6/24
I had a slight hangover today so I mostly just sat around all day, reading a Sookie Stackhouse series book and avoiding making any actual decisions. Oddly, this inactivity had a great effect on me and after feeling a bit off and in a funk for the past two weeks, I'm suddenly feeling more like myself; happier and more excited about life in general. Since the 20RMB/day ($3) I'm paying for my dorm room includes a free beer at their bar, I went down with Georgina, a very nice British girl spending a month traveling in China before going to Uni to study Chinese. We played several games of foosball and I won every single one (and not by a small margin either). I'm not sure if she was really that bad and paying that little attention to the game or if I've gotten much better, but it was fun to win, as I rarely do at games like that (or even just games in general).
So often it seems that the Chinese are quite bipolar as a culture. At least to me, people have mostly been either very kind or extremely rude with very few in between.
6/25
World Cup Thoughts:
a) #11 Slovenia looks like a serial killer. I just need to say that. I feel a little threatened anytime he comes on screen.
b) New Zealand's team is quite attractive, just in general.
c) We're doing quite well. I believe we're #1 in our group and we play Ghana at 2:30 a.m. Sunday morning here. I will definitely stay up to watch.
d) It's (usually) not quite as boring to watch if you're drinking in a pub environment with people who are really excited about it.
e) The vuvuzela's really not that bad, it just sounds kind of like a swarm of bees, a slightly irritating background noise.
f) Australia's team is a terrible representation of their level of attractiveness. Most Australian men I saw/ met were quite hot, though douchey. This team may well be douchey, but they're definitely not cute.
So today, I caught the overnight train back to Beijing so I can go to Mongolia from there. I just have to do the planning, like, any and all of it. On my way to the bus stop by the train station, I noticed I was right next to the Hongqiao thing and culture street so I wandered around there for a short while. It was cute but not wildly exciting, but I enjoyed just looking at all the calligraphy instruments they had for sale.
Showing posts with label Lazy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lazy. Show all posts
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Peking Duck in Peking, Round #1
6/18
I took another rest day today (though without a hangover) and went to the English floor of a large bookstore. I sat there for hours reading "Dead Until Dark," the third or fourth book in the Sookie Stackhouse (True Blood) series. I chose this one because it featured a lot of Eric, who I love. It was good and made me happy, though there were too many silly plot points about random things that didn't matter when it should have been all about Sookie and Eric.
While I was reading, I had two Chinese people separately ask me for help understanding English phrases. Both must've been quite proficient since the phrases weren't logical ones. One was something about a guy who "winds up" doing something, and the guy didn't understand because he only knew winds used as a verb to wind something up (like a music box). The other phrase was even stranger and was something like "there're" so I just told the person it was bizarre and meant there are. Anyway, it was cute that they asked me.
At night, I found a place offering Peking Duck (Peking is the original name for Beijing, and thus, where the dish originated) for a somewhat reasonable price (99 yuan with a Diet Coke, $15 USD) but it wasn't as good as I'd hoped. Really good peking duck is one of the greatest foods in the world, and this was just kind of blah and a bit too oily. Don't worry though, I'll try again.
I took another rest day today (though without a hangover) and went to the English floor of a large bookstore. I sat there for hours reading "Dead Until Dark," the third or fourth book in the Sookie Stackhouse (True Blood) series. I chose this one because it featured a lot of Eric, who I love. It was good and made me happy, though there were too many silly plot points about random things that didn't matter when it should have been all about Sookie and Eric.
While I was reading, I had two Chinese people separately ask me for help understanding English phrases. Both must've been quite proficient since the phrases weren't logical ones. One was something about a guy who "winds up" doing something, and the guy didn't understand because he only knew winds used as a verb to wind something up (like a music box). The other phrase was even stranger and was something like "there're" so I just told the person it was bizarre and meant there are. Anyway, it was cute that they asked me.
At night, I found a place offering Peking Duck (Peking is the original name for Beijing, and thus, where the dish originated) for a somewhat reasonable price (99 yuan with a Diet Coke, $15 USD) but it wasn't as good as I'd hoped. Really good peking duck is one of the greatest foods in the world, and this was just kind of blah and a bit too oily. Don't worry though, I'll try again.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Swinging Shanghai
6/6 - 6/8
Didn't do a whole lot for these days. Rested, read, chilled out. I also spent a fair amount of time walking along the Bund, a historical art deco waterfront area. Along the river, I saw my first Mao sculpture, which was pretty cool. The art deco architecture was awesome and it was particularly interesting to see what, to my eyes at least, was the truly Chinese art deco style.
I also walked all around Nanjing Road, a huge shopping area (with a Sephora, which is always a treat for me) that was quite lovely and over to People's Square, which was a really nice park with several museums in it.
I got a haircut (which included a lovely head, arm and shoulder massage) for about $15 USD including tips, in a really nice salon, and when I left, I was very happy with it. Within about fifteen minutes however, I realized that it was too short, the guy had screwed up my bangs and it made my face look fat. It was a good haircut and the guy was very good, but it just didn't work for me so pictures of me will likely be limited until it grows a bit.
Didn't do a whole lot for these days. Rested, read, chilled out. I also spent a fair amount of time walking along the Bund, a historical art deco waterfront area. Along the river, I saw my first Mao sculpture, which was pretty cool. The art deco architecture was awesome and it was particularly interesting to see what, to my eyes at least, was the truly Chinese art deco style.
I also walked all around Nanjing Road, a huge shopping area (with a Sephora, which is always a treat for me) that was quite lovely and over to People's Square, which was a really nice park with several museums in it.
I got a haircut (which included a lovely head, arm and shoulder massage) for about $15 USD including tips, in a really nice salon, and when I left, I was very happy with it. Within about fifteen minutes however, I realized that it was too short, the guy had screwed up my bangs and it made my face look fat. It was a good haircut and the guy was very good, but it just didn't work for me so pictures of me will likely be limited until it grows a bit.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Eating, Drinking and Waking Up in Falsificaso Vegas (Redundant)
5/27 - 6/1
Yves and I did very, very little this week. We ate, drank, watched a lot of movies, picked up our visas and slept. However, we have done a few important things: eating very well and finding great bars. You may know that I have a particularly amazing skill: finding awesome places to eat and drink. Yves did his part in finding Fat Angelo's, an Italian restaurant that made their own fresh Italian dressing that was so good that I even liked it, and I hate all salad dressings (except Blue Cheese). Otherwise, he was very good at following me and indulging my whimsical quests when it seemed like a bar or restaurant didn't exist. Actually, one thing I especially liked about him in general was that he would indulge my crazy (and sometimes they get really random) whims and follow me anywhere. It made him very easy to be with.
Anyway, I don't remember exactly how I found the first place, but it was a place that specialized in Peking Duck, called...Peking Restaurant. He'd never had Peking duck before, which appalled me, and liked it. We were seated at the table with the other two foreigners (an older British couple) who took this picture for us. The duck, hoison sauce and pancakes were very good and I showed Yves how you put the sauce on a pancake then add duck, spring onion and cucumber. It would've been better if the pancakes and duck were hot, but it was still great.
We also went to a place recommended to me by my grandlittle sister, Tiffany, (from my sorority, Delta Delta Delta) whose family is from Hong Kong originally, though she's a native Californian (I know what you're thinking, and no, she couldn't get any more awesome if she tried). She recommended a dim sum restaurant, Din Tai Fung. We actually went to a different branch than the one she recommended (since it was three blocks from our place) and it was fabulous. It also had a plaque outside saying that the N.Y. Times had rated it one of the ten best restaurants in the world. Admittedly, the bronzed article was from 1993, but I was still excited. Dim sum is better with more people, but we were still able to try several fantastic plates.
We started with a plate of steamed spinach and garlic, which was very good (and surprising, since I normally dislike spinach), Spicy Shrimp Wontons (which was recommended by our waitress and was Yves' favorite and one of my favorites) which had an incredibly complex, developed flavor (do you ever wonder if I just make this tuff up by using buzzwords? Because sometimes I do.) but anyway, was really good and spicy without being grossly hot-spicy. Our third starting choice was the Steamed Pork Dumplings, their specialty (and my other favorite) which had a complicated method for eating, which always excites me. You started by picking it up with your chopsticks, then you dipped it in your sauce dish (a combination of fresh ginger threads and as much soy sauce as you wished to add) and then you transferred it to a small bowl where you put it down and poked it, releasing the broth inside which mixed with the sauce. Finally, you used a spoon to gather the dumpling, sauce and broth in a spoon and eat it. I think it probably would've been just as good without that process, but it was fun to poke it and sometimes I just like to over-complicate things unnecessarily.
Once we finished those, we ordered Special Sauce Dumplings (made with shrimp and pork) and Shrimp Fried Rice. Both were very good, but not amazing, as our first picks had been. For dessert, we decided on taro dumplings, which were just slightly sweet but, as Yves noticed as he finished his third and eyed mine, got better the more you ate. We each had tea and a Tsingtao beer with our meal and it came out to $359 HKD (about $47) for both of us, which I thought was a great deal.
At another point, we randomly walked into a sushi place and ended up with excellent salmon sashimi, which I mention because it means that we had great: Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Dim Sum and Peking Duck all in Hong Kong. Of course, we spent a bit more for this than I usually do, and in general the street food was unimpressive, but overall I mean to say that Hong Kong has wonderful food.
