tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48334854296668378272024-03-04T21:01:33.020-08:00NotaNotaBlogAno the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-36868331198432365682007-10-31T20:35:00.001-07:002007-10-31T20:45:14.316-07:00Airport Part 2So here is how bringing that device through the airport went down. In all cases, the device was in a taped up brown box, inside a zippered up beat up looking duffel bag. Very inconspicuous right?? lol<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">John Wayne Airport (Santa Ana)</span><br /><br />Put the duffel bag on the scanner. Duffel back goes through the scanner. Not so much as a word or a suspicion raised. We went through the John Wayne airport security on two separate occasions on 2 separate days of the week with exactly the same results. No one cared.<br /><br />The scary part is I fly out of John Wayne a lot, and the ease with which it went through security is a little scary. Luckily though it is a smaller airport which would be a less likely target for a real bomb.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">San Jose Airport</span><br /><br />Put the duffel bag on the scanner. The security person scrutinizes it a little bit, and then asks to swab down the package with the bomb detector. They swab the package, asked what it was, and then let it through.<br /><br />Not bad, at least they were curious and did a swab down.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Seattle Tacoma Airport<br /><br /></span>Put the duffel bag on the scanner. The bag goes through the scanner, and sets off the alarm! Security people ask what it is, and then open the box. They pull it out and swab it down. Meanwhile we are subject to the full pat-down search and scan with the wand. Then they put the package through the scanner again this time with all 8 security personnel crowded around the little screen watching it run back and forth through the scanner. In the end they deemed it safe, but not after spending a good 20 minutes checking out the device and asking us exactly what it was for and what it did.<br /><br />Seattle has the best security of the 3 IMO. We did almost miss our flight because of the delay, but it's good that they paid attention because it really IS a suspicious package.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-45527259253035263402007-10-18T20:37:00.001-07:002007-11-05T19:32:38.541-08:00One day tripI recently took a one day business trip up to Washington and we had to bring prototype samples with us on the plane. Inside a dufflebag, inside a cardboard box, sealed with tape, we brought the following item through airport security:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyC_4n9Kz1GibQTXiXsGoApWvCso3LLEX9S90wDVIAJORdPqWNMCX2dcJszNQ81FNbXslNJiPAUiJ0_XjWVkJEC4HFwDMq83Ee4zPTBB39Zmf65iRYbG4FkTUvGA0eYaYLUzrU_-N6rC0/s1600-h/Catalinas.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyC_4n9Kz1GibQTXiXsGoApWvCso3LLEX9S90wDVIAJORdPqWNMCX2dcJszNQ81FNbXslNJiPAUiJ0_XjWVkJEC4HFwDMq83Ee4zPTBB39Zmf65iRYbG4FkTUvGA0eYaYLUzrU_-N6rC0/s400/Catalinas.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5122887023951312962" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Wanna guess what happened ? :D<br /><br />Anyway, keeping busy I'm not quite back to blogging yet but this was a quick and interesting one :)Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-60251724330440508442007-07-21T21:13:00.000-07:002007-07-21T21:21:50.911-07:00Anime Expo Part1A few weekends ago I went to the Anime expo. A majority of the people that go to the Expo dress up as their favorite Anime character. It gave me a great opportunity to try out my new Nikon D80 and see what I can take. So here are a bunch of photos from the morning.<br /><br /><br />We had anticipated the ridiculous lines that accompany every Anime Expo so we arrived early at 8:00am:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9A7pzmXO9eljtTRoFm4BA3Mtn8BBc5vsl5NU-zvV67_zx7L7C-Xw3q7BzVZ0iubQLjrTNhLBW5xfvIO_zdLMUA17fMFyqbJ_Pa6YDVir-Y342330A6KIVmLizbDX9WuqbAyFe9kfMVhw/s1600-h/DSC_0002.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9A7pzmXO9eljtTRoFm4BA3Mtn8BBc5vsl5NU-zvV67_zx7L7C-Xw3q7BzVZ0iubQLjrTNhLBW5xfvIO_zdLMUA17fMFyqbJ_Pa6YDVir-Y342330A6KIVmLizbDX9WuqbAyFe9kfMVhw/s400/DSC_0002.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870492654628914" border="0" /></a><br />The convention doesn't open until 10:00 so we sat out front like everyone else and I took a bunch of pictures. Some Naruto Villains:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxRFvqIJLqqx-_oqo_QPRVojJsRB_sez85fVSKelaTwFT8r3Nc0kU6pvGb0NtJ-eSbS3jaiMcMyMspSXkC0MxdwJdT7nlaehavENwMNo1uPA8NrRwLNpdujKhqaX5g7txj8uhTtaCQc5Q/s1600-h/DSC_0019.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxRFvqIJLqqx-_oqo_QPRVojJsRB_sez85fVSKelaTwFT8r3Nc0kU6pvGb0NtJ-eSbS3jaiMcMyMspSXkC0MxdwJdT7nlaehavENwMNo1uPA8NrRwLNpdujKhqaX5g7txj8uhTtaCQc5Q/s400/DSC_0019.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870492654628930" border="0" /></a><br />Not sure which Anime she is from:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhckBar9JFXK4HLx5CASpx0_g8LU_r447akArte4A8XoPOZuHsaM-4F_rMUJ5hTVyy0GjvMmf2oU5UUFBUD_n0I8tvZo8b9FsaOqzRwd8st6CLn6gi-VBcT2zMhderMKSCjIo-qGz0UPGc/s1600-h/DSC_0024.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhckBar9JFXK4HLx5CASpx0_g8LU_r447akArte4A8XoPOZuHsaM-4F_rMUJ5hTVyy0GjvMmf2oU5UUFBUD_n0I8tvZo8b9FsaOqzRwd8st6CLn6gi-VBcT2zMhderMKSCjIo-qGz0UPGc/s400/DSC_0024.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870496949596242" border="0" /></a><br />The Wii always gets the attention!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8s3r09Lm5YhoipEIr1UTuVR5SCP92PHOkrNaBrwYoZQwl0XKdekwRFoj0o15VzwxyiaBIySu00tfDZuPYKCewcQUE9DAFZdyij7SsfDcM7NEhygK5KW6kS5MM2KzlcRGLHT4q09yxXo/s1600-h/DSC_0047.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8s3r09Lm5YhoipEIr1UTuVR5SCP92PHOkrNaBrwYoZQwl0XKdekwRFoj0o15VzwxyiaBIySu00tfDZuPYKCewcQUE9DAFZdyij7SsfDcM7NEhygK5KW6kS5MM2KzlcRGLHT4q09yxXo/s400/DSC_0047.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870501244563554" border="0" /></a><br />This is the line to get in to the convention center. It stretches across the entire length of the center, around the corner, down the stairs, around the street, etc. It took nearly an hour for it to actually dissipate.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_Ii0LJdPho7GtdmP4FmWw1nv3ZaYpkV3EHrUyKTJFNFSH3C2ILwLH1-WUPHH73qlSrMhrT6yl_czNijCvYKof02gZY3u4BjZdG7yzjrvjwt7TWYOxkYY3A_aa6h8YHqaMOzw1q3PTU4/s1600-h/DSC_0071.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_Ii0LJdPho7GtdmP4FmWw1nv3ZaYpkV3EHrUyKTJFNFSH3C2ILwLH1-WUPHH73qlSrMhrT6yl_czNijCvYKof02gZY3u4BjZdG7yzjrvjwt7TWYOxkYY3A_aa6h8YHqaMOzw1q3PTU4/s400/DSC_0071.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870239251558370" border="0" /></a><br />There was a single booth in the convention center for some Porn company. I have no idea what this has to do with Anime??? Lol<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGv7qWECUCJtpptMgtL9mDlzLsstNM3D4h4Y72S3Gp_zs-V5Nn4sg2bvYWbyIPIyjlE7SSTOJ8-ahzl1ll4bhpNODaZDCsD063iSljSJb9O8sQFcfXwIF2glfWCy_20COEumebsuTMVOI/s1600-h/DSC_0102.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGv7qWECUCJtpptMgtL9mDlzLsstNM3D4h4Y72S3Gp_zs-V5Nn4sg2bvYWbyIPIyjlE7SSTOJ8-ahzl1ll4bhpNODaZDCsD063iSljSJb9O8sQFcfXwIF2glfWCy_20COEumebsuTMVOI/s400/DSC_0102.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870243546525682" border="0" /></a><br />Shino and Kiba from Naruto:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoLOG0neGp-mM-hJ6xn_uG9FqiSqponRDX0RcEJ7uGY18OpnayYQOKEVQw59dFG7hwxEoxITAQFVuVS9cZ4twF6wy1LSCw_Nf_nAu2B5ctRcFZISwLP1MeOowf9vcQPIrULxdHP0XvjTk/s1600-h/DSC_0106.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoLOG0neGp-mM-hJ6xn_uG9FqiSqponRDX0RcEJ7uGY18OpnayYQOKEVQw59dFG7hwxEoxITAQFVuVS9cZ4twF6wy1LSCw_Nf_nAu2B5ctRcFZISwLP1MeOowf9vcQPIrULxdHP0XvjTk/s400/DSC_0106.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870247841492994" border="0" /></a><br />A view out the window of the convention center:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmbMEeL1M9ulR1N8XyNdQfBn_zJVVsXr9NJjU5OhhRa9MN3Q2P_NFYQqbJoXUd4INN7uzu7gPDhgEcxcmLgW6Uyp5W3F4ZE-IzUv80BBs5RXmIHWbl919OEK1d7vGUIMcrfRBY98KU-Y/s1600-h/DSC_0246.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmbMEeL1M9ulR1N8XyNdQfBn_zJVVsXr9NJjU5OhhRa9MN3Q2P_NFYQqbJoXUd4INN7uzu7gPDhgEcxcmLgW6Uyp5W3F4ZE-IzUv80BBs5RXmIHWbl919OEK1d7vGUIMcrfRBY98KU-Y/s400/DSC_0246.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870247841493010" border="0" /></a><br />Some people have really elaborate costumes!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9r0ZRxbQSzW9fPfFRePblHr3vmWtbTndV-KhBLibOGel0e8rOJq__JiqvCEMGDleRpmNvfZjdQFp6EmdfgMXO7RiX38cw0D3Lg0msvkYwy6kB_Tgl0aZqVXGMRhs_tLQVlwUC495Ydy4/s1600-h/DSC_0254.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9r0ZRxbQSzW9fPfFRePblHr3vmWtbTndV-KhBLibOGel0e8rOJq__JiqvCEMGDleRpmNvfZjdQFp6EmdfgMXO7RiX38cw0D3Lg0msvkYwy6kB_Tgl0aZqVXGMRhs_tLQVlwUC495Ydy4/s400/DSC_0254.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089870252136460322" border="0" /></a><br />More Pictures to come!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-7978411870619046682007-07-16T00:48:00.000-07:002007-07-16T00:50:14.742-07:00Keeping Busy!Hey Folks,<br /><br />I wanted to post a bunch of pictures from Anime Expo, but I've been pretty busy lately. I'm doing some additional consulting work on my nights and weekends so there hasn't been enough free time to write a blog entry. <br /><br />I'll try to post something soon! I need to finish my Japan photos too. We're almost there!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-54462688394578054442007-07-03T00:24:00.001-07:002007-07-03T00:46:24.794-07:00Miyajima Island Part 2To continue where we left off last time -- we had just gotten off the cable car which we thought took as to Mount Misen. Oddly enough, we saw a sign that said "Mt. Misen 1.5KM ----> That way." And it pointed down this path. <br /><br />Ok we thought, so we had a nice little hiking path on the mountain. But we noticed that the path started going downhill. Here's a deer that we were following along the path:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjyjmNPSJNZJB6FF35qdRiC9v-wIBzog_0RF-OwSxI9TzhVK2Xb4uyu_I7AnTUOdCX3JBxn57BqYBmJNPUvVnYw6KaW6how3k6NaZF079gPbUsNKR5t-5xkPG0ZUxBHfiDXaSua3N_-wM/s1600-h/1+Downhill.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjyjmNPSJNZJB6FF35qdRiC9v-wIBzog_0RF-OwSxI9TzhVK2Xb4uyu_I7AnTUOdCX3JBxn57BqYBmJNPUvVnYw6KaW6how3k6NaZF079gPbUsNKR5t-5xkPG0ZUxBHfiDXaSua3N_-wM/s400/1+Downhill.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868744424765922" border="0" /></a><br />As we realized we kept going lower in elevation we started to wonder where the heck this would take us. We looked up a little bit on the path and we noticed a building on a mountain far far away. We pointed and laughed, "Ha ha... hey maybe the path goes there!!!". We thought nahhh. it can't be! That looks WAY too far.<br /><br />Look REAL closely and you will see a squarish building / structure on top. (Click for a bigger picture)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinR6uzb4I9RFBvag6DYsYEOmK6-5YUszAZZNY1D3Up2GipPVJ00EDnOkTdIAig02gLx9Fnbg1roLmr92vME_uQko93gwa0_rXycF1M5aQOwokzYJ8P8gfSfNQotuqLZlsdu3vSx5CZw2o/s1600-h/2+GoWhere.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinR6uzb4I9RFBvag6DYsYEOmK6-5YUszAZZNY1D3Up2GipPVJ00EDnOkTdIAig02gLx9Fnbg1roLmr92vME_uQko93gwa0_rXycF1M5aQOwokzYJ8P8gfSfNQotuqLZlsdu3vSx5CZw2o/s400/2+GoWhere.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868748719733234" border="0" /></a>After a few hundred meters, we realized instead of going downhill that we were now going uphill, and STEEPLY too. I turned around to take a picture of where we started. You can see the building with the cable cars here. Notice that it is significantly higher up because we had gone so far down hill.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJlH7nXL1KRHfJKn8hG6_xQuiIcmtVflSqe5of_sHCqQ67x6hacQ1hJOuCw_Z6gK_U1EByVjIU9NTWoMzayEl1rN5MfT8lHQ2WYJGsLoSVS8wBBmCh8R_mxyejQowmXowyuavq87tjo4/s1600-h/3+Halfway.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnJlH7nXL1KRHfJKn8hG6_xQuiIcmtVflSqe5of_sHCqQ67x6hacQ1hJOuCw_Z6gK_U1EByVjIU9NTWoMzayEl1rN5MfT8lHQ2WYJGsLoSVS8wBBmCh8R_mxyejQowmXowyuavq87tjo4/s400/3+Halfway.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868761604635138" border="0" /></a><br />From here on out it was about 700 meters of walking up various flights of stairs and ramps. I wasn't quite prepared for this because i had brought several bottles of water, a sports drink, guidebooks, camera, and my 4 lb leather jacket in my backpack ( had to take it off since it got so HOT!). I would guess I was carrying at nearly 10 lbs on my back. At this point i was too busy climbing and forgot to take pictures!<br /><br />Three-quarters of the way up we found a rest stop with a temple. After catching my breath I took some more photos! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3QKwHXDm92Xn40g8f-fQJtBRiN04PtMQIKz7jzfanp_r8QBgUP193SiWfsUAJ9IOw7QaO4yr2Z0tmFKngHzpEUks206N1y1JFvAvg_b1xVn0g5bhW_p7WYlZAgIVhqYUBlS72ZTfb1Y/s1600-h/4+Temple.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3QKwHXDm92Xn40g8f-fQJtBRiN04PtMQIKz7jzfanp_r8QBgUP193SiWfsUAJ9IOw7QaO4yr2Z0tmFKngHzpEUks206N1y1JFvAvg_b1xVn0g5bhW_p7WYlZAgIVhqYUBlS72ZTfb1Y/s400/4+Temple.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868546856270226" border="0" /></a><br />There was a deer also taking a break here!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ezzMYeyTvmPD9v8ge1noWBq5IHSxYBTE1XK5nBhCOzVas7La1NsfREhrouHOTmFrF_6HRmRFXk4cG5VNhITXo7EZegxNT2ZFEeVeOalPnrn10u_A1TBVWkghRmARZAsSjJg3S7yyHcQ/s1600-h/5+Deer+Resting.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ezzMYeyTvmPD9v8ge1noWBq5IHSxYBTE1XK5nBhCOzVas7La1NsfREhrouHOTmFrF_6HRmRFXk4cG5VNhITXo7EZegxNT2ZFEeVeOalPnrn10u_A1TBVWkghRmARZAsSjJg3S7yyHcQ/s400/5+Deer+Resting.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868551151237538" border="0" /></a><br />That's Yoriko standing under the stone structure on the stairs. The entire walk was effectively this steep.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWVobW967PONg5eWHz6xBhyphenhyphen1D20u4PaouqWMUmt6KmRg14NSwxzBKd3luEQHkXw9_8TR5Z-xI7biDf9nZi465p2oYwFl2tGMHEaAkO5whyphenhyphenr25KFGLG5dn9fdtFbO6s4olkFecDoXL_n04/s1600-h/6+Stairs+and+Rocks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWVobW967PONg5eWHz6xBhyphenhyphen1D20u4PaouqWMUmt6KmRg14NSwxzBKd3luEQHkXw9_8TR5Z-xI7biDf9nZi465p2oYwFl2tGMHEaAkO5whyphenhyphenr25KFGLG5dn9fdtFbO6s4olkFecDoXL_n04/s400/6+Stairs+and+Rocks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868555446204850" border="0" /></a><br />Yahooo! Here we are finally at the top of Mt. Misen. Pictured below is the structure that I took a picture of earlier.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioKZsbblgRXXWRKXl9zx79iWXRdF9SyyU0ZbzKE_t2-EHYNeKgEosI_QrFV4Bkd1XuJP033N0zVPZHu-Zz4pY1hOcEbhCFM79Cal2anievVfive6H4a5Md0YUDG4DkFTwuDLGE1z7vTTo/s1600-h/7+The+Top.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioKZsbblgRXXWRKXl9zx79iWXRdF9SyyU0ZbzKE_t2-EHYNeKgEosI_QrFV4Bkd1XuJP033N0zVPZHu-Zz4pY1hOcEbhCFM79Cal2anievVfive6H4a5Md0YUDG4DkFTwuDLGE1z7vTTo/s400/7+The+Top.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868559741172162" border="0" /></a><br />... And then we had to walk back haha. You would think it was easy because it was all downhill.. But remember that we have to walk back up the other side. The trail is kind of like a big "U".<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIwWjmz4HoKv1jvlqBPxBqllDVR5qhadfPZwEankargBcmphD-KS3gLUA-wV4lyemc6GWOxn_TtdRz5ZC55_BtsYp_hk0qIzbvcpIj3kVn_sYJrTszmxxeWDCYwscVs43K4Qdr1Hp2gxc/s1600-h/8+Go+Downhill.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIwWjmz4HoKv1jvlqBPxBqllDVR5qhadfPZwEankargBcmphD-KS3gLUA-wV4lyemc6GWOxn_TtdRz5ZC55_BtsYp_hk0qIzbvcpIj3kVn_sYJrTszmxxeWDCYwscVs43K4Qdr1Hp2gxc/s400/8+Go+Downhill.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868564036139474" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Back at the other side we found some photo opportunities. Me and Fu were the monkeys!