On a personal level, it has bring me closer to many people :) Social networking websites, online journals/blogs, web-based messenger and even applications in the smartphones connects me to the world wherever I am... as long as there's Wifi/ internet connection. This afternoon, as I was browsing through the news feed on Facebook, I happened to come across Glenn's blog :D The things he wrote are quite interesting. I mean, some blogs that my friends kept are... kind of disgusting because all they can talk about is their boyfriends. Nevertheless, it allows me to keep in touch with the people I love and make it possible for them to continue to be part of my life. I really feel appreciative towards the people who created the applications for smartphone too coz' now I am also able to comfort and encourage my friend who's still in the midst of moving out from her breakup despite living in different time zone :D
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
What's great about living in the 21st century?
There are many reasons to what's great about living in the 21st century but one thing for sure is the wide use of technology that we cannot do without now, after we have known of it's benefits and how it has made the world smaller, warmer... like a... cocoon? :)
On a personal level, it has bring me closer to many people :) Social networking websites, online journals/blogs, web-based messenger and even applications in the smartphones connects me to the world wherever I am... as long as there's Wifi/ internet connection. This afternoon, as I was browsing through the news feed on Facebook, I happened to come across Glenn's blog :D The things he wrote are quite interesting. I mean, some blogs that my friends kept are... kind of disgusting because all they can talk about is their boyfriends. Nevertheless, it allows me to keep in touch with the people I love and make it possible for them to continue to be part of my life. I really feel appreciative towards the people who created the applications for smartphone too coz' now I am also able to comfort and encourage my friend who's still in the midst of moving out from her breakup despite living in different time zone :D
On a personal level, it has bring me closer to many people :) Social networking websites, online journals/blogs, web-based messenger and even applications in the smartphones connects me to the world wherever I am... as long as there's Wifi/ internet connection. This afternoon, as I was browsing through the news feed on Facebook, I happened to come across Glenn's blog :D The things he wrote are quite interesting. I mean, some blogs that my friends kept are... kind of disgusting because all they can talk about is their boyfriends. Nevertheless, it allows me to keep in touch with the people I love and make it possible for them to continue to be part of my life. I really feel appreciative towards the people who created the applications for smartphone too coz' now I am also able to comfort and encourage my friend who's still in the midst of moving out from her breakup despite living in different time zone :D
Veterinarian Dolittle 獣医ドリトル, The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle & Animals in Translation
Since I have been blogging about movies and dramas for the past few days, I might as well document down interesting shows/books that I have watched/read before :D
Many months ago, as I browsed through the list for Japanese Dramas, I came upon this interesting story with lots of little creatures that I love :D One of the thing that has been raised up in this story, and is still fresh in my mind, is that when we rear animals for food, we are responsible for their everything. Temple Grandin also mentioned this in her book, and therefore we should provide the best living condition & also the least painful form of death (slaughter) for these animals.
Back to this drama, this idea was actually only a small part of an episode & the main emphasis is on the owners' responsibility for their pets and how much they are willing to give in return of their pet's health. The final few episodes revolved around the responsibilities of the veterinarian and organizations in protecting these animals from harm and doing what's just. Even though the two main characters did not have very significant progress in their love relationship... well, that's not the whole focus of this drama :D
In the drama, they kept mentioning about Dolittle, Dolittle, Dolittle. So I went to check up about Dolittle and I found Doctor Dolittle who understands and speaks to animals! I read the story for free on Ipad and this is an amazing story. Whenever I read a book, my mind turns into a screen and the characters start moving with the flow of the story. It's the same for this book but there are more vibrant colors and I love the scene where the big sea monster (snail?) transports the characters home on the seabed. The image is still pretty clear in my mind :)
& here's Animal in Translation by Temple Grandin. The most interesting part is where it talks about selective breeding in the case of chickens and eventually leads them to have huge breast & swollen feet and many other problems. From then on, I stopped eating chicken for more than 3 months. Still, I love this book :)
Many months ago, as I browsed through the list for Japanese Dramas, I came upon this interesting story with lots of little creatures that I love :D One of the thing that has been raised up in this story, and is still fresh in my mind, is that when we rear animals for food, we are responsible for their everything. Temple Grandin also mentioned this in her book, and therefore we should provide the best living condition & also the least painful form of death (slaughter) for these animals.
