Gym Progress Week 6

Missed out on Saturday's ISM class.. first time in a long while. tsk tsk. Well, I have a decent excuse for it, so never mind :)

Tue (BP,ISM):Ho ho... this is funny. I suppose this is probably not a power step class (power step classes have the same block and choreography all power step classes for a whole month. Normal aero step classes don't) but I had Angus again today.. and he was executing the same choreography as last Sunday's. Must've had no preparation. Well, at least he wasn't donning his beret hat this time. Hmm.. first time I saw my Saturday class friend Patsy in this schedule.

Sun (ISM,BP): Had Suzette for the ISM, and Lorenzo for the BP. I think I'm starting to like his method of leading classes for BP. Heard he's really creative when it comes to ISM classes... I should try it one of these days.

Backlog (2005-07) Part 2

Hurrah! I just cleared out my draft backlog! Here are the blog entries involved:

July 28, 2005 (Wed) : First Time Hong Kong Traveller?
July 20, 2005 (Wed) : A Short Summary of Gym Experience
July 20, 2005 (Wed) : Travel Hong Kong

I'm so glad now.. it was kind of depressing to keep seeing all those drafts in my blogger drafts bin :P

First Time Hong Kong Traveller?

A friend of mine coming to town asked for recommended places to visit here on a less than one day trip. (its a long stopover, actually) So i prepared a bunch of places that would interest a first timer, and ended up with this really long list. Eventually I figured that it would be a shame to write such a long entry and not let any of my other friends coming along to take advantage of this piece of literary (eh-hem) masterpiece, so, since I'm living in Hong Kong, I've decided to put up a section in this blog describing the most popular tourist spots here. I'll be occasionally updating the main entry and add links when I add in new places I've been to within Hong Kong that would interest the occasional Hong Kong tourist.

Its a rough draft, and also a long read, but I think it will do for now. I'll most likely add pictures in the future... but first, I have got to get me a camera. (mine broke down a year ago and I haven't had the chance to get one again) Think a couple of pictures would make this section more lively.

So without much further a do, you can find the main entry here.

Final Fantasy XI Third Platform Release

NooooOOOOOooooooOOO!!!

Final Fantasy XI prepares for its release on Microsoft's upcoming XBOX 360!!!

Microsoft, and my favorite PS2 game series?!?!?!?

BLASPHEMY!!!!!!

(you can tell I'm extremely in a "high" mood judging from the number of exclamation marks in this blog entry alone. :) )

Tween-Aging and Marriage : Addition

Well, will you look at that. This is an interesting way to find a partner in life. And to think I just finished drafting and published my "age and marriage" entry.

:)

Back log (2005-07) Part 1

Oh oh oh... finished some of my back log drafts... just a bunch of mumbo jumbo :*)

July 16, 2005 (Sat) : Movie Review : Fantastic Four
July 03, 2005 (Sun) : When You Get That Sweet Call...
July 02, 2005 (Sat) : A Very Short Movie Reaction: War of the Worlds
July 01, 2005 (Fri) : Tween-Aging and Marriage

Haveeee a niiceee day. :)

Backlog

What an unbelievably huge backlog. I've had more than 5 drafts on my bloglist that hasnt been published yet, but the drafts just can't stop coming. I wonder when I'll be able to clear out all my back log. I'll be adding them in based on the date of the first draft, so If they get finished and published, I'll leave a word so people can backtrack on the new "old" entries.

In the meantime...

Gym Progress Week 5

Ok, for simplicity's sake, I'll be abbreviating the different types of aero classes I attend to from now on. Its simply irritating to keep on writing down "intro step moves", "intro step" and "bodypump" every time I write an entry chronicling my gym days. From now on:

BP=Body pump
ISM=Intro Step Moves
IS= Intro Step

Ok on with the meat:

Tue: (BP, ISM) Elizabeth, Michelle. I like them both, especially Michelle. She's fun and just positively infectious when she heads the class, and she's also a good instructor. For some aerobic teachers, you'd have to watch them to find out what the next move is. I think its the way you time what you instruct the rest of the class do next.. some say it late, some say it too early. So the people lose rhythm and you end up with a class doing each their own thing. And to remedy that, you'd have to be always looking at the instructor. It would be great if you were at the front of the room and directly behind, but if you're unfortunate enough to be at the waaaay opposite end, well too bad. Well, with Michelle, you don't have to look at her.. as long as you can hear her, everything is good. I suppose its quite understandable she's good.. my sister in law did mention she was in one of those Star TV network channel morning aerobic shows :) I never watched those before, so I can't verify :)