But, enough about the food. I want to tell you about the bars! I preferred Soho over the LKF or Wan Chi Red Light District (though a clean, fairly nice one) areas and Yves looked in his guidebook, which recommended V13. He had only to say the words "vodka bar" to describe it and and I was in. It also was on the edge of Soho, not quite in the middle, so it was a bit better, but when we got there the bartender told us it was no longer a vodka bar. They used to be, but had changed about six months ago. We decided to stay there for a drink anyway and I had a vodka-diet, while he opted for a (very good) White Russian). I had read somewhere that Thursday night was Ladies Night, so my goal for the evening was to get one free drink. The bartender told me that it was generally Wednesday night that was Ladies Night, but (I believe because he was bored as the bar was empty except for ourselves and one regular) he gave us all free tequila shots so we stayed there for most of the rest of that night and had a great time just talking to the bartender and the regular. Yves wanted a new lighter, so the bartender showed us the bars collection:
Somehow, that night, I was given a magazine for expats called Brouhaha (with NaNa from Ghana's number written on the back). I obviously ignored the number but read the magazine the next day and it recommended a secret bar (just the idea of which gets me nearly drunk with excitement) called Sense 99, which we went to that night. You went to 99 Wellington, which, due to some odd street signs is hard to find, then looked for the little buzzer button which had Sense 99 written next to it. On our way out, I noticed the unlit sign above, but you'd never know it was there or a bar otherwise. From outside, you couldn't hear any music or see any lights, but after you were buzzed in (by someone who checked that you knew what you were looking for) and went up a flight of stairs, you walked into a great little bar. The first floor had a bar which consisted of a cooler full of beers, another cooler of Coke bottles and a few scattered liquor bottles. The second floor had an outside balcony and a mini stage set up with a piano, bass, drums, guitars, rain stick, bongos, accordian and a few other instruments that were available for anyone to play. I might have tested my skills as a rock star, but while we were there, someone else was always playing, including an actual band that seemed to just coalesce out of thin air. The band was especially fun to watch because it was obvious that they were just jamming out and weren't getting paid. Each one of them just looked like they absolutely loved what they were doing and it's always nice to watch people do what they love, even if it doesn't really mean anything to you.
Yves had really liked his White Russian, so we went back to V13, which had some big party going on with a DJ, though by the time we got there, it was dying down. We went with a few people to some other club after that and called it a night (though way later).
On Tuesday, June 1st, I went alone to Macau. The weather sucked and many of the areas I saw were empty and closed. I was feeling fairly depressed about that and rather unimpressed because so much of the "Portuguese" waterfront area was refurbished, partially by casinos and partially by faux old Portuguese style so it was difficult to tell which parts were authentic and which parts had been built within the past ten years.
Macau itself was strange. It felt like Vegas in complete decline. The casinos were beautiful and glitzy but there just weren't enough people there. I went over to the more historic area: the Monte Fort and the front remains of St. Paul's Cathedral, of which just the facade and base structure was left. On my way through Senado Square I sat down and was quickly approached by a group of Hong Kong Middle School students. The group wanted to give me a brief presentation on the history of Macau and practice their English. Of course, I obliged and they were all very sweet. At the end, I filled out a survey about how well they'd done and gave them highest marks. They were so happy and excited and took pictures with me. I asked them to take a picture and here it is below. Oddly, this was the least happy they ever looked- at every other second they had these giant smiles filling their faces. After their presentation, they gave me a present. I opened it later and it was a bunch of Macau pastries. I actually didn't like them, but it was very sweet and none of the other white people accosted by the several groups of students got a present- it was just my awesome group.
I went to the cathedral remains and the fort. It was a weird feeling because it seemed so much like the areas and places in Mexico, the Caribbean and even parts of the U.S.- the forts in Florida and Puerto Rico (can we call that the U.S. yet?) and the feeling, though not the architecture, of so many of the missions in California. So Macau was very interesting, though felt quite strange.
Spending so much time on the road like this, it sometimes feels like I'm living several lives and the way people move through my life is so much faster that it feels like it just takes the core essence of relationships and misses the rest (good and bad). So, even though I know this sounds stupid and pretentious, in my opinion of myself, I can become a local in two weeks, or go through an entire relationship in that time period and have it actually matter (from the getting to know each other stage, to "dating," through the arguments, to the repetition, to the realization that you're not right for each other, all the way up to the break-up and leaving peacefully, hoping only good things for the other person and thinking they're alright, just not for you.)
More on Yves:
Yves and I moved into a single room together after two days and it's pretty hard to avoid someone you're sleeping in the same bed with. He's a good guy, though very...German. Just in general, he won't compliment me at all, even when I try to prod him by complimenting him. It took me a few days of feeling slightly ugly to get used to that but then I really realized that was just his issue, not mine and that was just the way he was. He's fairly smart and pretty funny, mostly interesting. He's also just easy to be with since this obviously isn't going anywhere and there's no pressure, and he lets me lead him anywhere I feel like (to the History Museum, the Big Buddha, two different restaurants and a bar).
Also, and don't tell anyone I admitted to this, but even though I'm obviously the person in charge when we go out to restaurants or try to figure out where we're going on the MTR (subway), it's nice to feel safe with someone. Walking with him, I can cross odd alleyways and streets, stay out later or even just leave my purse on the barstool with him when I go to the bathroom. It's simply comforting and sometimes I feel like I need a bit of stability, moving like I do.
Lastly, he spends more freely than I generally do and being a guy, eats quite a bit more and I've been somewhat imitating his habits. Terrible for my budget and thighs, but great for my happiness level.
And it sounds weird, but it felt like a real (albeit short and not super-serious) relationship to me. Neither of us was in love with each other, but enjoyed each others company and parted on great terms, like a textbook end to a relationship and I think that's the aspect I'm stuck on. Even though technically, we "broke up" (though I think he'd think it strange that I'd call him an ex-boyfriend) because I left the country (again), it was really because we just weren't right for each other, but still saw value in the other person. It was a very peaceful, mature break-up. Furthermore, I think I can call it a relationship simply because I say it is, since I'm the one considering it, and I say it is; it is, because of my saying so most of all, see?
Yves and I did very, very little this week. We ate, drank, watched a lot of movies, picked up our visas and slept. However, we have done a few important things: eating very well and finding great bars. You may know that I have a particularly amazing skill: finding awesome places to eat and drink. Yves did his part in finding Fat Angelo's, an Italian restaurant that made their own fresh Italian dressing that was so good that I even liked it, and I hate all salad dressings (except Blue Cheese). Otherwise, he was very good at following me and indulging my whimsical quests when it seemed like a bar or restaurant didn't exist. Actually, one thing I especially liked about him in general was that he would indulge my crazy (and sometimes they get really random) whims and follow me anywhere. It made him very easy to be with.
Anyway, I don't remember exactly how I found the first place, but it was a place that specialized in Peking Duck, called...Peking Restaurant. He'd never had Peking duck before, which appalled me, and liked it. We were seated at the table with the other two foreigners (an older British couple) who took this picture for us. The duck, hoison sauce and pancakes were very good and I showed Yves how you put the sauce on a pancake then add duck, spring onion and cucumber. It would've been better if the pancakes and duck were hot, but it was still great.
We also went to a place recommended to me by my grandlittle sister, Tiffany, (from my sorority, Delta Delta Delta) whose family is from Hong Kong originally, though she's a native Californian (I know what you're thinking, and no, she couldn't get any more awesome if she tried). She recommended a dim sum restaurant, Din Tai Fung. We actually went to a different branch than the one she recommended (since it was three blocks from our place) and it was fabulous. It also had a plaque outside saying that the N.Y. Times had rated it one of the ten best restaurants in the world. Admittedly, the bronzed article was from 1993, but I was still excited. Dim sum is better with more people, but we were still able to try several fantastic plates.
We started with a plate of steamed spinach and garlic, which was very good (and surprising, since I normally dislike spinach), Spicy Shrimp Wontons (which was recommended by our waitress and was Yves' favorite and one of my favorites) which had an incredibly complex, developed flavor (do you ever wonder if I just make this tuff up by using buzzwords? Because sometimes I do.) but anyway, was really good and spicy without being grossly hot-spicy. Our third starting choice was the Steamed Pork Dumplings, their specialty (and my other favorite) which had a complicated method for eating, which always excites me. You started by picking it up with your chopsticks, then you dipped it in your sauce dish (a combination of fresh ginger threads and as much soy sauce as you wished to add) and then you transferred it to a small bowl where you put it down and poked it, releasing the broth inside which mixed with the sauce. Finally, you used a spoon to gather the dumpling, sauce and broth in a spoon and eat it. I think it probably would've been just as good without that process, but it was fun to poke it and sometimes I just like to over-complicate things unnecessarily.
Once we finished those, we ordered Special Sauce Dumplings (made with shrimp and pork) and Shrimp Fried Rice. Both were very good, but not amazing, as our first picks had been. For dessert, we decided on taro dumplings, which were just slightly sweet but, as Yves noticed as he finished his third and eyed mine, got better the more you ate. We each had tea and a Tsingtao beer with our meal and it came out to $359 HKD (about $47) for both of us, which I thought was a great deal.
