London over again

Another hot summer day in mid-August, in the midst of a heat wave. Around this time last year, I was preparing for my trip to London and Paris. To visit my three very good friends.




With two weeks to waste, and Paris in between, there were a lot of time to wander around the streets of London. Since we were staying at Elephant and Castle, we started our walking tour from down south, Southwark's Borough Market and all along the Thames River to the Millennium Bridge.



My little mischief with a graphic art in front of the Tate Modern Collection Museum.

Trafalgar Square, watching the Olympics.

I want to go to Cyprus.

Canary Wharf, the business district of London.







Not-so-tiny man and woman statue.

We, then took a little boat cruise from Canary Wharf to Tower of London.



The city hall that took after a human's thumb.

One of the must-have's for me whenever I go to London.
1) Fish and Chips


Hmmmm. I don't know what I want.


I know what I'm getting!


Oh my, so many choices



2) South Kensington Creperie.


Gotta have my crepes.

I read somewhere that you can now post via email or mobile. I decided to try with my gmail account.
So this is a test. More like second test. As for the first one, I typed a long, and nice, post with pictures. and sent it via my email.
But it disappeared right after I sent it. No trace on the drafts, sent mail or trash.
So here goes the second testing.

As I am sitting here at the consultant help desk, working on my weekly overnight shift at the computer lab at school, procrastinating on the ample of work that needs to be completed, I thought, why not blog!

School's been monotonous.
Life is generally the same.
Still looking for a job in the banking industry. (Right now, tough luck. I know right!)
But still, my mind wonders of the possibility of me traveling again.
Maybe this time to Spain. Madrid and Barcelona. Or maybe to Amsterdam for Sensation Black first, then off to Madrid then Barcelona, then Ibiza Island. Sounds like a plan.
Probably next summer. That is if I get a job and have saved enough cash to spend it again.

..Ok back to reality..
Working the overnight shift gives me ample time to browse the World Wide Web.
And my good, and one of my closest friends just started a side business of her own. By selling jewelries. *clap clap!*
Dashing Dunes is its name. Pretty pretty accessories.



Lotsa fancy accessories to go for a nice outing or party.
Speaking of parties, I've been hiding out from parties around Philadelphia. Maybe its the weather, maybe its the stress or maybe I just don't feel like partying much anymore.
I remember when I first got back from Japan, and went out with a few friends, most bars and clubs have to close by 2am. I wasn't used to it at all.
Japan clubs open till 7am, probably because they want to match the train schedule.
We would take the last train into Tokyo city center, party until 6am.
2am was the time we only started drinking and in Philly, 2am you have to leave.
What irony.

Back ---> to Tokyo.
We went for Nagisa music festival in April at Odaiba (the man-made island), next to the Fuji Television tower.
It was a 12pm-9pm event with different music genre ranging from House, Techno, Trance, Reggae, Chill-out and many more.
I have to say, one of my best I've been so far. Great times.

Ageha was another club that is a must-visit.
The ultimate club in Tokyo. Probably the biggest in Tokyo. Located near Shinkiba Station.

At Odaiba for the Nagisa Music Festival.

Me and Mr. Corona. And the party crew.

At Ageha. My friend, Nancy, laying on the train's seat at 7am.

I think I was a lil drunk that night. Eating some katsudon after a long night of partying.

And now, presenting Spring.

Spring time.
Spring is here.
But that means more rain as well.
Oh well. Nothing beats the cool weather where your hair doesn't freeze up nor will it create static when you comb it. Also your make up will remain flawless for hours,... I mean hours, without sweating or frozen.

I just realized I don't take enough pictures around Philadelphia. Home to me for 3 years. Instead I take tons of pictures of Japan, home to me for ... 5 months ?

As I am [still] blogging about my Japan times. I've already been to places such as London, Paris, Boston, Germany, Switzerland, Prague, Rome, Toronto and Niagara Falls [ since Japan ].
I know. Bad bad me. Doing my very best to catch up in the cyberspace world.

Well back to Japan, spring time.
That means Sakuras, O-Hanami, Cherry Blossoms.
Very very beautiful picture. As I walk around the park in Tokyo [Yoyogi-Koen] I feel like I'm in a romantic movie, only to be hunted down by a serial killer after that.
.Right.
Here are some reminiscing pictures of Yoyogi-koen, Tokyo, Japan during the O-Hanami [Cherry Blossom festival].
(click on the pictures for a better view).


