MUSEs...

At every stage of my life, i'll always be idolizing over 1 celeb. I'd be very inspired by her style, beauty, confidence... I'd lead a parasocial life with this person and call her by her first name and know everything that's going on in her life.

When i was in Secondary school... It was the queen of caldecott, Zoe Tay. It was even before she played the Bobo character in that famous 3 face similing dolls show. Of course then she was in the unforgetable Unbeatables 1,2, 3 as LONG JIA JIA. She was like a chameleon, suited every hairstyle (which i attempted to follow closely all the time), and she looked great in photographs from every angle. She was adventurous yet she knew her limits. To be fair, she held her reigns for pretty long and she was always very very stylish before she gave birth and became the Auntie of Caldecott.

After Zoe, it was Jen. Some prefer to call her Rachel. I love her for about the same amount of time i adored Zoe. Her style is really sleek and simple, and i liked it beause i learned that you don't need to over accessorise if u're naturally stunning cos the sexiness will ooze out of your pores anyway. She's also got a great tonned bod (which i sadly don't have), and a perfect full B cup which i think is the right size. But she's become more boring and serious recently after her hard split with Brad and her rebound rendezvous with Vince.

So move over Jen, bring on Kate Walsh. If you don't watch Grey's Anatomy, you're not likely to know who she is. She plays Dr Addison Montgomery Sheppard, an reknown OB-GYN. Very low key kind of celebrity, but goddess like in everyway. She isn't instantly gorgeous when you see her, but she has this confident womanly aura about her that is mesmerizing. From a style perspective, she's got such a great bod that she can wear anything.

So there you go, my 3 A list muses. Lester would disapprove cos he don't understand how come i'd know so much about a person who doesn't even know i exist. Well, Bob Dylan and Bowie don't know he exist too. *shrug* But ok i'm way crazier than he is. But at least i've chosen respectable celebs as my idol, not Britney and certainly not Kate Hudson.

***

Just wanna also say that my heart goes out to Owen Wilson. I'm glad that God gave him a second chance and i hope he recovers from depression soon. Its a terrible illness and i don't wish it upon anybody in this world.

Living for the Weekend...

Wohoo!! Hurray!! Yo lei yo lei yo lei hee hooo..... !

I put on my newly acquired lime green yellowish puffy sleeves top, new pearl necklace from Aileen, and my IT belt tht matches with almost everything.

As i was having my coffee, i discovered that my top matches the cup i was drinking from, how bizzare.

When my boss first saw me this morning, he woke up.

***

Here's the view from my seat on a good day...Clear blue skies, cloudless, perfect visibility. This is a rare sight in Shanghai, but i must say that the frequency of clear days have been gradually increasing.

Check out the contrast on a bad day...Scary huh.

Little princesses and prince in my life...

I adore children. I love my nieces, my new nephew, and even my friends' children.

Some updates about these very important little people in my life...

Starting from the youngest to oldest...

Russel is more than a month old and becoming handsomer everyday.

Mischa is growing steadily and vertically. Looking more and more mature everyday, she even has huge ambitions, to be a CEO!. Maybe it stands for Chief Entertainment Officer. She really reminds me of my sister, more and more each day.

This is a very lovely picture of the babies...

Mischa: Russell u smell so niceeee...

Russell: I dunno i can't smell my own hair

And this is my god daughter Sonia. Her hair has grown, her eyes are rounder and rounder, and she is apparently a genius!! Must take after me. ha ha... In this video, she can count up to 16!

And this is the eldest, my darling Shannon. She's grooving to some RnB song. I don't know where she learnt the moves, but its probably a mixture of the MTV she's been watching, and some school dances she's been involved in. Reminds me of me when i was young, only i pretend alone in the room, not in front of the camera!

Feeling extremely homesick right now. Suddenly guilt stricken by the calls i never made to home, the birthdays i've missed, the presents i never gave. The friends who lent me their ears, the la kopi gatherings, the shopping trips, the movies, the pampering sessions, the bitching about life...

Elevator moments

Hollywood has portrayed too many funny moments in the elevator. In Grey's Anatomy (or Private Practice), many events happen in the lift, people profess their feelings for each other, passionately make out, or cry and have a psychotic moment when they're alone. In Desperate Housewives, Gabrielle and the Mayor shared a quickie when the lift malfunctioned. In Sex and the City, Miranda bumped into her ex-lover and decided to take the stairs for as long as she lived in the building.