At another point, we randomly walked into a sushi place and ended up with excellent salmon sashimi, which I mention because it means that we had great: Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Dim Sum and Peking Duck all in Hong Kong. Of course, we spent a bit more for this than I usually do, and in general the street food was unimpressive, but overall I mean to say that Hong Kong has wonderful food.
But, enough about the food. I want to tell you about the bars! I preferred Soho over the LKF or Wan Chi Red Light District (though a clean, fairly nice one) areas and Yves looked in his guidebook, which recommended V13. He had only to say the words "vodka bar" to describe it and and I was in. It also was on the edge of Soho, not quite in the middle, so it was a bit better, but when we got there the bartender told us it was no longer a vodka bar. They used to be, but had changed about six months ago. We decided to stay there for a drink anyway and I had a vodka-diet, while he opted for a (very good) White Russian). I had read somewhere that Thursday night was Ladies Night, so my goal for the evening was to get one free drink. The bartender told me that it was generally Wednesday night that was Ladies Night, but (I believe because he was bored as the bar was empty except for ourselves and one regular) he gave us all free tequila shots so we stayed there for most of the rest of that night and had a great time just talking to the bartender and the regular. Yves wanted a new lighter, so the bartender showed us the bars collection:
Somehow, that night, I was given a magazine for expats called Brouhaha (with NaNa from Ghana's number written on the back). I obviously ignored the number but read the magazine the next day and it recommended a secret bar (just the idea of which gets me nearly drunk with excitement) called Sense 99, which we went to that night. You went to 99 Wellington, which, due to some odd street signs is hard to find, then looked for the little buzzer button which had Sense 99 written next to it. On our way out, I noticed the unlit sign above, but you'd never know it was there or a bar otherwise. From outside, you couldn't hear any music or see any lights, but after you were buzzed in (by someone who checked that you knew what you were looking for) and went up a flight of stairs, you walked into a great little bar. The first floor had a bar which consisted of a cooler full of beers, another cooler of Coke bottles and a few scattered liquor bottles. The second floor had an outside balcony and a mini stage set up with a piano, bass, drums, guitars, rain stick, bongos, accordian and a few other instruments that were available for anyone to play. I might have tested my skills as a rock star, but while we were there, someone else was always playing, including an actual band that seemed to just coalesce out of thin air. The band was especially fun to watch because it was obvious that they were just jamming out and weren't getting paid. Each one of them just looked like they absolutely loved what they were doing and it's always nice to watch people do what they love, even if it doesn't really mean anything to you.
Yves had really liked his White Russian, so we went back to V13, which had some big party going on with a DJ, though by the time we got there, it was dying down. We went with a few people to some other club after that and called it a night (though way later).
On Tuesday, June 1st, I went alone to Macau. The weather sucked and many of the areas I saw were empty and closed. I was feeling fairly depressed about that and rather unimpressed because so much of the "Portuguese" waterfront area was refurbished, partially by casinos and partially by faux old Portuguese style so it was difficult to tell which parts were authentic and which parts had been built within the past ten years.
Macau itself was strange. It felt like Vegas in complete decline. The casinos were beautiful and glitzy but there just weren't enough people there. I went over to the more historic area: the Monte Fort and the front remains of St. Paul's Cathedral, of which just the facade and base structure was left. On my way through Senado Square I sat down and was quickly approached by a group of Hong Kong Middle School students. The group wanted to give me a brief presentation on the history of Macau and practice their English. Of course, I obliged and they were all very sweet. At the end, I filled out a survey about how well they'd done and gave them highest marks. They were so happy and excited and took pictures with me. I asked them to take a picture and here it is below. Oddly, this was the least happy they ever looked- at every other second they had these giant smiles filling their faces. After their presentation, they gave me a present. I opened it later and it was a bunch of Macau pastries. I actually didn't like them, but it was very sweet and none of the other white people accosted by the several groups of students got a present- it was just my awesome group.
I went to the cathedral remains and the fort. It was a weird feeling because it seemed so much like the areas and places in Mexico, the Caribbean and even parts of the U.S.- the forts in Florida and Puerto Rico (can we call that the U.S. yet?) and the feeling, though not the architecture, of so many of the missions in California. So Macau was very interesting, though felt quite strange.
Spending so much time on the road like this, it sometimes feels like I'm living several lives and the way people move through my life is so much faster that it feels like it just takes the core essence of relationships and misses the rest (good and bad). So, even though I know this sounds stupid and pretentious, in my opinion of myself, I can become a local in two weeks, or go through an entire relationship in that time period and have it actually matter (from the getting to know each other stage, to "dating," through the arguments, to the repetition, to the realization that you're not right for each other, all the way up to the break-up and leaving peacefully, hoping only good things for the other person and thinking they're alright, just not for you.)
More on Yves:
Yves and I moved into a single room together after two days and it's pretty hard to avoid someone you're sleeping in the same bed with. He's a good guy, though very...German. Just in general, he won't compliment me at all, even when I try to prod him by complimenting him. It took me a few days of feeling slightly ugly to get used to that but then I really realized that was just his issue, not mine and that was just the way he was. He's fairly smart and pretty funny, mostly interesting. He's also just easy to be with since this obviously isn't going anywhere and there's no pressure, and he lets me lead him anywhere I feel like (to the History Museum, the Big Buddha, two different restaurants and a bar).
Also, and don't tell anyone I admitted to this, but even though I'm obviously the person in charge when we go out to restaurants or try to figure out where we're going on the MTR (subway), it's nice to feel safe with someone. Walking with him, I can cross odd alleyways and streets, stay out later or even just leave my purse on the barstool with him when I go to the bathroom. It's simply comforting and sometimes I feel like I need a bit of stability, moving like I do.
Lastly, he spends more freely than I generally do and being a guy, eats quite a bit more and I've been somewhat imitating his habits. Terrible for my budget and thighs, but great for my happiness level.
And it sounds weird, but it felt like a real (albeit short and not super-serious) relationship to me. Neither of us was in love with each other, but enjoyed each others company and parted on great terms, like a textbook end to a relationship and I think that's the aspect I'm stuck on. Even though technically, we "broke up" (though I think he'd think it strange that I'd call him an ex-boyfriend) because I left the country (again), it was really because we just weren't right for each other, but still saw value in the other person. It was a very peaceful, mature break-up. Furthermore, I think I can call it a relationship simply because I say it is, since I'm the one considering it, and I say it is; it is, because of my saying so most of all, see?
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Internal Monologue: To Run or Not to Run?
5/10-
Last night, I'd stayed up until about 4 a.m. working on this blog. That sounds like a terrible idea but it actually worked out very well- I woke up at about 12 today, feeling totally rested and energized. Since it's Mother's Day, I called my Mom and talked to her for a while, before attempting to take a shower, and failing since there was no hot water.
For lunch, I stopped at a little restaurant and pointed at a picture (with an English description underneath!) of shrimp won tons in soup. The soup was the same as you get anywhere; basic chicken stock with some spring onions and maybe some other green thing, seaweed or bok choy, but the dumplings were fantastic. The shrimp was chopped but not ground in with breading or other filler crap, and had lemongrass and ginger in it, which made it wonderful.
After lunch I walked over towards the Museum of Contemporary Art and passed an art installation on the way, which was interesting.
Sadly, the Museum itself was closed on Mondays. I wandered around the streets and through market alleyways before going into the D building, where I found a shop where I could "test" nail polish remover by removing the polish from all of my nails. I was trying to decide what to do then and realized that I still had a lot of energy and I didn't have any idea of what to do with it. It was too late to go to another museum, and they'd probably all be closed, and it was too cloudy to go see the Taipei 101 building.
As I was thinking about it, I noticed that the weather was actually perfect for running; slightly chilly and breezy but not really cold. Weather is one of my main excuses for not going running, the other two I use most frequently are: exhaustion and that my stomach isn't right (either too full or too hungry- it sounds strange, but it's actually very hard to find the exact hunger level to run on). I couldn't use any of these excuses as I was energized and my stomach, for once, was at that perfect point. The only problem was that I didn't want to. I tried rationalizing with myself;
"You slightly twisted your ankle a while ago and can still vaguely feel it- you don't want to injure yourself more."
"Yes, but you can only even feel it if you move your ankle in an awkward sideways manner that you wouldn't do when you run AND the pavement here is surprisingly even and good."
"Yeah, but I just really don't want to."
"Stop being so lazy and pathetic!"
"That's mean- you're a jerk."
"I'm sorry, that was out of line, it's just that you'll feel so much better if you do, and you'll sleep better, just put your running clothes on- you can do it!"
"Okay, I'll just change and go. Just change and go before I can change my mind."
So I did. And I was right. I went for a decent run (about 50 minutes run/walk) and it was okay and I did feel better afterwards, especially after a shower. I got some noodles and pork dumpling thing for dinner that looked pretty disgusting but actually tasted okay, and then went back to the hostel where I've been busy working on my blog and relaxing by: painting my nails with clear polish, enjoying another cup of homemade hot chocolate, reading "The Motorcycle Diaries" and using a face mask I bought in Tokyo at Muji, a cool minimalist store. I'd been proud of myself at the time because I only bought two things at Muji, a mini foundation pump for my makeup that I actually needed, and these face masks that came in a set of 5 for something like $1.50. The reason I couldn't resist them was because they came in a tiny bag, each one looking like a large, flat, round white pill. You saturate the "pill" with a face oil, which makes them unroll and then you put it on your face like a regular mask.