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiactPLhfKV43m1Cfv6fihFNTy6y51dUU4pj97CquYzzpd-Q6z_JL4Mcn5PogJZGKAOjApyICclcjJ2Wm5O5YUmJUzyOqhTndezEOOpxnrMYcvtnYraa-vcttoMtCtKYJ19UKxeueVrp0M/s1600-h/9+Monkeys.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiactPLhfKV43m1Cfv6fihFNTy6y51dUU4pj97CquYzzpd-Q6z_JL4Mcn5PogJZGKAOjApyICclcjJ2Wm5O5YUmJUzyOqhTndezEOOpxnrMYcvtnYraa-vcttoMtCtKYJ19UKxeueVrp0M/s400/9+Monkeys.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868271978363202" border="0" /></a><br />Yoriko does not like her picture taken. Can you tell? lol. We somehow coerced her to pose for this one...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp1dG0AL0UnsUM58KsMJ_L_Pg4K4nyihVSOhzh0XXy2cSeFmos1exWKmm9YROPROuYbnM89-jfSxFCJO3ccvAtwCwC9MtACegMs7fr3aS4RDEPgs2GJhRNHeJ5wOmpsOSZCdzjqQvJw-A/s1600-h/10+Yoriko.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp1dG0AL0UnsUM58KsMJ_L_Pg4K4nyihVSOhzh0XXy2cSeFmos1exWKmm9YROPROuYbnM89-jfSxFCJO3ccvAtwCwC9MtACegMs7fr3aS4RDEPgs2GJhRNHeJ5wOmpsOSZCdzjqQvJw-A/s400/10+Yoriko.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868276273330514" border="0" /></a><br />We walked around a little more around the island and here's a picture of a temple we saw. It was TALL!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE6tRbeQDnMH0169D4DrtTT058jukiAIVZSeK22pNLtSJwqWcbkVjBbJPa0jE3oA0vn7SRHj2uyiK4z4DVvGalMKgdcXLo7JE788zhp4RSzN5I7TRZOEmLgk3-E7KOtmQbuUT2Y-T5AYs/s1600-h/11+Temple.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE6tRbeQDnMH0169D4DrtTT058jukiAIVZSeK22pNLtSJwqWcbkVjBbJPa0jE3oA0vn7SRHj2uyiK4z4DVvGalMKgdcXLo7JE788zhp4RSzN5I7TRZOEmLgk3-E7KOtmQbuUT2Y-T5AYs/s400/11+Temple.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868280568297826" border="0" /></a><br />Now this is a funny sign. 10 min. walk. 7 if run a little... WTF?!?!?! lol.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqqTkjo_Ray2z7vhAHoutAL1bnb9lbmdePGYX2laUop_ER8jvaYeRg5yh8YD0xumA2aEhh-gPu9CZN-vIP0eOo2szkcGMpVl3V5ujZSQWFJuOqLcMeTRcSowuokC26_Iy2stajR7XHO-0/s1600-h/12+Hah.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqqTkjo_Ray2z7vhAHoutAL1bnb9lbmdePGYX2laUop_ER8jvaYeRg5yh8YD0xumA2aEhh-gPu9CZN-vIP0eOo2szkcGMpVl3V5ujZSQWFJuOqLcMeTRcSowuokC26_Iy2stajR7XHO-0/s400/12+Hah.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868289158232434" border="0" /></a><br />By the time we had walked up and down Mt. Misen, we were at the end of the day. The tide had actually dropped way down and you can see now that you can actually walk up to the gateway!!!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobiSolwO1q37DK7tBaBsR05aU9JE_F1u96uk7twTEqZIS4Ubrc11da81HCyayc8nzcoYr_AqasdmILvFbItMk-2NRQF9H-rop2bXvDGh0I52tPbuZmtkMWiXL_btMl6p_0uYPDESKGAo/s1600-h/13+Low+Tide.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobiSolwO1q37DK7tBaBsR05aU9JE_F1u96uk7twTEqZIS4Ubrc11da81HCyayc8nzcoYr_AqasdmILvFbItMk-2NRQF9H-rop2bXvDGh0I52tPbuZmtkMWiXL_btMl6p_0uYPDESKGAo/s400/13+Low+Tide.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082868293453199746" border="0" /></a><br />And so ends our time at Miyajima island! That was quite a hike we took. I wish I would have known so i could have dumped off all my junk at the hotel or in a locker :D ! Oh well!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-1764974968983599592007-07-02T00:45:00.000-07:002007-07-02T00:48:17.221-07:00Anime ExpoJust got back from the Anime Expo. Wow I had a busy weekend so there was no time for me to write up a post. But, here's a funny one. We ate at the Great Steak and Potato company for dinner.<br /><br />Unfortunately, they were out of steak. Oh and they were out of potatoes too. ???<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8GnhKQKGDGIyuhzmRtD3X85mMpEuLtEdYRVPLQz6Mzq3gaCs5AMeo_5IOkco8huDdFkeNiwRrCjiMwFqwSQkn6pR9lf7YVLG2SCeRoIq6ACjr7a5iz6VBSu8BQijdweh1Gqw7qnrYGs/s1600-h/GreatSteak.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8GnhKQKGDGIyuhzmRtD3X85mMpEuLtEdYRVPLQz6Mzq3gaCs5AMeo_5IOkco8huDdFkeNiwRrCjiMwFqwSQkn6pR9lf7YVLG2SCeRoIq6ACjr7a5iz6VBSu8BQijdweh1Gqw7qnrYGs/s400/GreatSteak.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082503109563889970" border="0" /></a>Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-51213543452864843232007-06-27T20:53:00.000-07:002007-06-27T21:12:23.869-07:00Miyajima IslandNearby to Hiroshima is Miyajima island. We had to take a ferry like the one below to get to the island. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMbSXgH60F4Utd8jrlj3Df2a80vtl-0PlII22XdAPQhuaJkYR3qFWiJYKciiobX_i03JdLq46a93zpVMhvxFKkxaVAyqxMyvlUeFMHBg9JswNQ9jgPRelc28veYSc-wOJzKVEy9VTCcTg/s1600-h/1Boat.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMbSXgH60F4Utd8jrlj3Df2a80vtl-0PlII22XdAPQhuaJkYR3qFWiJYKciiobX_i03JdLq46a93zpVMhvxFKkxaVAyqxMyvlUeFMHBg9JswNQ9jgPRelc28veYSc-wOJzKVEy9VTCcTg/s400/1Boat.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958974331697394" border="0" /></a><br />This gateway out front is the symbol of the island. It actually stands on its own (it doesnt have any supports that go into the ground).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqxVPi6Pdo5W2XDqYYRIBVW__-8rr03UjjzpOaXT_q4AmLPInAIOLd9xo2YHvSyFuoD-QwWPhX2s44zQATpAA5ycsgnUhjSMxme389xUdxt8No11XWNSaALrizHklIbRLwYYDxMbc6eCA/s1600-h/1_5Gate.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqxVPi6Pdo5W2XDqYYRIBVW__-8rr03UjjzpOaXT_q4AmLPInAIOLd9xo2YHvSyFuoD-QwWPhX2s44zQATpAA5ycsgnUhjSMxme389xUdxt8No11XWNSaALrizHklIbRLwYYDxMbc6eCA/s400/1_5Gate.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958970036730082" border="0" /></a><br />When we get off of the ferry we were greated by some friendly deer! There are wild deer wandering around the entire island! This one was chasing after me trying to eat my map while my friend laughed and took pictures of it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirVpcXCHUFHdShA29YOD_-yU74Hx1z23L8U7weKG7M4cEZ3iagkfwFVXL5GN4I1Lpa7t0bEKKRqBKWDKqUNQC6CYfCTZ-TktdC2D6nbuWHaFo8TQxkL-OalHOmWexA70c0QYK660RmRQs/s1600-h/2Deer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirVpcXCHUFHdShA29YOD_-yU74Hx1z23L8U7weKG7M4cEZ3iagkfwFVXL5GN4I1Lpa7t0bEKKRqBKWDKqUNQC6CYfCTZ-TktdC2D6nbuWHaFo8TQxkL-OalHOmWexA70c0QYK660RmRQs/s400/2Deer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958978626664706" border="0" /></a><br />Even though he had JUST seen me successfully thwart a deer from eating MY map, he lets a dear get a hold of his!!! Plus, he tries to get it back!!! Hahahah. He was NOT successful.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGaTGnMLxTU12WuDuOFp3O4PwSBn2kY05th0KTFM7oXqY7E2Ad1zPjT7Z-StTXZVdT-SwyOKBoszoWcttvc3ZQNenELU-D1-6T5P0RzJyufCjxfAeyWsm_5cehXNbb57Ad-c8Az_qnPws/s1600-h/3Deer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGaTGnMLxTU12WuDuOFp3O4PwSBn2kY05th0KTFM7oXqY7E2Ad1zPjT7Z-StTXZVdT-SwyOKBoszoWcttvc3ZQNenELU-D1-6T5P0RzJyufCjxfAeyWsm_5cehXNbb57Ad-c8Az_qnPws/s400/3Deer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958583489673362" border="0" /></a><br />There are a ton of landmarks to see on the island. One of the most famous ones is this temple "<span class="caption">Itsukushima Shrine" dubbed a national treasure of japan built in the year 593</span>:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYZzJxjwpLUqNGjS61rVWreGfyle8n1k2y9TVEjYstoor0W-Ea5PcOOzyElPZJ1KQg4i4eLReu3w3jvm4HOz44j9IVItCGopfmAjBtMsLXCc2NAxqgvPSoYUaYRLf9AuERWuLX-77k30s/s1600-h/4Temple.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYZzJxjwpLUqNGjS61rVWreGfyle8n1k2y9TVEjYstoor0W-Ea5PcOOzyElPZJ1KQg4i4eLReu3w3jvm4HOz44j9IVItCGopfmAjBtMsLXCc2NAxqgvPSoYUaYRLf9AuERWuLX-77k30s/s400/4Temple.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958587784640674" border="0" /></a><br />During that day the tide was low, so the temple area was completely dry. But during certain times of the day when the tide comes in the temple is surrounded by seawater!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC4jhz7b0WKldL6CNGr4ObNW6ZtZcWXPsr9Z44UTbpYMJGLJJKDhHYMLCjNtrc4MKB-1DUXdpodMKZNSTiDnNa2rKtoXlPVHRIdoiwb2esA8KXy-vVNWwbzi0KyuMDMYC-FHnjsYDDwuI/s1600-h/5Lowtide.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC4jhz7b0WKldL6CNGr4ObNW6ZtZcWXPsr9Z44UTbpYMJGLJJKDhHYMLCjNtrc4MKB-1DUXdpodMKZNSTiDnNa2rKtoXlPVHRIdoiwb2esA8KXy-vVNWwbzi0KyuMDMYC-FHnjsYDDwuI/s400/5Lowtide.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958596374575298" border="0" /></a>There is a little stream that runs through the city area of the island:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiewzPfCoGKppRtKm3y9WcP-kKNfaRrUoMTcccIINVAGWURvlHvYgiEvtEbkFIsXtDqrf8VZxMj-v6g0CCztkCHhpY3J3RU2FBMTRnvfR3BUMvwIzYGlP3M1jYV1Gh7zuOdJ8r6xwjEC0/s1600-h/5_5Stream.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiewzPfCoGKppRtKm3y9WcP-kKNfaRrUoMTcccIINVAGWURvlHvYgiEvtEbkFIsXtDqrf8VZxMj-v6g0CCztkCHhpY3J3RU2FBMTRnvfR3BUMvwIzYGlP3M1jYV1Gh7zuOdJ8r6xwjEC0/s400/5_5Stream.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958592079607986" border="0" /></a><br />We followed a few walking trails around the island. Here is some of the sceneary along the trail:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLr4Uw0fwW_ujOXzbOebGv5dLvD7RVOSnQL3FPROcyiLsZH37wuAhe21PFVzProxb6B7MGhM8576W3oGwqLAtrqVvKwnE882HQDaerDu1uxHpINLEhIPHS1K2lS8NN8IOmLUDtAcCfTk/s1600-h/6Trail.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLr4Uw0fwW_ujOXzbOebGv5dLvD7RVOSnQL3FPROcyiLsZH37wuAhe21PFVzProxb6B7MGhM8576W3oGwqLAtrqVvKwnE882HQDaerDu1uxHpINLEhIPHS1K2lS8NN8IOmLUDtAcCfTk/s400/6Trail.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080958613554444498" border="0" /></a>We were trying to decide what area to visit next as it was around noon time. On the map there was a cable car ride to "Mt. Misen". We thought, oh cool, we will go for a "Quick" visit to see the mountain. Little did we know that it wouldn't be quick at all....<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSORccvJPXMQYU0KRJHz8HFkmxrBA1CFAYPWczbr5gv411qYVRJXVtZu8AGUjJSGW1cdYmlFNYPcbAq-xpaPYyp-V6ZbfYBOp_dQBYjT9oqhIf0lvH8Pv6Y_GIaE4U1Rqj92NaUNWp5lg/s1600-h/7CableCar.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSORccvJPXMQYU0KRJHz8HFkmxrBA1CFAYPWczbr5gv411qYVRJXVtZu8AGUjJSGW1cdYmlFNYPcbAq-xpaPYyp-V6ZbfYBOp_dQBYjT9oqhIf0lvH8Pv6Y_GIaE4U1Rqj92NaUNWp5lg/s400/7CableCar.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080959154720323858" border="0" /></a><br />At the end of the lift, we step outside to these little signs! Click for a bigger version so you can read the text. Apparently there are monkeys running around stealing your stuff!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTsFZFL70ha9YKNWgJkX5LTzZmxXTZ6X18Ngo-XopPi7jXAyZzUjYlLUbiwrO9woxmDnqSOuwNlV7DbN_zmbyUXagkVJcOr5FvoRaf6MgDNWLpjrhZi-5goHblKi1KJ_-aSnO-n_cKsgA/s1600-h/8Monkeys.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTsFZFL70ha9YKNWgJkX5LTzZmxXTZ6X18Ngo-XopPi7jXAyZzUjYlLUbiwrO9woxmDnqSOuwNlV7DbN_zmbyUXagkVJcOr5FvoRaf6MgDNWLpjrhZi-5goHblKi1KJ_-aSnO-n_cKsgA/s400/8Monkeys.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080959163310258466" border="0" /></a><br /><br />There are lots of photos, so this post will be continued the next day...Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-77571958389395262472007-06-25T23:47:00.001-07:002007-06-26T00:00:15.568-07:00"Do not tell a lie!"So last weekend we went to Sushi Gen in Los Angeles as a going away party for my friend Joe. He got a post-doc assignment in switzerland so he's going to be gone for quite awhile. It was quite an interesting night.<br /><br />When we got there the restaurant was PACKED and the wait was 1 hour long! While we were waiting there was a party of people waiting to be seated. We heard a name get called, and they went into the restaurant.<br /><br />Moments later, they were ushered back out of the restaurant, and I heard the host from the restaurant say in a heavy Japanese accent "Do not tell a lie!"<br /><br />We were surprised to hear that, so we turned around to see what the commotion was.<br /><br />This guy then proceeded to CHEW OUT the party that was waiting lol. He was like, "You cannot sit! Must wait until everyone is here! When sally comes you come tell me. Then you sit! You can sit Sushi Bar, or table! But do not tell a lie!! You wait for party." And he went on like this for a good few minutes!<br /><br />After he left, one of the girls said, "Geez who is the customer here!?!?!?" Lol.... I guess that party tried to pretend that their whole party was there and get a seat. Apparently this other girl was over an hour late!<br /><br />When they eventually called our name, two of our party was out in the parking lot in the car. The same guy came out and he said, "Are you all here!?!?!?" And we all looked at the floor and said ... "uhm.... yea, you see... we're all here but... Two people are in the car!"<br /><br />And he was like, "OK!!! Four come in. Others must wait until party is here! Sit at other table!" Lol. <br /><br />Wow what an experience! But I do have to say that the price was good. For $30.00 I ordered the Sashimi Deluxe plate. It's a Gigantic plate FILLED with sashimi. A picture is below. I cant believe how much fish was on there. I actually couldn't finish it!!!!! And for any of you who ate sushi with me you know how much sushi i can eat! <br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgRGz3FJJUMEeBOaS8N5wKcHvnkraggItLjYuJjPZtz7JLbPx9NgjVLHCg5IobStlmtG0XVCewGP98VjFNXcmgcts12pcJt116EB8Zx-dtwrlCoKf03QS_ZHGm61Gg3GLzzVLeZ6_sPqc/s1600-h/Sashimi.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgRGz3FJJUMEeBOaS8N5wKcHvnkraggItLjYuJjPZtz7JLbPx9NgjVLHCg5IobStlmtG0XVCewGP98VjFNXcmgcts12pcJt116EB8Zx-dtwrlCoKf03QS_ZHGm61Gg3GLzzVLeZ6_sPqc/s400/Sashimi.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080262993801141698" border="0" /></a><br />Below is a picture of the fried shrimp heads from the Ama-Ebi my friend ordered. He got it as an appetizer and I was jealous it looked so good!!! I actually considered ordering one myself. But when I started eating my Sashimi and realized how much there was, I was glad I didn't.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHy_VSf0ou-snvo0H7DA-uqsDDapWuUbjd5cbyJSNW69k3LeL1Zt_nWdsxAnOuy6x4fJTPQAqQbC1uQHRRhPT4bVyRruiWKiPujVIEGbPAwg-maNJx54SMxyMPYWQTU3TPghgGKYegdQ/s1600-h/ShrimpHeads.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHy_VSf0ou-snvo0H7DA-uqsDDapWuUbjd5cbyJSNW69k3LeL1Zt_nWdsxAnOuy6x4fJTPQAqQbC1uQHRRhPT4bVyRruiWKiPujVIEGbPAwg-maNJx54SMxyMPYWQTU3TPghgGKYegdQ/s400/ShrimpHeads.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080262998096109010" border="0" /></a><br />Here's a picture of all of us. Unlike SOME bloggers *cough* of whom i won't name -- I actually am in the picture!!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0somAD0d6CmaItWG-oEWAe8nLLCHUBW2TSID94gSzWpZA0PMxbIbCoJrmj7tJpGk_4k6G4ZfSW1-CRrMtCvtpZyxOLBskp-kBeswfdLO69yu95m8KoTcYDeYwLGHkTi7H4F6uz9NlrYo/s1600-h/Group.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0somAD0d6CmaItWG-oEWAe8nLLCHUBW2TSID94gSzWpZA0PMxbIbCoJrmj7tJpGk_4k6G4ZfSW1-CRrMtCvtpZyxOLBskp-kBeswfdLO69yu95m8KoTcYDeYwLGHkTi7H4F6uz9NlrYo/s400/Group.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080262998096109026" border="0" /></a>Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-44060954650222976882007-06-21T23:05:00.001-07:002007-06-21T23:15:09.303-07:00Japanese noodle-pancake-like thingsAfter the BaseBall game, we visited this place. We were told it was a specialty of Hiroshima -- some kind of pancake like noodle dish. It was extremely popular as you can see from the line outside. We had to wait a good 45 minutes before we could get inside.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsAuM_MF51xq38IZj0GK7ruo_7jyBYYWmYxB4yOEO6A0aNWncUgv1W5QJHMlSkPgfyrUgy0BvLZJKdtziLcIE_8U2UEgQVxYAlpBd7uoZj202zB7XWE3PJUCtY75drEfVCy8Ej1JuE22M/s1600-h/TheLine.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsAuM_MF51xq38IZj0GK7ruo_7jyBYYWmYxB4yOEO6A0aNWncUgv1W5QJHMlSkPgfyrUgy0BvLZJKdtziLcIE_8U2UEgQVxYAlpBd7uoZj202zB7XWE3PJUCtY75drEfVCy8Ej1JuE22M/s400/TheLine.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078766116094107010" border="0" /></a><br />We ordered a little dish of scallops as an appetizer. These were fantastic! Yum!