Thats my friend, Anthony whom I hung out a lot while I was in Japan, wearing my sunglasses that looks weird on him.


My other few friends whom I hung out a lot with.


Some of the Temple University, Japan campus crew.

The second week of cherry blossoms blooming, I went back to the same park with my friends again.
Even prettier as the sakura petals were falling and scattered romantic, pink sakura petals all over the park grounds.


My weird friends on the 2nd picture, and random group of people on the 3rd.


Some other people at the park. Parents with their child playing, best friends laying on sakura petals chatting.

Catching up

I know.. I've been missing.

But I decided it's about time that I stop playing hide and seek with my blog and actually start writing again.
I just celebrated my birthday. (23 years of existence in this tiny planet)
And at one point during my celebration of stepping further into my 20's, while I was getting heaps of alcohol into my system, I thought, a year ago, I was in Miyazaki, Kyushu, Japan.. touring on my own. Alone.
That I say, awesome.

22nd birthday, toured Miyazaki, Takachiho, Kagoshima, and Sakura-Jima, All located in Kyushu, Japan. Traveling alone for the first time was fun and exciting, but also kinda scary. I had to do intensive research before embarking on my exciting trip.
Locals there were very friendly, helpful and kept saying to me "please be careful, you're a girl and you're traveling alone". :)

Practiced my broken Japanese with them.
Day 1: Stayed in a hotel in Miyazaki, a upbeat town with lotsa young people and business-suit yakuzas hanging around doing i-don't-know-what.
Took a lot of buses with bus drivers writing the name of the stops for me because I have no idea what was going on.
Visited a few places including an old tomb/temple up on a hill that I took a cab to(because buses do not go up there). A very nice friendly cabbie driver asked me how I'm getting back down and I said "I don't know". So, nice cabbie driver said he'll wait for me. We reached our destination and he said to wait and he parked his car and got out and walked with me all around the place, all the while telling me the history of the tomb/shrine and also, he became my camera-man.
Awwwww. How nice.
Well, of course I paid him more! How can you think that I wouldn't.

Day 2:
Took a train up north for 1 1/2 hours and then a bus for 1 1/2hours to Takachiho, a small town up in the hills with the famous waterfall called Takachiho-Kyo. And of course shrines.
How can you not visit the shrines.

Had a private taxi driver drive me around Takachiho... teeheeeee... because there's literally no public transportation around the town.
I paid him more because he was exceptionally friendly and nice. In return, he dropped me off and later return with a gift. Nice people.

Day 3: Took the express train down south heading to Kagoshima for 3 hours.
Yes! My whole time in Japan was only riding trains. Managed to catch the last ferry into Sakura-Jima, only with the help of the cabbie driver who drove fast and spoke with a heavy Kyushu accent, which I have trouble understanding.

Sakura Jima is an island with an active volcanic mountain (well, mountains, there's 3 of them).. There were escape routes and hide outs all over that island, just in case these mountains decide to erupt. And I kept reading these signs and I got scared for my life.
Like, seriously, if those mountains were to erupt right there and then, God knows when I'll be let out of the hide out caves and actually be able to return to Tokyo.
But all is well. The mountains were calm.

Day 4: Relaxed, souvenir shopping and returned to Tokyo.


A wedding procession was going on at Miyazaki.


The place where the nice cabbie driver took me around and waited for me. And thats him explaining something.




Takachiho-Kyo and the ever-friendly cab driver





Sakura Jima

Current Status:

School: Barely surviving, in fact you can barely see me if I were to pile all my assignments and homework and exams up.

Thinking ahead: ..About winter break. Just bought my flight ticket to Germany!

Job Hunting: So-so. got a few, got rejected on a few too.

Weather: Getting warm in Oct...?

Additional members in the Family: +1 baby cousin in Germany!!

More members in the family, and still counting! Uncle Simon in Shang Hai just had twins, Monica and Bianca. Such cute names. Congrats!
Now, there's one more that haven't popped out yet in Germany. But soon (apparently in October).
...Oh! So many cousins!

Arrived home from the hospital.




That's Bianca


And that's Monica.