't felt very trill about this visit since... well I am already a grown man. But when we arrive at the parking lot area and I saw the building I began to get excited because it looks like old Italian buildings. When we get off the bus it was raining lightly, but I came prepared with 100 yens folded umbrella and two 100 yens lipglosses also from the 100 yens shop :)
After our guide told us time to gather and meeting spot, we were off into the park. Around the entrance I saw my mom with the siblings went off to look at something, I did the same on another direction for a few seconds and when I turn around they were gone... I was slightly panic and after tried to look for them for a few minutes. They were no where to be found, despite their rather unique looking umbrellas, so I decided to took off on my own, I am a big boy afterall and I do have some money for anything I wants to buy.
So I began to walk around the park, not an easy task as I first thought. My woe began with the hinge of my fold umbrella snap right off, while it still raining in the park. I manage to make it usable until the time to leave since my alternative would be the Disney umbrellas of 1,000 yens and more. And then, since I got lost with my mom, who also taken my camera. I have nothing to take pictures with and there are A LOT of places to take pictures there. Morever, when I found my mom again it turns out that the camera was already ran out of power, apparently she forgot to plug the charger to the wall the night before...
My highlights of Disney Seas would be the mediteranian area, the Venicia corner and the Indiana Jones ride. What can I say, I just love the Europeans feels of that area. Too bad that I did not have my camera with me... Also the queing area has a lot of decorate and some props to check out as well. For lunch I check out the mediteranian area for some food, the restuarant do offer italians food but it cost like 2,500 yens per plate so I just go for black pepper pork rib and light snack at the near by booth. I also has a cheesecake in the Lost River Delta section :)
Due to the rain which began falling since morning the park is less crowd than usual. We were able to go on 6-7 rides by the time we have to leave, which according to the guide, a lot more than other group were able to manage.
Before we left I finally wrangle my mom older camera to do some last minute photo snapping in my favorite and close by section, The Mediteranian Harbour. Too bad that I did not have enough time to take photo in the fortress which shows many italian creations from the renaissance time.
While we gathered around the parking area bathroom building I got into a discussion with a couple who's looking to buy a mp3 player. I gave them my opinion, show them my latest acquisition and then agreed to go back to the shop with them to help them pick out the right ones.
Dinner tonight was all-you-can-eat giant crabs legs, of which it take some getting used to in getting the meat from the shell but we manage. Afterward I decided to do my last minute shopping in 100 yens store. The last times I bought umbrella and lipgloss but I also bought a pair of socks, which turns out to be really comfy so I went back to buy some more.
Sunday, April 30, 2006
The Trip: Day Four, Hagone->Mt. Fuji->Tokyo
I woke up before the alarm, again, and decided I should made the most of my time by hit the bath again :) It felt quite exquitsite to take some leisure time first thing in the morning. Alone in the male section to enjoy the bath alone. Of which I did a little swimming in the of the bath too ^^.
Then when I went back to my room I notice that the sky has open and we have a clear view of Mt. Fuji. I reluctant a bit but decided to go back to the bath again enjoy the the view of the famous mountain.
The breakfast was... ediable to say the least... Although the grill salted salmon was very good, the egg was cooked in a pot with heat on paper so it looks like fried egg but no fat, which does not taste good :P
After the meal we have a few moments to take the picture of Mt. Fuji before actually going up the mountain :) Our guide had warned us that it will be very cold up in the mountain (which was up two thirds of the height) so I wore my longjohn bottom just to be cautious and I was not disappointed.
I think I slept a bit on the way up to the tourist stops on the fifth level. When we arrive it wasn't just cold, it was chilly and quite windy. There was snow everywhere as well as tourists :P My younger bros. spot a white couple in ski suits, carries ski boards walk pass by. There were about three to four shops around there as well as a small shrine. Our guide said once we got off the bus we will receive a ticket for a blessed small bell from one of the shop (which appearantly the busiest shop too).
Only one shop seems to have the toilet and it smell Really Really bad. We learned afterward that this is because there was no plumbing up there and it would be too costly to buy water just for the toilet use. The guide mention that they use some sort of bubbly substance to clean it instead.
What surprise me is that the shopkeeper (or perhaps the owner) who hands out the bells as well as the few salespeople in the shop can speak Thai. After walking around between shops as well as looking for my family. I could not stay outside for too long due to the wind plus the chill made my earlope hurt (it would be nice if I have a tall man to kiss my ear warm later *sigh*). I walk into the big shop again and then I heard a loud yelling by a Thai guy accusing the shopkeeper of cheating on the changes, it sounds pretty bad so I hastily leave the shop. Before leaving I finally bought a blue tea cup with Mt. Fuji print on it. The funny thing is that when I hand it over to the cashier he pull out the one that's already boxed and wrapped from under the counter (which implied that this might be a mildly popular items or it's a common policy of the shop the save the time of both the buyer and seller).
After we're all back on the bus, the tourguides talked a bit about the *side show* we witnessed. First, they say that the Japaneses are trustworty regarding moneys. They said you can hand them the coins and bills and they will always pick out the correct amount for your purchase, adding that of all their 10 and 20 years of working as toursguide they never saw, heard, or been cheated in Japan. When the shouting match erupts they said they were all scramble defuse the situation as well as calling other guides to see whose group was the troublemaker belongs too. They also said that it is quite embarrasing that this happen as they were very sure that the guy must be mistaken his money somehow. They also mention that it is very difficult for Japaneses to learn to speak Thai and yet the people working in that shop all speak Thai (they were able to distinguise Thais from the crowd too) which shows how much they appreciate our business up there and said that Thais buy things up there like no others :P.
