the chink in me

Here in San Diego for our annual company meeting. I came down to the bottom floor to have breakfast, sit outside and start looking around. I see what appears to be ... an outfield wall with stadium lights...

Sure enough, Petco Park.

Oh well, back to the continental breakfast.

Toronto is great. I have a few minutes to update before today's meetings start.

1. We rode Air Canada on the way over and it was sweeeet. I felt like I was riding first class because the plane was so new! Touch-wide-screens on the back of every chair with an array of games, TV shows, movies, and music. I ended up passing on Annie Hall (but I'll have to watch it later) to instead watch Chen Kai Ge's Wu Ji (The Promise). It was just breath-taking. The most terrible part is that the flight was only two hours but I don't think I had even seen half of the movie! I will have to check both Promise and Annie Hall out and watch them when I get home.
2. Woke up real early and ran with London to Toronto's Inner Harbour and back with a detour here and there. Followed it up with a quick hit at the gym (to make up for not going the last few weeks) and then a healthy breakfast. Back to the room to shower, shave, iron my clothes, and sing a few praise songs and do my devotional time with Oswald. I guess I say all this because I really could do this everyday (though not in Toronto) yet I choose to lazy around the condo, sleep in. I'm so fortunate to be able to have the time and freedom to worship and live life in a righteous manner pleasing to my Father.
   
3. Toronto is gorgeous. Everything I've seen so far gives me the big city feel of New York with the architecture and skyscrapers minus the overcrowding, crime, pollution, and sanitation problems. Hopefully Saturday morning I'll be able to go out and do Paul and Derek proud by getting some snap shots of the sunrise.
   

10 minutes until I get bored. Ta ta.
 

This place is great. The weather makes me pity my fellow Floridians and the people totally share aloha, or the spirit of kindness. The result is a sense of calm and peace that I have not felt in a long, long time. It may be best that Derek and I have a grueling 11-mile hike ahead else I just might be tempted to pick up and move here.

If you couldn't tell, the last three days in O'ahu have been fantastic. I've been fortunate to visit Diamond Head, Nu'uanu Pali State Park, Olomana (a nice 1,643 ft hike up to the first ridge), Sandy Beach, Waimanalo Beach (absolutely gorgeous), Ka'a'awa Beach, and Kahana Bay. Tomorrow morning we fly to Kaua'i, the Garden Island, for the aforementioned 11-mile Kalalau Trail.

Tentative Kaua'i plans:

Day 1. Explore the island by land in our rental car and by air in a helicopter. I'm hoping to check off many points of interest from the previous entry with the rental car and then "who knows" with the helicopter.

Day 2. The first of three legs in the Kalalau Trail - Ke'e Beach to Hanakapi'ai (2 miles). A nice warm-up to see how I'll handle hiking with tent, sleeping bag, clothes, food, and other gear on my shoulders.

Day 3. Hanakapi'ai to Hanakoa (4 miles). Goodbye warm-up, public trail. Hello permit-required, strenuous hiking. "The trail traverses the Hono O Na Pali Natural Area Reserve in the small hanging valleys of the Ho'olulu and Waiahuakua before entering Hanakoa Valley," reads my DLNR pamphlet.

Day 4. Hanakoa Valley to Kalalau Beach (5 miles). The longest and possibly most-rewarding leg of the hike. Panoramic views of the ocean, cliffs, and valleys encourage me on toward the beach.

We return to O'ahu to take on (I believe) everyone's first surfing experience, followed by last minute visits to favorite sites - Waimanalo Beach is calling me back.

Anyway, off to bed and on to Kaua'i. Wish me luck!

Update - 01.20.06 9:08pm

Brief update. Just got back to O'ahu after a grueling 22-mile hike. Did I say 11 miles earlier? Well, it would've been 11 but I realized (thanks to Derek) there's no outlet to civilization at Kalalau Beach (the end of the trail). Anyway, time to relax. Will post adequate journal entry rife with bad metaphors about life upon my return to the mainland.

