squarepatty

2007-02-06T23:46:00.000-08:00

_New York

I just came back from New York on Sunday night. My first impression of New York was that it's very similar to LA except much much colder. Although it was cold, I like the lifestyle of New York but I dont like the weather. I like being able to take the subway to anywhere. Maybe I'll try living in New York one day. I'm sure I can get used to the weather. (well maybe.. i'm a big chicken when it comes to cold temps)

It was 25 degrees in New York with bone chilling winds the day we left, while it was 85 degrees in Los Angeles on the same day. Oooo i love southern california weather.. = )

2007-01-21T02:29:00.000-08:00

soo many decisions lately... what am i going to do with my life!! =O new job.. decisions about japan... AhHhh.. =O i need a breather! well one thing for sure, i'm goign to stick with landscape architecture till i grow old unless i start to realize that i suck and i'm not creative at all =P

2006-10-04T22:15:00.000-07:00

_Mexico

2006-10-04T22:11:00.000-07:00

_big Bear... hmmm someone send me more pictures from big bear! =)

Yay my first time reading a horse... Now if i can save up $2000 and find a ranch.. i can get my own horse!

2006-09-06T23:22:00.000-07:00

Hawaii!!

i miss the turtles!

if someone pays for my airplane ticket to hawaii, i will show u the secret sea turtle hideout. =D

2006-08-13T19:04:00.000-07:00

So I'm wondering... when people with small eyes laugh, do your eyes get watery? Mines does!! I'm wondering if this happens to other people too.. =? I hope it's normal.. =I

2006-07-30T15:15:00.000-07:00

It's almost been a full month of working full time.. and i'm already poooped out. hehehe But it's not as tiring as field trip days at summer camp. hmmm i just need to find an apt asap.. = )

2006-06-14T15:29:00.000-07:00

= (

2006-05-21T21:45:00.000-07:00

only 3 more weeks left in my undergraduate career =O

i'm both worried, happy, and sad. =I

papers and projects are due soon and im so behind.. (i agree with everybody that italy screwed up our working habits.. =P )

lots of things are happening in my life soon... moving to the OC, taking my first step into the working world, and figuring out what i wanna do with my career. =O

i think whoever is reading this should buy me a ice cream to de-stress me out. Thanks buddy! =D

2006-05-12T00:03:00.000-07:00

I went to San Diego last wednesday on a day field trip to look at the Stuart art collection at UCSD campus, the Salk Insitute and the Neuroscience center. Although i have been to UCSD a couple of times, i haven't seen the new Hawkinson's Bear by the Engineering bldg or noticed other art works like the green table. I thought the library sliding doors were really kewl! I never really noticed it before but the sliding doors changes color because as the doors open and close, the colored panels cross over each other, visually mixing into new colors. The purple slides in with the yellow to make orange when the door slides open. It's a simple idea of mixing colors but who would have thought of that!! some people are just simply amazing!! =)

@ The Neuroscience Center in La Jolla

2006-04-20T21:55:00.000-07:00

I went to an temporary art exhibit in Santa Monica called Ashes and Snow. The building that houses the exhibit is made from shipping containers, paper tubes, steel, and etc. It's pretty kewl. The sepia photographs in the museum are amazing. You can see some of them on the site: http://www.ashesandsnow.com/

2006-04-20T20:08:00.000-07:00

Yay! I went to the Yellowcard & MAE concert at Cal Poly.

I finally get to see MAE perform since i missed out last time. Yellowcard was amazing in concert. The cd does not do justice to them.

Sean Mackin on violin is so amazing.. i think i love him. jk =)

MAE!!! (if you want any of their songs, i'll send them to u!)

Yellowcard!

2006-04-07T18:14:00.000-07:00

i got myself in trouble.. i always get myself in these situations. =(

2006-04-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

We’ll start a fire,
And burn some bridges
We'll make it out of here tonight

We need some leverage
We can’t seem to open up
The locks are far too tight
And the chains are far too strong, far too strong.

Up to my eyes
And I’m seeing without you, without you
Up to my heart
When I’m bleeding without you, without you.