On our way down the fog began to set again which prompted the tourguide to mention how lucky our group were since if this happen in the morning the mountain will be close and not to mention we won't be able to get the view too.
Then it was a pretty long bus ride to Tokyo. We stop for lunch in Ginza area at a Thai restuarant (although in the brochure it said we would be having korean grills). The food was quite good, grilled chicken is very good, the spicy glass noodle is quite like home while the tom yum is almsot tasteless. The restuarant is very popular. People qued up for seat when we were there.
After lunch we have a bit of time to check out the area. The road in Ginza area will be close for cars and bench with parasol will be setup in the middle of the street for patrons who will crowded the area after 13:00. In front of one shopping mall there were people lining up for something and my mom push me and my youngest bro. into the que as well. As I observe the staff and the poster at the end of the line, its appear to be the draw lots of the mineral bath association in one of the province. We tried but got the lowest prize (Darn it...) which is a bag of herbal teas :p.
Afterward we went on the bus again and passed the palace, and a few sightseeing spots in Tokyo before stopping at Tasaki Pearl company. According to the guide Tasaki has became the leading pearl making company in the world. They even give away the pearl by lucky draw to one of the tour group using a number randomizer after we finish seeing the demontration of how they make pearl. Then on the first two floors it was showroom for the pearl. Some are quite cheap 14,000-18,000 yens to the very expensive necklaces. We stay here for quite a long while since there were many women in the groups :P
After we got everybody we finally went to Miraikan Museum. However it was 16:00 by the time we got there and the museum close at 17:00. So we did not have a lot time to completely scouting the place out. So I just concentrate mostly on the globe that show the current world weather and other pattearn in real time that I had often saw on Discovery channel.
Then we all leave to get back to the hotel. We have about an hour of free time before the dinner time. So I decided to check out the mall that sell earbud headphones since I seems to broke mine while I slept in the ferry. Also two of the women in the group wants to check out the mall for other items as well so we agreed to go together.
The weather is certainly colder in Tokyo than other city we were in especially after dark. We went looking for this place that called 'Bic Camera' which seems to be the biggest chain that sell electric appliances all over Japan (I saw one while in Osaka). It took us a while to look for this place as it does not have a big banner telling which building it is but we eventually found it. Once we found it we first took care of the business of my parties first which is battery for her camera. Then when it's my turn, it turns out that what actually broken is the earplug socket of my mp3 player. Since the warranty of this mp3 player is alreayd expired so I think it's a better idea to buy a new one. After browsing around a bit I decided on Creative MuVo s200 1Gb. It seems to be a brand spanking new model too ^^. It cost me around 12,000 yens, something that's close to 4,000 baht. Which is quite a good price, considering the brand and the size, comparing to TH.
Our dinner for today is at a Chinese restuarant. It was again abit edible... Personally I would prefer some ramen but still...
After the meal I rush to my room to gathered the camera, mp3 playerS, flash drive, and all the cable in order to transfer all the photo from the camera to flash drive. As it turns out the hotel does not have available business center but the staff pointed me to the internet cafe just opposite from the hotel.
It was easy enough to find but the place stink of cigarette and I really do mean STINK and REEKS of cigarette. It took some minutes to transfer all the photos and it could not be fast enough. On the bright side it cost me only 80 yens after I finish using it. I could only focus on checking my emails while waiting for the transfer to complete... Although the place looks quite interesting as it as a manga corner I just wasn't in the mood for it as I could barely breath with all the stink of cigarette smoke.
Then when I went back to my room I notice that the sky has open and we have a clear view of Mt. Fuji. I reluctant a bit but decided to go back to the bath again enjoy the the view of the famous mountain.
The breakfast was... ediable to say the least... Although the grill salted salmon was very good, the egg was cooked in a pot with heat on paper so it looks like fried egg but no fat, which does not taste good :P
After the meal we have a few moments to take the picture of Mt. Fuji before actually going up the mountain :) Our guide had warned us that it will be very cold up in the mountain (which was up two thirds of the height) so I wore my longjohn bottom just to be cautious and I was not disappointed.
I think I slept a bit on the way up to the tourist stops on the fifth level. When we arrive it wasn't just cold, it was chilly and quite windy. There was snow everywhere as well as tourists :P My younger bros. spot a white couple in ski suits, carries ski boards walk pass by. There were about three to four shops around there as well as a small shrine. Our guide said once we got off the bus we will receive a ticket for a blessed small bell from one of the shop (which appearantly the busiest shop too).
Only one shop seems to have the toilet and it smell Really Really bad. We learned afterward that this is because there was no plumbing up there and it would be too costly to buy water just for the toilet use. The guide mention that they use some sort of bubbly substance to clean it instead.
What surprise me is that the shopkeeper (or perhaps the owner) who hands out the bells as well as the few salespeople in the shop can speak Thai. After walking around between shops as well as looking for my family. I could not stay outside for too long due to the wind plus the chill made my earlope hurt (it would be nice if I have a tall man to kiss my ear warm later *sigh*). I walk into the big shop again and then I heard a loud yelling by a Thai guy accusing the shopkeeper of cheating on the changes, it sounds pretty bad so I hastily leave the shop. Before leaving I finally bought a blue tea cup with Mt. Fuji print on it. The funny thing is that when I hand it over to the cashier he pull out the one that's already boxed and wrapped from under the counter (which implied that this might be a mildly popular items or it's a common policy of the shop the save the time of both the buyer and seller).