After a hectic Thursday morning filled with errands and last minute purchases, I took off from Atlanta aboard my scheduled flight to Honolulu, O'ahu (but not without running into Albert on MARTA and getting some photography tips first). The flight was about ten hours and although there was a wailing infant banshee in front of me, I still had my own row of seats and noise-blocking earbuds to make it a relatively pleasant ride. I passed the time reading books that hopefully will make my trip more pleasurable.

"The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook" by Andrew Doughty & Harriett Friedman was a great book that gave objective and subjective descriptions of the islands and the activities afforded. Below are some interesting things I learned:

1. Cock. Since a hurricane in the early 90s let these guys out, they have found suitable sex partners time and time again. Today, they are commonly seen in the wild and crow at all times of the day.
2. Asian Invasion. The island is 36% Asian with second and third place going to Whities (30%) and native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (9%).
3. Hawaiian terms. Aloha (hello, goodbye, or the spirit of kindness), Haole (originally Foreigner, now means Caucasion), Kai (sea), Kama'aina (long-time Hawai'i resident), Kapu (forbidden or taboo), Keiki (child), Kona (leeward side of the island, wind blowing from the south), Lanai (porch, veranda), Lu'au (Hawaiian feast; literally means taro leaves), Mahalo (Thank you), Makai (toward the sea), Malihini (newcomer), Mauka (toward the mountain), Moana (ocean), 'Ono (delicious, the best), and last but not least Pakalolo (marijuana).

4. Some places that piqued my interest:
  a. Na 'Aina Kai Botanical Gardens
  b. Secret Beach and Lava Pools
  c. Wailua River and the seven heiaus (ancient Hawaiian temples) along the way up to Mt. Wai'ale'ale
  d. Kipu Falls
  e. Waimea Canyon (the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific" said Twain)
  f. Pu'u o Kila lookout (rather than Kalalau lookout)
  g. Pali Ke Kua aka Hideaways
  h. Kalalau Trail (that Derek and I will be traversing come Tuesday)

Other victims of my reading time were "KISS Guide to Photography" by John Garrett and the Canon PowerShot A620 Advanced Camera User Guide (the camera is advanced, not the user).

Many months after buying the KISS Guide and now that I purchased the A620, I've finally started delving into composition basic rules, manual camera adjustments (aperture, shutter speed, et al.), and essentially learning how to see things. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to see results in this trip's photos.

Derek's done taking his VEE Time Series exam so we're off to explore Honolulu with our token Haole, Paul. Aloha Nui Loa!
 

somewhere in all of this will be updates on my vacation in spain, my exam results, and a few things in between. all the while folding clothes. what a wild life i lead...

spain. spain rules. simply put. i wish i had actually paid attention in those four years of IB spanish (snra dalton probably has an ulcer from four years with me) but i still had a great time. the trip was broken up into three pieces - madrid, pamplona, and barcelona - two days in each. we took AA from atlanta to chicago, then iberia from chicago to madrid. the aforementioned leg was terrible. four hour delay. in between cities we took buses, as the trains were pretty much all booked (and there was some strike going on on the 5th as well, so that didn't ameliorate anything).

madrid. very cool big city. a good tourist city with shopping, museums, and parks to stroll around, but it doesn't have the history and/or charisma of other big cities. we spent most of our (derek, his sister jessica, and i) time walking around the city, visiting parks, old cathedrals, and the like. cool, but probably could've spent that second day in barcelona.

pamplona.

all-night partying, and of course the running of the bulls. what an amazing tradition - so glad i got to take part in it. funny thing was that we almost didn't get to run. after partying the entire night of the 6th (the festival starts at noon on the 6th, but the first run takes place the morning of the 7th), we woke up kind of late. the way the natives usually do it is they allow the corredores to enter the blocked-off streets of the run from 7-7:30am. we got there at probably quarter after 7 and they had already closed the entrance. determined to run, we all followed dave (my friend paul's older brother who ran two years ago) to a few more known entrances, but they were all closed off. we kept moving closer and closer to the actual start of the run, where they release the bulls from the cages, and it was there that we hopped off this elevated sidewalk (maybe 50m from the actual cages) over a pseudo fence and onto the street. just like the old high school saying goes, "no cop no stop". after buying the traditional newspaper (if you encounter a bull goring another runner, you're "supposed to" whack the bull and try to get it to chase you), we set up in the street in the position we had previously discussed (and dave previously researched) and prepared to run like .. well, a giant herd of foreigners lumped in so close to each other that you can't really run or sprint but jog.