Sat: (ISM) Watched Bug Me Not in Kornhill cinema, so I didn't make it to the usual BP class on 12:10. But I still did ISM at 16:40 though.. I like the instructor for that class.. his name is Steve. Lots of turning and twisting and sidestepping.. its almost like attending a dance class when he's heading them :) Strange, after 7 weeks of constantly seeing Patsy in the same class, she wasn't able to come this week. I wonder why.

Sun: (ISM, BP) There are instructors that I prefer, and some which doesn't suit my taste. Not that they're bad instructors, but I just don't have as much fun in their classes compared to others. This Sunday, I had this local instructor called Angus for ISM... he's not exactly my favorite instructor. Probably a little too stiff for my tastes... a few weeks ago he lead the class while wearing a beret hat... ehhhhm. Isn't that a little... vain? You're jumping around doing step aerobics, and with a hat on your head? I would've understood a bit if it was a cap (there is another instructor that I've encountered, by the way, that did that) I mean, caps are snug, they won't fall off if you jump around, but a beret hat, worn sliding sideways?

I'd pay to see if he had glue on his hair. But nothing still tops having to wear it while leading an step aerobics class. :
Strange person.....

Travel Hong Kong

First time Hong Kong traveler? Hopefully the following will help you on your upcoming trip to Asia's World City. I've always liked travelling, but could never find the right resources to get me on my merry trip to foreign lands. Hopefully this "humble" entry will help with yours.

Warning. These set of recommendations are in no way responsible for you getting mugged, cheated or swindled from your money when you find out that you actually paid 5x the "retail" amount for that fake Louis Vuitton bag in that small stall in Mongkok.

This entry will morph over time, since I'll continually be adding new stuff when I get the chance (and also remember that I DO have a blog entry like this) So check back on every next trip, I suppose. :)

Resources:
1. Yellow Pages Map - your best friend going around hong kong :) http://www.ypmap.com/en/viewer.asp?mapService=LocationMap
2. Discover Hong Kong site http://www.discoverhongkong.com/login.html
3. Check the weather http://www.hko.gov.hk/contente.htm
4. Hong Kong Airport http://www.hongkongairport.com

Places to visit:
1. Tsim Sha Tsui
- shopping: Harbour City, Park Lane, Cameron Road (lots of little clothes shops :) )
- sites: Space Museum, Avenue of Stars, Science Museum, Hong Kong Cultural Center, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Clock Tower, Star Ferry

2. Central
- shopping: Landmark, IFC, Prince's Building, Alexandra House
- sites: Lan Kwai Fong/Soho (Weekend nights), Star Ferry, Peak Tram, Tea Museum, Hong Kong Park, HSBC Building, Bank of China Building

2a. The Peak

3. Admiralty
- shopping: Pacific Place, Queensway
- sites: Shangrila, Conrad hotel

4. Wan Chai
- shopping: street (small side shops) shopping, Wan Chai Computer Center, 298 [Computer Center]
- sites: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center, Golden Bauhinia, Central Plaza

5. Causeway Bay
- shopping: Lee Gardens I & II, Times Square, Sogo, Windsor, "Night" Bazaar
- sites: Victoria Park, Hong Kong Central Library

6. Kowloon Tong
- shopping: Festival Walk
- sites: ???

7. Mong Kok/Yau Ma Tei
- shopping: Bazaar "night" shopping.. go out to exit E2. Its a free for all place... :P if you want to go the the bazaar.. go 1-2 blocks. its a whole street of makeshift shops. perpndicular to the direction when you come out of the MTR exit.
- sites: ??