After we're all back on the bus, the tourguides talked a bit about the *side show* we witnessed. First, they say that the Japaneses are trustworty regarding moneys. They said you can hand them the coins and bills and they will always pick out the correct amount for your purchase, adding that of all their 10 and 20 years of working as toursguide they never saw, heard, or been cheated in Japan. When the shouting match erupts they said they were all scramble defuse the situation as well as calling other guides to see whose group was the troublemaker belongs too. They also said that it is quite embarrasing that this happen as they were very sure that the guy must be mistaken his money somehow. They also mention that it is very difficult for Japaneses to learn to speak Thai and yet the people working in that shop all speak Thai (they were able to distinguise Thais from the crowd too) which shows how much they appreciate our business up there and said that Thais buy things up there like no others :P.
On our way down the fog began to set again which prompted the tourguide to mention how lucky our group were since if this happen in the morning the mountain will be close and not to mention we won't be able to get the view too.
Then it was a pretty long bus ride to Tokyo. We stop for lunch in Ginza area at a Thai restuarant (although in the brochure it said we would be having korean grills). The food was quite good, grilled chicken is very good, the spicy glass noodle is quite like home while the tom yum is almsot tasteless. The restuarant is very popular. People qued up for seat when we were there.
After lunch we have a bit of time to check out the area. The road in Ginza area will be close for cars and bench with parasol will be setup in the middle of the street for patrons who will crowded the area after 13:00. In front of one shopping mall there were people lining up for something and my mom push me and my youngest bro. into the que as well. As I observe the staff and the poster at the end of the line, its appear to be the draw lots of the mineral bath association in one of the province. We tried but got the lowest prize (Darn it...) which is a bag of herbal teas :p.
Afterward we went on the bus again and passed the palace, and a few sightseeing spots in Tokyo before stopping at Tasaki Pearl company. According to the guide Tasaki has became the leading pearl making company in the world. They even give away the pearl by lucky draw to one of the tour group using a number randomizer after we finish seeing the demontration of how they make pearl. Then on the first two floors it was showroom for the pearl. Some are quite cheap 14,000-18,000 yens to the very expensive necklaces. We stay here for quite a long while since there were many women in the groups :P
After we got everybody we finally went to Miraikan Museum. However it was 16:00 by the time we got there and the museum close at 17:00. So we did not have a lot time to completely scouting the place out. So I just concentrate mostly on the globe that show the current world weather and other pattearn in real time that I had often saw on Discovery channel.
Then we all leave to get back to the hotel. We have about an hour of free time before the dinner time. So I decided to check out the mall that sell earbud headphones since I seems to broke mine while I slept in the ferry. Also two of the women in the group wants to check out the mall for other items as well so we agreed to go together.
The weather is certainly colder in Tokyo than other city we were in especially after dark. We went looking for this place that called 'Bic Camera' which seems to be the biggest chain that sell electric appliances all over Japan (I saw one while in Osaka). It took us a while to look for this place as it does not have a big banner telling which building it is but we eventually found it. Once we found it we first took care of the business of my parties first which is battery for her camera. Then when it's my turn, it turns out that what actually broken is the earplug socket of my mp3 player. Since the warranty of this mp3 player is alreayd expired so I think it's a better idea to buy a new one. After browsing around a bit I decided on Creative MuVo s200 1Gb. It seems to be a brand spanking new model too ^^. It cost me around 12,000 yens, something that's close to 4,000 baht. Which is quite a good price, considering the brand and the size, comparing to TH.
Our dinner for today is at a Chinese restuarant. It was again abit edible... Personally I would prefer some ramen but still...
After the meal I rush to my room to gathered the camera, mp3 playerS, flash drive, and all the cable in order to transfer all the photo from the camera to flash drive. As it turns out the hotel does not have available business center but the staff pointed me to the internet cafe just opposite from the hotel.
It was easy enough to find but the place stink of cigarette and I really do mean STINK and REEKS of cigarette. It took some minutes to transfer all the photos and it could not be fast enough. On the bright side it cost me only 80 yens after I finish using it. I could only focus on checking my emails while waiting for the transfer to complete... Although the place looks quite interesting as it as a manga corner I just wasn't in the mood for it as I could barely breath with all the stink of cigarette smoke.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Intermission
In case any of you guys (it would only be a handful but still...) I am back from Japan already and drafting my last 3-4 days in Japan.
However, I am also came right back to work which is now a 12 hours shift 19:30-7:30. On top of that I seems to experince a moderate level of depression. While I was in my office the next day after I got back I felt drain, disdain toward my job and felt like quitting just so I have more free time for myself. At the same time, I kept telling myself that this could be the results of the exhaustion from the trip (six hours of non-continous sleep each night during the trip).
Today I felt considerbly better than the last couple of days, and I will continue blogging the trip. Although it would be nice if I saw some comments on the trip posts... Especially when I type those trip in slightly hasting manner since I was tried and really need to go to bed then as we would have to wake up at six o'clock for our trip.
However, I am also came right back to work which is now a 12 hours shift 19:30-7:30. On top of that I seems to experince a moderate level of depression. While I was in my office the next day after I got back I felt drain, disdain toward my job and felt like quitting just so I have more free time for myself. At the same time, I kept telling myself that this could be the results of the exhaustion from the trip (six hours of non-continous sleep each night during the trip).
