a nice promenade

beautifully manicured lawns, trees and clay paths in the jardin.

bon appétit!

celina and my first breakfast in paris! of course on the menu was a baguette and crêpes!

later on, we discover the great meals at monoprix are cheap and delicious, and of course, i end up eating a few "chocolatines" also known as pain au chocolat (chocolate croissants!). mmmm so awesome.

water anyone?

a huge fountain on the way to the louvre from the jardin des tuileries. i swear, europe totally knows how to do it up with the fountains. it makes for the best chill out spots anywhere! i think vancouver should get into it.

l'obélisque

yes, the obelisk. how do they keep the gold all shiny?..

l'arc de triomphe

it looks calm now, but at night it's like waiting to see accidents happen! and when you ride around it... hold on!!

chez clément, elysées

the seats were made out of jeans, and the light fixtures were made out of welded spoons!!

after a long day of walking around (and a little bit of shopping), celina and i decided to grab a nice dinner. we stepped into chez clément, elysées almost right away. the decor was amazing and the food (and prices) were great. i checked out the site and apparently they have a dozen restaurants in paris and the surrounding paris areas, all with different ambiance and decor. i can't wait to try out the others!!

it's all about the food!!

what we ate at chez clément on the champs elysées. délicieux!!

signs

right off the metro stop of the louvre is this view. so francais!

louvre at dusk

one of my best shots... this was taken the early evening before celina and i actually went into the louvre, hence the lack of crowds. i'm just including it cuz it's beautiful.

the sacred feminine perhaps?...

i just had to pose with the upsidedown pyramid. how could i go to paris and not do ANY corny da vinci code stuff? turns out our hotel was right across the street from the gare st-lazare... yeah, the only other da vinci code spot i went to.

baboons!

i really don't remember the deal with these guys. i just thought they were pretty funny all lined up like they were doing a new edition dance routine!

so this is when we actually got into the louvre and looked around. tip: visit the louvre on a sunday. otherwise there's practically nothing else to do in paris on a sunday. not even eat at monoprix cuz everything's closed on sundays!!

sekhmet

she was the goddess of war. apparently she even brought on fierce thunderstorms. i guess even the egyptians knew that hell hath no fury... like a woman!

seated statue of ramses II

that's one big pharoah.

more egypt

lotsa sarcophagus... -es?... sarcophagi?... well, obviously, the whole egyptian part was MY favourite.

diana the huntress

to think, we spent our whole time in 2 wings of the louvre. did we see mona lisa? no. did we see psyche and cupid? no. but at least we saw practically the whole richelieu and sully wings... which leaves just the denon wing the perfect size for a return trip to the louvre.

things i liked about europe in general...

the fountains. they're everywhere!!

and check out the little boats! i like boat races!

i only saw this kind of stuff on that horrible "learn to speak french" tv show that used to air on the knowlege network like 15 years ago!

and i like the scooters too.

scooters were rampant in europe. (but they were straight crazy in spain!)

l'académie nationale de musique

i want to check this place out. celina and i walked past this building at least once every day we were in paris. in retrospect, we walked a LOT.

basilique du sacré coeur

i really wanted to see the inside but it was too late by the time i got there. so i just puttered around til it got a bit darker. i am quite impressed with this picture i took (*pat on the back*). this basilica is found in montmartre, THE MOST romantic part of paris. seriously, they say it in the guide books, but if you go there, it really is. painters and artists drawing scenes and portraits line the sidewalks on the hilly streets. the buildings house little cafés and boutiques and shops... and the view is amazing.

café des deux moulins

for those of you who watched amélie, you KNOW what this café is! i was SO lucky to be here and it wasn't busy at all! i drank a café crème and even sat in the booth where amélie was writing backwards at! too bad the waitress was totally acting like she hated her job. oh well, the ambiance otherwise was awesome. i know i'm a geek, but i made it a point to see this place. i just HAD to. this pic is dedicated to my homie: romeo.

got change for a 20?...

so i got to actually see a "vending machine convenience store". if ever you needed the basics of anything, you could just go up to this huge machine, pick out your items and work it like a vending machine! it was hilarious!! since i had some change, i decided to test it out. it worked! look at the bottom left item in the machine... it was...