I wish the truth was closer to what tinseltown portrays. The most awkward moment in a day is probably in the elevator. Its almost like entering twilight zone, a place where nothing happens.

Its too short for a real conversation to happen, but too long for it not to be awkward. When the lift is crowded, u can't speak too loud lest half the building hears it, but not saying anything creates this vacuum like sound that is too quiet for comfort.

The lift is one place where weather talk suddenly becomes interesting and engaging.
"Its so hot today, how much higher is the mercury gonna climb?"
" Yes but the weather reports say it'll rain tomorrow"
"Oh i see, wow the weather is indeed erratic, its crazy..." Silence.

Or perhaps a casual comment on today's outfit.
"You look great today"
"Oh thanks yes i bought this dress from XX place, they sell nice dresses"
"Oh really you must tell me where it is?"
"uhm well its along XX road (that probably has a million shops), u gotta make a left turn at Y road and its at the 3rd shop..." Lift door opens, and nobody bothers to follow up with the actual location of the place. But key take out is, always wear a nice outfit in case u have to make conversations in the lift.

For those who've experienced awkward elevator moments, here are some tips for you...

Employ the use of props
1. Listen to the Ipod, blast it so loud that you can't hear people say hi.
2. Wear sunglasses. Glaring lift lights can be blinding, but it also avoids eye contact.
3. Pretend to sms someone when actually u're just clearing your inbox.
4. Read a book.

When you see someone you don't want to spend the next 1 minute with..
1. Take another lift, make sure the person doesn't see you in case they figure out that you're avoiding them. If they enter the lift after you, immediately use props.
2. Pretend that you forgot something and rush off somewhere.
3. Turn to someone you like and do small talk with them instead. At least it shows u're popular and have friends.

When you see someone in the building you've been eyeing but haven't made eye contact...(BB i am not doing these i promise)
1. Go into the lift and immediately press the top most floor. Its really stalky but at least u know which floor the person gets off. Then you'll know which company he works for and can see if u have friends in that company who can help you find out more.
2. When in lift, make eye contact and smile, but be conscious of looking sexy because the distance in the lift is too close for him not to notice ur sexy neck or your beautiful hair.

Elevator etiquette- We need to observe some rules to make everyone's minute a pleasant one.
1. There's always time to take another lift. Seriously, one thing i hate is when the lift door is about the close, and someone outside presses the button to re-open the door. I mean come on, take another lift, its not life and death.
2. Move forward when the lift empties. Especially in China, morning lift journies are sardine packed, and the Chinese don't know the concept of personal space, even as the lift slowly empties, they never know how to move forward to create more space at the back.
3. Farting in the lift. Need i say anymore?

Tell us your funny lift experiences... Share the exasperation... =)

Dedicated to all who are stressed this week; Chicken Soup for the Soul

This week has been an extremely bad week for both Les and I. He's in HK working on 2 really big projects. Its annual planning period for a lot of people in the advertising industry, and somehow silly people became more infuriating this week, adding on to the frustration.

So this entry goes out to all who've had a bad week, and to my baby in HK. Some ideas to destress...

#1 Shopping

Shopping is the most healing thing for the soul... I am convinced of this. It has mended many broken hearts, build shattered esteems, fills emotional emptiness, bonds us with friends, and it lifts the economy.

In Singapore, Watson's is always crowded during lunch time (Office Aunties like to go to NTUC or Sheng Siong Supermarket), but i'm sure that 50% of the women there are not really looking to refill toiletries they used up, some just go in to "take their minds off work". I totally get it.

When in distress, buy a dress. Or shoes, or bags, or make-up.... THe endorphins match exercising... For the men, buy electronics, gym memberships, golf clubs... We all have our vices.


#2 Crooning

I haven't karaoked for close to 2 years, and i almost forgot how cathartic it is. It doesn't matter that u can't sing, or u can't reach all the high notes. Its like singing in the bathroom, only not in the bathroom. Sing for urself to hear, and for ur friends to enjoy, even if its laughing at u going off key, being tone deaf, or just goof around!

I went for my first session with Ming Yen and Kimsoon (and 2 other friends). These people are great singers! Kimsoon can sing RnB and ballads, he's like a male soprano. Mingyen has the sweetest voice on earth... The karaoke place we went to has a great system, cos there are fake claps and fake wolf whistles. So u can pretend u're having ur own concert...