Today I felt considerbly better than the last couple of days, and I will continue blogging the trip. Although it would be nice if I saw some comments on the trip posts... Especially when I type those trip in slightly hasting manner since I was tried and really need to go to bed then as we would have to wake up at six o'clock for our trip.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
The Trip: Day Three, Nagoya->Hagone
We start the day with the breakfast in hotel. It wasn't as good as the dinner but I guess it's typical breakfast for hotel everywhere...
Then we were off on the road again to Hagone. We made a pit stop at a rest area which is has eel products in the store as it is what the area is famous for. These eels are sea eel which, according to the tour guide, taste better as they live in clean water. I have not tried any of them though... The stop was not very long anyhow, however, it is the first place that I found the 'Gajapong' or the gumball like machine. Only that it didn't dispense gumball but plastic balls containing small toys insides. Most will cost you 200 yens per times and usually you will have a chance of getting getting one out of five to six varieties of the items inside. I tried a couple of dispensers and got some cute stuffs :)
Next we visit Heiwa Park, the peace park, to symbolize the peace making efforts of Japan toward the countries that it had been wronged by. The park, seems to built on a small hill has various breed of Sakura all over the place. We only visit a few high points though as time was limited but the park was very beautiful with all the sakura blooming all over the hills. On the top section there is either a church or a stupa with about 6 pairs of stone lions from India, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Malaysia, and China positioned on the path to the center building.
Then we left for lunch, which is bento (japanese style lunch box) it wasn't very good since some of the food were cold :p
Afterward we were on the bus again to Mt. Owakudani to have a taste of black boiled eggs that was boiled in the natural mineral water hot spot. The result are the black shell boiled egg due to the sulfur in the water. It is believed that one black egg will extend your life by seven years :)
However, it was foggy that day up in the moutain which slowed the bus. When we reach the top it was so foggy and windy that my pants felt moist from just a brief exposure going from the bus into the building. Inside the tourist stop we have a bit of time to shop and I bought a small black boiled egg Doraemon strap, of which I can be sure that it can't be found anywhere else in Japan (although it was made in China :P) Then we were rounded up by our tourguide to go down to the pier by cable cars.
We got the first class ticket to do sightseeing on the ferry on Achi lake. The ferry outer appearance were deck out in pirate ship style. Also we were on the red one (I notice there were the blue, violet and green ones too) which seems to be the main symbol for this attraction since the Hello Kitty keychain is of this red ferry.
Afterward we were on the bus again to Gotemba outlet mall, which is the outlet mall of all the brandnames products from Nike to Bvlgarri. All are genuine sales items, by that I meant the items were the top quality products that were out of fashion and the company did not wants to stock them.
The mall itself is quite amazing. It seems to be up in the hill somewhere and the space was quite large. Each shops has its own showroom in open area which clutter together down the path. Heck the place even have it's own ferris wheel.
By the time we left Gotemba mall it was like 19:00 already. We should head straight to the hotel to be on time but we still have one place left to shop which is Seifu Supermarket. Our tourguide has to tell tall tales to the hotel people (which had setup the dinning room for us) in order to make time for us to do one more shopping for the day at this supermarket. The tales is that there was an accident on the moutain road. However, we were busted when we stop at Seifu since it's the big supermarket of the area, the hotel staffs also shop there too :P So another tales has to be made which one of the woman in the group need emergency... maxipad :P
After the shopping ended we finally head to the hotel. The dinner is traditional shabu Japan style, it did not taste much but it was ok by that time.
The next agenda on the list is the onsen (mineral water bath). The practise is to shower first to clean yourself before go down into the bath section. We can't use towel to cover.... our midsection either since the guide said if the hotel caught us doing so we will be fine 300,000 yens since the hotel will replace the whole batch of mineral water to perserve it's cleanliness.
In the end, I did take the hot bath 4 times altogether. Two in the night and two more in the morning ^^.
Then we were off on the road again to Hagone. We made a pit stop at a rest area which is has eel products in the store as it is what the area is famous for. These eels are sea eel which, according to the tour guide, taste better as they live in clean water. I have not tried any of them though... The stop was not very long anyhow, however, it is the first place that I found the 'Gajapong' or the gumball like machine. Only that it didn't dispense gumball but plastic balls containing small toys insides. Most will cost you 200 yens per times and usually you will have a chance of getting getting one out of five to six varieties of the items inside. I tried a couple of dispensers and got some cute stuffs :)
Next we visit Heiwa Park, the peace park, to symbolize the peace making efforts of Japan toward the countries that it had been wronged by. The park, seems to built on a small hill has various breed of Sakura all over the place. We only visit a few high points though as time was limited but the park was very beautiful with all the sakura blooming all over the hills. On the top section there is either a church or a stupa with about 6 pairs of stone lions from India, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Malaysia, and China positioned on the path to the center building.
Then we left for lunch, which is bento (japanese style lunch box) it wasn't very good since some of the food were cold :p
Afterward we were on the bus again to Mt. Owakudani to have a taste of black boiled eggs that was boiled in the natural mineral water hot spot. The result are the black shell boiled egg due to the sulfur in the water. It is believed that one black egg will extend your life by seven years :)
However, it was foggy that day up in the moutain which slowed the bus. When we reach the top it was so foggy and windy that my pants felt moist from just a brief exposure going from the bus into the building. Inside the tourist stop we have a bit of time to shop and I bought a small black boiled egg Doraemon strap, of which I can be sure that it can't be found anywhere else in Japan (although it was made in China :P) Then we were rounded up by our tourguide to go down to the pier by cable cars.