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6RsXbQGNXsi8DvZ1fxSMISD7Ln4k_pjYChQ9gNUh8_DmK2PHsSN18d6_nSh6kXqvcUjn7KkAPzavppXGul5BtQSg2nEhC7RBZseWBn0SD03xHhKVVwONoOBqgmh7iG22VSdDJ1kRWAVQ/s1600-h/Scallops.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6RsXbQGNXsi8DvZ1fxSMISD7Ln4k_pjYChQ9gNUh8_DmK2PHsSN18d6_nSh6kXqvcUjn7KkAPzavppXGul5BtQSg2nEhC7RBZseWBn0SD03xHhKVVwONoOBqgmh7iG22VSdDJ1kRWAVQ/s400/Scallops.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078766120389074322" border="0" /></a><br />And we ordered three of these pancake things, one for each of us. They were MASSIVE! We didn't realize how much food is in it. I was completely stuffed after finishing it. It was quite a unique food! It is a pile of crunchy ramen noodles, 2 eggs, various vegetables, topped with a sweetish-brown sauce, and a shake of green herbs.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_CJbwF-3_RkQrHWbmR2X9-8MGnsCZnoCTrsuXbwrFKmL3dUMSJkxtIRq8RJkfsWFjxJrjkObJoyImvpDnfaZUN61bIEEH9Yx_GNKD4JyGfPhlsrvJIgOutdGhL2cGfwN0m2OAtPjsKlY/s1600-h/Pancake.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_CJbwF-3_RkQrHWbmR2X9-8MGnsCZnoCTrsuXbwrFKmL3dUMSJkxtIRq8RJkfsWFjxJrjkObJoyImvpDnfaZUN61bIEEH9Yx_GNKD4JyGfPhlsrvJIgOutdGhL2cGfwN0m2OAtPjsKlY/s400/Pancake.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078766124684041634" border="0" /></a><br />The line did not diminish late at night. This is the line we saw on the way out. It got even longer!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3D8t_comnK0T4FN66kGq5J6bBFcfy0Ofr1q7iyiB7wmagsY2jvgbFTNbZmxe6S0xYwZRfr1x5YF1n8o61xQqXMVQWaXl41ECSkh-IfasSc4RhTLV7aTbUfjfPdjuuQD-oRPgnhMrXaI/s1600-h/NightTime.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3D8t_comnK0T4FN66kGq5J6bBFcfy0Ofr1q7iyiB7wmagsY2jvgbFTNbZmxe6S0xYwZRfr1x5YF1n8o61xQqXMVQWaXl41ECSkh-IfasSc4RhTLV7aTbUfjfPdjuuQD-oRPgnhMrXaI/s400/NightTime.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078766124684041650" border="0" /></a><br />There is a restaurant here in Orange County that serves this pancake-like item. However, you are supposed to cook it yourself. We tried this once, and it was the biggest disaster of cooking I have ever had lol. We didn't realize we had to put oil on the grill.. We didn't know how to mix the ingredients. Overall, we were clueless on how to prepare this dish.<br /><br />In fact two Japanese ladies next to us felt so sorry for our ineptitude that they felt compelled to help us and explain how it was done. Unfortunately by that time we had botched it badly enough that it was unsalvegable.<br /><br />So we ended up with a mish mash of partly mushy, partly undercooked noodles, runny eggs, overcooked vegetables, partly burnt and stuck to the grill dish. Oops... It was MUCH better when properly prepared :)<br /><br />When we got back to the hotel room I saw an interesting site. This little clock in the room was doing this for a good ten minutes! I thought we were in a time warp or something!!! It's just a normal battery operated clock. Hmmmmnh!<br /><br /><embed width="430" height="389" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://vid175.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid175.photobucket.com/albums/w158/anotheblogger/P1010042.flv"></embed>Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-88027665205567593582007-06-20T00:19:00.001-07:002007-06-20T00:35:24.766-07:00Just a bunch of Carp!After the museum, we headed over to the baseball stadium to watch a ball game! Our team was the "Hiroshima Carp". Here is a picture of the stadium:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7b8l87Q6qWPl6pgvbHpteiwMzAY0-onvauMNzDrIqrLEXNYzve46iZvBZb2J5uNZAsPno5BNkHdbhGcTlrLRxA5wJydc2L-mMnmWPfB_RXWDcEd1Ozr-pzBSEOguY4_ERttdlqS9kDo8/s1600-h/Stadium.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7b8l87Q6qWPl6pgvbHpteiwMzAY0-onvauMNzDrIqrLEXNYzve46iZvBZb2J5uNZAsPno5BNkHdbhGcTlrLRxA5wJydc2L-mMnmWPfB_RXWDcEd1Ozr-pzBSEOguY4_ERttdlqS9kDo8/s400/Stadium.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078043148544138546" border="0" /></a><br />This guy kind of stood out in the field. I don't think he's Japanese???<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzBPfaLfw2fQXDrjVmYXDv4LibjxkhCPp3MYiparQAOaQlXRgR4jub_vRZPKAPxNFuMDNcVJPhAytzf_cWXIaUh6sDspcuGJ2Esu7sKsc3KXyOisvLuvkM3Xj5h0OssIfthew2AW_jB68/s1600-h/Hmm.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzBPfaLfw2fQXDrjVmYXDv4LibjxkhCPp3MYiparQAOaQlXRgR4jub_vRZPKAPxNFuMDNcVJPhAytzf_cWXIaUh6sDspcuGJ2Esu7sKsc3KXyOisvLuvkM3Xj5h0OssIfthew2AW_jB68/s400/Hmm.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078043148544138562" border="0" /></a><br />I found that going to a Japanese baseball game is more entertaining than going to an American one. Why? Because there is much more audience participation! The Carp were last-place in standing, and they were playing against the first place team. For a home game like that you would expect empy stands and not much in terms of cheering.<br /><br />But all the fans still come out and they cheer every play. Check out this video:<br /><br /><embed width="430" height="389" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://vid175.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid175.photobucket.com/albums/w158/anotheblogger/P1010016.flv"></embed><br /><br />These guys are doing this, and various other cheers throughout the entire game! Non-Stop! They have a different cheer for throwing a strike, being at bat, getting an out, etc. It was quite facinating to watch!<br /><br />How do they organize the cheers? By having a cheer leader instruct everyone what to do! He would hold up signs telling us what to say, when to say it, etc. A band would play behind us to give everyone a beat to keep in synch to.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWIcuZQbek7QSa30pxDkx1o11sXn1X2JxMiflzBKcBGh0n8riMhaj65yAhr_aMxmvE3rPjZot-9RLPhkR48Wnsoas1Ir2nyqqV8YqcWj5eT9uJZBZT-sHlTS49NvY9yEmV1lyeLDRp86c/s1600-h/Cheer+Leader.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWIcuZQbek7QSa30pxDkx1o11sXn1X2JxMiflzBKcBGh0n8riMhaj65yAhr_aMxmvE3rPjZot-9RLPhkR48Wnsoas1Ir2nyqqV8YqcWj5eT9uJZBZT-sHlTS49NvY9yEmV1lyeLDRp86c/s400/Cheer+Leader.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078043152839105874" border="0" /></a><br />For the seventh inning we were given a bag of balloons to blow up. I had no idea what this was all about, but here is mine! It's big... And Long....<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5eD9sUYwu6pih9JC2MOa8405iXEF9OMwhRmkA0f57cDMbqktMNxVXmN_ndxthA6L6T-X02skpYj4mfJqrzrraNbNF_zShAWv5Wjdu5XSMYgnBopSvI_ey5EP4mU3OG-ePqr-QvPr3zP8/s1600-h/Balloon.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5eD9sUYwu6pih9JC2MOa8405iXEF9OMwhRmkA0f57cDMbqktMNxVXmN_ndxthA6L6T-X02skpYj4mfJqrzrraNbNF_zShAWv5Wjdu5XSMYgnBopSvI_ey5EP4mU3OG-ePqr-QvPr3zP8/s400/Balloon.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078043157134073186" border="0" /></a><br />Here is a video of what we did with the balloons:<br /><br /><embed width="430" height="389" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://vid175.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid175.photobucket.com/albums/w158/anotheblogger/P1010026.flv"></embed><br /><br />You can barely hear it in the recording because the mic on the camera isn't good but all the balloons have whistles on them. When the balloons were released the roar of balloons flying through the air and the whistles was a fun experience!<br /><br />Believe it or not, our team won by a huge margin! The fans were ecstatic as this was really an unexpected turn of events!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiERCmo65zBFbDreVYbBrtgdrvSftr78_StzCiE2bM06N9uvrchvaXxhJlp-g8CWjKCkKzzhm26MQwWFUT2PMKxEGkTZKnEMhkAtwzQ3z6ZtV-nbsXvVhMztCw_np_PsqsWYGwyPmDiUpM/s1600-h/FinalScore.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiERCmo65zBFbDreVYbBrtgdrvSftr78_StzCiE2bM06N9uvrchvaXxhJlp-g8CWjKCkKzzhm26MQwWFUT2PMKxEGkTZKnEMhkAtwzQ3z6ZtV-nbsXvVhMztCw_np_PsqsWYGwyPmDiUpM/s400/FinalScore.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078043157134073202" border="0" /></a><br />This was a fun evening event! I've gone to a few Angels games here in the past, and most of it the crowd wasn't nearly as animated / into the game. I spent most of the time chatting, getting food, wandering around the stadium, playing games on my cell phone, etc. Pretty much everything BUT watching the game.<br /><br />But in Japan everyone loves their baseball, so all attention is on the game. Being in a crowd that is that excited about the game really adds to the fun!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-20409950393013694342007-06-17T23:41:00.000-07:002007-06-18T00:26:27.667-07:00Another type of Hell...Another ride on the bullet train took us to the south-western end of Honshu. The next city we visited was a beautiful, clean, modern metropolis with a series of rivers intertwining throughout the city.<br /><br />This first picture is from a bridge overlooking one of these rivers offering a view of the shiny new buildings along the bank.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNr4VmG2yC5wGWDvDUkDNEABM1jE7K-vkN38tlUXuDZ99X0WwbP_GbV7oRSyypDT_YORJXMshDXLUb5uu7CZ7gZNtsTAq4PBXQYS_DJmc5d9bvbVVoTixSOdBPHpnyIegadoK1HAzlu-Y/s1600-h/Bridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNr4VmG2yC5wGWDvDUkDNEABM1jE7K-vkN38tlUXuDZ99X0WwbP_GbV7oRSyypDT_YORJXMshDXLUb5uu7CZ7gZNtsTAq4PBXQYS_DJmc5d9bvbVVoTixSOdBPHpnyIegadoK1HAzlu-Y/s400/Bridge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291735425768674" border="0" /></a><br />It's hard to believe that only 62 years ago on August 6th that this entire city was destroyed when the atomic bomb landed on it. This building is the sole remaining evidence in the city that an event of such magnitude occured:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWAP7nOL6-AiVZZttaQ9kDFn1cFU0rlmocifMpujtpYCOXcdl5ozuoU1jEsPSUqfznaGAhuACzML-bX70OmjuKlVTwuTEZRmVTJUOy_8qEtjx6MwxPIpiyjl0-qTS_IyGCgT4sK3SJwzE/s1600-h/Building.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWAP7nOL6-AiVZZttaQ9kDFn1cFU0rlmocifMpujtpYCOXcdl5ozuoU1jEsPSUqfznaGAhuACzML-bX70OmjuKlVTwuTEZRmVTJUOy_8qEtjx6MwxPIpiyjl0-qTS_IyGCgT4sK3SJwzE/s400/Building.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291739720735986" border="0" /></a><br />The city of Hiroshima houses a memorial museum that reminds all the visitors of the tragedy that struck here. Below is a picture of the memorial grounds. Entrance to the museum was only $0.50, and it was packed with visitors.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_mafhDcRCcQrobmut9_brQLLPZz23C4U5Q5aJlIP5JQWNzLLJTLwCOxntd6PD5tRmYv0lVthvn6k320v7VejjS_lx8FlPbtVZxk_rTXG_Ff8GW4f4QDXdzKRvJNDvEwE2XGqHicqnOAk/s1600-h/Memorial.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_mafhDcRCcQrobmut9_brQLLPZz23C4U5Q5aJlIP5JQWNzLLJTLwCOxntd6PD5tRmYv0lVthvn6k320v7VejjS_lx8FlPbtVZxk_rTXG_Ff8GW4f4QDXdzKRvJNDvEwE2XGqHicqnOAk/s400/Memorial.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291744015703298" border="0" /></a>Inside the museum, they had a map on display of what the city looked like after the bomb. The red globe in the center marks the location where the bomb was dropped.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZftBcrY_qK_V_RSaDtIrBq9Lj6Vdt-v0EmX0lY_4NTexk6n_0_vJAc4i_mqxyG_Wld3MJZFtkya0aIQr0sdYXJIiZ_TUL880arVxJK1x5Oye1Tk42a38QznhMVTr9VtAjumtmzIJT5Vc/s1600-h/Model.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZftBcrY_qK_V_RSaDtIrBq9Lj6Vdt-v0EmX0lY_4NTexk6n_0_vJAc4i_mqxyG_Wld3MJZFtkya0aIQr0sdYXJIiZ_TUL880arVxJK1x5Oye1Tk42a38QznhMVTr9VtAjumtmzIJT5Vc/s400/Model.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291748310670610" border="0" /></a><br />There was a life-size Diorama inside depicting a typical scene of the survivors after the blast. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpmPLheoSUogaEjTMHGNhNGSxYadq_5S-YMq2e-PvloYwZ-yoad-viBBCWIaBwU2yOBqxLDl-eC_bSc4845vztkalfvbXNpUhTXK6TkJ_qFm3Pjvzdnz-b-oMEJEpkBSTsjc5cxM55YCg/s1600-h/Diorama.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpmPLheoSUogaEjTMHGNhNGSxYadq_5S-YMq2e-PvloYwZ-yoad-viBBCWIaBwU2yOBqxLDl-eC_bSc4845vztkalfvbXNpUhTXK6TkJ_qFm3Pjvzdnz-b-oMEJEpkBSTsjc5cxM55YCg/s400/Diorama.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291748310670626" border="0" /></a><br />Below are the trousers of a junior high school student. They were melted when the blast took him from behind.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEoFohB8PmXWs3FRT2W4rbWZNZYBOKTaK-X1ZUAF34km4V0ZTr1jW46Q3MI5qAS54-oz-tmwmzsGSdn5JiJ908JfWYCsc6DWxsBIUQbNWZ-IZLPvcvDFlq9F1ADeDKFjkcZkkJfvaufok/s1600-h/Trousers.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEoFohB8PmXWs3FRT2W4rbWZNZYBOKTaK-X1ZUAF34km4V0ZTr1jW46Q3MI5qAS54-oz-tmwmzsGSdn5JiJ908JfWYCsc6DWxsBIUQbNWZ-IZLPvcvDFlq9F1ADeDKFjkcZkkJfvaufok/s400/Trousers.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291254389431442" border="0" /></a><br />A tricyle that was outside when the bomb struck.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9E-4OeXRAYnLe0zP9tFh9mWku8cwkALV3xqCv0z9wfwKQ9E1WKyhL55rpVa8oT5y3T6u9K1Dmiy-ZArZLohLtLbzXz_GOwG1BnsSPAucF7IfteldLXMdqpPF2y_QBj278QHpUFgwOlY/s1600-h/Tricycle.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9E-4OeXRAYnLe0zP9tFh9mWku8cwkALV3xqCv0z9wfwKQ9E1WKyhL55rpVa8oT5y3T6u9K1Dmiy-ZArZLohLtLbzXz_GOwG1BnsSPAucF7IfteldLXMdqpPF2y_QBj278QHpUFgwOlY/s400/Tricycle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291258684398754" border="0" /></a><br />The cloud of debris from the explosion caused a black rain to fall throughout parts of the city contaminating everything in the area with radioactive waste. Below is a section of wall that has been marred by the black rain.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYXlQCMertSjMAVJuz_5yWkppL7Wu-_VkWCIVCXGxFXuKViOM2xnrb7d_nPAS7dRe1GdfYSJNH2_Tk0yJqT5g3VU9_tYConNR-UWYr4dH3H4i5_NhsQrNR98ZeYko0w7IYlhqOZK9vURs/s1600-h/BlackRain.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYXlQCMertSjMAVJuz_5yWkppL7Wu-_VkWCIVCXGxFXuKViOM2xnrb7d_nPAS7dRe1GdfYSJNH2_Tk0yJqT5g3VU9_tYConNR-UWYr4dH3H4i5_NhsQrNR98ZeYko0w7IYlhqOZK9vURs/s400/BlackRain.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291258684398770" border="0" /></a><br />A pile of glass bottles were fused together from the blast.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8Soz2sBy-hFgf3u357FO7WOzPtaDSSl-_DctV-T3TUrEiB1U1YSIrCgcmvr-7K3BBMsq0lOc385-Zbp87kJvrBLrBAvKyaYdZUL6i6ZNdfYg1YPzGIPQRJQrzhR3_O23lgu8y9AK110/s1600-h/Melted.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8Soz2sBy-hFgf3u357FO7WOzPtaDSSl-_DctV-T3TUrEiB1U1YSIrCgcmvr-7K3BBMsq0lOc385-Zbp87kJvrBLrBAvKyaYdZUL6i6ZNdfYg1YPzGIPQRJQrzhR3_O23lgu8y9AK110/s400/Melted.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291271569300674" border="0" /></a><br />Click the image below to enlarge it. Look closely at the staircase. You will notice a darkened area. Someone had been sitting on these steps and his shadow was burned into the concrete from the blast.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYkFH61eqiGj7BwRQs5V0kH35E8D_4UbDPoPZGGUHhu2byEP-ddK6YNP_gmF5iYtfp6-_pwgC8-Odi6k9OXsh-UF9n7IrhQYRlsklrNuGIm7da2htFHEbKHpW8o-z5rZFyqtPAv16Oaso/s1600-h/Shadow.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYkFH61eqiGj7BwRQs5V0kH35E8D_4UbDPoPZGGUHhu2byEP-ddK6YNP_gmF5iYtfp6-_pwgC8-Odi6k9OXsh-UF9n7IrhQYRlsklrNuGIm7da2htFHEbKHpW8o-z5rZFyqtPAv16Oaso/s400/Shadow.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077291288749169874" border="0" /></a><br />After going through the museum I fealt heavy with the knowledge of what these people had to go through. The detonation of the A-Bomb was a tragic event, but it certainly lead to the end of World War II. How would the war have turned out if the U.S. did not drop the bomb? How different would the world be if the Allies lost the war? Does that justify what happened to these people?<br /><br />I was amazed though at how quickly they rebuilt the city. Everything is new, and you could not tell that this city was the site of an atomic bomb. <br /><br />Going through this museum reminded me of an Anime movie that I once saw called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grave_of_the_Fireflies">Grave of the Fireflies.