... where i bought THIS package of pink toilet paper. i was laughing so hard. so as i was watching this huge mechanical arm move over and grab my toilet paper, 3 police cars pulled up behind me and the officers got out and stood right behind me just staring at what i was up to. seriously, i felt their breath on my neck! so i very snobbily picked up my toilet paper from the chute, stared at them with a snobby nasty look and walked away. they were harsh rude, i can't even explain. but really, if they were to ask me what i was doing that night, i'd reply "well, duh! i'm buying toilet paper, what does it look like?!"
but seriously folks, the police in france are sorta like american marines... act now, think later. i'm actually a bit surprised that i didn't get arrested for my dirty look. rumour has it that they can stop you just to ask to see your papers (what, are we in ww2 poland?). and if you don't have your passport or any citizenship documentation on you, they can arrest you. yeah, i don't think i'd want to be blogging from a french prison, thanks.

notre dame

... from the back... i think. among other things, i will be going to see the notre dame again. it's so beautiful. and huge! next time, i'll get a good shot of gargoyles and flying buttresses!! note to self: buy a zoom lens.

these pictures were taken on my way to the train station (gare d'austerlitz). i left for barcelona that evening... au revoir paris... tu me manqueras!!

barcelona!

this is how our hostel looked... from the outside, that is. the actual sleeping quarters and facilities were in a building built behind this beautiful ex-hospital. our building was modern, clean and above average standards for a hostel i'd say... but you had to get up quick to take a warm shower otherwise you're lathering in the cold! what i guess bugged me the most is that we kept on being put in rooms where the other roomates were early-to-bed types. i'm sorry, but why would you go to bed on a friday or saturday night at 11pm when you're in barcelona? they didn't even wake up so early! although it was an interesting and experience (i kept on thinking "it could be worse!"), i would not hostel unless i absolutely had to. for real.

so after we dumped our stuff we headed to the department store nearby called el corte ingles. it's like a super mega hudson's bay. we ate, i mailed my postcards, we looked around a bit, then we headed straight to the strip called las ramblas. it's SO busy there. but the food... and the shopping!... my gosh, i really could have spent ten times longer checking out all the shoes, all the purses, all the clothes... nobody knew my shopping skills til i was let loose in las ramblas!

what were the odds?!

... twice in one trip?!!
on las ramblas, the first night we were there, we encountered a bboy battle. it was pretty cool. this guy ended up winning.

anytime is TAPAS TIME!!!

mmm!... as you can see, the calamari was perfectly fried, the cheese and olives were abundant, the pizza and bread were so tasty and the the little pork sausages were greasy goodness!! we also ate the richest paella i've ever tasted. food soooo good!!!... with sangria all around!

after a long and productive day of shopping (24euro for a sweet lacoste purse, 5euro pants at zara!!) we went back down to las ramblas to putter around some more. i totally wanted to eat at la boqueria, but i'll do that myself next time. instead we went off las ramblas and found this tapas restaurant. i must admit, short of water, my beverage of choice was sangria... and this place had the best.

getting my culture fix

i enjoyed the shopping, and the eating, but what i LOVED about barcelona is GAUDI! this is the inside of the unfinished sagrada familia cathedral. this man was a genius, let alone an artistic one! i will never again use the term "gaudi" to refer to something considered visually obnoxious. i love his work.

la pedrera

... gaudi again...

casa batillo

... and more gaudi. i just loved walking around and seeing his beautiful buildings. i wouldn't have been able to see them at any other time! i'm happy that i got at least a little bit of culture while i was there.

the sagrada familia at night. aparently it'll be finished for the 100 year death anniversary of gaudi... in 2026 i believe. this cathedral is already so beautiful. i just can't wait!

this was taken on the night tour we had of barcelona. there were a bunch of other places we saw but my camera died right after taking a picture of this huge, phallic, LED blue illumitated business building... that sorta sucked. but i still took a few pics with my phone. inlcuding a mini bellagio-esque fountain music and light show down the street from the placa espana. i spent the least amount of time in barcelona, but my curiosity is completely peaked. i will return with a list of things i have yet to do out there.

WHERE am i, you ask?...

... in BELGIUM!!!

so kp is in the middle of our first ever european show and to update: we rule.

no matter what, these guys can't get enough of our "exotic-ness".

i can't get enough of the "oooh"s we get when we rock our spanish dresses, or the "woohoo"s we get when pandango and tinikling come on, and the even louder "woohoo"s we get after singkil... and of course there's the shocking and awkward silences that we get when the dudes are wearing the bahags. those are awesome! we're so "sex", di ba?!

and dudes, we totally know how to rock the party. the la noche celebration last night almost made us a sight to remember in a not so good way, but thanks to us, we kept the party movin (and drinkin!) til the early morn... jus keep randy away from the beer from now on. i have bruises! so yes, we did our part to promote friendship and togetherness positively last night. i WILL post pics when i get back!

anyways, this blog is mostly for my kuya gary. thanks for pushing me to get into filipino dance... it's really been a great experience.

i know that you may be reading this, cuz i'm your favourite cousin and all, and if you are, i want you to know that in kp, YOU are NOW known as "gary, mer's cousin" cuz i'm no longer "mer, gary's cousin". woohoo!