two rockets go off to signal the releasing of the bulls from their cages. the first one goes and we start sprinting as soon as the front of the runners start pushing us, but alas it's a false signal. then, after maybe a minute the real thing comes. people are running like mad and before i realize it, i see giant horns coming at me. i decided before we ran that i would get out of the way as soon as i saw bull. well, that time passed - one bull had already passed me and i had to make a second decision - to stay on the side of the road, avoid getting gored by the remaining bulls, then chase them into the plaza del toro (bullring) to enjoy being chased around like a potential chinese shishkebab, or jump through one of the few fences closing in the run. i chose the latter and jumped through this green metal gate at calle de javier.

now, who knows what would've happened had i stayed in, but damnit i wish i had. derek was behind me maybe half a block and had stayed off to the side of the road, which allowed him to run into the bullring. i, however, wasn't so lucky - once you jump out you get met with first aid people and cops, neither of which allow you to get back into the run once you're out. still, not going to second guess myself - it appears a good number of people were gored in the days following the opening run, so a victorious booyah - 81 - scream for me. we celebrated with napping underneath the trees in a park adjacent to our hotel. well deserved rest.

barcelona.

okay, the women of madrid are hot, yes, but barcelona.. dammmnn. anyway, barcelona is gorgeous. beautiful beaches (some topless i might add), great food, awesome party scenes, gorgeous scenery, perfect weather... i can't say enough about barcelona. we stayed in a hostel off of las ramblas, the major tourist road. you get out to las ramblas, and immediately you see street performers, tables and servers for those tables in the little median, along with a ton of people. as the night begins, the number of scantily clad women increases (charts and pie graphs available later).

we spent the first day situating ourself in the hostel and then going on a fat tire bike tour. i felt like such a tourist (and rightfully so) but this tour was great. we learned a great deal about every stop and exercised as well. kind of annoying though as four guys we travelled with were these frat scrubs (chi omega to be specific). obnoxious as hell - made me feel bad to be an american (though i'm sure i'll rant about europeans in a little bit). the tour ended with a lunch on the beach. wow. a feast of skin paraded before my eyes. some old, but mostly all young and very attractive. and of course, topless. it was quite a sight. there's a funny story about a girl i caught eyes with during lunch, but i'm not going to post it online. feel free to prod me via IM or in person if you want to know.

the second day we checked out la sagrada familia. probably the most famous of gaudi's works, it boasts facades representing the birth, death/passion, and resurrection of Christ, as well as towers symbolizing the twelve apostles, four evangelists, the virgin mary and Christ. each facade is totally different, and spending the hour or two we had definitely doesn't do it justice. later, wanting to see more of gaudi's genius, we went to visit his park guell. more amazing works, and just this beautiful scene as you get to the top and look down over barcelona. my words definitely don't match up to the pictures we took from up there, so just wait for me to post pictures.

all-in-all, despite a ton of botched plain and bus trips, this was an unforgetable trip. definitely makes me want to work harder to pass more exams so i can afford these international trips. working hard is good, but it's too bad i have to do it again for course 2. did not find my name on the passing candidate number list, so i'll give it the third-time's-the-charm shot, and hope for better luck. scores will probably be in early this week so hopefully i didn't get dumber.

sidenote/stories:

1. europeans have no manners. lines mean nothing to them. if you're waiting in line, they will cut in front.

2. i had good and bad luck for plane seating. plenty of emergency aisle seating, but just as many seats next to whiny brats that have no concept of personal bubbles. that kid sitting next to me from madrid back to chicago... i want to kill him. i think he was doing it on purpose to get a rise out of me. real funny once i shove that gameboy up his ...