We’ll start a fire,
And burn some bridges
We'll make it out of here tonight
We’ll start a fire,
And burn some bridges
We'll make it out of here tonight

Please someone help me
I’m dying here in front of you
Please someone help me
I’m dying here in front of you.
With a hundred thousands lights
Timing as everything will
With a hundred thousand lights
Timing, timing is everything to me

Escape Artists Never Die_ Funeral For a Friend

http://youtube.com/watch?v=lk8yf3KVs2E (link to the video)

2006-04-03T19:56:00.000-07:00

Rosaritos, Mexico

I took a late spring break trip to Rosaritos. It was my first time going to Mexico so it was pretty fun. I never ate so many tacos in one weekend. I think we ate tacos for every meal, except once for breakfast. Haha the tacos were good though. =D Rosaritos was so packed since it was spring break. The main strip is like no other, there's bars and clubs everywhere u turn. So we pretty much went bar/club hopping for the both nights. The drinks weren't very good.. they were too sweet especially at the places where drinks were for 2 for 1 or all you can drink. =P In the afternoon, we just shopped, went to the beach, and rest. =)

dont worry guys, i wont post the other incriminating pictures =)

(you guys look so cute! )

2006-03-26T20:57:00.000-08:00

_Spring break

sighs...back to school tomorrow. It was nice not having to worry about school, sleeping late, waking up at 10am. i was a bum the whole week! =) hmm let's see what did i do for spring break. I went to a irish pub for St. Patricks Day.. that was kinda a disaster but it was a new experience. It was soo crowded.. i had to squirm my way around. Thanks Lin, Joey, and Danny for coming along! =)

I went bowling with Joey, Siqi, and Anna. I kicked your butt joey! ^___^ V

-the winning team! V for victory! =D

hmm i also went to a party and got alot of fobby drinks this week. I also ate alot this week... italian pizza... korean food... japanese food... ramen.. But luckily i went to the gym alot this week. I tried swimming in the pool but i can't breathe properly. I need more swimming lessons.

hmm and worrying about finding a job...i dont have as many qualifications as other people such as prior office experience or an expert in Autocad. SIGHS =(

2006-03-12T15:25:00.000-08:00

school sucks =P

2006-03-07T00:54:00.000-08:00

_Score!

I'm going to three concerts these next two months! i'm stoked!

March 25: Funeral For A Friend @ The Glass House in Pomona

April 1st: Fall Out Boy

April 19: Yellowcard and MAE are performing at Cal Poly! (hopefully i can get tickets! I missed out on the MAE concert last year at the glass house because i didnt buy tickets early.)

2006-03-05T17:51:00.000-08:00

_the perfect ramen spoon

Today I had lunch at Shin-Sen Gumi Ramen which was very yummie...=D.. But i soon realized that they have the perfect ramen spoon!

you can place it on the edge of the bowl and it wouldn't fall into the soup.. pretty kewl! if anybody every see this ramen spoon for sale, can you help me pick up two? =D

2006-02-16T20:35:00.000-08:00

Camping @ The Valley of Fire & Double Negative

@Double Negative

It was soooo cold at night. It was about 35 degrees overnight! The moon was very bright in the sky so I couldn't see as many stars as last time.

@ The Dry Lake Bed (I felt like i was on the moon. The ground was just a blanket of white and it felt very chunchy when you step on it.)

2005-12-30T23:50:00.000-08:00

San Diego 12.29

.Salk Institute

Geisel Library @ UCSD

blue fence by Robert Irwin (does someone know the concept behind this?)

the coast!

my feet

2005-12-28T23:54:00.000-08:00

my love.... = )

i really want a land turtle now but my room is too small.. but when i get my own house, i'll build a turtle pond full of red ear sliders and cumberland turtles. Why am i so obsessed with turtles? must be because it was one of my first pets and from the book Tales of A Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume. I still remember my turtles' names... (Pagan, Bubba, Magic, Dribble)

this is the picture of the turtle that lives in the courtyard of the school in italia

2005-12-28T23:45:00.000-08:00

Snowboarding at Mt. High..

It was my second time snowboarding but i fell so many times. I got so sore on my shoulders but it was fun. A week later, i went again with Albert and got better. I tried to carve close to my last run and i fell hard on my back. hehehhehee takes alot of practice! I'll get it down!! At least Albert got carving down! good job! = )

2005-12-23T01:51:00.000-08:00

my feeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet

2005-11-15T15:14:00.000-08:00

_Interlaken Switzerland
We rented Smart Cars and drove all the way from Florence to Switzerland. Italy Road Trip!! =) It took about 7 hours. =O But it was so fun!! The mountains are so beautiful. It's amazing... I can't even explain it with words so i'll show you pics! =)

2005-10-26T15:43:00.000-07:00

_Spring Break Part II (one week of break!)

_Athens 10-17 to 10-22

Acropolis

The island of Aegina. The water is sooo blue and clear.. =O

Temple of Zeus

Temple of Poseidon

2005-10-26T15:32:00.000-07:00

_Spring Break (one week of break!)