We got the first class ticket to do sightseeing on the ferry on Achi lake. The ferry outer appearance were deck out in pirate ship style. Also we were on the red one (I notice there were the blue, violet and green ones too) which seems to be the main symbol for this attraction since the Hello Kitty keychain is of this red ferry.
Afterward we were on the bus again to Gotemba outlet mall, which is the outlet mall of all the brandnames products from Nike to Bvlgarri. All are genuine sales items, by that I meant the items were the top quality products that were out of fashion and the company did not wants to stock them.
The mall itself is quite amazing. It seems to be up in the hill somewhere and the space was quite large. Each shops has its own showroom in open area which clutter together down the path. Heck the place even have it's own ferris wheel.
By the time we left Gotemba mall it was like 19:00 already. We should head straight to the hotel to be on time but we still have one place left to shop which is Seifu Supermarket. Our tourguide has to tell tall tales to the hotel people (which had setup the dinning room for us) in order to make time for us to do one more shopping for the day at this supermarket. The tales is that there was an accident on the moutain road. However, we were busted when we stop at Seifu since it's the big supermarket of the area, the hotel staffs also shop there too :P So another tales has to be made which one of the woman in the group need emergency... maxipad :P
After the shopping ended we finally head to the hotel. The dinner is traditional shabu Japan style, it did not taste much but it was ok by that time.
The next agenda on the list is the onsen (mineral water bath). The practise is to shower first to clean yourself before go down into the bath section. We can't use towel to cover.... our midsection either since the guide said if the hotel caught us doing so we will be fine 300,000 yens since the hotel will replace the whole batch of mineral water to perserve it's cleanliness.
In the end, I did take the hot bath 4 times altogether. Two in the night and two more in the morning ^^.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
The Trip: Day Two, Osaka->Kyoto->Nara->Nagoya
The breakfast was not as grand as the last night's dinner but it still good. My mom found out that the hotel plant a lot of rosemary on of side on the hotel as decoration. I get to rub my hands and glove on it to get the scent and it's quite good :)
After the breakfast we took the subway and the Shinkansen to go to Kyoto to visit the clear water temple. It was not unlike the scene from many many manga I had read. The balcony, the sakura, the 3 streams water for drink for blessings.
Then we took the bus to see Kingkakuji Castle (the Gold Castle, as in real gold from gold leaves, the guide mention that now the gold parts are about 2 inches thicks from all the annual renovation every 4-5 years) Too bad that it was quite windy in that area so there was no clear shot of the castle and it's reflection in the pond in front of it.
Afterward we went to Nara to visit the temple with Giant Buddha. This place is famous for the deer living in the entrance area of the castle. They didn't look as pretty since I think they are sheding to their summer fur after the winter has ended.
For Dinner, we go to a grilled house, much like Daidomon, but a lot of food and also taste quite a lot better!!
Now I am in Nagoya Kanko hotel's business center, transfering the pictured from the digital cam to thumbdrive for my mom. She already took 298 pictured already!! and this is only day two! Now I have to leave since I am getting lightheaded and I also have an early morning again. Plus I haven't prepare my clothes yet!
After the breakfast we took the subway and the Shinkansen to go to Kyoto to visit the clear water temple. It was not unlike the scene from many many manga I had read. The balcony, the sakura, the 3 streams water for drink for blessings.
Then we took the bus to see Kingkakuji Castle (the Gold Castle, as in real gold from gold leaves, the guide mention that now the gold parts are about 2 inches thicks from all the annual renovation every 4-5 years) Too bad that it was quite windy in that area so there was no clear shot of the castle and it's reflection in the pond in front of it.
Afterward we went to Nara to visit the temple with Giant Buddha. This place is famous for the deer living in the entrance area of the castle. They didn't look as pretty since I think they are sheding to their summer fur after the winter has ended.
For Dinner, we go to a grilled house, much like Daidomon, but a lot of food and also taste quite a lot better!!
Now I am in Nagoya Kanko hotel's business center, transfering the pictured from the digital cam to thumbdrive for my mom. She already took 298 pictured already!! and this is only day two! Now I have to leave since I am getting lightheaded and I also have an early morning again. Plus I haven't prepare my clothes yet!
The Trip: Day One, BKK -> Osaka
The flight was quite grusome, starting with the delay due to the amount of people traveling doing this times... The airplane as Boeing 777 (as I was told later) which was told by the tour guide that it has rather narrowed seat, plus we were seated at the very end of the plane which is quite noisy and often shaky. To top it off it was a night flight which we were suppose to nap while on the plane, since we will began touring once we landed!
Needless to say I didn't get much sleep, tried as I might, with the above reasons. Anyhow we landed on Kansai Inter. Airport in Osaka. The airport itself looks very modern and cool. However, I guess will realize that you hsd landed in Japan when you get a fainted scent of smoke starting in the connecting tube to the terminal.
First stop was Osaka castle. the symbol of Osaka, I tried my first real takoyaki in japan here. Sakura (Cherry Blossom) were blooming everywhere. (I will post some pictured later as right now I am in an business center in a hotel in Naghoya). Not a lot to see since we were going into the castle itself.
Next stop is Universal Studio Japan, I got to see the Terminator 2 3-D which is quite nice even if it looks a little dated. Backdraft, is quite cool indeed as
shows a lot of cool pyro technique, not to mention it heat up the room quite a bit.