I've been practising some new mandarin songs. I'm terrible cos i can't read mandarin words above 10 bi huas. So i have to either memorize them, or have someone read the words to me as i sing.

Lester gets quite petrified when i know how to singalong to a chinese tune to the radio. hee hee.


#3 Wii

I'm speaking on behalf of Lester here. He knows he's been playing too much Wii, so nowadays he just says tht he needs to "destress" to avoid mentioning the word "Wii".

He feels like he's been transported into another world, leading a 2nd life. He's playing Godfather right now, so he's been pretending to be a mafia. Its entertaining for me to watch him play cos he'll be waving his arms around like mad.


#4 Exercise

Its Lester's place of solace, something he needs to do everyweek undisturbed. Exercise releases endorphins tht makes you happy.


#5 Comfort Food
When i'm unhappy, these 5 different food groups comfort me; Chocolates, Instant Noodles, Cream Puffs, Chips, Cheesecake. I can totally understand why Britney and Jessica Simpson yo yoed when their relationship failed.

#6 Love

When all else fails... Take it from The Beatles. SINGALONg Altogether now....

All you need is love....


Happy friday my friends....

Our favourite TV Programs

Les hates all the crap i watch... ANTM, Project Runway, Tyra Banks show, The bold and the beautiful... I'm not sorry, i do like to watch silly behaviour and cheesy stuff cos its funny.

But we do catch 2 TV programs together.... Saturday Night Live and Conan O'Brien. Its one of those things tht makes u giggle uncontrollably cos its so random and dumb but so incredibly funny at the same time? I'm amazed at the writers of the show, how creative they are and how wild their thoughts can get. Its a pity u don't get both these programs in Singapore, but u can watch on YouTube!

Conan O Brien
Conan has a few "guest stars" on his show. I don't know if any of u are familiar with the HornyManatee... Its just random pictures of literally The Horny Manatee in different situations. Go to http://www.hornymanatee.com/ to check it out.

He also has other "guest stars" we love, especially the Masturbating Bear. Its just random... THe bear does nothing except masturbate when he appears... we'll go into laughing fits whenever we see him. Its also the music tht usually makes it funny.

Saturday Night Live
All the best comedians of today were/are somehow linked to SNL. Tina Fey (30 Rock and scripwriter of Mean Girls), Elaine from Seinfeld, Amy Poehler (now still in SNL)... Incredibly goofy and mad bunch of people... I'm not that good with the names, Les is the ardent fan.

This was a clip we watched recently from SNL, from their segment called the Digital Short. Its incredibly weird, but i dunno why it cracked me up with its stupidity... its so "serious" that its funny. very HUH???



I was so curious about it so i went poking around YouTube... and i realised its a spoof from OC (which i never watch, surprise surprise).

Carrie, Samantha, Miranda or Charlotte...

I know i'm about 8 years late, but i finally started watching Sex and the City religiously recently. Only cos A. I'm so bored i need good bedtime drama and i left my entire FRIENDS boxset in Singapore, B. I inherited a box set from my cousin Kim, but its season 6. So yes, i'm stuck in reverse.

I always caught Sex and the City sporadically in the past. It never showed in singapore n i never downloaded it. Only cos the few episodes i caught never really grabbed me. Its not extremely funny like Friends, its not well written as Desperate Housewives, there's no mystery and thrill like 24 or Prison Break or heroes, there's no drama like Grey's Anatomy.... Just alot of really really really nice dresses and shoes, usually mis-matched. I mean do New Yorkers really wear evening gowns to a date?

Anyway i thought what the heck i still did the character quiz...

Which Sex and the City Character Are You?
	You are Carrie. You know what you want out of a relationship and you're not afraid to keep moving until you get it. Wit and charm are your biggest turn-ons, and you like guys who appreciate you for your mind as much as your body. You have fun playing the dating game, but secretly you just can't wait to find the guy who sweeps you off your feet and carries you into the sunset.
Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com

The outcome is not a surprise... 63% of all women are Carries...23% are Samanthas, 10% Charlottes and 3% Mirandas (duh, if u're a Miranda u won't be doing this quiz OR reading this blog).

I'm a carrie, but i secretly wanna be Samantha, not cos i envy her promiscuous lifestyle, but cos i admire her confidence, security, and she knows the exact reasons behind everything she does, whether its right or wrong in the eyes of the public.