:o)

what i'll be missing while in europe...

so i'll be soon off to my "belgium - france - spain" trip... and i figured vancouver will just be sleepy boring while i'm gone in august. then i got a newsletter from tigerstone entertainment.
grrr... if only i bothered mastering being in two places at once instead of practicing piano!!

...

... i know i shouldn't complain... these guys would most likely come around again (well, at least killa kela and kid capri... i dunno bout mr. spike lee tho... that might be a bit more rare). at least i'm gonna be cultured by the time i get back from europe. *sigh* maybe there'll be a super fun old school party at the heritage hall waiting for me when i get back!... *hint hint*

second the BEST!

we're RGL... Ridiculously Good Looking!!!

what i did this weekend? well, my team and i won silver in the competitive c division of the alcan dragonboat festival. it wasn't easy... but, you know... ain't no thing.

hehehe... i LOVE my team. we're such GOOD winners!!

bring it on back, 50!

remember when 50 cent...

flowed to the tequila song of peewee herman?
meowed on a track?
made weekly mixtapes?

where are you, old school 50? you were once an artist i respected for your fresh style and ghetto love songs (ie. porno star). now all you do is imitate the old ja rule. to add to your earned "infamous" reputation, you also signed such talent as beanie sigel, m.o.p. and of course mobb deep and made them all sound like candy shop (OR magic stick, depending on which one you like less).

and yet i held on strong... trying to support you as a fan... "oh, he's just going through a phase. his NEXT album will be for the streets (ex. his first album)."

the tipping point came today, when i found out he's about to sign next... and cut the diss track from R.L. to 112 AND jagged edge.

why fifty? why?...

G-G-G-u-r-SO-NOT!!!

(but i AM impatiently waiting lloyd banks' new album)

will the real lloyd banks...

...is this him?...

... please stand up?

... or him?...

(i know, old joke... but it's still SOOO good!!)

what?...

what the hell's goin on with my blog?...
grr. i give up.

okay so it's working properly now. i swear yesterday the font size was "huge" and it wouldn't change back to "normal"... i kid you not, that's how they state font size.

"skit#2" a.k.a. "the story of my life!"

i'm not complaining, i'm just saying.
sometimes it feels this way cuz there are people out there who want to "live the life", and yet they make choices for the group without taking into consideration that they are just as broke as you are! it's great to dream like we're superstars, but who's gonna pay our way?... no, i don't see any takers...

We broke, broke broke phi broke
(We ain't got it)
Broke, broke, broke phi broke
(We ain't got it)
Don't spend no money
Ain't got no clothes
Ain't got no cars
Ain't got no hos
We broke, broke, broke phi broke
(We ain't got it)
Broke, broke, broke phi broke
(We ain't got it)
Got no money (got no money)
We got no clothes (got no clothes)
Ain't got no cars (got no cars)
Can't get no hos
We broke, broke, broke, broke, broke
Buncha niggas
Broke, broke, broke, broke, broke!

(-KANYE WEST)

you know what i hate?...

staring at an empty mix meister pro 5 playlist page.

i'm in dire need of a playlist. summer's almost here and i've got nothing.

i need fresh new songs...

you know you're old when...

so i have a friend who is going to be working promotions for pokemon's ten year anniversary. imagine all the "mm-hoy-hoys" that will be there! it'll be at a mall even!!! this is so exciting for someone NOT me.

i hope he dresses up like pikachu!

my coach is the bomb

darwin is my dragonboat coach. he doesn't drink alcohol, smoke, or do drugs. he can't dance very well (YET!) but he's always open to learn a new move. he has a great sense of humour and a keen sense of leadership that totally shows on and off the boat. and his wife is super cool.

i just felt like giving them a shout out.

svs : aka sexy vs sexy!! ;o)

this is how hot we looked on friday night! to see our actual dance routine, click here!

oh my ankles!

tuesday, i was cast as an "asian dancing extra" for the film rogue being shot here in vancouver. if you've ever been an extra in ANY film before, you know that the pay is weak, the p.a.'s treat you like cattle, and every time you're not in a scene, you're bored. but i must say that despite all that, i found it sort of exciting. we just had to be in a nightclub scene so really, it's not like it was too hard to get into character. and i guess it helped that i was there with a bunch of friends... made the scene more convincing. anyways, the only complaint i had was that i was dancing in a red dress with 3 inch heels on. don't get me wrong, wardrobe did a fabulous job (makeup almost made me look like a car model tho!), but for you all who know me, i'm not the "heels and dress" type, particularly when i'm going to a club. but lo and behold, if you happen to watch the film when it comes out, i'm the girl in the red dress at the club ;op

oh yes, how could i forget to mention the real stars? when jet li is walking through the club, he brushes by me (i'm about to have a shooter at the bar). the first time that happened, i was so surprised... but i totally could've just died a happy woman right there and then! jet li touched me!! ME!!! i am such a dork! and another time when jason statham enters the club, i'm exiting past him. he was so friendly. he even talked to me but all i could do was smile and nod. i've got a bad case of retarded, i know. but maybe mr. statham likes retards... yeah, right.