Jurassic Park Ride, one of the raft riding that has about 3 stories drop at the end. I am not shame to say that as the result of the panic from the drop once the raft stay horisontal again I hurt my neck, stomach and perinum from the tightening reacting of the drop. Boy was it HURT!! Especially the mid-section. Luckily it wasn't until about 30 sec later that we have to get off the raft which give me a bit of time to recover.
Later we have a chance to do a bit of sightseeing in the city as well as shopping at the 100 Yen store. Walking around I saw quite a few shops that sell mobile phone, 90% of them are clam shell type, quite heavy (due to large screen) and quite heavy. Quite ashame that it won't be working in TH.
Toward the end of the day I was quite exhausted from the lack of sleep and excessive walking. However, the dinner was GREAT. It's a buffet in the hotel we stayed in, Ramada Osaka, the salmon was good and the rip-eye steak is very Good.
I finally get to sleep. But it was quite restless, probably because of the quilt, which is quite thick and fluffy which will be hot if you stay under it after a while. And the pillow was quite strage as half of it seems to be stuff with the foam beads not unlike those in beanbags chair...
Still I did get some sleep and woke up a few times and decided to spend about 5 mins. soaking the tub with mineral bath powder :)
Needless to say I didn't get much sleep, tried as I might, with the above reasons. Anyhow we landed on Kansai Inter. Airport in Osaka. The airport itself looks very modern and cool. However, I guess will realize that you hsd landed in Japan when you get a fainted scent of smoke starting in the connecting tube to the terminal.
First stop was Osaka castle. the symbol of Osaka, I tried my first real takoyaki in japan here. Sakura (Cherry Blossom) were blooming everywhere. (I will post some pictured later as right now I am in an business center in a hotel in Naghoya). Not a lot to see since we were going into the castle itself.
Next stop is Universal Studio Japan, I got to see the Terminator 2 3-D which is quite nice even if it looks a little dated. Backdraft, is quite cool indeed as
shows a lot of cool pyro technique, not to mention it heat up the room quite a bit.
Jurassic Park Ride, one of the raft riding that has about 3 stories drop at the end. I am not shame to say that as the result of the panic from the drop once the raft stay horisontal again I hurt my neck, stomach and perinum from the tightening reacting of the drop. Boy was it HURT!! Especially the mid-section. Luckily it wasn't until about 30 sec later that we have to get off the raft which give me a bit of time to recover.
Later we have a chance to do a bit of sightseeing in the city as well as shopping at the 100 Yen store. Walking around I saw quite a few shops that sell mobile phone, 90% of them are clam shell type, quite heavy (due to large screen) and quite heavy. Quite ashame that it won't be working in TH.
Toward the end of the day I was quite exhausted from the lack of sleep and excessive walking. However, the dinner was GREAT. It's a buffet in the hotel we stayed in, Ramada Osaka, the salmon was good and the rip-eye steak is very Good.
I finally get to sleep. But it was quite restless, probably because of the quilt, which is quite thick and fluffy which will be hot if you stay under it after a while. And the pillow was quite strage as half of it seems to be stuff with the foam beads not unlike those in beanbags chair...
Still I did get some sleep and woke up a few times and decided to spend about 5 mins. soaking the tub with mineral bath powder :)
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Physically Away...
Ummm.... well... My family is taking a trip to Japan and I will go along too...
Eventhough I would prefer going to Europe or Australia (as I might be able to sneak around for the not so clean fun of my own, plus I could speak the language :P) But it would be nice to do the traveling again after have not been on the plane or out of BKK for like... 7 years... I am not too excited about the trip but I am sure glad to be part of it.
So... I start packing today and realize that I am not sure if my clothes (especially the pants) would be warm enough to withstand the 5-10C that the tour guide said Japan will be... I got a pair of longjohn and I hope that that would be enough...
Still... it would be a lot nicer if I have a big hunky man to keep me warm though :)
Eventhough I would prefer going to Europe or Australia (as I might be able to sneak around for the not so clean fun of my own, plus I could speak the language :P) But it would be nice to do the traveling again after have not been on the plane or out of BKK for like... 7 years... I am not too excited about the trip but I am sure glad to be part of it.
So... I start packing today and realize that I am not sure if my clothes (especially the pants) would be warm enough to withstand the 5-10C that the tour guide said Japan will be... I got a pair of longjohn and I hope that that would be enough...
Still... it would be a lot nicer if I have a big hunky man to keep me warm though :)
Friday, April 07, 2006
The Grumpy Alan Moore
I had browse through the net today and stumble upon a forum with a post regarding the movie 'V For Vendetta' and found this link http://www.mtv.com/shared/movies/interviews/m/moore_alan_060315/ which is an MTV interview with the cartoonist who wrote the original graphic novel. I have read a few tidbits of how Alan Moore was not happy with the way his works (From Hell, Constantine and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) were 'hollywoodfied' by all parties involve with little respect to the original.
After reading the article I must say that the man, despite his caveman like hairstyle, is very intelligence, literated and poetic in his own style. You would not be surprise from this article that he really is the one who wrote all the lines that V spoke in the movie.
It is an interesting read. If you like the movie you should read this article too :)
After reading the article I must say that the man, despite his caveman like hairstyle, is very intelligence, literated and poetic in his own style. You would not be surprise from this article that he really is the one who wrote all the lines that V spoke in the movie.
It is an interesting read. If you like the movie you should read this article too :)
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Laughter with XXXL size
I first saw this comedian on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and this guy is GOOD. He did his stuff in the clean fun way.