***

Anyway, i did a very Carrie thing over the weekend. I went shopping (no this is not the carrie part), it started pouring and i was most worried about my new bag tht Les bought me. I started fussing over the leather and making sure tht the rain didn't leave any blotches (thankfully it didn't).

But braving the rain was worth it cos i coveted 2 gorgeous pairs of shoes. I have no more storage space for shoes at home...

Nasi Wa Oo Ji Pa ban MTV

Good 3 minute entertainment...

Kate dearie... wake up ur idea.

Today, i lost respect for Kate Hudson. And possibly Goldie Hawn too cos she probably imparted her "wisdom" to Kate. Maybe i shd call it wisdoom.

I always thought she was rooted, not the crazy party goer wasting her life away... But her quote shocked me.

Source: Perez Hilton (there is the gay dude who rubs shoulders with all the celebs and post their stories online...)

“As primal beings, men are not supposed to be monogamous. When people ask, 'Do you believe in monogamy?’ Well, of course that's what you want. But part of what I love about men is that it's hard for them to be monogamous. Women, I think, need to spend more time understanding men than changing men. And vice versa.” Kate in Harper's Bazaar...

** Cricket sounds**

Fallacy number 1: What makes her think tht only MEN cannot be monogamous? If anything, we're all polygamous, men, women, dogs, cats, lions, tigers, seals...

Falacy number 2: Us being polygamous is one thing, but SAYING tht men is polygamous and therefore u just accept them to be is another.

Fallacy number 3: Unless she thinks she's dating men of equal order thinking as animals, sure, she better get tested for rabies then. Even if we were all intrinically hardwired to be polygamous due to survival instincts (ie u mate more get more offspring), higher order thinking differentiates human beings from animals because we are capable of reason. Capable of deeper emotions and feelings.

FORTUNATELY, her comments met with some angry retaliation from readers, who are miles more discerning and have a bit more sense than she does.

#76 - Ohreally says:
She is setting the tone in all of her relationships if she is actually saying these things to the men that she dates, what a dumb b*tch!!!!

#27 - B*TCH PLEASE! says:
IF YOU’RE GONNA BE A HOE, BE A HOE. DON’T TRY TO JUSTIFY IT WITH YOUR PRIMAL BEING BULLSHIT. AIDS, ANYONE?

many more at http://perezhilton.com/?p=3286#respond

Another except from People.com today, she speaks about Dating as a Single Mom...

"Dating becomes very different," the actress, 28, tells Harper's Bazaar for its September issue (on sale Aug. 21). "You realize after you have had children that you'll never love anything more than your child. ... So it makes the new sort of single-mom dating process very different. It's like growing up. It's adult."

But Hudson says she is still learning about romance. "A friend of mine said the greatest thing to me," she tells the magazine. "When it comes to relationships, unfortunately you've just got to be a grown-up. It doesn't mean you can't make mistakes; it doesn't mean you can't be a kid. ... But when it comes to the work of it, you just have to grow up... "

Still, when it comes to the prospect of getting married again, "I don't know. I checked that off my list of to-dos. And I can check off divorce," she says. "The idea of marriage, I realize now, no longer holds the answer to anything."

Precocity is a hollywood child star syndrome. But i didn't expect Kate to be so dumb. She only realised she has to be an adult now? Not before she gave birth, not after she gave birth, but only when she starts dating as a single mom. How can a child take care of another life?

And now she doesn't believe in marriage anymore, for someone like her she's better off not married cos she doesn't know what it is.

It infuriates me that Celebrities say such things. They need to be responsible for their lifestyle cos the world looks up to them.

You don't get married cos its time to get married (and it wasn't even time for Kate cos she was only 20!), u don't get married only cos u are passionate about the person... And u don't get divorced cos u're no longer passionate about the person!

Marriage is the highest level of commitment that 2 people can give each other cos u're promising tht only death parts you and nothing else. You are making this commitment to God and to loved ones to take care of each other. I agree that some people think there is no need for an establishment to seal commitment and i respect that, but i don't respect losing faith in it because u don't have a freaking clue what it means.

So ridiculous isn't it?

Face Recognition Technology....

U all shd try this...go to http://www.myheritage.com/

Super high tech. I do get the Shu Qi comment quite a lot, but my sister Wina looks even more like Shu Qi (jie if u're reading this u shd try...). But bloody #&$% how did Vin diesel get into the consideration set...