Last night, I'd stayed up until about 4 a.m. working on this blog. That sounds like a terrible idea but it actually worked out very well- I woke up at about 12 today, feeling totally rested and energized. Since it's Mother's Day, I called my Mom and talked to her for a while, before attempting to take a shower, and failing since there was no hot water.
For lunch, I stopped at a little restaurant and pointed at a picture (with an English description underneath!) of shrimp won tons in soup. The soup was the same as you get anywhere; basic chicken stock with some spring onions and maybe some other green thing, seaweed or bok choy, but the dumplings were fantastic. The shrimp was chopped but not ground in with breading or other filler crap, and had lemongrass and ginger in it, which made it wonderful.
After lunch I walked over towards the Museum of Contemporary Art and passed an art installation on the way, which was interesting.
Sadly, the Museum itself was closed on Mondays. I wandered around the streets and through market alleyways before going into the D building, where I found a shop where I could "test" nail polish remover by removing the polish from all of my nails. I was trying to decide what to do then and realized that I still had a lot of energy and I didn't have any idea of what to do with it. It was too late to go to another museum, and they'd probably all be closed, and it was too cloudy to go see the Taipei 101 building.
As I was thinking about it, I noticed that the weather was actually perfect for running; slightly chilly and breezy but not really cold. Weather is one of my main excuses for not going running, the other two I use most frequently are: exhaustion and that my stomach isn't right (either too full or too hungry- it sounds strange, but it's actually very hard to find the exact hunger level to run on). I couldn't use any of these excuses as I was energized and my stomach, for once, was at that perfect point. The only problem was that I didn't want to. I tried rationalizing with myself;
"You slightly twisted your ankle a while ago and can still vaguely feel it- you don't want to injure yourself more."
"Yes, but you can only even feel it if you move your ankle in an awkward sideways manner that you wouldn't do when you run AND the pavement here is surprisingly even and good."
"Yeah, but I just really don't want to."
"Stop being so lazy and pathetic!"
"That's mean- you're a jerk."
"I'm sorry, that was out of line, it's just that you'll feel so much better if you do, and you'll sleep better, just put your running clothes on- you can do it!"
"Okay, I'll just change and go. Just change and go before I can change my mind."
So I did. And I was right. I went for a decent run (about 50 minutes run/walk) and it was okay and I did feel better afterwards, especially after a shower. I got some noodles and pork dumpling thing for dinner that looked pretty disgusting but actually tasted okay, and then went back to the hostel where I've been busy working on my blog and relaxing by: painting my nails with clear polish, enjoying another cup of homemade hot chocolate, reading "The Motorcycle Diaries" and using a face mask I bought in Tokyo at Muji, a cool minimalist store. I'd been proud of myself at the time because I only bought two things at Muji, a mini foundation pump for my makeup that I actually needed, and these face masks that came in a set of 5 for something like $1.50. The reason I couldn't resist them was because they came in a tiny bag, each one looking like a large, flat, round white pill. You saturate the "pill" with a face oil, which makes them unroll and then you put it on your face like a regular mask.
Still Being Lazy
5/9-
Today I went for a long walk, even though the weather's still quite gross. The only thing I saw that looked at all interesting was the Museum of Contemporary Art, so I might go see that tomorrow. I booked a flight to get to Hong Kong for May 17th. It's $170 USD cheaper than the next available flight but it's on a super-budget airline, I have to leave at 1:25 a.m. and there's a two hour stopover in...Manila. Look at it on a map and tell me that makes sense. Oh well, saving that much is worth it to me and it does mean I won't have to pay for a hotel that night. Eh. Other than that, I didn't do much today besides writing and updating this blog.
Today I went for a long walk, even though the weather's still quite gross. The only thing I saw that looked at all interesting was the Museum of Contemporary Art, so I might go see that tomorrow. I booked a flight to get to Hong Kong for May 17th. It's $170 USD cheaper than the next available flight but it's on a super-budget airline, I have to leave at 1:25 a.m. and there's a two hour stopover in...Manila. Look at it on a map and tell me that makes sense. Oh well, saving that much is worth it to me and it does mean I won't have to pay for a hotel that night. Eh. Other than that, I didn't do much today besides writing and updating this blog.
Do (something, anything) Another Day
5/8-
Finished "Shadow of the Wind" and it really is a great book- I'd recommend it. It wasn't raining, though it was still gross and humid and gray out, so I went for a short walk. I'd planned on buying dinner but didn't see anything particularly appetizing so I bought pre-seasoned chicken pieces which I fried up on one of the two burners available and added to my lettuce and chopped up red bell pepper to make a salad, and to my ramen for extra protein. I washed it all down with milk since I think I've been short on calcium lately, all while watching the most recent 007 movie on t.v. I was reminded of how crappy Daniel Craig is as Bond, and how old and short and unattractive he is.
Finished "Shadow of the Wind" and it really is a great book- I'd recommend it. It wasn't raining, though it was still gross and humid and gray out, so I went for a short walk. I'd planned on buying dinner but didn't see anything particularly appetizing so I bought pre-seasoned chicken pieces which I fried up on one of the two burners available and added to my lettuce and chopped up red bell pepper to make a salad, and to my ramen for extra protein. I washed it all down with milk since I think I've been short on calcium lately, all while watching the most recent 007 movie on t.v. I was reminded of how crappy Daniel Craig is as Bond, and how old and short and unattractive he is.
Sad and Slow
5/7-
I spent today recovering from my nuclear particle collision speed in Japan by reading "Shadow of the Wind." It's a wonderful book so far, but I had to put it down at one point just because it was so sad. In fact, all the books I've read recently that have been really good have been sad. Between that and all the sad sights I've seen, I have to wonder if I'm being masochistic, but I don't feel sad or hurty overall? Also, it seems like Spanish and South American authors in general tend to write very depressing books, I wonder why that is, and why that makes me like them- because they understand pain and sadness?
The city is drowning today, so I only went outside once to get food, which was forgettable. I'd planned on changing hostels to a cheaper place, but they had a dorm bed available here for the same price, and searching for a random building in the rain sounded terrible, so I'm staying here. I did buy a bar of chocolate and milk, which I successfully combined into really yummy hot chocolate, so I'm counting that as my achievement for the day.
I spent today recovering from my nuclear particle collision speed in Japan by reading "Shadow of the Wind." It's a wonderful book so far, but I had to put it down at one point just because it was so sad. In fact, all the books I've read recently that have been really good have been sad. Between that and all the sad sights I've seen, I have to wonder if I'm being masochistic, but I don't feel sad or hurty overall? Also, it seems like Spanish and South American authors in general tend to write very depressing books, I wonder why that is, and why that makes me like them- because they understand pain and sadness?
The city is drowning today, so I only went outside once to get food, which was forgettable. I'd planned on changing hostels to a cheaper place, but they had a dorm bed available here for the same price, and searching for a random building in the rain sounded terrible, so I'm staying here. I did buy a bar of chocolate and milk, which I successfully combined into really yummy hot chocolate, so I'm counting that as my achievement for the day.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Another Day of Very Little
5/4-
Today, I didn't get out much just because I didn't feel like it. I had ramen again for lunch, wrote a lot and talked to the owner of the hostel for a while. He was very interesting. He was born in Japan but had moved to Oakland, California when he was under a year old. He grew up there and started selling drugs and at some point he was caught and sent to jail for three to five. He told me he was caught just for selling pot, but with that sentence, especially in Oakland, I don't quite believe him. Regardless, while he was in, a California law was instituted that any naturalized citizen felon would be deported so he was sent back to Japan. Imagine being sent back to a country that you've never known and having to start a whole new life.
I asked him how to get to the station since I was so lost yesterday and with his directions, it was about a five minute walk FROM A DIFFERENT STATION, though on the same line, just one more stop. It pissed me off, but at least I now knew. He also told me where a 100 yen shop was nearby so I could pick up a few things. 100 yen shops are like dollar stores, but with a much larger variety and much cleaner. Somehow, they really are similar but yen shops are just much cooler. Grabbed some chicken for dinner and spent the night writing, fussing about online and watching t.v.
Today, I didn't get out much just because I didn't feel like it. I had ramen again for lunch, wrote a lot and talked to the owner of the hostel for a while. He was very interesting. He was born in Japan but had moved to Oakland, California when he was under a year old. He grew up there and started selling drugs and at some point he was caught and sent to jail for three to five. He told me he was caught just for selling pot, but with that sentence, especially in Oakland, I don't quite believe him. Regardless, while he was in, a California law was instituted that any naturalized citizen felon would be deported so he was sent back to Japan. Imagine being sent back to a country that you've never known and having to start a whole new life.