Paris 10-13 till 10_17

2005-10-26T14:40:00.000-07:00

Venice Field Trip 10-10 to 10-13

The transportation system is so different in Venice. There's a river that runs right through Venice. Everybody takes ferries to get around the main island and from island to island. Most residents seem to have their own boats. The ferries are pretty slow but it's fun to get from place to place just by hopping on a boat.

2005-10-09T15:18:00.000-07:00

things i do in italy that i dont normally do back in the states:

_drink water right out of the faucet (I drink tap water everyday for lunch and dinner. The water is supposely very clean.)

_take the train/bus everywhere i go
_go to an 80s theme night @ the bar (i had a blast!)

_walk up steep 17% slopes
_pick grapes (messy, but lots of fun)
_eat gelato almost everyday
_eat pasta everyday instead of rice

2005-10-08T16:31:00.000-07:00

Spontaneous Weekend... Oct 6 - Oct 8

We left school on thursday night and took the train out to Firenze so we can catch the night train to Switzerland.. But there were some complications with purchasing the tickets so we end up not being able to go.. =( So we were stick in Firenze because there were no more trains back to school so we end up spending the night at our friend's apt. The next morning we decided to go to Amalfi Coast and Pompeii. We left Florence at 1 and didnt get to Sorrento till about 8. We decided to stay in Sorrento since it was getting late. We walked around looking for hotels but they were all booked. Finally we found this 5 star hotel that was 200 euros per night for 3 people. But we were desperate so we just paid it. The hotel was really nice! It had a nice view of the ocean from our room. It's probably gonna be the best hotel i ever stayed in Italy. The breakfast the next morning was soo good..... I guess because i haven't had a real breakfast for a long time. But I had pastries, omlettes, meats & cheese, champagne, juice, and fruits.. Mmm... =D... The best breakfast I had in Italy! = )
Well enough about food. Sorrento is sooo beautiful. I wish i could relax by the ocean the whole day.. The water is so warm and clear. I could see fishes and sea urchins in the water.. Oh and one of my dreams came true. I finally got to see Pompeii! =) I always wanted to go since the time i learned about it when i was in elementary school. It's pretty amazing how this ancient city was so advanced. They have displays of people who were buried alived by the ashes. It looks like they are frozen in time. It's pretty sad.. =(

Sorrento

Pompeii

pretty creepy...

2005-10-01T17:03:00.000-07:00

_Pisa 10-1-05
The tower looks so much bigger in person than pictures i have seen.

Chinese food in Arezzo afterwards =)

2005-10-01T16:39:00.000-07:00

_Field Trip Day 9-30-05

_Villa Lante in Bagnaia

Ahh.. i ate too much gelato.. i can't squeeze in

I saw this funny sign as we were walking back to the bus. =P

_ Monster Garden

Ahhh =O im being eaten alive

Giant Turtle

2005-10-01T16:23:00.000-07:00

_Assisi 9-28-05 (The town of Assisi is so beautiful..)

Basilica of Saint Francesco

Fortress

2005-10-01T16:13:00.000-07:00

_Castiligion Florentino Parade 9-24-05

2005-10-01T16:00:00.000-07:00

_Montecchio Castle (Medieval Festival) 9-25-05

View of the castle from the bottom of the hill

crazy looking plant (the leaves are translucent)

2005-10-01T15:38:00.000-07:00

_Grape Harvest 9-24-05

We went to a local winery and picked grapes in the field for about 2 hours. It was hard & messy work but it was fun! =)

Afterwards, we empty the crates of grapes we picked onto the converyor belt. The machine is kewl, it seperates the grapes from the stems and crushes it to make wine.

Us being silly =P

little kids making wine the old fashion way for fun

2005-09-22T16:14:00.000-07:00

_Roma 9.14 - 9.17

Train Ride to Roma (2 1/2 hours) x__x oOo Zz...

Day 1: Villa d'Este in Tivoli

Day 2: Roma
We pretty much walked all of Rome in a day. It was awesome to see all the sites like the Colosseum, Pantheon, and Forum up close. It's amazing how these detailed structures were built so long ago without modern technology. I have seen slides of these sites in school but I never thought i would have the opportunity to see them in person. I'm feel so lucky..

_Roman Forum

_ Colosseum

_Trevi Fountain (The tradition is that you're are suppose throw a coin over your shoulder into the fountain to ensure that you will come back to Rome again.)

_Spanish Steps

roomates picture (room 25)

_St. Peters

_Pantheon

_Mouth of Truth (Legend has it that it will bite your hand off if you lie.)