I had this file on my computer as well before I found it on youtube.com . I really don't have anything else to blog about at the moment so enjoy the clip :)
I had this file on my computer as well before I found it on youtube.com . I really don't have anything else to blog about at the moment so enjoy the clip :)
Monday, March 27, 2006
Computer Lesson 101 and Now warm up to the LCD
I plan to do this post for quite a while now and after a failed post for some reason by blogspot it took me a few days before feeling like posting again.
The topis for today is Task Manager and Ctrl+Atl+Del.
Ctrl+Atl+Del is one of the earliest hotkey I had learn ever since my first experince with the Monochrome monitor and DOS :)) In the old days Ctrl+Atl+Del are use to do warm boot on computer. Which comes in handy when the machine freeze up, especially in case of Windows 3.1-Me
Now with WinXP it is use to call up Task Manager to look at the programmes and processes running of your computer.
Once Task Manager is called up you will notice that it has four tabs.
Applications: Display your current running application. Mostly use when you need to 'End Task' the not responding application :)
Processes: Display the current running processes. This is the tab that you should play with once you are experince with the computer. It shows all the running processes currently running with the size of memory usage. Also an option for you to kill the processes that you need to shut it down. Very useful in this days of adware & spyware aka Skumware.
The other two tabs are only for monitoring function.
And now with my LCD monitor, I finally figured out that I could reduce the gamma level (light level) by a notch to make all the color seems richer. I hope it will works...
The topis for today is Task Manager and Ctrl+Atl+Del.
Ctrl+Atl+Del is one of the earliest hotkey I had learn ever since my first experince with the Monochrome monitor and DOS :)) In the old days Ctrl+Atl+Del are use to do warm boot on computer. Which comes in handy when the machine freeze up, especially in case of Windows 3.1-Me
Now with WinXP it is use to call up Task Manager to look at the programmes and processes running of your computer.
Once Task Manager is called up you will notice that it has four tabs.
Applications: Display your current running application. Mostly use when you need to 'End Task' the not responding application :)
Processes: Display the current running processes. This is the tab that you should play with once you are experince with the computer. It shows all the running processes currently running with the size of memory usage. Also an option for you to kill the processes that you need to shut it down. Very useful in this days of adware & spyware aka Skumware.
The other two tabs are only for monitoring function.
And now with my LCD monitor, I finally figured out that I could reduce the gamma level (light level) by a notch to make all the color seems richer. I hope it will works...
Friday, March 24, 2006
LCD era, and not really liking it yet
I finally bought a Viewsonic LCD monitor today. It was quite a let down in terms of color. I usually use dark color theme on my desktop and since the monitor seems to be brighter than CRT it makes all the color seems fading. But when I play games the colors does not seems to be too shabby.
However, when I looks at the screen I felt my eyes were straining to watch the screen for some reason... I hope it just because of the new position of the monitor and not the monitor itself... I simply can't afford to buy a new one...
However, when I looks at the screen I felt my eyes were straining to watch the screen for some reason... I hope it just because of the new position of the monitor and not the monitor itself... I simply can't afford to buy a new one...
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
The First Video on my Blog: Cork Soaking
I saw this clip from another blog. It is a skit from SNL and my oh my...
To think that this would be the first video I put on my blog and it is This video?? It made me slightly shivered...
Anyway, this would be a a good video to watch to learn how to inappropriately speaking English
To think that this would be the first video I put on my blog and it is This video?? It made me slightly shivered...
Anyway, this would be a a good video to watch to learn how to inappropriately speaking English
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
British Movies: Boots and V
By chance, I had watch two movies that set in Britian within the span of three days. And here they are :)
Kinky Boots : I first heard about this movie from the TV shows that preview upcoming movie trailer and I guess it's almost obligatory to be interested in the movie that has a drag queen in it and not to mention that he/she is the important part of the movie.
It took me several days to acquire this movie once I learn that it has already been release in UK since last year. The movie, which was based on a true story, is about a man whose family run a shoe making factory where the shoes are the works of craftmen that could last a lifetime. But things change and business isn't what it used to be. So the company have to switch to niche market making sexy boots for drag queens.
A stellar performance from the black actor who plays the drag queen in the movie who also perform on stage in the movie and singing as well.
The movie as the feels of Full Monty and The Calender Girls, which give me a glimse of how things has turn for the worst in UK in some aspect.
But I got to hear a song that I like at the end credit called 'In These Shoes' by Kirsty Maccoll :) Quite a nice song to dance with in my opinion.
V for Vendetta : It got quite a good review at yahoo.com and I can see why. The story is about rebellion against a fascist regime. Starred the ever talented Natalie Portman, whose in this movie seems to serve more as a narrator or a witness to the events than anything else. And Hugo Weaving, whose never got to show his face under the Guy Fawkes mask but his distinct accent and pronunciation delivered the lines with such power and emotion that his facial expression is not required for the audience to sense his character.
It shows London in the year 2020 under a facist regime that seems to reminded me of East German and Soviet where people could disappear without being seen again and government dictates information, news and communications.
It is a Must-See movie which should be shown everywhere, especially where citizen thought they should be silence for whatever reasons.
"The people should not be afraid of their own government" - V from V for Vendetta
Kinky Boots : I first heard about this movie from the TV shows that preview upcoming movie trailer and I guess it's almost obligatory to be interested in the movie that has a drag queen in it and not to mention that he/she is the important part of the movie.
It took me several days to acquire this movie once I learn that it has already been release in UK since last year. The movie, which was based on a true story, is about a man whose family run a shoe making factory where the shoes are the works of craftmen that could last a lifetime. But things change and business isn't what it used to be. So the company have to switch to niche market making sexy boots for drag queens.