I asked him how to get to the station since I was so lost yesterday and with his directions, it was about a five minute walk FROM A DIFFERENT STATION, though on the same line, just one more stop. It pissed me off, but at least I now knew. He also told me where a 100 yen shop was nearby so I could pick up a few things. 100 yen shops are like dollar stores, but with a much larger variety and much cleaner. Somehow, they really are similar but yen shops are just much cooler. Grabbed some chicken for dinner and spent the night writing, fussing about online and watching t.v.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Random Ranting and Wandering in Trendy Tokyo
Saturday May 1, 2010
Lately, I'm having crazy cravings, like the kind you hear about women getting when they're pregnant (I'm not, don't laugh, it's not something funny, and never something to joke about). Right this second, I would be willing to die for: cottage cheese, a really good salad, and caramel, the hot liquid kind you'd put on ice cream, though I really just want the caramel, though maybe with some whipped cream and peanuts in my mouth at the same time.
I really want to go running again, and I think the weather would finally be nice for it, but I'm afraid that I'll hurt my ankle. I twisted it on my most recent all-nighter in Osaka at some point, but barely, it really didn't hurt much, just bruised and swelled up a bit. It doesn't hurt at all anymore, but it still feels weak and I don't want to push it because then I'm afraid I'll really hurt it and I won't be able to run, or even walk long distances, for ages. Actually, I seem to twist my ankle a fair bit, though it's usually (including currently) no big deal, though it was pretty bad once when I nearly broke it. Anyway, irrelevant.
Tonight, while uploading pictures, I realized that I only have four pictures of me in Japan and two of those are at the Sapporo factory; good thing I've got my priorities straight.
I can't believe it's May already! How the hell did that happen?! That means I've been traveling for just under two months (8 weeks on Monday).
In all that time, and in all my time staying in the hostel upon my arrival in Oz, I have yet to meet a single American female traveler (in the way of doing what I'm doing). I've met single American male travelers, single female travelers from other countries (including Sweden, the U.K., Germany and France,) I've met American couples traveling and two or more American females traveling together, I've even met single American females traveling within a country in which they were based (by which I primarily mean, English teachers in Korea and Japan) but I have yet to meet any other single American female traveler backpacking around countries. This makes me really sad. I know I'm not so unusual or special, so why aren't more American women doing this type of thing?
What it really makes me wonder is if we don't have (additional) sexism in the U.S. that we're unaware of. I don't think I've spoken about it much here, but in Australia, there is extreme sexism (more than I saw in Western Europe in my time there, or in Japan, now) but Australians barely seem to notice. It's a difficult type of sexism to explain; quite subtle, but very obvious if you come from somewhere, like the U.S. that doesn't have it (at least in that way). Most of it is the judgmental views of women (especially, as is true everywhere I've ever been, in regards to their sexuality) that are so totally different from the views on men, but additionally, it is the type of subtle sexism, that if you saw it in the U.S. you'd think, "Huh, that's weird that they'd say that/ That's kind of offensive/ rude/ I wonder how they get away with that," but you don't think too much of it, because it happens so rarely. In Australia, it's still those little things, but they occur constantly. Constantly.
Anyway, that's all in Australia. My point here is that perhaps it exists much more than we realize in the U.S. in a way that we don't recognize, much as they don't recognize it in Oz. About two years ago, I read a book called After (P.S. shout out here to Google for knowing the name of it when I could only remember a few random details). It's meant for teenagers, but is an excellent book that feeds into all my paranoia about privacy and rights. In it, the school slowly becomes more and more restricted and controlled; with extraordinarily harsh punishments, metal detectors and, if I remember right, nationalism in the form of high school rivalry. Throughout, the parents are kept "informed" by emails explaining the additional dangers facing teens and why the restrictions and privacy invasions were so important, essentially brainwashing them (the parents).
I'm not some conspiracy theorist, and I don't really think we need to seriously worry about high schools being controlled, and parent brain washing anytime soon, but I do worry about the effects of what we see and hear, particularly with the recent passing of a law that allows lobbyists greater access and input than ever before.
Again, I'm getting away from my original point, and this really isn't supposed to be political, but what I mean is that perhaps in the U.S., we've convinced women that they are in so much danger, that we are restricting them and their freedom in a way that we simply don't restrict male freedom.
This also isn't to say that women don't face a greater danger than men do. We do. We shouldn't have to, but, shouldn'ts don't really matter in the real world do they? I know I take a risk, and yes, it is a bit of a greater risk than most women take. I'm not denying that in of itself. I'm suggesting that the actual risk has been overblown and that the rewards we miss out on, may be worth it. They certainly are for me.
*This entire post is discussing sexism outside of the spectrum we obviously know it exists in: wages, promotions, reproductive rights, etc.
Quick Note: The above was all actually written on 5/1 and is mostly rambling. The long sexism rant was partially inspired by Marybeth, who you'll meet below. The rest of this entry was written later and actually tells what I did that day.
I finished Lucy this morning, had a very slow lunch at the Cafe that was part of the hostel (margarita pizza that was obviously not really margarita pizza but more edible than I expected upon ordering) and wrote for a while.
I met Marybeth, an American woman teaching English in Japan, about my age. She was pretty interesting to talk to, and very interested in me, which the narcissist in me adores. It had been a while since I'd really spoken to pretty much anyone so I had a fairly long conversation with her. One of the most interesting things she told me was that she had a boyfriend back in the U.S. even though she'd been in Japan since last August! She said that he had been in Japan for three months too, but that still leaves six months, which to me is just insane, but then I'm not a believer in long distance relationships. I told her maybe I'd go out with her that night.
Since I had a few days in Tokyo, I slowed down a bit and decided that today I just wanted to read some magazines at a bookstore and look at a guidebook for Taiwan. Of course, it's not as simple as running out to Barnes and Noble and picking out a comfy chair.
First, I had to look up a place with English books and magazines in my guidebook, then I had to buy a pass, take the subway, transfer once, and then wander for about an hour looking for the right place. I happened to be wandering in a very nice and interesting area: Shibuya up to Harajuku. Shibuya is full of several small boutiques and restaurants in side alleys and huge designer stores on the main Omote-sando street so it was fun to look around. As it was a Saturday it was fairly busy but I didn't feel crushed by the crowd or anything like that. I didn't get too far into Harajuku but what I saw was surprisingly ordinary and trendy/fashionable only in a boring, overdone way, like hipsters. It wasn't nearly as interesting as I had hoped/expected.
I finally found the bookstore on my way back towards Shibuya since I'd missed it on the way up and read Cosmopolitan and Saveur almost front to cover, sitting on a stool I found in the Childrens section. Sitting there for at least two hours, I also skimmed: Food and Wine, Marie Claire, Vogue, Lucky and glanced at a few others. Food and Wine recommended a beer place in Tokyo, while Saveur recommended a particular area to eat. I walked out, much happier, into the semi-darkness. Night had come while I was reading, but the lights, everywhere, were so bright that it would be misleading to actually call it dark.
And now I could feel the crush of people and density of Tokyo. There was particular point when I was right before a large intersection, like a smaller Oxford Circus as the light changed.
In Sydney, at the huge intersection of George St. and the street Woolworths and one end of the QVB is on, people walk in straight, bulging cords as the cars stop. All at the same moment, people walk either way on each four sides of the square and diagonally across, forming a human square with an X in the middle. Though it's a large rush of people, and every once in a while a straggler swerves into one of the four triangles of concrete created in between the X and the square, the crowd always retains this structure. Somehow, the rivers never burst from their path.
This intersection in Shibuya reminded me of that one in Sydney, but with three times the people and none of the order. It was like a fishing net in the open sea where some fish are visible and then, instantly, something changes, and all the fish are caught wildly squirming in the net. It was a vibrating block of people, with nothing below them. I took a picture because it so perfectly captured the idea we sometimes have of Tokyo, as a big city totally filled with people, but of course, lost that picture when I lost my camera in Taiwan (which is why there are no pictures from this point until 5/23).
It was a nice afternoon and I enjoyed my wandering and seeing areas of Tokyo I had wanted to see on the way, but I was tired so I got some ramen and beers at 7-11 and went back to the hostel. I went to bed at around 12 and Marybeth told me that was about the time she'd come back looking for me but we'd somehow missed each other. After how busy I'd been lately, I really didn't mind missing out and getting some extra sleep.
Lately, I'm having crazy cravings, like the kind you hear about women getting when they're pregnant (I'm not, don't laugh, it's not something funny, and never something to joke about). Right this second, I would be willing to die for: cottage cheese, a really good salad, and caramel, the hot liquid kind you'd put on ice cream, though I really just want the caramel, though maybe with some whipped cream and peanuts in my mouth at the same time.
I really want to go running again, and I think the weather would finally be nice for it, but I'm afraid that I'll hurt my ankle. I twisted it on my most recent all-nighter in Osaka at some point, but barely, it really didn't hurt much, just bruised and swelled up a bit. It doesn't hurt at all anymore, but it still feels weak and I don't want to push it because then I'm afraid I'll really hurt it and I won't be able to run, or even walk long distances, for ages. Actually, I seem to twist my ankle a fair bit, though it's usually (including currently) no big deal, though it was pretty bad once when I nearly broke it. Anyway, irrelevant.
Tonight, while uploading pictures, I realized that I only have four pictures of me in Japan and two of those are at the Sapporo factory; good thing I've got my priorities straight.