This is too funny....Lester looks like Hong Jing Bao and Wen Jia bao, and Margaret CHO... but there are also some very beautiful FEMALE actresses too. BB i didn't realise u are so beautiful until now.

Eugene and Esther's ROM pictures

First 3 photos by Gabriel Mendes (basically the professional looking ones la....) U can go to his website for more info... http://www.gabrielmendes.com/

The lovely couple....so much looooove....Anyway both of them look great right! Esther is so beautiful!The next picture is very characteristic of Gene and Esther. Gene is mr funny bone, mr slapstick, and Esther always rolls her eyes when he says something silly. Ok this is a very special shot to me(thank Gabriel!). Esther was talking to me on the phone, and Eugene was toasting to me (kan pai!). It was a very touching moment cos these are 2 very good friends. Words can't explain my excitement and happiness for the life they have ahead of them.

Anyway i heard that the party was great... It was so fun untilllll.....

Aiya! is that the groom lying on the floor? wake up gene! Dong4 fang2 lor! (For the english speaking crowd, dong4 fang2 means "consummate ur marriage") He must be dreaming about it tho...

Movie Marathon Reviews

We watched Die Hard 4, Evan Almighty 2, The Shooter, and The Simpson's Movie over the weekend.

Die Hard 4- This was my first die hard movie. Obviously, given a choice i would have skipped this one too but u gotta give in to a man's need for machoism. Les watches chick flicks with me too... Anyway, i fell asleep towards the end and couldn't be bothered to re-watch it. Other than Bruce Willis' bulletproof skin, Maggie Q irritates me. She's beautiful and all, but i think she should quit acting in action flicks, she cannot carry it off- she's frail and tiny and its obvious she uses a double. At least train for it and show me some abs come on. Do a Demi GI Jane. Dun think u can get away anything cos u're beautiful (i had to learn the hard way, HAR HAR HAR... kidding).





Evan Almighty 2- Sequel to Jim Carrey's Bruce Almighty. Not as good as the first, but I always enjoy Steve Carrell. The storyline is quite different too... The premise surrounds Steve Carrell being asked by God (Morgan Freeman) to build an Ark. I like the bibilical teachings in the show... like....

1. How u change the world? through a randon act of kindness...
   
2. When u wish for strength, god doesn't only give u strength but also the opportunity to be strong. .. Wow... an epihany.

The Shooter- THis is a Mark Wahlberg movie. Love the muscles... Its actually not a bad movie storyline wise. i was surprisingly entertained even tho i couldn't understand half the things he said, but it sure made him sound like he was good at whtever he was doing. Its very Bourne series come to think of it.




The Simpson's Movie- HAR HAR... Classic... After 2 days, i'm still giggling over this scene.

And i love the line from President Schwarzenegger (however u spell it...) "I am chosen to lead, not to read".

our kids

My friend Vika and I had this really weird conversation over MSN yesterday. She told me she couldn't wait for Les and I to have children. She was sure that our kids are gonna be great cos Lester's gonna be a mad dad, and i'm gonna be an ala VB (Victoria Beckham) stylo mom. She put my kids 2nd to VB's. OK i think its quite a compliment la ah....

I told her tht she can do the honours of teaching my kids how to rap, cos Vika CAN RAP. Can u imagine little ones going mahump ma hump, my lovely lady lump... (hope the kids a girl). Vika claims she has too many vices to bring up children, so i told her tht i need someone to expose them the bad stuff cos it can't be the parents right! I just believe that u don't make forbidden fruit out of anything cos u know what happened to Adam and Eve. The kids just gotta know wht's right and wrong circumstantially.

Anyway, i promised Vika that if i have a boy, i'll give him a Mohawk... Ala Kingston (Gwen Stefani's baby, SO CUTE!). But that's if the baby has hair la. U know, the paternal hair follicle genes not exactly very strong.

Anyway, i've always wanted to do a Hollywood Babies Special. Remember a while ago, the IN thing was to be pregnant, now the in thing is to have a baby. Anyway i love it how these babies look like miniatures of their parents.

#1 Suri Cruise

Most angmoh babies are blonde, but Suri has the most gorgeous dark hair. And she's clearly a product of her parents with the gorgeous eyes. I believe that its when you start having children that the parents will start to look more alike.