Back to this drama, this idea was actually only a small part of an episode & the main emphasis is on the owners' responsibility for their pets and how much they are willing to give in return of their pet's health. The final few episodes revolved around the responsibilities of the veterinarian and organizations in protecting these animals from harm and doing what's just. Even though the two main characters did not have very significant progress in their love relationship... well, that's not the whole focus of this drama :D
In the drama, they kept mentioning about Dolittle, Dolittle, Dolittle. So I went to check up about Dolittle and I found Doctor Dolittle who understands and speaks to animals! I read the story for free on Ipad and this is an amazing story. Whenever I read a book, my mind turns into a screen and the characters start moving with the flow of the story. It's the same for this book but there are more vibrant colors and I love the scene where the big sea monster (snail?) transports the characters home on the seabed. The image is still pretty clear in my mind :)
& here's Animal in Translation by Temple Grandin. The most interesting part is where it talks about selective breeding in the case of chickens and eventually leads them to have huge breast & swollen feet and many other problems. From then on, I stopped eating chicken for more than 3 months. Still, I love this book :)
Experience Spring 花見 @ Incheon, Chinatown (May, 2011)
Incheon, Chinatown, where Jajiangmien was born.
Went to the nearby park hoping to chance upon flowers in this blooming season :D & we found interesting paintings along the stairs up the park :D
My travel partner:
Went to the nearby park hoping to chance upon flowers in this blooming season :D & we found interesting paintings along the stairs up the park :D
My travel partner:
Monday, May 30, 2011
Summer War サマーウオーズ
Awesome :DInteresting movie. As technology becomes more advance, our enemy has evolved too. The world has also become dangerous because everything takes place in the virtual world.
Ah. I should stop watching so much anime.
The Girl who leapt through Time
I watched this movie many years ago. The girl who leapt through time, & when I came across the live-action version, my memories of this anime came back. Live-action version has a different plot. It seems like a continual of the anime :)
Ah. So sad...Greatest Gift
The greatest gift that I received from traveling to Bangkok & Korea, besides friendship, is to be able to take a glimpse of the life of people I traveled with & met in my journey.
I don't know if this goes well with what I am going to write down later but I have ever read an article that says, to become a person who is well-liked by others, one has to learn to listen because everyone likes to talk about themselves. Give them the stage and that's the ticket to their inner life. Then again, just being a listener is not enough if I do not empathize, which is something I have always lack of. Listening is just an act of being nice while being empathy is an act of a sincere friend. I learned to be a sincere friend and truly empathize for/with them after these two trips. I wanna write them down here so that I will never forget such an important yet can be easily taken for granted gift.
In Bangkok, on a plane back to Singapore, a friend shared with me about her relationship with her father. Like many other families, father is just someone who brings back monthly allowance for the family. Her's is no different. However, their relationship had a slight turn when her grandmother passed away. That was her first time she saw her father teared. Soon after that incident, one of her friend studying the same course as her committed suicide due to depression. She tried as much as she can to overcome her grief till one day she broke down in tears in front of her father. That was the point when their relationship became one that is envied by many of us, and which her friends assumed that her father has been doting on her since young... which is not true. I also began to understand the meaning of "when you lose something, you gain something in return."
Another friend of mine had just lost a friendship before we went to Korea. Or maybe, I should say that their friendship is never the same as before. I don't know how to comfort her because I'm really not good in such things. I gave her a slice of cake which I have no idea if it tasted good. I gave her hugs which I don't know if she needs them. But I'm glad to hear that she is fine now :) Soon, as we traveled to Korea, she began to see problems in her love relationship. It's not quarrel, it's just... I don't know how to explain either but I do understand what's going on. Listening to her story and the struggles she faced, I realized that her love life, which I have always envied, aren't that flawless. At some point of time, I saw reflection of my past in her stories. Well, eventually everything went well with her boyfriend after they talked things out together :) Maybe my wish for her on the wishing wall at 63 building came true!
If I have known a Korean friend of mine earlier, I could have probably writen a note for her on the wishing wall too. I met this Korean friend during the last few days of our trip & she's a cheerful and bubbly girl who aspires to become a custom officer. We met up with her again on our last night in Korea & realized that she broke up two months ago & has yet to draw her emotions out of the situation. Her friends have been telling her that she deserves better and she should forget about the heartless man. But from the bottom of my heart, I bet that if such things were to happen on her friends, they wouldn't say such things. After we came back to Singapore, I was told that the heartless man got himself a new girlfriend and have been together for a month. I know love cannot be forced but, they had been together for a year & within a month after breakup, he got himself a new girl?! I can really feel her pain & how I wish I'm in Korea now to give her some comfort. I began to realized how little I can do for her even though I empathize for her and wish to do more. If I could write a note for her on the wishing wall...
I don't know if this goes well with what I am going to write down later but I have ever read an article that says, to become a person who is well-liked by others, one has to learn to listen because everyone likes to talk about themselves. Give them the stage and that's the ticket to their inner life. Then again, just being a listener is not enough if I do not empathize, which is something I have always lack of. Listening is just an act of being nice while being empathy is an act of a sincere friend. I learned to be a sincere friend and truly empathize for/with them after these two trips. I wanna write them down here so that I will never forget such an important yet can be easily taken for granted gift.