</a> It follows the story of two children after the firebombing of Kobe during WWII. Both experiences serve as a great reminder of how terrible a war can be.Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-64222601841574629952007-06-14T23:23:00.001-07:002007-06-15T00:25:14.968-07:00How About Some Furry Cock 'Ay?Ok I didn't have enough time today to go resize the photos from the next site we visited. So here is another food post!<br /><br />This hotel we stayed at offered a Free Breakfast with the stay. Now judging from all the prior free breakfasts we had, I was expecting something pretty good. But when we got to the breakfast buffet we see this.<br /><br />A tub of rice balls. Yep. That's it!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIJcjO5txclAF3sCZV7vwYo_BPB0VX0hFPIj0Jrfngo-uaCbL6n5M8p9Weo6VBmQfhqSiwZ0B_5j96hJh_by5LnFsqGPnHtzmkaY1_QxwYi4U5aXQr7L2ksXLbfo0xk00ULE654ijpfc0/s1600-h/P1000965.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIJcjO5txclAF3sCZV7vwYo_BPB0VX0hFPIj0Jrfngo-uaCbL6n5M8p9Weo6VBmQfhqSiwZ0B_5j96hJh_by5LnFsqGPnHtzmkaY1_QxwYi4U5aXQr7L2ksXLbfo0xk00ULE654ijpfc0/s400/P1000965.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5076172913625029746" border="0" /></a><br />Not only do you get rice balls, you get to put your own seasoning on it like so:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNUyRyDgzoiYGo_JPjCITM4QeZ5LOuDF2hgYsnrWr3M96Tjs9Wj7Rl8uuQarGIjTYV4ozqWWpsj4ePDwPOKbYEmIwsNMbB7hRFesafNa-CluzcUl2dLQDmL2nz0T3_nJtGdZeEn288po8/s1600-h/P1000967.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNUyRyDgzoiYGo_JPjCITM4QeZ5LOuDF2hgYsnrWr3M96Tjs9Wj7Rl8uuQarGIjTYV4ozqWWpsj4ePDwPOKbYEmIwsNMbB7hRFesafNa-CluzcUl2dLQDmL2nz0T3_nJtGdZeEn288po8/s400/P1000967.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5076172917919997058" border="0" /></a><br />And I asked my friend... "What is that (seasoning)?"<br /><br />(Note: He speaks fluent Japanese and he didn't quite realize what he was saying in English.)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Him</span>: "Furry Cock Ay".<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me: </span>*COUGH* ... "What did you say???"<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Him</span>: "Furry Cock Ay..." (I give him a funny look)... "What????"<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me: </span>"Did you just say you are putting Furry Cock on your rice balls?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Him</span>: "Uhm... .... Yea I guess so!"<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Me: </span>"You're going to eat Furry Cock and balls?"<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Him</span>: "Yep... And it's good too!"<br /><br />So... I had to make my own furry cock ay covered ball. And you know what? He was right!!! It was good! We even got seconds!<br /><br />Apparently it is spelled "Furikake". It's a mix of various crushed peppers, sesame seeds, spices, and salt. They come in a wide variety of flavors and can be used to top all sorts of food. Would you like some Furikake???Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-89355365469749846762007-06-13T22:55:00.000-07:002007-06-13T23:07:27.537-07:00To Hell With You!This is our ticket to Hell. Luckily it wasn't a one-way ticket!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH2m2r9MfFIXh-X_iZPrA75mpPYH-mgspIV1CRDAo7Spph9KJDgkk6hQKbVxhtoRV-e2yUVy0DHtekAK2nDqJr87njcd_nnW_Dc6osHp7ZdJ3oupzTqXK3z9xeB1SoAtyzChAb96SAtd0/s1600-h/TicketToHell.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH2m2r9MfFIXh-X_iZPrA75mpPYH-mgspIV1CRDAo7Spph9KJDgkk6hQKbVxhtoRV-e2yUVy0DHtekAK2nDqJr87njcd_nnW_Dc6osHp7ZdJ3oupzTqXK3z9xeB1SoAtyzChAb96SAtd0/s400/TicketToHell.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795514848730178" border="0" /></a><br />This bus is headed straight for hell!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEicWOB2x2s1U7fBbYhSyo5mGKGoaXILx_zuhOulQYHV7f725rusz7dkMQZShdXKrURwrYnue95nbTneB5YRXLoXLX1NHEEZP7f7HaA_4JSyWKH7lkaaJkymz4kXGEqsMVvb8zC2-C548/s1600-h/BusPicture.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEicWOB2x2s1U7fBbYhSyo5mGKGoaXILx_zuhOulQYHV7f725rusz7dkMQZShdXKrURwrYnue95nbTneB5YRXLoXLX1NHEEZP7f7HaA_4JSyWKH7lkaaJkymz4kXGEqsMVvb8zC2-C548/s400/BusPicture.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795514848730194" border="0" /></a><br />That's us, the two poor unsuspecting souls.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKdDoJUeuCIrVu_l1KfZW_mAX7GBHpgWTAgkjcistiw7k2Kw9ytR5rwe_zDfWVzAWnAFjK4QN1Qs4EGQ8FHjVu_3pNdNBZgntbhf7dNdi5ZNsLPOC_T8PK86VKwZZcXfZWaTKadjIHvI8/s1600-h/UsPicture.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKdDoJUeuCIrVu_l1KfZW_mAX7GBHpgWTAgkjcistiw7k2Kw9ytR5rwe_zDfWVzAWnAFjK4QN1Qs4EGQ8FHjVu_3pNdNBZgntbhf7dNdi5ZNsLPOC_T8PK86VKwZZcXfZWaTKadjIHvI8/s400/UsPicture.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795197021150194" border="0" /></a><br />This is apparently the water they serve from hell. Look closely at the little letters below. It says Natural Mineral Water "from the Aso". I'm not quite sure I want water that came out of someone's ass-o. That's just nasty. But hey, I guess when you're in hell you don't have a choice???<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhivvgO-xzD3grkPiQiA2CneynvfGNkyszkd-ClFodFfuzXGaRqMpWRBLx308UWYjiblJD_UMS6ncU9gLb6DwUq07nKQL1CLe52By_5JpXf9NVg_OKFkq2DbfaZPoQXM-dIyvCo8Dm_qfc/s1600-h/WaterFromHell.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhivvgO-xzD3grkPiQiA2CneynvfGNkyszkd-ClFodFfuzXGaRqMpWRBLx308UWYjiblJD_UMS6ncU9gLb6DwUq07nKQL1CLe52By_5JpXf9NVg_OKFkq2DbfaZPoQXM-dIyvCo8Dm_qfc/s400/WaterFromHell.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795201316117506" border="0" /></a>Here is the Devil, watching over his dominion.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZACZx9mHmULWn7FZcVZz45eOjj6IHQP_ezOTVXI7HQUIp6kB8dkgWMQyzMagzJl40SoM_8c7Z4uVhbVFb6JzBanR-yW226mw91IR7bCstcK3pS6gjs1x0sQth8V3uG6gcPvB3XIrLVvw/s1600-h/Devil.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZACZx9mHmULWn7FZcVZz45eOjj6IHQP_ezOTVXI7HQUIp6kB8dkgWMQyzMagzJl40SoM_8c7Z4uVhbVFb6JzBanR-yW226mw91IR7bCstcK3pS6gjs1x0sQth8V3uG6gcPvB3XIrLVvw/s400/Devil.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075796262173039714" border="0" /></a><br />It's hot in hell!!! Look at all that steam!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw0rDCMCYWw8OZ-zttC_5qGDArOrfURC4jcgKBxqHDBCyGczXs7ABqZy_GBY170Vo-1z8Ci_SB1Yb1tXSNSd2yonOOeM8mSTG9rTlGjjGiC2vkGmlV0ygUiA8GYtFyxkz4bEWOBQKxB4A/s1600-h/Steam1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw0rDCMCYWw8OZ-zttC_5qGDArOrfURC4jcgKBxqHDBCyGczXs7ABqZy_GBY170Vo-1z8Ci_SB1Yb1tXSNSd2yonOOeM8mSTG9rTlGjjGiC2vkGmlV0ygUiA8GYtFyxkz4bEWOBQKxB4A/s400/Steam1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795205611084818" border="0" /></a>Even more steam flowing from underground!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhophzEe5xKj2waki98to54BaX62jW8-wrk-HDGf-BO2Dq8xby1EHhunVFWvwcyoRdQzvK22PesJRR35C12SZOpaKfXPqyCCCdH8sMUtqAbLw3Fg88MwxLF-RceiBNgCPnMEbm-UOpagak/s1600-h/Steam2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhophzEe5xKj2waki98to54BaX62jW8-wrk-HDGf-BO2Dq8xby1EHhunVFWvwcyoRdQzvK22PesJRR35C12SZOpaKfXPqyCCCdH8sMUtqAbLw3Fg88MwxLF-RceiBNgCPnMEbm-UOpagak/s400/Steam2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075794780409322402" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Apparently there are still some nice areas in Hell. To lure you into a false sense of hope.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilfBqHKoxJ7Z2QTtsKT-c6QrvS17nmmMB-CmMgPmvx9UbeDC_yKde0RMi9hymLY0qhsApP-2dHgO4cW5i7ckCEmGDJur6PIp-yYK3ycjZBKM2GvitEyS0CYPEHOpDkILAKo5xMzpQJHEw/s1600-h/Flowers1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilfBqHKoxJ7Z2QTtsKT-c6QrvS17nmmMB-CmMgPmvx9UbeDC_yKde0RMi9hymLY0qhsApP-2dHgO4cW5i7ckCEmGDJur6PIp-yYK3ycjZBKM2GvitEyS0CYPEHOpDkILAKo5xMzpQJHEw/s400/Flowers1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795209906052146" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This little pathway has GOT to be a trick!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0IIquoDZIl4bLsWToiti7e2j2lsfpeqKV6K1r_cwwf1_cNdPwKDETR3MvRRi9PBuOplcroq0Xgf59cc540WSOX80_QOe6s1o0Gm0MDepSLlL1Zotm6XTLbMrrIsAfB0-lQxYcWiCg2_Q/s1600-h/Path.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0IIquoDZIl4bLsWToiti7e2j2lsfpeqKV6K1r_cwwf1_cNdPwKDETR3MvRRi9PBuOplcroq0Xgf59cc540WSOX80_QOe6s1o0Gm0MDepSLlL1Zotm6XTLbMrrIsAfB0-lQxYcWiCg2_Q/s400/Path.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075795205611084834" border="0" /></a><br />It leads to a boiling mud bath!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1q9j49ZK8_7CEYnP7cpAY9Cd31_bNWnjf9zPIW7kceIr3L7whz7HRjOTpp2NpevinROrRVORuPUBnlziBIOnCKHsecrC-07-Roii_g28DSxhu2uCdr3hsBaRQ5tE9JYLoPKusddmxbGA/s1600-h/MudPool.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1q9j49ZK8_7CEYnP7cpAY9Cd31_bNWnjf9zPIW7kceIr3L7whz7HRjOTpp2NpevinROrRVORuPUBnlziBIOnCKHsecrC-07-Roii_g28DSxhu2uCdr3hsBaRQ5tE9JYLoPKusddmxbGA/s400/MudPool.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075794784704289714" border="0" /></a><br />This is known as the "Sea Hell". It is a boiling pool of naturally blue water.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1L5CmBzrHNV_cXBWkHBoqJqFoxQ-A8gx-WRP-VsOY4gu5x-IQEAbRBCs_6c_xyMqd0bMIKgyhp7Vy9ghtF_6CbGuSkP1Cjbop9iHPsriSFubUuH7LxHMlratgpLjm8ziDvyQt0ZNw_5E/s1600-h/SeaHell.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1L5CmBzrHNV_cXBWkHBoqJqFoxQ-A8gx-WRP-VsOY4gu5x-IQEAbRBCs_6c_xyMqd0bMIKgyhp7Vy9ghtF_6CbGuSkP1Cjbop9iHPsriSFubUuH7LxHMlratgpLjm8ziDvyQt0ZNw_5E/s400/SeaHell.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075794788999257026" border="0" /></a><br />Another boiling mud pit!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimdsNPC1O-WbimGZBpp6ItFrb3Mic43pW9yWcJliC0-d4Q69_B73o3uATf5eCA3ojJtcyitlNrlOms83XaSxIGILmLEbd7Xl_IFX_gUm-WAkqiqUbjD3cdO7WqnV2WGo3pvCloxJX1ijU/s1600-h/Boiling+Mud.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimdsNPC1O-WbimGZBpp6ItFrb3Mic43pW9yWcJliC0-d4Q69_B73o3uATf5eCA3ojJtcyitlNrlOms83XaSxIGILmLEbd7Xl_IFX_gUm-WAkqiqUbjD3cdO7WqnV2WGo3pvCloxJX1ijU/s400/Boiling+Mud.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075794788999257042" border="0" /></a><br />This is a pool known as the "Blood Pool". I thought it was more brownish than red, but OK!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6qbjaYnrgYgVQ6QY3JJ_0t6VpN5GkoEZtTpeMztGEdkwha2FUUcybcqB_T-aSoQlZkpEujYUiUOT4w8wsyBf6eutIiPqXztdro-sp1NxDM2islmSqD3aOpIn8_oW8up-a-qFOlINYd0U/s1600-h/BloodPool.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6qbjaYnrgYgVQ6QY3JJ_0t6VpN5GkoEZtTpeMztGEdkwha2FUUcybcqB_T-aSoQlZkpEujYUiUOT4w8wsyBf6eutIiPqXztdro-sp1NxDM2islmSqD3aOpIn8_oW8up-a-qFOlINYd0U/s400/BloodPool.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075794788999257058" border="0" /></a><br />And so our trip ends, and we return to the hotel. The next day is filled with memories of another kind of Hell....Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-23868160074325941792007-06-12T22:27:00.001-07:002007-06-12T22:45:15.020-07:00The TempleMy internet access at home has been flakey the past few days and I haven't been able to upload any photos to post. It suddenly worked today so I'm posting while I can :).<br /><br />This next series of photos is from the same area of Japan as the previous post. A bus ride down the road left us at this temple gate. Inside it was not very interesting actually. At first I couldn't figure out why this would be a tourist attraction. It's just a bunch of old buildings in a foresty area. It was nice, but not that exciting.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRDWCMBsUIIokgrX0qbKD44BohMOZcTcxhJetQCNab3S1N37adtBPsZn6sCq8k57lduLgV5V1TWrfCpqY9nifKHkHLLL9fqQje0fH6D2C-ZqbMCLvel6JAFnEKbtqQ3k7gkmnP81nGfWM/s1600-h/1+Temple.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRDWCMBsUIIokgrX0qbKD44BohMOZcTcxhJetQCNab3S1N37adtBPsZn6sCq8k57lduLgV5V1TWrfCpqY9nifKHkHLLL9fqQje0fH6D2C-ZqbMCLvel6JAFnEKbtqQ3k7gkmnP81nGfWM/s400/1+Temple.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417892734131042" border="0" /></a><br />But then we realised that there was a path leading down past the temple. So we decided to go walk down it.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0e2s6Ra5410WHvn2NIuGVx4cCosY7mHYT-39T4MTQ8qMf1xAuuJkrGizKr_NZdTmz-OExtijEtcYFSNsNf14Fj-GUHWDcn4F0xit59iGEl8kYqrF-yi7G8KZPf2TMbFjroJcMcdi8lxs/s1600-h/2+Path.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0e2s6Ra5410WHvn2NIuGVx4cCosY7mHYT-39T4MTQ8qMf1xAuuJkrGizKr_NZdTmz-OExtijEtcYFSNsNf14Fj-GUHWDcn4F0xit59iGEl8kYqrF-yi7G8KZPf2TMbFjroJcMcdi8lxs/s400/2+Path.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417897029098354" border="0" /></a><br />We encountered this cool bridge which crosses over a small stream.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgvJepPxTdSQnI6NHNET0L1hXSDF5aAuu57sVubyCp1iwaRz7g-k9Bectat6qkHQdPwFY_IRLjP41UVeLIpRinAip79k5Ynrpc51F0xWka0KU4MVZKZrDXLeOgV-rQo-DobM6VA-24H2o/s1600-h/2p5+TheBridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgvJepPxTdSQnI6NHNET0L1hXSDF5aAuu57sVubyCp1iwaRz7g-k9Bectat6qkHQdPwFY_IRLjP41UVeLIpRinAip79k5Ynrpc51F0xWka0KU4MVZKZrDXLeOgV-rQo-DobM6VA-24H2o/s400/2p5+TheBridge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417897029098370" border="0" /></a><br />The path continues down towards the bottm of this stream. My friend was lazy and didnt want to walk so far downhill (since we have to walk back up afterwards). But I kept telling him, "ooh i see something i want to take a picture of" and headed a little further down. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ILvayKhwCxi1Rxgypc6G3tdpPUavGwFcZ5vcZ0lJ3SOKqPbhBp9M02NTXSeZLMrGWGkCwta0UfZ4Y_0ORk6g7_vjKzC-AIv-QB0n6pTiw0uYwL3rD-AyNZkwk2uGbNIw-KRijh2EmBo/s1600-h/3+RiverBelow.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ILvayKhwCxi1Rxgypc6G3tdpPUavGwFcZ5vcZ0lJ3SOKqPbhBp9M02NTXSeZLMrGWGkCwta0UfZ4Y_0ORk6g7_vjKzC-AIv-QB0n6pTiw0uYwL3rD-AyNZkwk2uGbNIw-KRijh2EmBo/s400/3+RiverBelow.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417901324065682" border="0" /></a><br />A few more "ooh i need to take a picture here" led us to the bottom of the river bed:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijGM8h_JQd9-t79uCEVnJcbzMRjm7S8fO143ypdGUGerQJ7kFPQDF2I5dMtU_8zmduAenw6rrBgkga4JVW81b1EBm7ak2clnnKHkd9rvx7WrSTlLqEgr5W9arW1k8rlTTtmjyaf_N_TbY/s1600-h/4+AtTheRiver.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijGM8h_JQd9-t79uCEVnJcbzMRjm7S8fO143ypdGUGerQJ7kFPQDF2I5dMtU_8zmduAenw6rrBgkga4JVW81b1EBm7ak2clnnKHkd9rvx7WrSTlLqEgr5W9arW1k8rlTTtmjyaf_N_TbY/s400/4+AtTheRiver.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417708050537234" border="0" /></a><br />Here is a view from the end of the river.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLGfs3IduVDVius88l2X_ewE-I6czV_i9ge8wv1sDeC8KZrqueS0n6yByrTbRxDW2YZ5hpOTMxNmIg3JH9C9EHYuoQJbSk4ive8JMV122B7tnWGmWrtaxQyVeRZo64YOiRZmrEIP1jimE/s1600-h/4p5+UpRiver.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLGfs3IduVDVius88l2X_ewE-I6czV_i9ge8wv1sDeC8KZrqueS0n6yByrTbRxDW2YZ5hpOTMxNmIg3JH9C9EHYuoQJbSk4ive8JMV122B7tnWGmWrtaxQyVeRZo64YOiRZmrEIP1jimE/s400/4p5+UpRiver.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417712345504546" border="0" /></a><br />There is a little waterfall upstream:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpM8SYWAhk761i3C8O-oabK1HL5pDGzOBKHF8DlI8uVqKU6dCt36d5SlvPD_NKw20cDa5Nl6IJWumvqDb2CyeIZCkynJN9EM4NYr-JpxGvFcqdspmn7j33j0f1gVHX4ygystGbxsGaFnM/s1600-h/4p7+WaterFall.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpM8SYWAhk761i3C8O-oabK1HL5pDGzOBKHF8DlI8uVqKU6dCt36d5SlvPD_NKw20cDa5Nl6IJWumvqDb2CyeIZCkynJN9EM4NYr-JpxGvFcqdspmn7j33j0f1gVHX4ygystGbxsGaFnM/s400/4p7+WaterFall.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417712345504562" border="0" /></a><br />Beyond the river is this moss covered path.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2MDnzLQKNjEAWYVEIAFPMQYwxdeH-ZaVs7dv93jp8nqHap3Wvjg2YgKMK_ayDypiawdQuVn-veiEyxhfMA0RE89HXnxLe8FdYHPbo2X1FdJlxpWjmT4vptyUSBcRCcMrZelVTvyy0Dyg/s1600-h/5+Moss.