Day 3: x__x

Today, we were supposed to go to Pompeii for the day but we missed the train to Pompeii by 2 mins.. Then the doors of the next train wouldnt close so they had to empty out the whole train. We figure we wouldn't make it to Pompeii in time so we end up walking around Naples. I really wanted to go to Pompeii too.. =*( The first half of Naples was pretty bad.. we saw druggies poking themselves with needles. But after we hit downtown Naples, it got alot better. After we ate dinner, we got lost. x__x We thought that the train station was only like 2 miles away but in reality we walked for over an hour and still didnt see it. We missed the 7:30 train and end up arriving at Rome around 11:30.. We were soo tired.. We just wanted to shower and sleep. But missing Pompeii wasn't even the worse part of the day. We reserved rooms at this hostel that was near the train station. It was only 22 euros/per person. The picture in the brochure looked pretty decent and it said there was a private bath, tv, and such. But when we checked in to the room, it had none of those things. It was a public restroom and beds with just sheets. No towels or blankets. One of the windows was broken so they used cardboard to cover it up x_x.. The worse thing was the restroom. It looked so nasty.. the toliet seat cover was cracked, there were stains.. Ahh.. =O.. So we decided to all rough it out and no shower till we get back to school. Then I woke up in the middle of the night and saw a bug on my bed. When I got up, I saw two more on my bed. =O I was freaked out.. I just went to the other bed and sat in the corner while everybody else slept. Eventually I fell asleep.. But that was the worse experience in Italy so far.. Although it's kinda funny now that I think about it. heheheh =)

Bruise from carrying my backpack all day =I

Day 4: St. Peter's & Sistine Chapel (we were all smelly walking around rome =P )
One word.. Sistine Chapel = left me speechless =O

School of Athens

ceiling of Sistine Chapel

@ the Gelateria after a long shower

2005-09-09T12:37:00.000-07:00

_my day in Cortona 9-9-05

yummie watermelon.. .. =D

steep x_x

walking on the top floor of the fortress ( i felt like i was living in the medieval times..)

2005-09-08T15:13:00.000-07:00

_Castiglion Fiorentino

I been uploading pictures of other cities but not of the city that is my home for the next 2 months.

foggy morning (so picturesque)

view of the valley

2005-09-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

_my day in florence (firenze) 9-7-05

view of the Duomo

bridge (so pretty)

it's amazing how everything is so detailed =O

walking into the forest of doom =O

2005-09-05T06:22:00.000-07:00

My day in Arezzo 9-04-05 . ....

Jousting competiton =O
They split the city of Arezzo into different districts/teams. Once a year, they have a jousting competition and the whole city comes out to cheer on their neighborhood with flags, and pins. But i didnt get to see the competition. They required tickets this year which were sold out... =(

Cemetery (crazy huh!)

On top of the world! (The hike up there was so tiring but the view made it all worth it.)

Tree climbing... well not really.. the branch was low on the ground... =)
and advertising for Lemon Soda =)

me and my roomie helen =)

ready to go home... x_x

2005-09-03T11:36:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, = )

I just arrived in Castiglion Fiorentino this afternoon. I left on Thursday evening from LAX to Rome for a 10 hour flight to London. Then we waited at the airport for 5 hours till our next flight to Rome. I am so forgetful. = / I left my manga in the magazine pouch on the airplane. I didnt even get a chance to read it yet.. = ( sighs.. Since i arrived late in Rome, we stayed overnight at a hotel. The funniest thing happened. We were trying to find the stairs but end up using the service stairs. But after walking down 1 flight of stairs, we tried opening the door but it was locked! The worse thing is that the door we came in from was locked too. We were freaking out, thinking that we would have to stay overnight in the stairs. But luckily, the last flight of stairs had a service door that wasn't locked. =) The next morning, we took two trains to get to Castigion Florentino! Im soo pooped out. jet lag.. I been trying to stay awake so I can get my sleeping sch back on track. We just had dinner, the food here is really good!! Who would have thought that dorm food can be so yummie.. OH!! and there's a family of tortoises living in the lower courtyard!!! so happy! =)
and we got free train tickets to go to Arezzo to watch the jousting competition tomorrow! Im so excited! You guys know i love medieval things. =) I havent had a chance to try gelato yet, but i will tomorrow for sure! The lifestyle here is so different. In California everything is so fast paced. But in this town, it's so quiet and peaceful that you have time to just lounge around and enjoy the scenery. Hopefully i will still feel this way when i have projects due left and right. The city is so different. It's as if you walked into a storybook. =) I think a bunch of us are going to head to this bar/lounge called Garden Underground right now watch a local italian band. The perfect name! =) I'll post pictures of the jousting festival tomorrow! =)