In Bangkok, on a plane back to Singapore, a friend shared with me about her relationship with her father. Like many other families, father is just someone who brings back monthly allowance for the family. Her's is no different. However, their relationship had a slight turn when her grandmother passed away. That was her first time she saw her father teared. Soon after that incident, one of her friend studying the same course as her committed suicide due to depression. She tried as much as she can to overcome her grief till one day she broke down in tears in front of her father. That was the point when their relationship became one that is envied by many of us, and which her friends assumed that her father has been doting on her since young... which is not true. I also began to understand the meaning of "when you lose something, you gain something in return."
Another friend of mine had just lost a friendship before we went to Korea. Or maybe, I should say that their friendship is never the same as before. I don't know how to comfort her because I'm really not good in such things. I gave her a slice of cake which I have no idea if it tasted good. I gave her hugs which I don't know if she needs them. But I'm glad to hear that she is fine now :) Soon, as we traveled to Korea, she began to see problems in her love relationship. It's not quarrel, it's just... I don't know how to explain either but I do understand what's going on. Listening to her story and the struggles she faced, I realized that her love life, which I have always envied, aren't that flawless. At some point of time, I saw reflection of my past in her stories. Well, eventually everything went well with her boyfriend after they talked things out together :) Maybe my wish for her on the wishing wall at 63 building came true!
15 May 2011
If the wishes here ever come true...my wish for a friend is... may she be happy, succeed in whatever she does, & there's always someone by her side whenever she's down & gives her the courage to move on... & her love ones to be healthy and well. May all her dreams come true. :)
If I have known a Korean friend of mine earlier, I could have probably writen a note for her on the wishing wall too. I met this Korean friend during the last few days of our trip & she's a cheerful and bubbly girl who aspires to become a custom officer. We met up with her again on our last night in Korea & realized that she broke up two months ago & has yet to draw her emotions out of the situation. Her friends have been telling her that she deserves better and she should forget about the heartless man. But from the bottom of my heart, I bet that if such things were to happen on her friends, they wouldn't say such things. After we came back to Singapore, I was told that the heartless man got himself a new girlfriend and have been together for a month. I know love cannot be forced but, they had been together for a year & within a month after breakup, he got himself a new girl?! I can really feel her pain & how I wish I'm in Korea now to give her some comfort. I began to realized how little I can do for her even though I empathize for her and wish to do more. If I could write a note for her on the wishing wall...
30 May 2011
May this friend of mine be able to stand up and move out of the tragedy... I wish for her to have at least a sincere friend who's by her side to support her and give her the courage to move on. I know in this world, there isn't a single relationship without challenges and problems, but may her next soulmate be someone who's willing to go through the hard times with her and never abandon her to manage the stress and consequences alone. May she be happy, healthy, bubbly and cheerful soon.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
49 days
Completed watching this k-drama after I came back from Korea. Even though I have always live my life with the belief of "living with no regrets", there's still things that I can't bring myself to say, do or imagine which eventually doesn't seem that necessary anymore. If I'm left with 49 days, what are the things I want to say, do or imagine? Or, how much can I say, do or imagine with just 49 days?1. Tell my mother how much I love her & thankful for her companion
2. Meeting up with my friends & tell them how much I love them & wish that I could do more for them
3. Cook a feast for all the people I love & cherish
4. Donate all my things to the people who need them more
5. Help the brother who I hated in finding a purpose in life
6. Learn at least one traditional art craft
7. Fall in love once more
I guess 49 days is not enough after all :)
Singapore to Korea (May, 2011)
I didn't know there's a butterfly garden in Singapore Changi Airport :D
My first Singapore Airline Flight :D They have all kind of entertainment facilities: movies, dramas, music, games etc.
Our first dinner with Alex & Jesse at Incheon, Bupyong.
The innocent looking green pepper that killed our taste bud :(
First time drinking beer & soju :D
My first Singapore Airline Flight :D They have all kind of entertainment facilities: movies, dramas, music, games etc.
Our first dinner with Alex & Jesse at Incheon, Bupyong.