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2MDnzLQKNjEAWYVEIAFPMQYwxdeH-ZaVs7dv93jp8nqHap3Wvjg2YgKMK_ayDypiawdQuVn-veiEyxhfMA0RE89HXnxLe8FdYHPbo2X1FdJlxpWjmT4vptyUSBcRCcMrZelVTvyy0Dyg/s400/5+Moss.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417716640471874" border="0" /></a><br />Which leads to a cave filled with rocks piled like so. What is this?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5S_wG64HXMaUZ0I_0ZADIGaGBpQi_7nRsMPcdKlun4Q8arvMUU6bB49wlyy-EIFZQv7T06RJyf60mx09m6lEQG6aMg3HYp95L2TmOt6BHzANv8U24lLbMW9pKODadGiZ99HRRa5lpQ88/s1600-h/6+PiledStones.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5S_wG64HXMaUZ0I_0ZADIGaGBpQi_7nRsMPcdKlun4Q8arvMUU6bB49wlyy-EIFZQv7T06RJyf60mx09m6lEQG6aMg3HYp95L2TmOt6BHzANv8U24lLbMW9pKODadGiZ99HRRa5lpQ88/s400/6+PiledStones.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417716640471890" border="0" /></a><br />Turning around, there are thousands of piles of these little stacked rocks!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLua-lTOZdPXOQ1McWumHpfHh7WnK4Ya9rYnn1AE1qWhvqHyiqYS9pCjbZD4DAc8d5151Qfy7emPB8ytE8MgzI7dLxQ1lWd8vhEzaYMT3s_Tq7WLDrMIHSKetziPQI7FB2zLGHytPncgs/s1600-h/7+CaveRocks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLua-lTOZdPXOQ1McWumHpfHh7WnK4Ya9rYnn1AE1qWhvqHyiqYS9pCjbZD4DAc8d5151Qfy7emPB8ytE8MgzI7dLxQ1lWd8vhEzaYMT3s_Tq7WLDrMIHSKetziPQI7FB2zLGHytPncgs/s400/7+CaveRocks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417433172630210" border="0" /></a><br />Inside the cavern is a little shrine where you can put in a donation and ring the bell. That's my friend Fu ringing the bell.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh544ASUNuX72exO_TbOLET_8xBihpu_VJPyCgNkD0tSyBRAkzrejf5zqiZ5e4HOLPiIRwCSoSIyIz-2t9Hc6lf5PW844Rs_EqEEInsyJ-v9VfL0sjHFKwwbnU1fKKUZS5KrGdhbkVzZrc/s1600-h/8+RingTheBell.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh544ASUNuX72exO_TbOLET_8xBihpu_VJPyCgNkD0tSyBRAkzrejf5zqiZ5e4HOLPiIRwCSoSIyIz-2t9Hc6lf5PW844Rs_EqEEInsyJ-v9VfL0sjHFKwwbnU1fKKUZS5KrGdhbkVzZrc/s400/8+RingTheBell.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417437467597522" border="0" /></a>After we finished checking the area out, it was time to walk back up. Here's a view of some of the steps that lead us back to the top:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-P9FU_KPUuVv6YQt0edn8EMSQoInEmmLlBPFLNB6EWMK_3y4JEnNJOGtzN9VUibfDhVKaFW1q_yidRad4trahkhi2Y2GQdZMpN8ghcHhN9wyuMxhnXfZgo4Aix7eVODPYDnt4FIocQZQ/s1600-h/9+StairsUp.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-P9FU_KPUuVv6YQt0edn8EMSQoInEmmLlBPFLNB6EWMK_3y4JEnNJOGtzN9VUibfDhVKaFW1q_yidRad4trahkhi2Y2GQdZMpN8ghcHhN9wyuMxhnXfZgo4Aix7eVODPYDnt4FIocQZQ/s400/9+StairsUp.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417441762564834" border="0" /></a><br />Along the road, we noticed something interesting. There are these stone steps that lead down. After about 7 steps there is... NOTHING!!!! That's right. If you walk down this stair case you will fall a few hundred feet down to your death. Scary!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjq7ZXToWbn1e4xoBxU6cXJbx6BNbbm18WDBG9cfqvwPqJjqMYkTLvVSz9k5CRbYVMW3q65r3cyjH_tyhKn0k0hyN4dVTy8cdAP25Gt_XIfplMDSuUvZYKyzf3bfnkFSlI_K-ks9_6Wo8/s1600-h/10+StairsDown.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjq7ZXToWbn1e4xoBxU6cXJbx6BNbbm18WDBG9cfqvwPqJjqMYkTLvVSz9k5CRbYVMW3q65r3cyjH_tyhKn0k0hyN4dVTy8cdAP25Gt_XIfplMDSuUvZYKyzf3bfnkFSlI_K-ks9_6Wo8/s400/10+StairsDown.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417446057532146" border="0" /></a><br />This is for Cindy. She says I post food after my sight seeing stuff. So here was dinner for the night. We stayed at a traditional Japanese hotel (where you sleep on the floor with Futons.) This is the traditional Japanese dinner. It's a whole bunch of little dishes!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdP9NcAMPceHwi3w3YfBStdy841CJjRVWKrxUxZwD8vcE3PYd8B0gPE2ZeuppNuA5_26zAOAvBoMISORs5ySCPty_89s5BizSwmYXabD6mMHVw-WAuh_oBXhWRAi1E0mfWpH8I0fVdT_Q/s1600-h/11+Dinner.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdP9NcAMPceHwi3w3YfBStdy841CJjRVWKrxUxZwD8vcE3PYd8B0gPE2ZeuppNuA5_26zAOAvBoMISORs5ySCPty_89s5BizSwmYXabD6mMHVw-WAuh_oBXhWRAi1E0mfWpH8I0fVdT_Q/s400/11+Dinner.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5075417450352499458" border="0" /></a>We had to eat up and rest.<br /><br />Because the next day, we go to Hell!!!<br /><br />I'm serious.<br /><br />We really do.<br /><br />We even had tickets.Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-14586740870145866802007-06-07T11:40:00.000-07:002007-06-07T14:04:30.326-07:00The LakeSeveral hours on a train and a short walk later left us looking down this forest path. My friend told me that somewhere down there was a valley with a lake and a waterfall. Neat! We followed this trail for awhile which ended abruptly at a stair case that led far far down, but was blocked off with "Danger! Closed due to Typhoon" signs. Woooops!!!!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0MHepRjduHPSUwByScOQi2HXWZM9GjGoIvU3MFtG-kAGdARTafp_kt1NNjIEaajE1sHfQzVEca0gCTbxoigZxZY5kE36UGE0UCnByzXFOPseeXzdheTqEBeULAIKr0foQIraLsgZ-b0k/s1600-h/DownThere.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0MHepRjduHPSUwByScOQi2HXWZM9GjGoIvU3MFtG-kAGdARTafp_kt1NNjIEaajE1sHfQzVEca0gCTbxoigZxZY5kE36UGE0UCnByzXFOPseeXzdheTqEBeULAIKr0foQIraLsgZ-b0k/s400/DownThere.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072807974252337538" border="0" /></a><br />So instead of the direct path down, we had to walk down this winding road. Since cars had to drive down, it wasn't very steep and just winded its way down. Grrr! Here is a photo of lowest curve of the road that kind of zig-zagged its way down:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCJvJOaggH7u_4ogPOROnG86lIUfm0aFAIJ4OW6oHqmelvTCG9QOk0KkNM7gExAqfNHFGDggEPimx1fXx8hiZHO7yOT2mMymybSqvUNkOegFd5d1_rk8ESv2TBNNEW_dF8CbMHNsYTxu4/s1600-h/Road.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCJvJOaggH7u_4ogPOROnG86lIUfm0aFAIJ4OW6oHqmelvTCG9QOk0KkNM7gExAqfNHFGDggEPimx1fXx8hiZHO7yOT2mMymybSqvUNkOegFd5d1_rk8ESv2TBNNEW_dF8CbMHNsYTxu4/s400/Road.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072807978547304850" border="0" /></a><br />After complaining of the 30 minute or so walk we had to take, we finally reached our destination and saw this beautiful waterfall running down this rock wall!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Cpv0vZ2HJqOHjuCpBYnqzzx8aWe3gon-6rLFGqlVQxVkiiTT6Rlf8CRlXzj61zds1ZLEA4dxkbuc1zCit8KkJzdqPgpPRf3DpTjI85RfnMetjD40-VcQcy9TuwFq7ZI2lgJDVceKLg4/s1600-h/Small+Waterfall.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Cpv0vZ2HJqOHjuCpBYnqzzx8aWe3gon-6rLFGqlVQxVkiiTT6Rlf8CRlXzj61zds1ZLEA4dxkbuc1zCit8KkJzdqPgpPRf3DpTjI85RfnMetjD40-VcQcy9TuwFq7ZI2lgJDVceKLg4/s400/Small+Waterfall.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073194620093225650" border="0" /></a><br />A little further down the road we finally get a view of the lake. Wow!!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD8ejX1kEJLEivWmmRofet2h36VPUbxbfXMg_MdExVmCLwwaf0M6Euo1APqOk5pGDFb-h0mkvu7hpKWNeAOvj6ObRCQ6a86eNrP8e37FT2ScdH86VuyqIdW_rs63KdjkzrWBVAy9cCclA/s1600-h/Lake.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD8ejX1kEJLEivWmmRofet2h36VPUbxbfXMg_MdExVmCLwwaf0M6Euo1APqOk5pGDFb-h0mkvu7hpKWNeAOvj6ObRCQ6a86eNrP8e37FT2ScdH86VuyqIdW_rs63KdjkzrWBVAy9cCclA/s400/Lake.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072807978547304866" border="0" /></a><br />All that walking made me hungry, so we went to a restaurant there to have lunch. They were serving fresh fish from the lake and here's the meal that I ordered. Pay special attention to the item on the top-right corner:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhse63z2WgCdF2Kqeekij3Wjv-CVQq64zuC4YE5710ELOZM4U9HSZsYG9kH991BqZKa2EXEY5DNzEokBi-Qu4MevJdPx5FBDdUr7l9ra40rDwg3S2Ncu0AmXe_UoStiPPc3rwBNfP89mCQ/s1600-h/Lunch.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhse63z2WgCdF2Kqeekij3Wjv-CVQq64zuC4YE5710ELOZM4U9HSZsYG9kH991BqZKa2EXEY5DNzEokBi-Qu4MevJdPx5FBDdUr7l9ra40rDwg3S2Ncu0AmXe_UoStiPPc3rwBNfP89mCQ/s400/Lunch.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072806939165219122" border="0" /></a>That is the sashimi dish. But what they had done was take a freshly caught fish, cut it up sashimi style, then put the sashimi BACK into the fish, and put the whole fish onto the plate! So the fish was staring right back at me as I was picking away at its flesh eating it! Yikes!<br /><br />Here's a picture after I finished eating the sashimi of the remaining fish:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpuvVtla5NPmZNB31dSFVf-YbuhnCnnT1RalsqQuW40eG-spVxI30FLAELLINssmrtiiVYBnNDjxltHw2T9T13ZxweKeO_LUCqf7gF88wIPeEtbgxjlQLnUkNOePNnCeqmAsnYv8TKboU/s1600-h/TheFish.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpuvVtla5NPmZNB31dSFVf-YbuhnCnnT1RalsqQuW40eG-spVxI30FLAELLINssmrtiiVYBnNDjxltHw2T9T13ZxweKeO_LUCqf7gF88wIPeEtbgxjlQLnUkNOePNnCeqmAsnYv8TKboU/s400/TheFish.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072806947755153730" border="0" /></a>After Lunch, we headed down to the lake. Apparently you can rent boats and go row across it! So we did! There was a great waterfall that we rowed to:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFfCdmuJivDrQYDCiW-laZvALBhTBOBFxBy9g2Ulw1tY8DBN81XyyAksmDCoBTARGKROxuamUdBiKs_SRhQAPAPyQYrQLf2un2T2-sZRimfqn4RNg9tQvH0BNvGkQNqOnzEcOO0kEkamA/s1600-h/Waterfall.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFfCdmuJivDrQYDCiW-laZvALBhTBOBFxBy9g2Ulw1tY8DBN81XyyAksmDCoBTARGKROxuamUdBiKs_SRhQAPAPyQYrQLf2un2T2-sZRimfqn4RNg9tQvH0BNvGkQNqOnzEcOO0kEkamA/s400/Waterfall.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072806947755153746" border="0" /></a><br />A little bridge crosses over this narrow part of the stream. Here's a picture of the bridge from far below:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_nWmTpOqZOhI_ETLc203vvD_p3f9b0Pxer-HJq12qNXAXpfejVWc4a94qbjZKdmQKkAztwQ8JFSCws_zgA7M9XwoCiqAh_n6dodvff6Fkl9xPqwxlzT50Ig0Rwz_mjpYPD1mMr7l9MmM/s1600-h/Bridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_nWmTpOqZOhI_ETLc203vvD_p3f9b0Pxer-HJq12qNXAXpfejVWc4a94qbjZKdmQKkAztwQ8JFSCws_zgA7M9XwoCiqAh_n6dodvff6Fkl9xPqwxlzT50Ig0Rwz_mjpYPD1mMr7l9MmM/s400/Bridge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072806956345088354" border="0" /></a><br />And here's a picture from the bridge of the boats below:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqTw5DH68jEZNwi8r3i49KVS-YSjt2pN-JHoc7EQgVcNE1xqMu-Z73P27Ae77_hTgKeo2-WxDu05D1x5cbF6HyPdlujTyU6vVODJx2H_KbS1Yq8Nacc4TRUf_WLakDUzpLje2vxfk9JOE/s1600-h/FromTheBridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqTw5DH68jEZNwi8r3i49KVS-YSjt2pN-JHoc7EQgVcNE1xqMu-Z73P27Ae77_hTgKeo2-WxDu05D1x5cbF6HyPdlujTyU6vVODJx2H_KbS1Yq8Nacc4TRUf_WLakDUzpLje2vxfk9JOE/s400/FromTheBridge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072806960640055666" border="0" /></a><br />I have to say that THIS was a scenic place! I was really impressed. The pictures really don't do the place justice!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-89249671666566031012007-06-06T21:55:00.000-07:002007-06-06T22:48:25.032-07:00Fortuitous Series of Events<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpDklAlYzAaiYcgKQY4RUOcA8zlinE-yEkwz6kmSHQhba0DWzGT8vvk5mm1k2IAcO1QvAmfxu_jTv92fnuZw33xkvgtQUAyU0dPbggKTvpWkih8FV3yAMNgcLRpoS8SI-J3-3meMrvMoo/s1600-h/costco_logo_179.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpDklAlYzAaiYcgKQY4RUOcA8zlinE-yEkwz6kmSHQhba0DWzGT8vvk5mm1k2IAcO1QvAmfxu_jTv92fnuZw33xkvgtQUAyU0dPbggKTvpWkih8FV3yAMNgcLRpoS8SI-J3-3meMrvMoo/s400/costco_logo_179.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073182976436886098" border="0" /></a>My carpool buddy and I like to make bets. The bet is always for who is going to treat who to ice cream that day. But mainly, it's just a good excuse to ditch work and get Ice Cream!<br /><br />There's a new Costco (her favorite store!) opening in Irvine, and we had driven by the day before and noticed it was opening this week. I thought the sign said it was opening on the 9th (Saturday) and she thought it said it was opening on the 7th (Thursday).<br /><br />We made a bet on who was right for Ice Cream.<br /><br />So today we were leaving work late and I was thinking, "gee it's late and i have to go find some food to eat still, this sucks!" We decided since it was late anyway, we would drive by the costco to see who won the bet.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLaiVxNN77gYjsOkLZNbzNSxWyYlUGe9bZxpyi5C80BKtE163ffLkB0pIg-dEK5ptM_YmJ1BCvTkbwGzHYhB-kgTyNnEJBG3laSQkqCaem_QUVd79hO1bR4epIlNr_6FJHSMstOt4yTo0/s1600-h/churro.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLaiVxNN77gYjsOkLZNbzNSxWyYlUGe9bZxpyi5C80BKtE163ffLkB0pIg-dEK5ptM_YmJ1BCvTkbwGzHYhB-kgTyNnEJBG3laSQkqCaem_QUVd79hO1bR4epIlNr_6FJHSMstOt4yTo0/s200/churro.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073185600661904002" border="0" /></a>I mentioned... Oooh we should get Churros while we're there!!!! (They sell freshly baked churros at costco). But then saddly we realized, it doesn't open for a few more days :( So we knew we wouldn't be getting churros!<br /><br />So we drive by, and oddly enough there are a bunch of police officers whisking cars into the parking lot with big signs that said "Costco VIPs enter here!" She gloated, "you see!!! It's opening tomorrow!!! Look at all these people already here." I said, "I dont admit defeat yet! I still haven't seen the sign yet!"<br /><br />So we got to the store -- the parking lot was PACKED, and sure enough it was opening on the 7th! Damn, I guess I was buying next time :(. But then we wondered... what's going on with this Costco VIP stuff??? Can we sneak in????<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY_PimSBeWm2WBQjrTTSebJ69SdS_S9XzkxnMHEPwKeQa01j5Sk5n9XM4sqmd7KCk3q1mF6cZSpO42icNFgHQISXiPA3pnnVpn7ZxB_hFNFAY1QhyaPBRb1mEBnJYuxm9ZLwhi4YWjbCA/s1600-h/cbtl_logo.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY_PimSBeWm2WBQjrTTSebJ69SdS_S9XzkxnMHEPwKeQa01j5Sk5n9XM4sqmd7KCk3q1mF6cZSpO42icNFgHQISXiPA3pnnVpn7ZxB_hFNFAY1QhyaPBRb1mEBnJYuxm9ZLwhi4YWjbCA/s200/cbtl_logo.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073186120352946834" border="0" /></a>So we walked up and pretended we had been invited. Just outside the door was a Coffee Bean and Tea leaf stand. They were offering free blended Mocha, Vanilla, and chocolate drinks! Neat! Even if we couldn't go inside we'll grab a free mocha!<br /><br />So as we were wandering about, we figured why dont we just show our membership card and try to sneak into the store? So we kind of just strolled in through the door!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQgMKmqjl1GcB8I7p10rSezJO_DkNQ9xSCVru-7dhpDP2VGz1kGeApY-ImGYGP-1VQ4vZ1-BfdfTO5vGO1Nl4w1ZIXBEAWfQ6mnWtL6_49L_d5VIUJq0STJ_fUADuyLpR-HjGvB7hr1Kc/s1600-h/CostcoDogs.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQgMKmqjl1GcB8I7p10rSezJO_DkNQ9xSCVru-7dhpDP2VGz1kGeApY-ImGYGP-1VQ4vZ1-BfdfTO5vGO1Nl4w1ZIXBEAWfQ6mnWtL6_49L_d5VIUJq0STJ_fUADuyLpR-HjGvB7hr1Kc/s200/CostcoDogs.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073186708763466402" border="0" /></a>Inside, the store was brightly lit and there were free food stands EVERYWHERE. They had Meatballs, Pasta, Hot Wings, Macaroni Salad, Vegetable Platters, Carnitas, Beef Stew, Refried Beans, Spanish Rice, Tamales, Hot Dogs, Pepperoni and Supreme Pizza, Chicken Bake, Spicy Sausages, Ice Cream, Cheese Cake, Chocolate Cake, Cream Puffs, Sodas, Coffee... It was a veritable BUFFET in there!!!<br /><br />Boy did we chow down! Free food! So dinner was taken care of which was great! And then what did we spy out of the corner of our eye? They were giving out free Churros!!!!! SWEEET! I didnt think we would get any but there they were... and they were FREE!<br /><br />On the way out we ran into the Danon Activa people, who were handing out free yogurt. So we each got three tubs of yogurt to go! Nice!<br /><br />All in all, it was a cool surprise. Had we not made the bet, or left late and decided to verify the bet, we would have totally missed out on a free meal! And it was GOOD too. Costco sells some of THE best tasting food! Yum!