I can't believe it's May already! How the hell did that happen?! That means I've been traveling for just under two months (8 weeks on Monday).
In all that time, and in all my time staying in the hostel upon my arrival in Oz, I have yet to meet a single American female traveler (in the way of doing what I'm doing). I've met single American male travelers, single female travelers from other countries (including Sweden, the U.K., Germany and France,) I've met American couples traveling and two or more American females traveling together, I've even met single American females traveling within a country in which they were based (by which I primarily mean, English teachers in Korea and Japan) but I have yet to meet any other single American female traveler backpacking around countries. This makes me really sad. I know I'm not so unusual or special, so why aren't more American women doing this type of thing?
What it really makes me wonder is if we don't have (additional) sexism in the U.S. that we're unaware of. I don't think I've spoken about it much here, but in Australia, there is extreme sexism (more than I saw in Western Europe in my time there, or in Japan, now) but Australians barely seem to notice. It's a difficult type of sexism to explain; quite subtle, but very obvious if you come from somewhere, like the U.S. that doesn't have it (at least in that way). Most of it is the judgmental views of women (especially, as is true everywhere I've ever been, in regards to their sexuality) that are so totally different from the views on men, but additionally, it is the type of subtle sexism, that if you saw it in the U.S. you'd think, "Huh, that's weird that they'd say that/ That's kind of offensive/ rude/ I wonder how they get away with that," but you don't think too much of it, because it happens so rarely. In Australia, it's still those little things, but they occur constantly. Constantly.
Anyway, that's all in Australia. My point here is that perhaps it exists much more than we realize in the U.S. in a way that we don't recognize, much as they don't recognize it in Oz. About two years ago, I read a book called After (P.S. shout out here to Google for knowing the name of it when I could only remember a few random details). It's meant for teenagers, but is an excellent book that feeds into all my paranoia about privacy and rights. In it, the school slowly becomes more and more restricted and controlled; with extraordinarily harsh punishments, metal detectors and, if I remember right, nationalism in the form of high school rivalry. Throughout, the parents are kept "informed" by emails explaining the additional dangers facing teens and why the restrictions and privacy invasions were so important, essentially brainwashing them (the parents).
I'm not some conspiracy theorist, and I don't really think we need to seriously worry about high schools being controlled, and parent brain washing anytime soon, but I do worry about the effects of what we see and hear, particularly with the recent passing of a law that allows lobbyists greater access and input than ever before.
Again, I'm getting away from my original point, and this really isn't supposed to be political, but what I mean is that perhaps in the U.S., we've convinced women that they are in so much danger, that we are restricting them and their freedom in a way that we simply don't restrict male freedom.
This also isn't to say that women don't face a greater danger than men do. We do. We shouldn't have to, but, shouldn'ts don't really matter in the real world do they? I know I take a risk, and yes, it is a bit of a greater risk than most women take. I'm not denying that in of itself. I'm suggesting that the actual risk has been overblown and that the rewards we miss out on, may be worth it. They certainly are for me.
*This entire post is discussing sexism outside of the spectrum we obviously know it exists in: wages, promotions, reproductive rights, etc.
Quick Note: The above was all actually written on 5/1 and is mostly rambling. The long sexism rant was partially inspired by Marybeth, who you'll meet below. The rest of this entry was written later and actually tells what I did that day.
I finished Lucy this morning, had a very slow lunch at the Cafe that was part of the hostel (margarita pizza that was obviously not really margarita pizza but more edible than I expected upon ordering) and wrote for a while.
I met Marybeth, an American woman teaching English in Japan, about my age. She was pretty interesting to talk to, and very interested in me, which the narcissist in me adores. It had been a while since I'd really spoken to pretty much anyone so I had a fairly long conversation with her. One of the most interesting things she told me was that she had a boyfriend back in the U.S. even though she'd been in Japan since last August! She said that he had been in Japan for three months too, but that still leaves six months, which to me is just insane, but then I'm not a believer in long distance relationships. I told her maybe I'd go out with her that night.
Since I had a few days in Tokyo, I slowed down a bit and decided that today I just wanted to read some magazines at a bookstore and look at a guidebook for Taiwan. Of course, it's not as simple as running out to Barnes and Noble and picking out a comfy chair.
First, I had to look up a place with English books and magazines in my guidebook, then I had to buy a pass, take the subway, transfer once, and then wander for about an hour looking for the right place. I happened to be wandering in a very nice and interesting area: Shibuya up to Harajuku. Shibuya is full of several small boutiques and restaurants in side alleys and huge designer stores on the main Omote-sando street so it was fun to look around. As it was a Saturday it was fairly busy but I didn't feel crushed by the crowd or anything like that. I didn't get too far into Harajuku but what I saw was surprisingly ordinary and trendy/fashionable only in a boring, overdone way, like hipsters. It wasn't nearly as interesting as I had hoped/expected.
I finally found the bookstore on my way back towards Shibuya since I'd missed it on the way up and read Cosmopolitan and Saveur almost front to cover, sitting on a stool I found in the Childrens section. Sitting there for at least two hours, I also skimmed: Food and Wine, Marie Claire, Vogue, Lucky and glanced at a few others. Food and Wine recommended a beer place in Tokyo, while Saveur recommended a particular area to eat. I walked out, much happier, into the semi-darkness. Night had come while I was reading, but the lights, everywhere, were so bright that it would be misleading to actually call it dark.
And now I could feel the crush of people and density of Tokyo. There was particular point when I was right before a large intersection, like a smaller Oxford Circus as the light changed.
In Sydney, at the huge intersection of George St. and the street Woolworths and one end of the QVB is on, people walk in straight, bulging cords as the cars stop. All at the same moment, people walk either way on each four sides of the square and diagonally across, forming a human square with an X in the middle. Though it's a large rush of people, and every once in a while a straggler swerves into one of the four triangles of concrete created in between the X and the square, the crowd always retains this structure. Somehow, the rivers never burst from their path.
This intersection in Shibuya reminded me of that one in Sydney, but with three times the people and none of the order. It was like a fishing net in the open sea where some fish are visible and then, instantly, something changes, and all the fish are caught wildly squirming in the net. It was a vibrating block of people, with nothing below them. I took a picture because it so perfectly captured the idea we sometimes have of Tokyo, as a big city totally filled with people, but of course, lost that picture when I lost my camera in Taiwan (which is why there are no pictures from this point until 5/23).
It was a nice afternoon and I enjoyed my wandering and seeing areas of Tokyo I had wanted to see on the way, but I was tired so I got some ramen and beers at 7-11 and went back to the hostel. I went to bed at around 12 and Marybeth told me that was about the time she'd come back looking for me but we'd somehow missed each other. After how busy I'd been lately, I really didn't mind missing out and getting some extra sleep.
Monday, May 10, 2010
An Extra Hour in the Day, Available in Kyoto
4/21
Finally made it to Kyoto after sleeping for thirteen hours. First hostel I went to, the one I wanted, was fully booked so they told me about a place across the street; Sparkling Dolphins Ryokan. It was basic, but clean and the down comforter was surprisingly comfortable. I walked around a little bit near the station, passing this extraordinary sign on the way. Of course, it would be the Japanese who finally figured out how to squeeze another hour into the day.
I got some forgettable food for dinner, bought a few of my favorite drinks here; a seasonal or at least somewhat hard to find "World Quality" Kirin beer or spirit mix in a dark pink can, and screwed around online and worked on my blog for a while before heading to bed.
Finally made it to Kyoto after sleeping for thirteen hours. First hostel I went to, the one I wanted, was fully booked so they told me about a place across the street; Sparkling Dolphins Ryokan. It was basic, but clean and the down comforter was surprisingly comfortable. I walked around a little bit near the station, passing this extraordinary sign on the way. Of course, it would be the Japanese who finally figured out how to squeeze another hour into the day.
I got some forgettable food for dinner, bought a few of my favorite drinks here; a seasonal or at least somewhat hard to find "World Quality" Kirin beer or spirit mix in a dark pink can, and screwed around online and worked on my blog for a while before heading to bed.
Riding In Circles
4/20
I'd planned on leaving Osaka for Kyoto today, but I hadn't taken the fact that I was going to be out all night into account, so at around 7 a.m. I found myself on a train with Andrew. We decided that it would be fun to go out to a castle but couldn't be bothered to figure out which direction it was to get there, so we just got on and off trains, chatting and having half conversations with Japanese passengers, for over five hours. Eventually that got boring, and we were hungry so we got some food, wandered around a bit, and then went back to our respective hostels.
That was pretty much my entire day.
I'd planned on leaving Osaka for Kyoto today, but I hadn't taken the fact that I was going to be out all night into account, so at around 7 a.m. I found myself on a train with Andrew. We decided that it would be fun to go out to a castle but couldn't be bothered to figure out which direction it was to get there, so we just got on and off trains, chatting and having half conversations with Japanese passengers, for over five hours. Eventually that got boring, and we were hungry so we got some food, wandered around a bit, and then went back to our respective hostels.
That was pretty much my entire day.
Osaka Sewer Cover- Neat, huh?