The innocent looking green pepper that killed our taste bud :(
First time drinking beer & soju :D
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Tokyo Godfathers
Max introduced this movie to me. I don't know if the script writers have deeper intentions or messages to convey through this movie. As for me, it tells me the social issues and problems faced by people & families in Japan, or perhaps in the world. The homeless (for whatever reasons or circumstances that led them living on the streets and dark alleys). The abandon children (even though Kyoko's parents did not abandon her). The emotional needs of today's teens. The depressed families who have lost their children. Anyway, it's happy ending so I guess it has diluted these realities in the movie. Oh, & I like the humor in this movie :)Millennium Actress 千年女優
The narrative style is complex and interwoven in the style of "play within a play".
quoted from Wikipedia :P
True enough, it's kind of confusing. Watched this when I was in Korea. They got good DVD rooms and this is really a nice movie, that did touch my heart :)
Friday, May 27, 2011
Last day in Seoul
Some thoughts came to me as I started to pack my bags to leave this beautiful country, Korea. Now that I have tasted the joy in backpacking, I will not choose to go for group tours anymore. Backpacking allows me to meet many people from all over the world and makes me think about what I want to do for my life. They made me see, think, feel and believe. I hope these memories with them will stay with me as long as I can. Millions of thanks to the people I have became friends with: Chris (US, Imbak), Jason Lee Hong Joo (KOREA, Yeouido), Alex (US/KOREA), Jesse (US), Tai Young (KOREA, Busan), Aden (KOREA, Busan), Wonseok (KOREA, Busan), Choi (KOREA, backpacker friends), Simon (GERMANY), Max (GERMANY), Ji Young (KOREA, Language exchange), Hyun-uk (KOREA), Glenn (CANADA) & Tetsudo (JAPAN) for becoming part of my life. This is the awesome-est vacation I have ever had. I definitely believe that there are more to come in the future :)
Friday, May 13, 2011
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Memories @ Bangkok complied into 4 minutes
While compiling the memories I had at Bangkok with my friends, the story "Life on the Train" came into my mind. A story shared by a teacher long ago:
Life on the Train
A whole back, I read a very interesting book that compared life to a train ride or a series of train rides.
Life is like a train ride. We get on. We ride. We get off. We get back on and ride some more. There are accidents and there are delays. At certain stops there are surprises. Some of these will translate into great moments of joy, some will result in profound sorrow.
When we are born and we first board the train, we meet people whom we think will be with us for the entire journey. Those people are our parents!
Sadly, this is far from the truth. Our parents are with us for as long as we absolutely need them. They too have journeys they must complete. We live on with the memories of their love, affection, friendship, guidance and their ever presence.
There are others who board the train and who eventually become very important to us, in turn.
These people are our brothers, sisters, friends and acquaintances whom we will learn to love, and cherish.
Some people consider their journey like a jaunty tour. They will just go merrily along.
Others, will encounter many upsets, tears, losses on their journey. Others still, will linger on to offer a helping hand to anyone in need.
Some people on the train will leave an everlasting impression when they get off... Some will get on and get off the train so quickly, they will scarcely leave a sign that they ever traveled along with you or even crossed your path...
We will sometimes be upset that some passengers whom we love, will choose to sit in another compartment and leave us to travel on our own. Then again, there's nothing that says we can't seek them out anyway.
Nevertheless, once sought out and found, we may not even be able to sit next to them because the seat will already be taken.
That's okay... everyone's journey will be filled with hopes, dreams, challenges, setbacks and goodbyes. We must strive to make the best of it... no matter what...
We must constantly strive to understand our travel companions and look for the best in everyone.
Remember that at any moment during our journey, any one of our travel companions can have a weak moment and be in need of our help.
We too may vacillate or hesitate even trip... hopefully we can count on someone being there to be supportive and understanding...
The bigger mystery of our journey is that we don't know when our last stop will come. Neither do we know when our travel companions will make their last stop. Not even those sitting in the seat next to us.
Personally, I know I'll be sad to make my final stop... I'm sure of it! My separation from all those friends and acquaintances I made during the train ride will be painful. Leaving all those I'm close to will be a sad thing. But then again, I'm certain that one day I'll get to the main station only to meet up with everyone else. They'll all be carrying their baggage... most of which they didn't have when they first got on this train.
I'll be glad to see them again. I'll also be glad to have contributed to their baggage... and to have enriched their lives, just as much as they will have contributed to my baggage and enriched my life.
We're all on this train ride together. Above all, we should all try to strive to make the ride as pleasant and memorable as we can, right up until we each make the final stop and leave the train for the last time.
All Aboard! Safe Journey! Bon Voyage!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Cuisine @ Bangkok (Year 2011, April)
KFC:
A&W:
Green Tea Smoothie:
My new favorite dish, Pad Thai:
Swensen's Ice-cream!:
Coconut Drink:
Ice Monster:
Cake & Thai Ice Milk Tea:
Japanese Fooooooooood:
Seafood @ Chinatown:
Cake @ J Avenue:
Crepes & Co.:
A&W:
Green Tea Smoothie:
My new favorite dish, Pad Thai:
Swensen's Ice-cream!:
Coconut Drink:
Ice Monster:
Cake & Thai Ice Milk Tea:
Japanese Fooooooooood:
Seafood @ Chinatown:
Cake @ J Avenue:
Crepes & Co.:
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