#2 Baby Apple Martin

If u look at Apple upclose, she looks like Daddy. Its all in the eyes. Gwyneth and Chris Martin is a very very good combination. Musically talented, and extremely jude. But Apple Martin is a cruel name.

#3 Violet Affleck

She's mini Jennifer Garner with blonde hair. This picture is so cute cos Victor Garber (this guy in the pic) is Garner's on screen dad on Alias. So funny, old man carrying a little pram. Anyway, Jennifer Garner has become some sort of Auntie ever since she gave birth. Apparently she's pregnant again.

#4 Ryder Robinson-Hudson

Gotta love long blonde hair on small boys. Daddy Chris Robinson has long hair too! Kate is one of my favourite young stars.

You know u'd expect me to put Shiloh Jolie-Pitt amongst the list of cute babies i've shown here, but poor shiloh has a big pair of shoes to fill given tht her parents are 2 of the most gorgeous people in the world (that's what they say but i don't really agree). I won't pass my judgement on her yet. hee hee.... See for urself.

Anyway, babies are a blessing. Girl or Boy, Blonde or Brunette, cute or not cute.

Long live Mr and Mrs Eugene Tan!

hip hip hooray!!! I'm so happy that 2 of my great pals from the dive kaki gang has finally tied the knot. Congratulations to Esther and Eugene.

August 2nd is also a special day to them cos its both their birthdays, how cute! That way, u'll never forget birthdays and anniversaries, is that a match made in heaven or what!

I'm so sad that i can't be there to experience this very special day with them. From the bottom of my heart, I sincerely wish them both the greatest future ahead. New husband, new wife, new roles to play, new challenges in live... Its all gonna be so exciting.

Gene and Esther: if u're reading this, I PROMISE I WILL NOT MISS YOUR WEDDING on 25th DECEMBER! uugh i love u both so much i wanna cry in happiness.

PS: Gabriel, if u're reading this pls send me some nice pictures of them both so i can post it on my blog...

Right Brain vs Left brain....

Take this simple quiz to decide whether u're a right or a left brain.

There's this question in the quiz;

Are u better at Algebra or Geometry? I know none of u will ever guess tht i ROCK at both Algebra and Geometry, in fact i'm a straight A math student (i'm not boasting its geeky), I am so good at stats and vectors too. The only topic i never understood was Complex Numbers. If u dunno wht it is, u ain't missing anything (btw complex numbers is square-root of negative numbers denoted by i, I am amazed at how useless this piece of information, and how random i'm being right now).

You Are 30% Left Brained, 70% Right Brained

The left side of your brain controls verbal ability, attention to detail, and reasoning. Left brained people are good at communication and persuading others. If you're left brained, you are likely good at math and logic. Your left brain prefers dogs, reading, and quiet. The right side of your brain is all about creativity and flexibility. Daring and intuitive, right brained people see the world in their unique way. If you're right brained, you likely have a talent for creative writing and art. Your right brain prefers day dreaming, philosophy, and sports.

Are You Right or Left Brained?

Fujirock Festival '07- The life in the mountains

2nd part of our fujirock adventure as promised!

Ladies and gents, this is the view of Nigiita's campsite. Can u see the little colourful dots on the grass tht looks like litter from afar? Those are our tents! Its a very hilly slopey place, so most of the tents are pitched on slopes.... U get the flat ground if u arrive really early.

I proudly present our tent! Its a 2 man tent (ie only enough for 2 adults to lie side by side. Lester bought the tent last year cos he thought yellow was easily identifiable, but apparently it attracts every possible insect on earth. They are attracted to yellow like bees to honey.

Our tent was pitched on a slope, so sleeping was terrible cos we kept rolling all over the place. But i'm thankful tht it gave us the shelter tht we needed at night, temp goes does to the teens usually. I was also very equipped to camp with my newly acquired VERY thick sleeping bag, inflatable pillow, self-inflate mattress, and neck pillow! Princess la...

This is our fujirock guide that we can hang around our neck....

Full lineup information with a very cute map of the entire campsite+concert layout. Dun be fooled by the cartoonish appearance of the map, the terrain is hilly and rough, one stage to another takes about half hour of brisk walking. As u can see, the campsite is far left, separate from the concert grounds, so to walk back to camp (up the slope) was incredibly strenous.