3. in barcelona, with 1.5 hrs to go before our bus departs for madrid, we are starving. jessica and i venture out to look for a restaraunt of some form, while derek stays in the park in front of the arc de triomfe. as soon as we started walking around, i noticed there were a good bit of chinese people walking to and fro and a few store signs were in chinese. anyway, we keep walking and after going up and down all the nearby streets, we don't see anything resembling food (see #4). i see this women's shoe store (i don't want to hear it) with chinese owners and i tell jess, "i'm hookin up this chinese thing.. watch this". i go in and immediately a get a friendly "ni hao" from the owner. i ask him if there are any restaraunts nearby and he not only tells me where a good chinese restaraunt is, but actually walks us to it. what a nice guy. from mainland, spent 10+ years in italy, and currently is in business in barcelona. anyway, i suppose since the chinese population in barcelona is so small that once they spot another fellow chinese they are more than happy to help out. soo nice. and the people at the restaraunt were cool as well - also mainland.

4. bocadillos. long french-bread-resembling bread that's harder than petrified wood, with scraps of meat/whatever in between. that's all they served in pamplona. i probably had three full meals of pure bocadillos there. i HATE bocadillos.

5. this guy john whom i met during the bike tour and ended up chillin at a recommended bar in barcelona has a pretty interesting history - beyond dating this chinese girl on and off for the past 11 years (we talked about the movie Hero for a good few minutes), his dad smuggled drugs for a few decades prior to getting caught by the FBI in '91.

6. i am definitely tan. where tan means black. maybe that explains..

7. after our original flight from chicago to atlanta was cancelled due to a) the first plane being sent out to richmond instead, and b) mechanical difficulties with our second flight, we were all sent to a different boarding gate. after i get to the new gate, i decide to walk back to a starbucks i passed and get a venti iced tazo chai latte (pretty much the only thing i drink at starbucks). on the way to the starbucks stand this guy that was helping reroute our flights (a tall, unshaven black man in his early 30s i'm guessing) comes running up to me, says something i don't remember, and then hands me his business card. i don't get it at first, but after a few more steps towards starbucks it dawns on me - i just got hit on. wonderful. tack that on with getting offered by a prostitute in barcelona and i'm well on my way to.. well, i have no idea. (btw, apparently the key phrase in spain is "japon?" if you say yes, that means you're japanese and you also want to pay for sex. sucks for those japanese people who don't want prostitutes. who am i kidding...)

8. at publix today as i was stocking up on groceries, someone said "bull" as in "bullsh*t". i had this immediate head-jerk reaction, thinking "bull?!? where???". interesting dreams to come, i'm sure.

9. hostels are great to meet people. while showering. i still remember having alyssa on my left and michelle on my right...

10. another cool thing about pamplona natives... if you run into the bull ring too early (i.e. way ahead of the bulls when it's obvious there is no danger to you) you will get booed. yes, that's right - booed. what a cool crowd!! makes those philly fans seem tame in comparison.

i'm done. whew. pictures will be up in due time, as i'm going to wait for derek and jess to give me cds of their photos so i can put organize them and put them all in an imagestation album. must get ready for work tomorrow, and of course starting that whole study season again. a "sucks for us" to all who didn't pass, we'll get it this next time. hopefully. nites kids.

so we made it to barcelona after a long (but restful) overnight bus ride. the moment we got in it was clear barcelona was no ordinary city. as soon as we got off the bus to get our luggage, we heard a girl scream and then you see this middle-aged guy run off with her backpack. another guy from our bus was quick to get to him and retrieve the pack. i would´ve helped but i was still groggy from the ride (besides, does anyone see me as a superhero anyway?). then moments later we are walking down las ramblas, one guy just punches this other guy. a semi-street-fight then ensues. then, maybe half an hour later, we cross paths with a beheaded chicken on the side of the road. the strange thing was that there was no sign of blood. ¿no blood? yeah, strange. anyway, this place is beautiful and it´s too bad we only have two days here.

oh yeah, the running of the bulls was pretty sweet. everything is over in a matter of minutes. officially there were only eight serious injuries (which is impressive since one or two bulls got away from the pack and started going after individual runners), no gorings, and no deaths. all in all a very clean run. i´ll give more details later, and of course as with the entire trip, plenty of pictures. back to killing time before we can check in to the hostel.