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Creepy Cambodian Men
4/5
Today I did almost nothing just because I was lazy. My guesthouse has everything I need: reasonably fast working WiFi, my private room with bathroom with Western style toilet AND toilet paper AND soap, and a balcony restaurant with Coke Light, decent (though not great) food for a reasonable price and beer. There was no reason to leave, so I didn't.
Everyone (my guidebook, other travelers, another guidebook) keeps telling me that the Cambodian people are so great and they're not. They're not bad, and save for the creepiness of the men, I don't have much to say against them, but they're like anyone else. Which pisses me off. People are the same everywhere and that's fine but I'm getting really sick of guidebooks pulling superlative crap. What's worse is that after reading how great they were in the guidebooks, I was annoyed to find that they were as human and normal and unspecial as everyone else, which would have been fine, but since I'd been told they were so wonderful, I actually got a bit upset with the Cambodians, which of course, is insane. I'm really starting to hate guidebooks. Not everywhere has great food/is beautiful/is exciting.
Cambodian men are by far the creepiest I've encountered so far. After considering the issue for some time, I've decided that it's likely that that's related to the fact that they've had less time to adjust to tourists. Until about 1998, Cambodia was pretty much a no-go zone as it was extremely dangerous, and they were targeting foreigners as late as 1994! So even though they've had twelve years to adjust, foreign women are still relatively novel, as compared to Thailand, for example. Anyway, they're really creepy. They stare inappropriately and one guy on a motorbike followed me around on my bicycle until I lost him. And yes, I'm sure he was following me as I tried stopping in the hope that he'd keep going. He stopped, and started again, only after I had. Fortunately it was during the day on main streets in the center of Siem Reap, but it was still creepy. Even when I was entering the country, the guard who arranged my visa asked me if I had a boyfriend and even before I said no, just looked me up and down and continued to stare at me the entire time I was waiting. I even remember that I had another example, but of course now I can't remember what it was.
Today I did almost nothing just because I was lazy. My guesthouse has everything I need: reasonably fast working WiFi, my private room with bathroom with Western style toilet AND toilet paper AND soap, and a balcony restaurant with Coke Light, decent (though not great) food for a reasonable price and beer. There was no reason to leave, so I didn't.
Everyone (my guidebook, other travelers, another guidebook) keeps telling me that the Cambodian people are so great and they're not. They're not bad, and save for the creepiness of the men, I don't have much to say against them, but they're like anyone else. Which pisses me off. People are the same everywhere and that's fine but I'm getting really sick of guidebooks pulling superlative crap. What's worse is that after reading how great they were in the guidebooks, I was annoyed to find that they were as human and normal and unspecial as everyone else, which would have been fine, but since I'd been told they were so wonderful, I actually got a bit upset with the Cambodians, which of course, is insane. I'm really starting to hate guidebooks. Not everywhere has great food/is beautiful/is exciting.
Cambodian men are by far the creepiest I've encountered so far. After considering the issue for some time, I've decided that it's likely that that's related to the fact that they've had less time to adjust to tourists. Until about 1998, Cambodia was pretty much a no-go zone as it was extremely dangerous, and they were targeting foreigners as late as 1994! So even though they've had twelve years to adjust, foreign women are still relatively novel, as compared to Thailand, for example. Anyway, they're really creepy. They stare inappropriately and one guy on a motorbike followed me around on my bicycle until I lost him. And yes, I'm sure he was following me as I tried stopping in the hope that he'd keep going. He stopped, and started again, only after I had. Fortunately it was during the day on main streets in the center of Siem Reap, but it was still creepy. Even when I was entering the country, the guard who arranged my visa asked me if I had a boyfriend and even before I said no, just looked me up and down and continued to stare at me the entire time I was waiting. I even remember that I had another example, but of course now I can't remember what it was.
Disappointed by Food, Faith Renewed by a Mojito
4/4 (Sunday)
I didn't want to do anything too stenuous today and since two guidebooks I consulted both said that you could see everything in Phnom Penh in two days and I had five before my flight to Korea, I wasn't going to rush myself. The O'Russey market was close to me so I decided I'd get something to eat nearby then go look around there for a while. It was nice, but not particularly fascinating or memorable, just like my lunch.
For a while I went back to my guesthouse and wrote and planned but I got restless and remembered that I wanted to go to Romdeng, a restaurant that specialized in gourmet Cambodian food, where I could try tarantula, a Cambodian delicacy. I'd seen a special on it, as it was part of the Friends NGO, which trains the cooks and helps Cambodians learn skills and get work, and the owner of Chamkra, the vegetarian restaurant in Siem Reap, had recommended it, so I was really looking forward to it. I walked around for over thirty minutes looking for the restaurant and cursing them for not having a better sign until I finally found it and noticed that they did actually have a decent sign- I just couldn't see it because the lights were all off. A sign said it, and all the other Friends franchises- about half of the recommeneded places to eat in Phnom Penh, were closed from April 2nd through April 19th for the Khmer New Year. I was pissed, not least of all because Khmer New Year only lasts from April 13-15 and I hadn't seen anything, ANYTHING, else that was closed because of that. I know it was silly, but I'd just been really looking forward to this and so felt incredibly let down and disappointed.
I was so upset I almost went straight back to the guesthouse, but I was hungry so I decided that I'd just get some food then head back. Instead I ended up wandering over to Metro Cafe, an expensive (for Cambodia,) but very nice bar. Their menu was actually intriguing so I got peking duck roll bites, which were okay, and more excitingly, a raspberry mojito. It wasn't perfect, but it was a very acceptable version- as good as I'd expect to get in any major city. I've been craving raspberries lately so this made me feel much better about life and I pepped up.
The Night Market here was only on Friday through Sunday thus this would be my last chance to see it, so I walked up to it, bought a dragonfruit to have for breakfast and walked around. A stage was set up and four teenagers; two girls, two boys were singing. They were really bad. Their voices just couldn't seem to do anything- I've heard elementary school choirs that sounded better. I walked away pretty quickly, bought a present for my Stepdad and left the Night Market.
I strolled by the Tonle Sap lakefront to the point where it meets the Mekong River (not nearly as far as that makes it sound) on an esplanade that was halfway destroyed by constuction, and halfway a lovely, broad, well-lit boulevard with flags. I walked down that part, past the Royal Palace and bought this from a woman selling them off the street.
Several people on my bus had eaten them so I knew the right way to do so, though the seller opened it for me anyways. It's basically part of a bamboo reed halfway filled with a strange, heavy rice mixture. More than anything else, it tasted woody. I ate a few bites to make sure I didn't want it and then threw the rest away.
I didn't want to do anything too stenuous today and since two guidebooks I consulted both said that you could see everything in Phnom Penh in two days and I had five before my flight to Korea, I wasn't going to rush myself. The O'Russey market was close to me so I decided I'd get something to eat nearby then go look around there for a while. It was nice, but not particularly fascinating or memorable, just like my lunch.
For a while I went back to my guesthouse and wrote and planned but I got restless and remembered that I wanted to go to Romdeng, a restaurant that specialized in gourmet Cambodian food, where I could try tarantula, a Cambodian delicacy. I'd seen a special on it, as it was part of the Friends NGO, which trains the cooks and helps Cambodians learn skills and get work, and the owner of Chamkra, the vegetarian restaurant in Siem Reap, had recommended it, so I was really looking forward to it. I walked around for over thirty minutes looking for the restaurant and cursing them for not having a better sign until I finally found it and noticed that they did actually have a decent sign- I just couldn't see it because the lights were all off. A sign said it, and all the other Friends franchises- about half of the recommeneded places to eat in Phnom Penh, were closed from April 2nd through April 19th for the Khmer New Year. I was pissed, not least of all because Khmer New Year only lasts from April 13-15 and I hadn't seen anything, ANYTHING, else that was closed because of that. I know it was silly, but I'd just been really looking forward to this and so felt incredibly let down and disappointed.
I was so upset I almost went straight back to the guesthouse, but I was hungry so I decided that I'd just get some food then head back. Instead I ended up wandering over to Metro Cafe, an expensive (for Cambodia,) but very nice bar. Their menu was actually intriguing so I got peking duck roll bites, which were okay, and more excitingly, a raspberry mojito. It wasn't perfect, but it was a very acceptable version- as good as I'd expect to get in any major city. I've been craving raspberries lately so this made me feel much better about life and I pepped up.
The Night Market here was only on Friday through Sunday thus this would be my last chance to see it, so I walked up to it, bought a dragonfruit to have for breakfast and walked around. A stage was set up and four teenagers; two girls, two boys were singing. They were really bad. Their voices just couldn't seem to do anything- I've heard elementary school choirs that sounded better. I walked away pretty quickly, bought a present for my Stepdad and left the Night Market.
I strolled by the Tonle Sap lakefront to the point where it meets the Mekong River (not nearly as far as that makes it sound) on an esplanade that was halfway destroyed by constuction, and halfway a lovely, broad, well-lit boulevard with flags. I walked down that part, past the Royal Palace and bought this from a woman selling them off the street.
Several people on my bus had eaten them so I knew the right way to do so, though the seller opened it for me anyways. It's basically part of a bamboo reed halfway filled with a strange, heavy rice mixture. More than anything else, it tasted woody. I ate a few bites to make sure I didn't want it and then threw the rest away.