<br /><br />So today I lost a bet, but it was worth it!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-79229374334285056662007-06-05T21:53:00.001-07:002007-06-05T22:05:20.142-07:00Pension Day 2Another place we got to visit was the monkey show!!! Say hello to the lil monkey!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinypEpUIEQlUZ-_hcitBynuH8NdhKlJRaJp3UDWLRpFWRca6-rf8wlVbNZSFEkRifq0nLYGYUueSXl4iYLiNZJ22Mcz4IqnnYVRASw2mvBh0TpOAzfrNfcDWvcSWgBfRVA5MTumV2_S1k/s1600-h/Monkey.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinypEpUIEQlUZ-_hcitBynuH8NdhKlJRaJp3UDWLRpFWRca6-rf8wlVbNZSFEkRifq0nLYGYUueSXl4iYLiNZJ22Mcz4IqnnYVRASw2mvBh0TpOAzfrNfcDWvcSWgBfRVA5MTumV2_S1k/s400/Monkey.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810577002519042" border="0"></a><br />He can jump over stairs on his hands!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeFwGywbrtVQ1-PcDVNKuIR1zou-AuOO-nJRUVDxZRTBj8fsvk99CknrylIICsWnG_ztepV_QPHh43FYb7ba72fAhiwSm-xUplfBzOByfkeLR-dXLwpVM-ISAQM9Tr7xKmujwXEwEWRVs/s1600-h/handstand.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeFwGywbrtVQ1-PcDVNKuIR1zou-AuOO-nJRUVDxZRTBj8fsvk99CknrylIICsWnG_ztepV_QPHh43FYb7ba72fAhiwSm-xUplfBzOByfkeLR-dXLwpVM-ISAQM9Tr7xKmujwXEwEWRVs/s400/handstand.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810577002519058" border="0"></a><br />He can use Stilts!!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXqvqlw5yppR0J3J9lgLBZgjpLcT_Z_vLZnAII2yxHQK4ZmbrFDPU_MC2lCjCbxoap_MCD6Y0umM8wYwzEmwtZ5u8IaQxACPuRzW9C4hg9a0IAFPHeZ0-MqGWqmcvryRV5ZMj7F17usNo/s1600-h/Stilts.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXqvqlw5yppR0J3J9lgLBZgjpLcT_Z_vLZnAII2yxHQK4ZmbrFDPU_MC2lCjCbxoap_MCD6Y0umM8wYwzEmwtZ5u8IaQxACPuRzW9C4hg9a0IAFPHeZ0-MqGWqmcvryRV5ZMj7F17usNo/s400/Stilts.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810581297486370" border="0"></a><br />And really BIG stilts!!! Wow!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggAZjgIzIXMXUP9nI_H5nAude6dtMhSMEk9zfMFESehZn4Q6Tvz-cB7yVB7i5Kjg-PykLYStcE4yGljL1FUnvVu5YX_SUBui9rjybVpeMOEo9jahq0OSBGXfeDVeLOaowIpQYGX3apLVI/s1600-h/BigStilts.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggAZjgIzIXMXUP9nI_H5nAude6dtMhSMEk9zfMFESehZn4Q6Tvz-cB7yVB7i5Kjg-PykLYStcE4yGljL1FUnvVu5YX_SUBui9rjybVpeMOEo9jahq0OSBGXfeDVeLOaowIpQYGX3apLVI/s400/BigStilts.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810581297486386" border="0"></a><br />After the little diversion, we were back at the pension for dinner #2. Keep in mind all the food below is included in the ~$80.00 a night room. Wow what a deal!<br /><br />This time we started off with a little mixed salad with sashimi:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJCfVSSIeFvZIPZ9KgZR096k1vMdGzCudWWWNu-6oTxuJRmnGTkMqEfnQ49kVI3KLnEpjs7KO1x_AMJeej3dLwlPndTLqqxBVa23-kQeulIWMYkEgiR9JFwYkjgpsUV7jvU2HXUT_v0E/s1600-h/Salad.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJCfVSSIeFvZIPZ9KgZR096k1vMdGzCudWWWNu-6oTxuJRmnGTkMqEfnQ49kVI3KLnEpjs7KO1x_AMJeej3dLwlPndTLqqxBVa23-kQeulIWMYkEgiR9JFwYkjgpsUV7jvU2HXUT_v0E/s400/Salad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810199045396914" border="0"></a><br />Followed by scallops with fried lotus root:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh45hWdBuTGl6Ddm7dd6T2JG8_11BvFAtv1j4YfwjZEUqEaIgBvCTzRDzNp4HQFadRuifRQGFZRfC2o6SMcUz_s_FcYtoqdwRFuKAFvvwY6czyGPWoT6_q49a9wqaMQOoyRLMCwnddC9Q/s1600-h/Scallops.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh45hWdBuTGl6Ddm7dd6T2JG8_11BvFAtv1j4YfwjZEUqEaIgBvCTzRDzNp4HQFadRuifRQGFZRfC2o6SMcUz_s_FcYtoqdwRFuKAFvvwY6czyGPWoT6_q49a9wqaMQOoyRLMCwnddC9Q/s400/Scallops.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810203340364226" border="0"></a><br />And a creamy soup:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhGKi3GkBvm-x8N8c4KQz8aZLmqo7Y-uOV2OacJMt6ZnQzcnKN4NSPp80HIOc8nSEmRnbJkNzIGffL_HMo9gkbjLWdDq9mKmTrXVZNCQLnfoocZFfoB8rjUsgAvcIhK6pMvPJDy4KlnPk/s1600-h/Cream+Soup.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhGKi3GkBvm-x8N8c4KQz8aZLmqo7Y-uOV2OacJMt6ZnQzcnKN4NSPp80HIOc8nSEmRnbJkNzIGffL_HMo9gkbjLWdDq9mKmTrXVZNCQLnfoocZFfoB8rjUsgAvcIhK6pMvPJDy4KlnPk/s400/Cream+Soup.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810203340364242" border="0"></a><br />Beef stew and rice:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTAu4OyJ3FeGtlZ6yyTv5HcAYmOD01zVospvlAa8RB1iycpyWXKCtm_oUxOf_dpvI1enu53FgvkBcxlPAj_9s5K-SBUNfg4QaeRWXcQlFb4W4cCBmgYQ-4S3i_gJsM6IT8o3mWsQZ_ziI/s1600-h/Beef+Stew.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTAu4OyJ3FeGtlZ6yyTv5HcAYmOD01zVospvlAa8RB1iycpyWXKCtm_oUxOf_dpvI1enu53FgvkBcxlPAj_9s5K-SBUNfg4QaeRWXcQlFb4W4cCBmgYQ-4S3i_gJsM6IT8o3mWsQZ_ziI/s400/Beef+Stew.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810207635331554" border="0"></a><br />Dessert was mixed fruit with sorbet. The fruits were just amazing!!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_z-bDxqMw6mRZomTDtSPRnW9jrbOHNKtwBXDnPa1z3eWRGPMUDvE2BSAgSvPlreDGC3JNBTynl3gnIYZbvvNVBktJJ71u2cj9KJryhMhGtm7tCzDnNsjveNzKyGmUpbms2qRSzYuvWFY/s1600-h/Dessert.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_z-bDxqMw6mRZomTDtSPRnW9jrbOHNKtwBXDnPa1z3eWRGPMUDvE2BSAgSvPlreDGC3JNBTynl3gnIYZbvvNVBktJJ71u2cj9KJryhMhGtm7tCzDnNsjveNzKyGmUpbms2qRSzYuvWFY/s400/Dessert.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810207635331570" border="0"></a><br />The next morning, we got served an American style breakfast:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKUqy7I-sUu4vgntHQLxAnnTd3t62QWN3qCLSQouKKNS4mGwNCAqz8nbYSOezZ8RNJ6SAwEbIe68w-iCRXkyuv7vk38KCeEEl7NOyzrUu39HhAruz6J6R9NZWGOyPFgz1gZMSCN4vKQ6U/s1600-h/Breakfast.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKUqy7I-sUu4vgntHQLxAnnTd3t62QWN3qCLSQouKKNS4mGwNCAqz8nbYSOezZ8RNJ6SAwEbIe68w-iCRXkyuv7vk38KCeEEl7NOyzrUu39HhAruz6J6R9NZWGOyPFgz1gZMSCN4vKQ6U/s400/Breakfast.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072810585592453698" border="0"></a><br />These pensions have to be one of the best deals in Japan!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-42528216807517085992007-06-05T10:56:00.000-07:002007-06-05T10:41:34.395-07:00A horse is a horse of course of course...I asked my friend, "ok what's up today?" <br /><br />"We're going to check out some scenery. There's this really beautiful area here to see!"<br /><br />"Cool!" I said.<br /><br />So off to the train station. You know the train station is Ghetto when you actually have to walk across the tracks to get to the platform. All the real train stations have over / underpasses since trains come by so often you don't have time to get NEAR the track!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcahp8wyiKqHjHAafTh-28M0H0HctYkiedN35RZoymFmwPg4Pr9f5yXjvclIaa1Q2SzHR9vsEVqICck4Gz4tJDCQpVcI7XBhlVSxagRkCIQW7WoJKo-PjOV1kcGme80xu1XVPdp4CYg8s/s1600-h/GettoStation.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcahp8wyiKqHjHAafTh-28M0H0HctYkiedN35RZoymFmwPg4Pr9f5yXjvclIaa1Q2SzHR9vsEVqICck4Gz4tJDCQpVcI7XBhlVSxagRkCIQW7WoJKo-PjOV1kcGme80xu1XVPdp4CYg8s/s400/GettoStation.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072443146845313250" border="0" /></a><br />You also know you are at the Ghetto train station when there are no electric cables above it. Most of the trains in Japan are electric. These trains are Diesels!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaHJMDfyeKeFEXMbTkbX1Gok5kW7_AYRCjVJTr2Gf7sngDl-Gs9yRv22maM4aadt7WzZnBnmqVyNDrbPl_AghErspK6L3o6gid13cS8uzYOSuCWPDFTxEb4M9RPq13zxpSjLRLeU16Ug0/s1600-h/GettoTrain.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaHJMDfyeKeFEXMbTkbX1Gok5kW7_AYRCjVJTr2Gf7sngDl-Gs9yRv22maM4aadt7WzZnBnmqVyNDrbPl_AghErspK6L3o6gid13cS8uzYOSuCWPDFTxEb4M9RPq13zxpSjLRLeU16Ug0/s400/GettoTrain.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072443151140280562" border="0" /></a><br />The scenery on the train was nice. Here are a few pictures out the window. These are the horses that we ate.. *sniff*. I told my friend that I was sad for eating a horse, and he said he didn't care. I asked him, don't they look so cute there?? And he said... SO???<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJEJtGtsHoba2HqeieA2K_DpxGnx-QDpK3eYM9NgaVGWBxbldJyLWFwvXAz6px0aKilwhC4jl1vOMSfxoRfUeIN3ZBJDX-SCUoDrgCdqTe3n8rWwKM0yY6C5oZbx4LKA3JI4gEWy27ut8/s1600-h/Horses.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJEJtGtsHoba2HqeieA2K_DpxGnx-QDpK3eYM9NgaVGWBxbldJyLWFwvXAz6px0aKilwhC4jl1vOMSfxoRfUeIN3ZBJDX-SCUoDrgCdqTe3n8rWwKM0yY6C5oZbx4LKA3JI4gEWy27ut8/s400/Horses.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072443151140280578" border="0" /></a><br />These are the cows that we ate. *Sniff*. OK I'll still eat them though.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij4xA1OpB2RRGBmCJv2b8t8WksyEaZ4-BkUlqQGic-6dlgGKuByXgrjxa8683x3IBl5esCPEj-aYI9UEN2Ov6Nqrav0c3ReeK6Myh3DOvp5FEQpEVvHRKw7lAULS7IRXk0ETtIm9wEpD8/s1600-h/Cows.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij4xA1OpB2RRGBmCJv2b8t8WksyEaZ4-BkUlqQGic-6dlgGKuByXgrjxa8683x3IBl5esCPEj-aYI9UEN2Ov6Nqrav0c3ReeK6Myh3DOvp5FEQpEVvHRKw7lAULS7IRXk0ETtIm9wEpD8/s400/Cows.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072443155435247890" border="0" /></a><br />So we finally arrive to where we wanted to go. And I saw this.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqlyuWXFspqtDEFGqTT9ND9eRwx3pA0FhD3snJ4KgdKajCBwlYr-owMTSXwq6jVhvFhMxnxLRbOG2juUbR7QjM4yTlTQDcoBjO0H5bNGawjT3wY4BOzY791gwQ0snpOIEEPjYACPGazE/s1600-h/Field.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqlyuWXFspqtDEFGqTT9ND9eRwx3pA0FhD3snJ4KgdKajCBwlYr-owMTSXwq6jVhvFhMxnxLRbOG2juUbR7QjM4yTlTQDcoBjO0H5bNGawjT3wY4BOzY791gwQ0snpOIEEPjYACPGazE/s400/Field.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072443155435247906" border="0" /></a><br />Uhmmm... Ok, is it me or did he just tell me that we were going to see some beautiful areas of Japan???? We ended up in a yellow field littered with horse poop, with a black lake in the middle. Uhm.... HUH???<br /><br />So we look at the travel guide one more time. The pictures show this field lush and green and wonderful. What happened???? Oh we were here too early! It only becomes green by June!!!!! OOOPS!!!!!<br /><br />But this made up for it. That's the horse I got to ride. He provided me with one of the best moments of the trip!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhasbsa6iWWC9nnvUi1A4Z0qUTvorspjP6nc041Pv_no5YQ9Fjy-yLvxY6TjTnXIBGBH0DUbbQ50lh0W7f605f0KdItZrHONhhWIc_uTMv6wgeFGyHpSmYq2h4zlNHCO2OzJXoUg9JH5c/s1600-h/MyHorse.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhasbsa6iWWC9nnvUi1A4Z0qUTvorspjP6nc041Pv_no5YQ9Fjy-yLvxY6TjTnXIBGBH0DUbbQ50lh0W7f605f0KdItZrHONhhWIc_uTMv6wgeFGyHpSmYq2h4zlNHCO2OzJXoUg9JH5c/s400/MyHorse.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072439981454416018" border="0" /></a><br />I asked my friend again... "Look at that horse. Don't you feel bad that you ate it???" He said, "Nope not at all". And I asked him.. "would you eat that horse? The one that you just RODE?" He said, "ok not this one. But I'll eat any of the others!" Boooooo....<br /><br />On to the story. So throughout the ride my horse was always behind. Here's a picture through the horses ears. That's my friend Fu up ahead.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5sh8SQevdIOT1RvTP5NHboNfq3VoGTrXHXqSjCXGJH74WJQeA_oQsvUq9wZ1oGJfvTeZQvXbWZFZ7LXPxRr4l1qXfVCqj5HWgdK1MFmmep33YiERETkH5NT1SSRTS805akzzFn0kle8o/s1600-h/HorsesView.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5sh8SQevdIOT1RvTP5NHboNfq3VoGTrXHXqSjCXGJH74WJQeA_oQsvUq9wZ1oGJfvTeZQvXbWZFZ7LXPxRr4l1qXfVCqj5HWgdK1MFmmep33YiERETkH5NT1SSRTS805akzzFn0kle8o/s400/HorsesView.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072439985749383330" border="0" /></a><br />Near the end of the trip, we stopped to let the horses have a drink of water:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAlQYWU2mBttyVzi19rN4jGDH6ISxi5cQDz2bHpTWKyPQLRSLKMyN2w86E7s9hK11QaOc3fR4CyjvDX2YXjMSyfEi3PkF8QQwzqBNNz-dWnk3XZ_imqO7DDX_3okxzWxBwt4Avy96XCvk/s1600-h/HorsesDrinking.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAlQYWU2mBttyVzi19rN4jGDH6ISxi5cQDz2bHpTWKyPQLRSLKMyN2w86E7s9hK11QaOc3fR4CyjvDX2YXjMSyfEi3PkF8QQwzqBNNz-dWnk3XZ_imqO7DDX_3okxzWxBwt4Avy96XCvk/s400/HorsesDrinking.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072439985749383346" border="0" /></a><br />And then we continued out. Here is my friend Fu being really happy showing the Victory sign. That smile on his face did not last for long.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQXD0890w47RURRFjc6d9-7ivBL1NyeZtTnw51SYtB39As980VT5oFw27IofyYFc6TwRFtHqIqrym82iTluRIXZOm29W_3MvPiA5ne9KrJWb7bjjKzqG1z6uk4J5q_I6sZMqjjzTkcso/s1600-h/MovingOn.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQXD0890w47RURRFjc6d9-7ivBL1NyeZtTnw51SYtB39As980VT5oFw27IofyYFc6TwRFtHqIqrym82iTluRIXZOm29W_3MvPiA5ne9KrJWb7bjjKzqG1z6uk4J5q_I6sZMqjjzTkcso/s400/MovingOn.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072439990044350658" border="0" /></a><br />Another view through the horses ears. As you notice -- Fu is not in front of us. Where is fu?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioM79dL7mEB6aMiVvLooXuhykQfIOL2SD3kEosgC3y1Mhu_w8zEQaCOQLE7JUWDomDULK0VwwzpXZHIO4Tp4S6CJfzDCXh6DB30KrBp-GNfVdMzxovgmchnomgKYQ8Os_nKLYZqI5CiVc/s1600-h/InTheLead.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioM79dL7mEB6aMiVvLooXuhykQfIOL2SD3kEosgC3y1Mhu_w8zEQaCOQLE7JUWDomDULK0VwwzpXZHIO4Tp4S6CJfzDCXh6DB30KrBp-GNfVdMzxovgmchnomgKYQ8Os_nKLYZqI5CiVc/s400/InTheLead.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072439994339317970" border="0" /></a><br />Well BEHIND us of course. My horse decided he was going to run up ahead just at the last minute. What happened then? I heard this sound.<br /><br />Tooooot... Toooot....<br /><br />"Was the train driving by?"<br /><br />Fffftttt. Tooooot..... BRRrrRRBbpbppbpbpbbptttttttt<br /><br />"Hmmm what's going on????"<br /><br />From behind me I hear, "AAAUUUGGHHGH!!!!!! DID YOUR HORSE JUST FART!?!?! O M G!!!!! *cough cough cough* AAauuuggh! This is HORRIBLE!"<br /><br />HAHAHAHAHAHAhahahahaha oohhhhh that was a wonderful moment. I patted my horse on the neck and said Good Horse!!! That is payback for everything he said about eating the horses!!! LoL. My horse ROCKS.<br /><br />He ran ahead JUST so he could lay a good one on my friend :D. One of the best moments of the trip!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-73092530310932051102007-06-04T21:52:00.000-07:002007-06-04T22:30:59.688-07:00Boot Camp!Today was another successful Boot Camp with Vanessa! This time I brought my carpool / lab partner from work with me. She was such a trooper because lunch gave her a bad stomach ache (she was doubled over in pain while at work and continued to have it throughout bootcamp). I told her to not go, but she wouldn't quit and ran through the entire boot camp without complaints! Yikes! She's way tougher than me is all I can say!<br /><br /><br />Thanks Vanessa for inviting me to come by. Doing the exercises SUCKS royally. But I feel really accomplished every time we finish! (Although I'm itchy all over now!) It's all worth it. Plus I get to see 'Nessa and that's always a bright spot in the day!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-16537493669226219622007-06-04T13:35:00.000-07:002007-06-04T13:35:03.610-07:00The Second PensionAnother train ride and we arrive at Uchinomaki station. I'm finally starting to feel better now, thank goodness! Here's a picture at the station. The guy next to me is the owner of the next Pension that we went to. For $85.00 he picked us up from the train station (and took us back each day so we could go sight seeing), cooked us dinner, breakfast, and provided us a room to stay in. He did everything himself!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDzCuliVGIJoz4ZtOawpyy5s6AQ_IKQzZD_t8-F8Knim-HXN8wped4geaETxNkN279upIL5y_8ZSHEy-Q2HEircQxHYiw63HhJgfsvbE3E-lZIgaW7sqHQ61ctkJTmpa6Yj5cAmhwZsMo/s1600-h/Station.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDzCuliVGIJoz4ZtOawpyy5s6AQ_IKQzZD_t8-F8Knim-HXN8wped4geaETxNkN279upIL5y_8ZSHEy-Q2HEircQxHYiw63HhJgfsvbE3E-lZIgaW7sqHQ61ctkJTmpa6Yj5cAmhwZsMo/s400/Station.