so i´m here in madrid. the flight from atl to ord was perfect, but from chicago out to mad took forever. we sat on the plane for four freakin hours before taking off - and only one announcement that explained nothing about the delay. got to madrid only to realize that trains to barcelona are full, so our original itinerary of five cities is chopped down to basically three. mad, pamplona, and barcelona in that order. we´re staying in los amigos hostel here on calle de arenal - pretty posh compared to the other hostel under the same name across the street (no ac). anyway, off to shower and get to bed. walking around all day in the sun makes me crazy tired (didn´t even watch the football final b/w greece and portugal).

Spain was so cool. Soooo cool. The buildings, scenery, people, food.. everything was awesome. Hopefully someday soon I'll be able to go back and really enjoy everything, without having meetings all day. Pictures should be posted sometime soon (I only took a few).

In further unrelated developments, I bought a new computer! Finally, something to replace this relic. The new computer is actually a server (Dell PowerEdge 400SC), with the following specs: 2.4GHz P4 w/ 800 FSB, 40GB HD, 128MB DDR. While it doesn't come with an OS or Monitor, it still only came out to - including tax and shipping - $384. Woohoo!! I can afford a 18" flat screen at that price. So come Wed-Fri I should have that new baby up and running after I install all my old hardware (80GB HD, burner, surround sound card, etc.). I think even Eric and Shane would be proud of my purchase.

Anyway, still have much to sort out in my apartment and with work, so back to it i go.

My Taiwan trip has come to an end sadly. There's been so much to appreciate here beyond time with relatives (which has been really great) and just getting back to some roots. And CHEAP Milk Tea! If you want authentic tea, might as well go to the source. But seriously again, I'm really thankful for the opportunity to come here. I've made so many good friends that hopefully will stay in touch, and just like Cho in Korea and no doubt Pui in Japan, I've realized (or was forced to realize) more and more what I want in life, career, and yes, even love. Age demands a perpetual assessment of yourself.

Anyway, my flight leaves Tuesday night so tonight, for my last weekend in Taiwan, my friends and I are going out and celebrating. Pray for all those who are flying back to the states soon. See you all soon.

p.s. ALOT of pics forthcoming.

So I'm up in the mountains in Dounan for the weekend visiting my A-gong and A-ma, as well as my uncles and tang-di-mei's. Everyone looks more or less the same, just a little bit older. Riding up and down the mountain on a motorcycle (with my tang-di) is an unbelievable experience - everyone should enjoy it. Classes are still going well, learning more everyday.. but still reluctant to use my new vocab in actual conversation (which is utterly retarded). My "essays" are getting less conversational and more like proper essays. Getting sucked into listening to Jay Chow.. he's really "red" (literal Chinese translation) and I mian chiang admit it's not too bad (latest CD comes out soon so I hear). Other than that, only two weeks left in my trip here, and then back to the states. It's really scary knowing my trip is almost over and I don't want to leave really, but it will be quite a relief to head back to Florida and then Georgia. Keep in touch kids.

So I'm in Taiwan. What can I say about this place? It's hot, humid, dirty, and everything is overpriced. But it's not too bad. The program is interesting and I am learning alot, but I have a great tendency to use english when not in class to talk with the other students. There are ALOT of young'ns. The age ranges from 12 to 25, so you can sense the rules are a bit skewed for the younger folk.

The guys here dragged me to play counterstrike for the first time ever. It's a fun game, but I just can't get it down. Especially when one guy in particular likes to put in the "aimhead" code. Bastard. Also went clubbing for the first time tonight. 500 taiwan bucks cover, but all you can drink. Downside was that their music sucks. All american, but it's like one minute Nelly and the next minute the Village People. A bunch of chinese people dancing to YMCA. I wish none of you ever live to witness such a sight.

Anyway, things are good and if anyone wants me to bring back anything, just let me know and I'll promptly tell you to get it yourself. More updates and pictures later.