i wonder what my name would say in the credits?... "retarded asian dancing extra"

hahaha!

it sounds dorky but...

blogging is not at the top of my list of things i have to do.
(please refer to the february 24th, 2006 entry: "am i so bad?")

...

but since i'm here, i would like to ask anyone reading this if they know how to get a return flight out to brussels on the 7th of august to at least the 18th for less than $1700CAD. that's how much i'll have to scrounge up to get to dance with kp in belgium. i'll do my share of fundraising, but if i don't somehow get that cash by 30 days before the departure date, i'll be here all august, folks!

if you're free on april 7th...

woohoo! lookit me!! come out and watch me dance!! tell your friends!! then tell me, so i can hook you up with tickets ;o)

so yeah, this is basically the group of girls i've been dancing with every week for the last year or so. i am so proud that we dance well. seriously, we're good. absolutely NO "elaines" or "carltons" here. thanks lynn and lei... ;o)

now if you see me dance with kababayang pilipino, i'm definitely not up to par with that group. for real, that stuff is challenging to engrain into your system. i'm definitely the "elaine" of kp.

this one's for you. you know who you are.

(he really is quite intimidating.)

how can you have a bad morning/afternoon/evening after seeing good ol' chuck?.. his last name is " norris" and his first name is "chuck"!

spring break in full effect!

i had nothing planned for this week.
so far, this is what i've been up to in the last hour:
trying to make a ringtone for my phone.
msn-ing with my twin sis.
listening to my lil sis clean her room to rave music.
transcribing my dance routines onto paper.
thinkin bout my best friend.

am i so bad?

it's not that i'm typically lethargic or lazy. i just don't feel motivated to do anything anymore.
i think i'm just down.
lately i've caught myself saying "i need some time to myself... right after i finish..." a lot.
seriously, if god put me on this earth to accomplish things, at this rate, i'll never die.

things i wanna be thinking about:
- dancing and music.
- arnis and kung fu.
- dragon boat (can you believe i've been so busy that i missed TWO whole meetings already?!! i wonder if they're already deciding to cut me :o(.... noooo!).
- getting back into school.
- cleaning my room.
- blogging!

things that are preventing me to think about the previous list:
- work.
- relationships (with everyone around me).
- previous engagements that i can't get out of but i really want to.

although the second list is shorter, it does cover more area.

i think my emotions are best described by a certain comic strip character who never seems to have a good day. it goes something like this:

*ARRGH!!*

on the corner of georgia and howe

that bear is always there offering his fish! how can you say no?

don't you hate it when you feel sooo overwhelmed you're not even sure what you gotta get done?.. yeah, i'm not super overwhelmed, but i've got things to do and they just keep on piling up... i feel like i'm gonna forget something. i honestly can't see farther than this friday. maybe i'm tired. i went for acupuncture today and i think i'm still too relaxed from it all.

and here i am, just bloggin.

our birthday pics

yeah i know, it's about time. but they're here now... i don't wanna hear any complaints! ;o)

i would've taken pics of the rest of the food, but it was gone in a flash. mind you, our birthday is usually 1% for celebrating our age, 99% an excuse to get our friends together to eat all our favourite filipino food.

sabz and baxter

oooh, so cute!

our "nice pose"

our "silly pose"

the sisters

good times.

sometime in late november...

remember i was telling of the foggy weeks we had been having?.. yeah, this is a pic from my upstairs window. creepy!

if anyone asks, yes, he's mine.

this is baxter at almost 4 months. he's a sweetheart. i'd tell you his story, but it's a long one.

i'm a little girl... but i carry a big stick!!

this is me with my small kali class. my kuya louie (bottom left) is our guro. he was asked to participate in a new book called GUARDIANS OF THE LEGACY, which will be distributed internationally and launched this july at the 2006 FMA festival in the philippines. i'm so proud of him. ooh, it's all so exciting!

...

i was gonna post something yesterday. i didn't get a chance cuz i spent the day at the seattle premium outlets. when i got home i was already more than tired. and now i'm up and awake... and i forgot what i was gonna write. oooh, but at least i have something to write for my other blog.

check it out.