A stellar performance from the black actor who plays the drag queen in the movie who also perform on stage in the movie and singing as well.
The movie as the feels of Full Monty and The Calender Girls, which give me a glimse of how things has turn for the worst in UK in some aspect.
But I got to hear a song that I like at the end credit called 'In These Shoes' by Kirsty Maccoll :) Quite a nice song to dance with in my opinion.
V for Vendetta : It got quite a good review at yahoo.com and I can see why. The story is about rebellion against a fascist regime. Starred the ever talented Natalie Portman, whose in this movie seems to serve more as a narrator or a witness to the events than anything else. And Hugo Weaving, whose never got to show his face under the Guy Fawkes mask but his distinct accent and pronunciation delivered the lines with such power and emotion that his facial expression is not required for the audience to sense his character.
It shows London in the year 2020 under a facist regime that seems to reminded me of East German and Soviet where people could disappear without being seen again and government dictates information, news and communications.
It is a Must-See movie which should be shown everywhere, especially where citizen thought they should be silence for whatever reasons.
"The people should not be afraid of their own government" - V from V for Vendetta
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Hit or Miss: The Comebacks of ComMarts Show
I went to Pantip again today to check the price of LCD monitors, Again...
So far I has not commit to buy a new LCD monitor yet... Mostly it concern with the price and how I was uncertain about the quality once I use it. Anyhow, when I was walking through the shops, I notice a poster of the ComMarts show.
ComMarts, at the beginning, it was one of the big IT event in Bangkok. At first, it was an exhibition to showcase new IT products. Now it turns into a trade show and sales (although not a big discount) event. I think it used to be once a year and now they seems to held it quaterly. The last times I went to the show was last Nov. and I was looking for LCD monitor back then too. The price was slightly more expensive than at Pantip plaza...
But I will go again this times. Perhaps things might be better for me, afterall they might have extra promotion other than sales.
So far I has not commit to buy a new LCD monitor yet... Mostly it concern with the price and how I was uncertain about the quality once I use it. Anyhow, when I was walking through the shops, I notice a poster of the ComMarts show.
ComMarts, at the beginning, it was one of the big IT event in Bangkok. At first, it was an exhibition to showcase new IT products. Now it turns into a trade show and sales (although not a big discount) event. I think it used to be once a year and now they seems to held it quaterly. The last times I went to the show was last Nov. and I was looking for LCD monitor back then too. The price was slightly more expensive than at Pantip plaza...
But I will go again this times. Perhaps things might be better for me, afterall they might have extra promotion other than sales.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
My kind of Mr. Right
I suppose it is times to describe the kind of man I want (and at times need) to have. Perhaps one might surf by my blog and contact me :)
Personality wise...
I think I would like to have a man with good & decent sense of humour. The type that would smile often, especially when he looks at me, and know how to make me giggle at the right moments as well as the wrong ones :PP
I love affectionate man, the kind that would be physically affectionate with me. Hugging, cuddling, pecking and kissing, and often the sneak groping in public :P
Physical attributes...
I would like a tall and hairy Caucasian man but that's not a must (Hispaniuc would be the only alternative to Caucasians :)). I prefer my man ot be easy on the eye and have great smile, the kind that Dennis Quaid has :).
I would love to have a nice muscle man but that might be too much to ask... Since I am not one myself but I would surely not turn them away if they came knocking on the my door that's for sure ;))
The pictures are for references :) The guy on the right is my current favorite porn star, Arpad Miklos, who was a chemist by trade (who would thought a scientist would be this FUCKING HOT).
Personality wise...
I think I would like to have a man with good & decent sense of humour. The type that would smile often, especially when he looks at me, and know how to make me giggle at the right moments as well as the wrong ones :PP
I love affectionate man, the kind that would be physically affectionate with me. Hugging, cuddling, pecking and kissing, and often the sneak groping in public :P
Physical attributes...
I would like a tall and hairy Caucasian man but that's not a must (Hispaniuc would be the only alternative to Caucasians :)). I prefer my man ot be easy on the eye and have great smile, the kind that Dennis Quaid has :).
I would love to have a nice muscle man but that might be too much to ask... Since I am not one myself but I would surely not turn them away if they came knocking on the my door that's for sure ;))
The pictures are for references :) The guy on the right is my current favorite porn star, Arpad Miklos, who was a chemist by trade (who would thought a scientist would be this FUCKING HOT).
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Yogurting
If you asked me like ten years ago to try yogurt I would definately not gonna tried it, at present time however, it's a different story
Somehow one of the marketing scheme did works on me, the product sampling. Recently I had tried a new product from Dutchies a 0% Fat yogurt with Green apple flavour and I like the taste.
I figured eventually that I could eat these while stay up late in my office. And these things suppose to be healthy, right??
When I was younger I would denied any attempt to eat vegetable. Now it's not very different, although I would eat carrot, basil and cabbage, which if I do back then my mom would be very happy indeed.
I wondered if my older self take part in my widen taste in eating though...
Somehow one of the marketing scheme did works on me, the product sampling. Recently I had tried a new product from Dutchies a 0% Fat yogurt with Green apple flavour and I like the taste.
I figured eventually that I could eat these while stay up late in my office. And these things suppose to be healthy, right??
When I was younger I would denied any attempt to eat vegetable. Now it's not very different, although I would eat carrot, basil and cabbage, which if I do back then my mom would be very happy indeed.
I wondered if my older self take part in my widen taste in eating though...
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