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003641047107298" border="0" /></a><br />The pension was nestled in the middle of a beautiful forest. Here are some pictures of the road leading to the place.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYfzjP2mScIJqMNKvGRJdEg7nddB1uB5hiiAXPbtPZrhKV9wb8RFC2vho3ulJjNAK_kNpNTHO_Z0tXD6oOXSo0A_O2bjUnAjQZ_ieA4THG1l3tQmvxRoIgfG_aQxtbbLbHJPLvnhaE5-c/s1600-h/ForestRoad.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYfzjP2mScIJqMNKvGRJdEg7nddB1uB5hiiAXPbtPZrhKV9wb8RFC2vho3ulJjNAK_kNpNTHO_Z0tXD6oOXSo0A_O2bjUnAjQZ_ieA4THG1l3tQmvxRoIgfG_aQxtbbLbHJPLvnhaE5-c/s400/ForestRoad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003374759134914" border="0" /></a><br />A little bit further down the road:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrFJ1h_iETTZBUylKi-gxqPDxs-ZKxsrsLO0cvtiBOmZ7NLN0BWOpjzBkkK0jHxneGcmx9UJ50dvu8dt7toc9fTon9UbdHwvxVwv3q1UgYBAKl_liwYyhzAPFtXI633JM8V90D4rIj9A/s1600-h/ForestRoad2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrFJ1h_iETTZBUylKi-gxqPDxs-ZKxsrsLO0cvtiBOmZ7NLN0BWOpjzBkkK0jHxneGcmx9UJ50dvu8dt7toc9fTon9UbdHwvxVwv3q1UgYBAKl_liwYyhzAPFtXI633JM8V90D4rIj9A/s400/ForestRoad2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003374759134930" border="0" /></a><br />And this is the pension itself:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNEsF8kp2lV-pjD6ChN3zwX17IRkyojKSAYRmq-H1swpFUITZAXkfv8sHud0am1UkKLmQ4YbGktb894L_KVH4YuUfrd-51kUq_HSfVQX7bDAQP7MqVqruTy6mnluZQOKBvwuOV1q0jv1M/s1600-h/Pension.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNEsF8kp2lV-pjD6ChN3zwX17IRkyojKSAYRmq-H1swpFUITZAXkfv8sHud0am1UkKLmQ4YbGktb894L_KVH4YuUfrd-51kUq_HSfVQX7bDAQP7MqVqruTy6mnluZQOKBvwuOV1q0jv1M/s400/Pension.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003082701358690" border="0" /></a><br />I think Jordan wanted to see some beds!!! Here you go Jordan! This was our room. We were the only ones there so he gave us the largest room! It was massive with room for 5, a little living room area, and our own bathroom.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPVpM6XSvN6SCdZUtcNC05jKtq0TYUxb9VFE9ZRNql6RFBUvVsV0i8E2ZY8pZZcKx6fs9uHEIgvD_jN0bcy1zBUBrhmsoFypR3VFJP5-tpYlRQG6z2YMfd42rWG490Z68ht5ZKfvLw784/s1600-h/Beds.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPVpM6XSvN6SCdZUtcNC05jKtq0TYUxb9VFE9ZRNql6RFBUvVsV0i8E2ZY8pZZcKx6fs9uHEIgvD_jN0bcy1zBUBrhmsoFypR3VFJP5-tpYlRQG6z2YMfd42rWG490Z68ht5ZKfvLw784/s400/Beds.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003370464167602" border="0" /></a><br />Dinner that night was great! It was also the first meal that I could actually taste after being sick. The first course is a salad dish pictured below. It was an extremely tasty salad of mixed greens, salmon, and sashimi meat. The meat tasted great. I thought it was beef at first, but after tasting it it was obvious that it wasn't beef. I later learned it was horse, which I really wouldn't want to eat :(! But it did taste good. This region we were in is apparently famous for their horse and cattle.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieh7UHkZCzA_fI4QVfTG-Pc5ga17Zo3EWN2x-Zssol-BFHDg1OTuoSzcqQuhdf3APws7d3OR6Yl1rxXyZSuzCAzYhxVRC5qYOS3-1_R6QTtdrEfgYqvXx-tEHZ8vkyrKrjtHF8Fz9OYz8/s1600-h/Salad.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieh7UHkZCzA_fI4QVfTG-Pc5ga17Zo3EWN2x-Zssol-BFHDg1OTuoSzcqQuhdf3APws7d3OR6Yl1rxXyZSuzCAzYhxVRC5qYOS3-1_R6QTtdrEfgYqvXx-tEHZ8vkyrKrjtHF8Fz9OYz8/s400/Salad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003086996326002" border="0" /></a><br />The next dish is the obligatory fish dish that comes with every meal:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBG1ijXaPISwO7l2HZQwSmpDF5vuOmhGeUqtbQuwHRDR0BpjJpqUt84DUEmgf-OE1kvnzVVS1NqIXPFXLwu4ieGNp3-5zPufBCia6qCNiR2I3GQVJ_vtnNnVW2VJhe5eA7JhxRN8Fl89Y/s1600-h/Fish.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBG1ijXaPISwO7l2HZQwSmpDF5vuOmhGeUqtbQuwHRDR0BpjJpqUt84DUEmgf-OE1kvnzVVS1NqIXPFXLwu4ieGNp3-5zPufBCia6qCNiR2I3GQVJ_vtnNnVW2VJhe5eA7JhxRN8Fl89Y/s400/Fish.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003086996326018" border="0" /></a><br />Followed by a steak that came from the locally raised cattle. It was extremely juicy and delicious!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLrcmy_M_KGAQNmmJWi92JZ-d4A0VRbn76rXVo9wCLoNUwVdpf4K_rK_MVQOnRu7sCjlUQ0orNWO370eh08j7QlBd2RpMv1vQ_uun9nTaJjBhgBm0bI1lI8ZWBqCkehaTAxbZjhvF_-Co/s1600-h/Steak.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLrcmy_M_KGAQNmmJWi92JZ-d4A0VRbn76rXVo9wCLoNUwVdpf4K_rK_MVQOnRu7sCjlUQ0orNWO370eh08j7QlBd2RpMv1vQ_uun9nTaJjBhgBm0bI1lI8ZWBqCkehaTAxbZjhvF_-Co/s400/Steak.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003091291293330" border="0" /></a><br />Dessert was some kind of pudding. Yum!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje0dGNF5HVk8sbleyQvA9IJCdD9O60tjgk0mBHW0jUn8vuI1dkH40MgKTnEr2ly2dxnLETRjGyz6Nc4KIVmL4mTfKykhGs31PdkS29mnbvm81SoVE7sndQIS7s-8fFaUBqM2FYrdCW9CM/s1600-h/Dessert.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje0dGNF5HVk8sbleyQvA9IJCdD9O60tjgk0mBHW0jUn8vuI1dkH40MgKTnEr2ly2dxnLETRjGyz6Nc4KIVmL4mTfKykhGs31PdkS29mnbvm81SoVE7sndQIS7s-8fFaUBqM2FYrdCW9CM/s400/Dessert.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072003091291293346" border="0" /></a>Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-85856168806077658702007-06-03T02:06:00.001-07:002007-06-03T17:33:48.013-07:00Loot!Last week I had dinner with Cindy to return her ahem... "Goodies" and I received some goodies in return! Cindy got me a whole set of Terra Cotta warriors. This was cool because I was looking for something to take pictures of with the new camera. So here are a few of shots. You can click them for larger versions:<br /><br />One Warrior Standing Tall:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCvAFeNX2UpsteZzga7did9eVeZE01a4S4tyNDDoM1ZpL4JFfjXX8YH5COu2t7EPEXW7oYeHVxkzKgbGaXIQaKz6rAg46M77jNYuKEIyiFwlnRZDyTDHY0gSprgmnyyYu_XJsy0CxXIV4/s1600-h/TerraCotta2_s.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCvAFeNX2UpsteZzga7did9eVeZE01a4S4tyNDDoM1ZpL4JFfjXX8YH5COu2t7EPEXW7oYeHVxkzKgbGaXIQaKz6rAg46M77jNYuKEIyiFwlnRZDyTDHY0gSprgmnyyYu_XJsy0CxXIV4/s400/TerraCotta2_s.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5071997228660934226" border="0"></a><br />The whole group of warriors and the horse: <br /><br />While I was taking this shot unfortunately there was a sudden gust of wind, which blew over the guy on the right :(. He didn't survive, but at least I got this pic!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihgr0KLz6vmKyMWH08OmVv-D_Xbstu3ZONZKz-xsQoFyKyc2kGbe4gt8dslZg_c5no-_Tu4v9gohXhPsJpUDC1zk-vc34foPUKwNZHdBHpBzhPiIai9DfN4axzMxMHmAdoB5bY5vHQCaE/s1600-h/TerraCotta_s.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihgr0KLz6vmKyMWH08OmVv-D_Xbstu3ZONZKz-xsQoFyKyc2kGbe4gt8dslZg_c5no-_Tu4v9gohXhPsJpUDC1zk-vc34foPUKwNZHdBHpBzhPiIai9DfN4axzMxMHmAdoB5bY5vHQCaE/s400/TerraCotta_s.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5071762259590104626" border="0"></a><br />Cindy also gave me a choice of shot glasses for the olympics next year. I got the Weightlifting one!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhj3dcb3nZBD13HF93ZECKjVSH1PfBTHDmOJ7JWZh6-CgVFut5_jeCLuc_H6pmfgmANI0JrurN0spvrv99uyKG7eahc5YzbTF9HEPVVryJP9uc4iFL-u4SygZnvjHv7zuTHUGGtJ8S3ck/s1600-h/Shotglass.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhj3dcb3nZBD13HF93ZECKjVSH1PfBTHDmOJ7JWZh6-CgVFut5_jeCLuc_H6pmfgmANI0JrurN0spvrv99uyKG7eahc5YzbTF9HEPVVryJP9uc4iFL-u4SygZnvjHv7zuTHUGGtJ8S3ck/s400/Shotglass.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5071762263885071938" border="0"></a><br /><br />Thanks Cindy, these were sweet gifts! I had a lot of fun photographing them. Sorry one of the warriors fell off the shelf while I was taking its picture :(.Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-72385485381280531572007-05-31T23:38:00.000-07:002007-05-31T23:56:32.625-07:00Still Sick...So the next day I was still feeling quite miserable. So I told my buddy that we should go somewhere that doesn't involve a lot of walking. He told me "no problem, we're only seeing 2 sight seeing things and it shouldn't be much walking". Cool, I thought.<br /><br />So the first stop was this place, which is an old government site. It's a gigantic empty park to walk around in. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRyvR5VG-s2siUAuifvbq_t4xnB2fk5fogiVE2ZBq9Y0SqV9OzzjnKuB5MP6QnQTu-9ru1pYoG5re0pGPNCS427v50GnwKC1tRi4wA37PO_ckll3K8IKhNTdrxbW2KdGLbnZA39vXvug4/s1600-h/GovernmentSite.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRyvR5VG-s2siUAuifvbq_t4xnB2fk5fogiVE2ZBq9Y0SqV9OzzjnKuB5MP6QnQTu-9ru1pYoG5re0pGPNCS427v50GnwKC1tRi4wA37PO_ckll3K8IKhNTdrxbW2KdGLbnZA39vXvug4/s400/GovernmentSite.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982233399608786" border="0" /></a>So we had to WALK across this park, which led us to this stream. According to the map there is a temple nearby we can see.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGdO0NL-ZKNwuXIGbAl5W_weJBLm6HcmIz9aS9JMdW-Vb1ncRrxjh0VAE2heHE1K_brFIM6caqrVRfo_p8YhWyQaISqNoa37xumBjaeudGGqpdy44eTB32BuW69ox0hpd88f15NiHlEUo/s1600-h/Stream.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGdO0NL-ZKNwuXIGbAl5W_weJBLm6HcmIz9aS9JMdW-Vb1ncRrxjh0VAE2heHE1K_brFIM6caqrVRfo_p8YhWyQaISqNoa37xumBjaeudGGqpdy44eTB32BuW69ox0hpd88f15NiHlEUo/s400/Stream.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982237694576098" border="0" /></a>We had to WALK down this road:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSNViysh9TnBKDMLSANenxIabCeZHUmlbAlaxVFMHwC47PvNOPXR9cgcR6yerVbhyff8AjcG3QzN-J2uKAe6M3Et4eFnJ-C8pkovkCU5aVL0n82Vrmy1cBtsgXMEnSQM1xrl_5Y8Qz8S4/s1600-h/Walk1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSNViysh9TnBKDMLSANenxIabCeZHUmlbAlaxVFMHwC47PvNOPXR9cgcR6yerVbhyff8AjcG3QzN-J2uKAe6M3Et4eFnJ-C8pkovkCU5aVL0n82Vrmy1cBtsgXMEnSQM1xrl_5Y8Qz8S4/s400/Walk1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982241989543410" border="0" /></a><br />And further down this road...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7-sSdJ9VSQeKuajHcPdAI9QqnVt60_htyJyVFMeFNlW4KQEPouVneaz6q4NGrXGTmT3EBWsQa7EFFE3xNuu4VxupkBoSlTJkepEbZp0IdMaWWNfkRQvc-q9p-oPMJ4YaXzXCY_OusZtk/s1600-h/Walk2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7-sSdJ9VSQeKuajHcPdAI9QqnVt60_htyJyVFMeFNlW4KQEPouVneaz6q4NGrXGTmT3EBWsQa7EFFE3xNuu4VxupkBoSlTJkepEbZp0IdMaWWNfkRQvc-q9p-oPMJ4YaXzXCY_OusZtk/s400/Walk2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982246284510722" border="0" /></a><br />And even further down this road...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgip7E1N6UsvmTuezqN2K_Ed-v1DAOb8hkuqztc7awShLhDbHWGlLxcoYa7J5Cp2jzDC6Pb_taUWnpHHr8AiDjJy21ZWbq0DUs7XTPnGTksDcpDS9w_gHLzyU2lLdg8x7k_oezTT40uneg/s1600-h/Walk3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgip7E1N6UsvmTuezqN2K_Ed-v1DAOb8hkuqztc7awShLhDbHWGlLxcoYa7J5Cp2jzDC6Pb_taUWnpHHr8AiDjJy21ZWbq0DUs7XTPnGTksDcpDS9w_gHLzyU2lLdg8x7k_oezTT40uneg/s400/Walk3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982040126080386" border="0" /></a><br />And more walking down the road... (This part was cool though cuz they had cherry blossoms along both sides of the road!)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-k8oIrMDpxLx1brJI_07FEse5GyJnlAYu4jibeBwSY3jAzyVwDRHmKdfCmSXR1xRG5L_smhCEDf4ckRrtjdATChtcfOnk-LCFlr4rzuon2PVlyKba4vkch0HvIWsRIwY_bLmktVRSZs/s1600-h/Blossoms.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-k8oIrMDpxLx1brJI_07FEse5GyJnlAYu4jibeBwSY3jAzyVwDRHmKdfCmSXR1xRG5L_smhCEDf4ckRrtjdATChtcfOnk-LCFlr4rzuon2PVlyKba4vkch0HvIWsRIwY_bLmktVRSZs/s400/Blossoms.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982044421047698" border="0" /></a><br />After about a half mile or so we come to a sign that read "Temple, 2.5 kM ahead!" I was like.. Uhm.. I'm not going to make a 2.5km walk and then walk all the way back dude! I thought we weren't going to have much walking!?!?<br /><br />He made some excuse that it looked like it was really nearby on the map. So we abandoned the temple , and got back on the bus and went to the next region.<br /><br />.... Where I got to walk up these gigantic stone steps.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifD7OzBf3ZZltbZOxlCEKsPapzka4TjgTpimQyCZncsAEqJW5xASuE0N0oPIxHd76oeR0x7E6Ctmp_g4IZTOuIvwbJTC_sG5MtrAdJADzkMYay2KjFMd5YlSn-4m8XhfEgc-gdf-vcukU/s1600-h/Steps.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifD7OzBf3ZZltbZOxlCEKsPapzka4TjgTpimQyCZncsAEqJW5xASuE0N0oPIxHd76oeR0x7E6Ctmp_g4IZTOuIvwbJTC_sG5MtrAdJADzkMYay2KjFMd5YlSn-4m8XhfEgc-gdf-vcukU/s400/Steps.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982048716015010" border="0" /></a><br />Which led to this very tall castle...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihkPdxoXu3N79UZuzz3n3eE1JQHRTohglTjtnDDJeoM8SsBE2n93otupay8nUCYPjAnT9MsCTqhuhhhPE-oejSfmZMzF4UvVcZ2vyJuT2KB_RDjlyTXqlF4nIAjA6VFdCI7cw_5LZi_sw/s1600-h/Castle.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihkPdxoXu3N79UZuzz3n3eE1JQHRTohglTjtnDDJeoM8SsBE2n93otupay8nUCYPjAnT9MsCTqhuhhhPE-oejSfmZMzF4UvVcZ2vyJuT2KB_RDjlyTXqlF4nIAjA6VFdCI7cw_5LZi_sw/s400/Castle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982053010982322" border="0" /></a><br />Where I walked flight after flight of steep, old-style wooden stairs. Did I mention I had a fever at the time and I was dizzy? Climbing the stairs was a challenge when i could barely walk straight!<br /><br />I forgot to take pictures at this point except at the top of one of the buildings, I saw this cool hole in the wall. Apparently you are supposed to stick your gun out of this hole and shoot people as they approach! Fun!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXOM-PvbVLeYBeB57AR5a3wvaE8fBgn2hIAGtMyDGBYerWntvZQLavDhmAweeMGHQWvI2CpkpmUZhSHWiE4sxBLlRmiD-JrkFk8X0h4wkJtAVaR-GPS8BHr_0mdQB-8Uy7F4d_qOlP6zQ/s1600-h/Gunport.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXOM-PvbVLeYBeB57AR5a3wvaE8fBgn2hIAGtMyDGBYerWntvZQLavDhmAweeMGHQWvI2CpkpmUZhSHWiE4sxBLlRmiD-JrkFk8X0h4wkJtAVaR-GPS8BHr_0mdQB-8Uy7F4d_qOlP6zQ/s400/Gunport.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070982053010982338" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This is the view from half way up on top of one of the smaller buildings:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiApETtRf7mPR9RS4zJbDEH1k61vz3Z8OCItHEfGTCOd8X3sKr-GvIM14BWrJPb3VX8kCW2UK7Dcia2EBuZdbc6xLlwMCReO6vidg8fAHViQTTVwrGSkl7ZbSvGiHxFhNWpLU-9Lscrv3s/s1600-h/Outside.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiApETtRf7mPR9RS4zJbDEH1k61vz3Z8OCItHEfGTCOd8X3sKr-GvIM14BWrJPb3VX8kCW2UK7Dcia2EBuZdbc6xLlwMCReO6vidg8fAHViQTTVwrGSkl7ZbSvGiHxFhNWpLU-9Lscrv3s/s400/Outside.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070984861919594002" border="0" /></a>After all that climbing i was whiped, so it was back to the next hotel to recover. These past 2 days were the worst of being sick. After that I had a stuffed nose and a cough for the rest of the trip, which was OK so long as the sore throat and fever were gone!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-42912179726093533612007-05-30T23:01:00.000-07:002007-05-31T23:58:31.765-07:00I don't remember most of these!So the day after the Kobe Beef, the cold hit me full strength. I had a sore throat, runny nose, a fever, dizzy, tired, the works! It really sucked. Since we changed hotels daily, I couldn't just hang out at the hotel either since checkout is at 10.<br /><br />So basically I had to suck it up and head out and see stuff. Many of these pictures I don't remember even taking because I must have just snapped them randomly while feeling miserable. I think the random nature of the photos reflect my state of mind :). <br /><br />I don' t remember this statue, but I think I know why I took its picture. :D<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtHF45XY41CcgHZeyAyUEdEcayrQrLApIij7B9D-Qw61qhyHC43QUh7AaSEF9frt-sBQ7i81G0fJo3nfGdIhs4ym1Jjxc3E8InktszfkDq-yPqkxKDOG50s_-HXkcg8UyYLn9zmD2h3jQ/s1600-h/P1000610.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtHF45XY41CcgHZeyAyUEdEcayrQrLApIij7B9D-Qw61qhyHC43QUh7AaSEF9frt-sBQ7i81G0fJo3nfGdIhs4ym1Jjxc3E8InktszfkDq-yPqkxKDOG50s_-HXkcg8UyYLn9zmD2h3jQ/s400/P1000610.