These wristbands were our proof of legit entry to both campsite and rock fest. Checkpoints everywhere to ensure there are no gatecrashers....
Armed with the necessity (Cap, sunnies, poncho and a good pair of walking shoes), we entered into the concert grounds.

This is one of the eating areas. There's a wide variety to choose from, one area for jap food, another area for International cuisine (Nasi Bryiani all). Problem with ordering good is tht we don't know what we're eating cos the menu is in japanese. So we don't order anything without pictures.

This is one of the rivers tht runs through the campsite. Its nice to dip ur feet in the water on a hot day. Will i do it when i'm in China, no. Somehow the cleanliness of the japs make communal things more appealing. I mean, thousands of pple using porta-loos and not a single choked WC in 4 days. The toilet seats are practically beaming at you.

There are always performers in between shows to entertain the idling crowd. This jap dude was juggling firesticks.

Tired party goers snoozing on a hot day. Its funny... the japs can sleep anywhere randomly. Alot of them came to the fest armed with just a backpack. So they sleep under the stars. They damn hardy...

As you can see, snoozing in between acts is common. These are our friends. Left to right, Corrine, Ching Ian, Annie and Chris. Say hi guys....No? Ok... zzz....

This is us on green stage, Day 1.... SUNNY AND SMILEY....

On Day 2, at the exact same spot. Happy but a bit tired liao...

Day 3... So dreary and jialat cos it rained! My feet was completely soaked cos i was wearing cheap fake puma shoes. So gao wei.

Night time at fujirock was the best. We did this boardwalk thing together (essentially the path from one stage to the other) and we saw the most amazing installation EVER. Multiple mirror balls hanging in the midst of the forrest. Who the hell would think of something like that??!! The effect is so amazing. u must take a look at the video.

We also took this cable car ride up the tip of Nigiita. The view of the ride overlooked the Tashiro lake, and we could see the entire campsite from up above. Amazing....

When we arrived at the tip, we entered into an adult toyland. I'd like to call this place The Paladise (after the jap pronounciation of Paradise). The place was also really awesome. It must have been 11am or so, and already there were adults dancing to trancy music. How cooollll... Pple could literally catch butterflies with nets here.

Anyway, can u believe that jap parents would bring their kids to a festival like this?? i took picture with one of them. She was so adorable, she made tht cute twist sign cos her mom told her to do it.

Lester also wanted to have a go at the tarzan thing. so here he goes....

Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.......................... ahya, didn't take at the right moment.There's a restaurant in the paladise and there are proper toilets!! ARGH! FREAKOUT! Up near the toilet Q, there were a bunch of Jap folk singers crooning for the crowd. It was so warm and lovely.

Another quite warm and lovely thing is the toilet seats. Its a skii resort so the toilet seats are heated (woah.....). This is like THE funniest yet functional japanese invention. Basically, the shower and the bidet is a common concept, the japs are hygiene freaks so they'd wash after every number (even tho my gynae would advise not more than twice a day). But if u take a close look at the button on the right, it says "flushing sound", so u get like FAKE flushing sounds! HOW brilliant!!!! In true polite japanese style, they invented something to mask the embarrasing plonking sound of huge deposits. That's what you call, R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

Seriously, this trip was way more awesome than the first. There's no better way of understanding the jap culture than actually living with them in the worst possible conditions. They are really non-confrontational, polite, clean, fashionable, thoughtful, honest, efficient and SUPER KAWAII man. I'll do this again. I'll rough it out again next year, and i'll be a better camper!! HAIK!

Back to Civillisation

Of course all good things come to an end. We bid farewell to Nigiita and returned to Tokyo...

Here are some shots we took in Tokyo.

Its the summer festival in Japan, so they lined the roads in Ebisu area with these pretty lamps.

This is a picture of the Train system in Japan. A whopping 26 lines in Tokyo alone. No country can beat this.

This is the busy junction at Shibuya. One of the shopping districts we didn't cover on our first trip.

Princess must stay in hotel suited for royalty. So we stayed at the princess garden Meguro near the Yamanote Meguro Station. Lovely lovely neighbourhood. It has everything you need, and its so near to the shopping districts, strongly recommend staying there.

This is the garden complete with a coy pond....

And i really love children... so couldn't resist a picture when i saw a bunch of em playin, erm, with pebbles.

So this ends our Fujirock '07 adventure. Till next year! Sayonara!