Royal Palace
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Lazy Langkawi
3/20/2010
Felt like crap today. Don't really know why, but didn't do much as a result. Until I started drinking cheap Tiger beer late in the afternoon, I mean. The hostel I was staying in was very much a social backpackers hostel which is nice every once in a while. This type of hostel, when it lives up to its reputation, is full of people who are happy, fun, want to be your BFF for one day only, and like to drink. Again, not something I want all the time, but a fun culture to go in and out of and I hadn't really found one on this trip so far. Anyway, so I started drinking early, convinced a group of people to play Kings with my awesome Disney Vile Villains cards and eventually our group went out to Sunbar, followed by a rickety little sports bar, then I went swimming with Marius, one of the two Norweigan guys playing Kings with us. I went in fully clothed, all made up with my dress and everything, though I did take off my shoes.
3/21
Beach Day! Also did some writing, watched The Inbetweeners, a great British show about high school kids in the style of Superbad, and cut my hair (unevenly- it was a little bit long on the right side) when I got bored because everyone was watching football. Yesterday, I said I was leaving tomorrow. Today, I said tomorrow.
Felt like crap today. Don't really know why, but didn't do much as a result. Until I started drinking cheap Tiger beer late in the afternoon, I mean. The hostel I was staying in was very much a social backpackers hostel which is nice every once in a while. This type of hostel, when it lives up to its reputation, is full of people who are happy, fun, want to be your BFF for one day only, and like to drink. Again, not something I want all the time, but a fun culture to go in and out of and I hadn't really found one on this trip so far. Anyway, so I started drinking early, convinced a group of people to play Kings with my awesome Disney Vile Villains cards and eventually our group went out to Sunbar, followed by a rickety little sports bar, then I went swimming with Marius, one of the two Norweigan guys playing Kings with us. I went in fully clothed, all made up with my dress and everything, though I did take off my shoes.
Picture of Our Island, From the Beach
Beach Day! Also did some writing, watched The Inbetweeners, a great British show about high school kids in the style of Superbad, and cut my hair (unevenly- it was a little bit long on the right side) when I got bored because everyone was watching football. Yesterday, I said I was leaving tomorrow. Today, I said tomorrow.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Cendol
3/17/2010
I'm still not caught up on all my previous entries, but I decided that I wanted to write here, and in the current tense. I'm not feeling well. Not sick, mind you, just not well. A spot behind my right eye that sometimes bothers me is giving me just the slightest bit of a headache, and I feel quite tired, though I slept nearly ten hours last night. Additionally, I am having minor stomach problems. Minor, though, just a bit of discomfort, nothing debilitating or disruptive to any of my plans. Enough of my whining though, I'm having 1.5 kilos of my dirty laundry washed, dried and folded for me for RM8 ($2.75)! Lunch (fried rice, deeply browned by some sauce with a fried egg on top and a can of Coke) was RM8 too. And my 1.5 liter of water was only RM1.50 (less than $0.50)! I'm also settling into my routine more of trying to combine actually living with traveling, which was a problem for me for the first week when I'd do everything in the world for two days, then not much of anything, then everything, then nothing. Now, I'm basically doing very little all the time! In the morning/early afternoon, I do very little Life stuff (writing, uploading photos, checking my emails, bank accounts and paying bills), then in mid-late afternoon/early evening I do very little touristing/sightseeing (mostly just wandering around slowly), then I have some dinner, maybe a drink, and then read or write for a while.
Really my biggest problem so far has been dehydration. Even though I'm usually drinking 2-3 liters of bottled water daily, when I'm walking around I've often felt a bit lightheaded. I'm also not sure I'm eating enough; it's very hard for me to tell when the food is so different from my regular diet (diet in the sense of the word meaning what I normally eat, not diet like Atkins,) and I don't know how it's being prepared, or often even what it is. Another problem has been my mood swings. Lately, I'm all over the place for no explicable reason. I snapped at my Mother on the phone the other day and then later, in the same conversation, got very excited and told her how much I'd appreciated something. Both incidents were about basically the same thing: two different people she'd told me to email for information.
On the plus side, I finished my gigantically heavy book and can now unload it, though I do highly recommend all 771 pages of "Drood" by Dan Simmons. It's a fantastic and deeply engrossing historical fiction narrated by Charles Dickens' BFF, Wilkie Collins, author of Woman in White. As you probably don't remember, or care, the Broadway production of Woman in White contains my theme song "All For Laura."
Also, more positively, I'm remembering that so much of the reason I love traveling isn't the many sights (which I was already getting bored of), nor the people (as so many travelers like to pretend,) nor even the food, but that it's those little funny things other people don't even see: the tiniest, yet almost pristine shrine in a filthy, dead end alleyway or a single gravestone barely larger than my book in a Fort where all the others have crumbled and/or been removed, or the way different cultures do the same things so differently.
As far as what I actually did today; naturally, just a little. Wandered more into the back alleyways and sidestreets of Penang, bought toothpaste, mosquito repellent and shower gel and tried Cendol, which looks like this:
If you're thinking to yourself "Wow that looks absolutely disgusting, even Laura wouldn't be crazy/dumb enough to try something like that," you would be totally correct about the former and sadly wrong about the latter. I was dumb enough to try it and it was horrible. It was the first thing I've tasted on my travels with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It was basically a lot of crushed ice, coconut milk, weird beans (similar to kidney beans), brown syrup and sweet pea noodles. I took two bites and threw the rest away.
I'm still not caught up on all my previous entries, but I decided that I wanted to write here, and in the current tense. I'm not feeling well. Not sick, mind you, just not well. A spot behind my right eye that sometimes bothers me is giving me just the slightest bit of a headache, and I feel quite tired, though I slept nearly ten hours last night. Additionally, I am having minor stomach problems. Minor, though, just a bit of discomfort, nothing debilitating or disruptive to any of my plans. Enough of my whining though, I'm having 1.5 kilos of my dirty laundry washed, dried and folded for me for RM8 ($2.75)! Lunch (fried rice, deeply browned by some sauce with a fried egg on top and a can of Coke) was RM8 too. And my 1.5 liter of water was only RM1.50 (less than $0.50)! I'm also settling into my routine more of trying to combine actually living with traveling, which was a problem for me for the first week when I'd do everything in the world for two days, then not much of anything, then everything, then nothing. Now, I'm basically doing very little all the time! In the morning/early afternoon, I do very little Life stuff (writing, uploading photos, checking my emails, bank accounts and paying bills), then in mid-late afternoon/early evening I do very little touristing/sightseeing (mostly just wandering around slowly), then I have some dinner, maybe a drink, and then read or write for a while.
Really my biggest problem so far has been dehydration. Even though I'm usually drinking 2-3 liters of bottled water daily, when I'm walking around I've often felt a bit lightheaded. I'm also not sure I'm eating enough; it's very hard for me to tell when the food is so different from my regular diet (diet in the sense of the word meaning what I normally eat, not diet like Atkins,) and I don't know how it's being prepared, or often even what it is. Another problem has been my mood swings. Lately, I'm all over the place for no explicable reason. I snapped at my Mother on the phone the other day and then later, in the same conversation, got very excited and told her how much I'd appreciated something. Both incidents were about basically the same thing: two different people she'd told me to email for information.
On the plus side, I finished my gigantically heavy book and can now unload it, though I do highly recommend all 771 pages of "Drood" by Dan Simmons. It's a fantastic and deeply engrossing historical fiction narrated by Charles Dickens' BFF, Wilkie Collins, author of Woman in White. As you probably don't remember, or care, the Broadway production of Woman in White contains my theme song "All For Laura."
Also, more positively, I'm remembering that so much of the reason I love traveling isn't the many sights (which I was already getting bored of), nor the people (as so many travelers like to pretend,) nor even the food, but that it's those little funny things other people don't even see: the tiniest, yet almost pristine shrine in a filthy, dead end alleyway or a single gravestone barely larger than my book in a Fort where all the others have crumbled and/or been removed, or the way different cultures do the same things so differently.
Random Street Pics
As far as what I actually did today; naturally, just a little. Wandered more into the back alleyways and sidestreets of Penang, bought toothpaste, mosquito repellent and shower gel and tried Cendol, which looks like this:
If you're thinking to yourself "Wow that looks absolutely disgusting, even Laura wouldn't be crazy/dumb enough to try something like that," you would be totally correct about the former and sadly wrong about the latter. I was dumb enough to try it and it was horrible. It was the first thing I've tasted on my travels with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It was basically a lot of crushed ice, coconut milk, weird beans (similar to kidney beans), brown syrup and sweet pea noodles. I took two bites and threw the rest away.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Lazy Day #1
3/14/2010
I did exceptionally little today. Read quite a lot, screwed around online, worked on writing a bit, but overall, really did nothing of any note, except for finding a bacon-like meat available here that tastes wonderful- imagine teriyaki flavored bacon. In my defense, for much of the day it was absolutely pouring rain.
Pretty Hibiscus to distract you from the fact that this entry says absolutely nothing
I did exceptionally little today. Read quite a lot, screwed around online, worked on writing a bit, but overall, really did nothing of any note, except for finding a bacon-like meat available here that tastes wonderful- imagine teriyaki flavored bacon. In my defense, for much of the day it was absolutely pouring rain.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