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070602218988225874" border="0" /></a><br />I did remember this guy. We were at the Kawasaki museum and they had this robot on display. It would pick up a rubix cube that hand been randomly shuffled. It would literally "Look" at it (all 6 sides) to figure out how it was shuffled. Then it would solve it! Pretty cool.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxqTYlsbRyoQvGWhxH3afJEpVX0M8Hcfi4RKltf81Lk88TiwApLrjsNC6xUd2AiVkhp0fvrEzzUV0bgWYTbL2LAo5oMCUMfgIgf6A-hO4vZNRdTwQYLAnKVP3nIFUfzSkL57UYU-4qYpk/s1600-h/Robot.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxqTYlsbRyoQvGWhxH3afJEpVX0M8Hcfi4RKltf81Lk88TiwApLrjsNC6xUd2AiVkhp0fvrEzzUV0bgWYTbL2LAo5oMCUMfgIgf6A-hO4vZNRdTwQYLAnKVP3nIFUfzSkL57UYU-4qYpk/s400/Robot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070602227578160482" border="0" /></a><br />Uhm... This must have been at the train station. How weird!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkBgS1YdgV6MZBuZs059YdAiQkjoh5I6u0fq-xfDsu_GdFYQ01Hy34igekrcluU3K9Hi475JAZAq9oCUEWnO-szK-AaVuXWaukyWM2t-J1S4_tH4wwLKHBOdT2JfbEyQ2wlzVFsAxADiE/s1600-h/TrainStation.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkBgS1YdgV6MZBuZs059YdAiQkjoh5I6u0fq-xfDsu_GdFYQ01Hy34igekrcluU3K9Hi475JAZAq9oCUEWnO-szK-AaVuXWaukyWM2t-J1S4_tH4wwLKHBOdT2JfbEyQ2wlzVFsAxADiE/s400/TrainStation.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070602236168095090" border="0" /></a><br />This was dinner. A hot pot. I ate it, but I dont know what it tasted like because at this point i couldn't taste anything! booo! I was told it was quite good!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIrnAXh0ta-S_gzilcJ5gBe418NlxYAi1vW-jvs_M4j6oPMrm5GVJ5nnynb9Q0qpvbPUb_fyHZfrIIeCyJNlSghbrtJW7QT_1keeJ2WDYHf5oY3uY3YDwbEjCHC-Sw09XW-new6aihHAc/s1600-h/HotPot.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIrnAXh0ta-S_gzilcJ5gBe418NlxYAi1vW-jvs_M4j6oPMrm5GVJ5nnynb9Q0qpvbPUb_fyHZfrIIeCyJNlSghbrtJW7QT_1keeJ2WDYHf5oY3uY3YDwbEjCHC-Sw09XW-new6aihHAc/s400/HotPot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070601587628033282" border="0" /></a><br />While I was walking down the street I must have seen a sign for The Spaghetti Factory!!!! I didnt know Japan had a spaghetti factory. It's a great pasta place!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY9YlKTBp8ZOYK6WhwcM-enee3SyxHY3LRaccoZG0_OIVjyVOqh0Yg4sH1iYzX5Rp7hgXxX9rwabnhBxWlbOe1xPVXWWrRzk3qNUEjeB-Apf0lxYWj0qXgTWSZezkCcKTp229BbupjZQg/s1600-h/Spaghetti.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY9YlKTBp8ZOYK6WhwcM-enee3SyxHY3LRaccoZG0_OIVjyVOqh0Yg4sH1iYzX5Rp7hgXxX9rwabnhBxWlbOe1xPVXWWrRzk3qNUEjeB-Apf0lxYWj0qXgTWSZezkCcKTp229BbupjZQg/s400/Spaghetti.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070601596217967890" border="0" /></a><br />This is a photo of the garden in a temple we visited. I don't remember taking these.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5xmw8hP7G3P7Uv4MGti7wpcydgUp86bag3RQlipD-_hEcDM1wnw8_7e23W0y6l6vQlr8SIZ637qxHqvx52CL39dnd59PeHaNam7ipH5Bpi7KRiWXramP2zPuyfWEcetiu133KH6PZswc/s1600-h/TempleGarden.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5xmw8hP7G3P7Uv4MGti7wpcydgUp86bag3RQlipD-_hEcDM1wnw8_7e23W0y6l6vQlr8SIZ637qxHqvx52CL39dnd59PeHaNam7ipH5Bpi7KRiWXramP2zPuyfWEcetiu133KH6PZswc/s400/TempleGarden.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070601604807902498" border="0" /></a><br />This is the picture of the temple itself. That's my friend in the picture with the red backpack. He has a habit of walking right into the picture that im trying to take!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlhQSqLo0B4EgGo9cszY4-91ltZg9DDCWtiGp7tacwthy-SDR33t3JyastlhF1NMHLVrk1VFY34Ng1Ob3sh8bXsDjuJj6nuRy6sTkkE_09bqM8ffq9ZIm7aUC7fNlfaQmrrvrpU6wgeo/s1600-h/Temple.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlhQSqLo0B4EgGo9cszY4-91ltZg9DDCWtiGp7tacwthy-SDR33t3JyastlhF1NMHLVrk1VFY34Ng1Ob3sh8bXsDjuJj6nuRy6sTkkE_09bqM8ffq9ZIm7aUC7fNlfaQmrrvrpU6wgeo/s400/Temple.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070601609102869810" border="0" /></a><br />I think this bridge was also in the temple's garden. It was a nice place!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip2wzWJKstga9zeKRCm8XLc7Vq2O35TVnBYBjxxsZNUcFiUCXrS_xuvirWPph_KJ32YEoqI1_liGXI8VNrnf8Kx_I0DhjclSRgSyrJtS6Vta-5tjCWD-1HSfbSrovQWE213VLC5fBsUOs/s1600-h/Bridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip2wzWJKstga9zeKRCm8XLc7Vq2O35TVnBYBjxxsZNUcFiUCXrS_xuvirWPph_KJ32YEoqI1_liGXI8VNrnf8Kx_I0DhjclSRgSyrJtS6Vta-5tjCWD-1HSfbSrovQWE213VLC5fBsUOs/s400/Bridge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070601617692804418" border="0" /></a><br />Next post: More photos of random stuff!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-21848757693287973792007-05-29T21:34:00.000-07:002007-05-29T22:04:43.444-07:00KobeOur next stop was Kobe, home of the famous "Kobe Beef". Of course we couldn't pass up an opportunity to have Kobe beef while in the Kobe region itself! We went to the teppan restaurant pictured below. They were so popular that they opened a second restaurant across the street!<br /><br />For those that don't know what Kobe beef is, it is a special type of cattle in Japan which is genetically predisposed to having a lot of marbling in the meat. In the U.S., the amount of marbling in a steak is the difference between USDA "Select, Choice, or Prime" beef. The more marbling you have the higher the rating of the beef.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXicwwyfphYmPFPSLXqKpNjLT252HWTQ4A8TFMZyUN7UFpkDH3ZH53BGR0VeR0Jm0rN3nEaQr1HmzAL7t2CBb8KDQhC11yLqrIZ4fzDCP2usArkLN-aOdJX9Czs-GYZWxOnlPmrI_qrGM/s1600-h/Outside.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXicwwyfphYmPFPSLXqKpNjLT252HWTQ4A8TFMZyUN7UFpkDH3ZH53BGR0VeR0Jm0rN3nEaQr1HmzAL7t2CBb8KDQhC11yLqrIZ4fzDCP2usArkLN-aOdJX9Czs-GYZWxOnlPmrI_qrGM/s400/Outside.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070208572350645490" border="0" /></a>There were 3 choices of beef on the menu. You had "Kobe Beef", or you had "Premium Kobe Beef", or you had "Ultra Premium Kobe Beef". Of course we decided heck, if we're here we are going ultra premium!<br /><br />We knew it would be expensive when we realized that the steaks were weighed and charged in grams! We had 2 steaks, a filet mignon and a ribeye, each 260 grams. I believe the price came out to $115 per steak, which is aroudn $0.44 per gram. Below is a picture of the raw beef. It is the most marbled steak I have ever seen.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxkaR4ygS9dAyLvHzeHcHmKUotfeRCB5C-U6qjBaLr_2xha0rNgpzlKO-m18qsqPBnlitZQ3kXg984nNuaXh9kDeY2zyX7QL4s0U8mLPBAS46iTDW8Fyrt7RHW8vV0lRV1el_-715OTCY/s1600-h/Raw.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxkaR4ygS9dAyLvHzeHcHmKUotfeRCB5C-U6qjBaLr_2xha0rNgpzlKO-m18qsqPBnlitZQ3kXg984nNuaXh9kDeY2zyX7QL4s0U8mLPBAS46iTDW8Fyrt7RHW8vV0lRV1el_-715OTCY/s400/Raw.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070208349012346018" border="0" /></a><br /><br />From here, the steak is cut up into sections. The trimmed fat is set aside for a later dish. The steak itself is cut into the individual sections each served in succession so you can taste each individual area of the steak separately. Below is a video of some of the preparation. You can see him cutting off different parts of the steak and moving the meat into different piles.<br /><br /><embed width="430" height="389" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://vid175.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid175.photobucket.com/albums/w158/anotheblogger/P1000581.flv"></embed><br /><br />Then the steak is seared very quickly on the teppan grill, and served with just salt and pepper and a little fried garlic. This is the most tender / juiciest steak I have ever had!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpAQtxtdFAdxD9fet6cprXqjbvlnyRM7ywq7KY_ObfTokAMiRGeyiHQAxkP3UUg9eTnnRHXz3AiU5mWAndR-I-JOSF-90-12nUPVCng70hPD75stWFsaETJSZIwKvhhyphenhyphen1bn0q_cmCcnmw/s1600-h/Plate.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpAQtxtdFAdxD9fet6cprXqjbvlnyRM7ywq7KY_ObfTokAMiRGeyiHQAxkP3UUg9eTnnRHXz3AiU5mWAndR-I-JOSF-90-12nUPVCng70hPD75stWFsaETJSZIwKvhhyphenhyphen1bn0q_cmCcnmw/s400/Plate.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070208353307313330" border="0" /></a><br />The left over fat that was trimmed off from earlier is chopped up and used to make fried rice! That was some extremely tasty fried rice! Yum!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMUXYJBnkQ5faX1pISz1W8W71z87Yhfj7T4ceDBBmGT-2MVLh8HWsp4-cwE-qo4erHIF_sdgige59VbgfVVtjKdBtTsrx4hYi_u1e3DiqETIk-metFg2pKkI2ATnydY1vBHTY4aXucZoc/s1600-h/FriedRice.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMUXYJBnkQ5faX1pISz1W8W71z87Yhfj7T4ceDBBmGT-2MVLh8HWsp4-cwE-qo4erHIF_sdgige59VbgfVVtjKdBtTsrx4hYi_u1e3DiqETIk-metFg2pKkI2ATnydY1vBHTY4aXucZoc/s400/FriedRice.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070208357602280642" border="0" /></a><br />Needless to say, that not a single scrap was left on our plates once we were done. At $0.44 per gram even a tiny speck of meat could be $1.00's worth!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76c5EXEqq7QyhPtRcgVEYDrshGs94NyqpB4RVbXxQJVgrlbPiy8KYhzfh-RbottcOVaB7lpDxIqVX5VfLboquQwnHID6trtzOCdDsKOuHc3JLNxEOh0WYMB5G-apoB2kowxApaeABhNU/s1600-h/Empty.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76c5EXEqq7QyhPtRcgVEYDrshGs94NyqpB4RVbXxQJVgrlbPiy8KYhzfh-RbottcOVaB7lpDxIqVX5VfLboquQwnHID6trtzOCdDsKOuHc3JLNxEOh0WYMB5G-apoB2kowxApaeABhNU/s400/Empty.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070208357602280658" border="0" /></a><br />Now below is something interesting. Our hotel in Kobe had this oddity in the restroom. You know you pat on "After Shave" on the areas you had just shaved. So... what exactly are you supposed to spray "After Toilet" on????? HMmmmmmm..... I didn't try it by the way. (You can click the photo below for a larger version if its hard to read)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjERDponcWvltXdAmTPDFGdZbfEBDIvXU5KJJfl-2iaIS4CWlX7eBJUFZ-QijiT_i3k0aOKJYN0iq9wRMxHJACOCFZKJwSmvYcpGK34fhIuytTOsVB3oeseiZuu1Dg0QucmC5FXGUFo1jQ/s1600-h/After+Toilet.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjERDponcWvltXdAmTPDFGdZbfEBDIvXU5KJJfl-2iaIS4CWlX7eBJUFZ-QijiT_i3k0aOKJYN0iq9wRMxHJACOCFZKJwSmvYcpGK34fhIuytTOsVB3oeseiZuu1Dg0QucmC5FXGUFo1jQ/s400/After+Toilet.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070208361897247970" border="0" /></a><br />This was the last chance that I was able to taste good food because for the next few days I caught a cold. My friend had caught one earlier and i guess it was inevitable that I would eventually catch it too. It was a fantastic "last" meal of sorts!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4833485429666837827.post-51341048582119776592007-05-23T10:01:00.000-07:002007-05-23T09:12:08.032-07:00New CameraMy dad's friends at work recently purchased new Digital Cameras. They had been bringing all sorts of neat photos for him to see and he was impressed.<br /><br />Apparently he has the same Monkey-see Monkey-do nature as Vanessa does because soon afterwards he brought home a ton research material on digital cameras, dropped it on my desk, and tried to coerce me into buying one.<br /><br />I said, "Uhm, I already have a digital camera. Plus the one you want (Nikon D80) is $1300!" He said all his friends at work got one and he wanted one too. So he offered to split the cost with me on it. I had always been curious about these fancy cameras so I acquiesced. So this Sunday I bought this:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4VTLoMm0cycFC1X1hfDkzX9N96zvhw0SuirnZK94Czde0nv5r3Zg6NeZj0G2vOxEs1RTVzGObqn11RYJirvg5e4k840kjMufaNoAoDm69pt_tV_tzNn6aOPFdMYOpc_Ea43kl6qqXZxI/s1600-h/nikond80.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4VTLoMm0cycFC1X1hfDkzX9N96zvhw0SuirnZK94Czde0nv5r3Zg6NeZj0G2vOxEs1RTVzGObqn11RYJirvg5e4k840kjMufaNoAoDm69pt_tV_tzNn6aOPFdMYOpc_Ea43kl6qqXZxI/s400/nikond80.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5066906820536812562" border="0" /></a><br />It's a Nikon D80 Digital SLR Camera. That means that it works like a professional camera in that you look through the viewfinder (not the LCD) to frame the picture. The viewfinder gets the picture through the lens via a complex set of mirrors so you see exactly what the lens sees. Another cool feature is that the lens is detachable so you can swap it out to suit your particular purpose.<br /><br />Just as I had pulled the camera out of the box, my brother came over with my niece and demanded I took a picture of her for a birthday party card they wanted to mail out. Keep in mind I had no idea how to use the camera at this point so I set it on full auto, took her to our garden and started snapping away! P.S., I barely know anything about photography at this point, so comments are welcome ;) I think I have a lot to learn to really be able to use this camera.<br /><br />This shot is using a big zoom lens to blur the background and achieve a "portrait" look.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDIpywvwc9dW-RBCCDMe9hS3zwJIuTilB7HgREovGebHpvBs_jsYKwQ7aRtb2DJawJAnlGGODA8GiiHrZMIIjU76OjpyXCwAo0-ZApQW_OBP8Ukik76Zlbi_96zaTYL9A_vi4szHAvqU/s1600-h/DSC_0065.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDIpywvwc9dW-RBCCDMe9hS3zwJIuTilB7HgREovGebHpvBs_jsYKwQ7aRtb2DJawJAnlGGODA8GiiHrZMIIjU76OjpyXCwAo0-ZApQW_OBP8Ukik76Zlbi_96zaTYL9A_vi4szHAvqU/s400/DSC_0065.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5066906824831779906" border="0" /></a>Another cool part about SLR cameras is that they can take consecutive pictures really fast. Up to 100 shots, 3 per second. This was extremely useful because I just could not get my niece to stand still :) She ran around like a little tyrant while I tried to take these pictures! It's a miracle that any of them turned out!<br /><br />When we asked her to stand still so that I could take her picture she threw up her arms and shrugged, "Sorry Uncle James that's not possible!" :D<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfWtwjTzNEsq6Ugm3HN9LqC-yw58J-x-76o-VIIqWeoMWEuXA2jRxxztR63sOMaQeXioeggsbtme1X9wGxfVGmth0lquZ6-7GUqByc5IDFGGksyToyTdgNcU_t-DxASvHTG5Z-b1bgrHE/s1600-h/shrug.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfWtwjTzNEsq6Ugm3HN9LqC-yw58J-x-76o-VIIqWeoMWEuXA2jRxxztR63sOMaQeXioeggsbtme1X9wGxfVGmth0lquZ6-7GUqByc5IDFGGksyToyTdgNcU_t-DxASvHTG5Z-b1bgrHE/s400/shrug.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5066909281553073234" border="0" /></a><br />The ability to take a bunch of pictures in a short period of time lets you catch a cool expression right when it happens. And you never know when it will!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsrlWR2ogYN6Fs6kLYby3OHYI3H55UyvZ29i9qNM8TZkgoEqZbmdLm3eK1Nx_XfVqOlis8eNRawBm9VPozki3R9BklozeyxWfpfJK0_5c9XofdV19PDR17OBKflxicY6ZjxhfalK9whZs/s1600-h/DSC_0062.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsrlWR2ogYN6Fs6kLYby3OHYI3H55UyvZ29i9qNM8TZkgoEqZbmdLm3eK1Nx_XfVqOlis8eNRawBm9VPozki3R9BklozeyxWfpfJK0_5c9XofdV19PDR17OBKflxicY6ZjxhfalK9whZs/s400/DSC_0062.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5066906824831779890" border="0" /></a><br />I swapped to the non-zoom lens here to capture flowers in the background.:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDuya-z12OBx27uWotGyxQttASMAnOQ5wmtwhLW1m1Us9hHFeNQG7PUP3Xwf9v8129Fnn4smlPsZYElHkalsKaU1DZwRJrJbQTE8pg4IcwOvCFU2JtJLzcxWviXHXNw-N9bZaENmkk4tE/s1600-h/Flower.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDuya-z12OBx27uWotGyxQttASMAnOQ5wmtwhLW1m1Us9hHFeNQG7PUP3Xwf9v8129Fnn4smlPsZYElHkalsKaU1DZwRJrJbQTE8pg4IcwOvCFU2JtJLzcxWviXHXNw-N9bZaENmkk4tE/s400/Flower.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5066915754068788322" border="0" /></a><br />I wish I had this camera with me when I went to Japan. Even though it is so much bulkier I think it allows for much better pictures than the compact one I have!Ano the Bloggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02370184544984952064noreply@blogger.com8