Here are a couple of suggestions during your one day trip in hk:

1. TST Harbour City: Take the (1) airport bus (~45min from airport@40HKD) or the airport express (~18mins from airport@80HKD)
http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/index2.jsp?byPass=t
http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/index2.jsp?byPass=t
http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/aguide/bus.html
A21 -3,4,5 preferably 4

2. Take a look around and see if you like the TST Harbour City... you can go shopping there later if you like
3. Star Ferry to Central: Go to the TST Star Ferry pier at the one end of harbour city and take the Star ferry(2.2HKD)
4. Central: once you get off, you'll be in Central. This is the business district, but there are still a lot of places to shop. Mostly the shops here are higher end, like Gucci, Ralph Lauren, Louis Vuitton. Its also fun to see HK business people in action during lunchtime.. its as crowded as it gets.. and beware, they walk fast :) I'm not sure, but you can see HSBC and china bank building from the Star Ferry pier :P
5. Peak: Take the Bus#15 (if you want to go straight directly to the Peak, or you can take the scenic route by taking 15c bus to get to the peak tram station that will bring you up to the peak via a almost 45 degree tram path up on the mountain) from the Star Ferry (its actually a bus station terminal when you get off) Peak is one of the highlights of Hong Kong, so if you or your friend haven't been to HK, this is one of the places to go. There's a wax museum, some mini mall and some decent restos so you can have lunch there.
6. You can take the tram peak back down/bus back down. I'd suggest to go back down using the peak tram, because the lower terminal is just right beside the Hong Kong park (see 7)
7. Just right beside it is the Hong Kong Park... it has botanical gardens, aviary etc. Its a nice place to go to. It would be better during winter so the stifling heat isn't going to kill you outdoors, but nevertheless, its a good idea to pass by.
8. If you walk further towards the opposite direction from the peak tram station, you'll get to a mall called pacific place. Shangrila and Conrad hotel can be found here. The mall is pretty good.. it has a good combination of higher end and lower end shops. you might want to look around.. but if you want serious shopping, better hold it off until you reach causeway bay or tsim sha tsui.
9. right outside Pacific Place (along the main road) there's a tram stop. hehehe i'm sure you can ask people where the tram stop is if you have no clue, but there are directions everywhere. You should at least take a ride on it. Its almost symonymous to San Francisco's iconic tram, and usually the less posh people take it (because its cheap, too!) i'd bet you'd see old grandmas around the tram and probably lots of mainlanders. Its another side of hongkong to see aside from all the posh, stylized and fashionable yuppies you'll encounter in TST, Central or the Peak.
10. Take the tram until you get to the 6th stop. You'll know its the correct stop when the tram stop is right near an car overpass/bridge.
11. Go to Times Square. Go around (see above list on Causewaybay).
12. Take MTR from Causeway bay to TST again. CAuseawy Bay and TST are the shopping centers, so if you want to go shopping those are the best places to go
13. You can also take the mtr from TST (from harbour city its about a 10 minute walk to the nearest mtr station) to Mong kok. usually known for their night market.. stores usually start opening around 3-4pm.
14. After that, you can go back to the airport :)

A Short Summary of Gym experience

Its been a while since I've logged an entry on my gym experience. I've just managed to have 4 weeks of gym since my last post (its been a month! its been a month! hoooray!) and as always, I've been feeling sluggish after each gym session that I've attended. Normally I feel more reviatalized, but it seems the opposite nowadays.It must be because I'm doing them late during the day, and end up watching stuff until way late in the evenings that my body doesnt get enough rest.

For my sake, I'm going to list them down...

Week 1
6/20 (Mon) intro step, bodypump
6/26 (Sun) intro step moves, bodypump

Week 2
6/28 (Tue) intro step moves, bodypump
7/02 (Sat) intro step moves
7/03 (Sun) intro step moves, bodypump

Week 3
7/05 (Tue) intro step moves, bodypump
7/09 (Sat) intro step moves, bodypump

Week 4
7/12 (Tue) intro step moves, bodypump
7/16 (Sat) intro step moves
7/17 (Sun) intro step moves, bodypump

Note:
*intro step is step aerobics, beginner level
*intro step moves is step aerobics, intermediate level
*bodypump is weightlifting aerobics, concentrating more on reps than heavy weight

That's roughly 2-3 times a week. I dont think I look better, but despite that, I'm feeling much more active than when I lead a sedentary lifestyle more than a month ago. I just have to make this a habit..

Updated(8/5): Oh I just remembered, I met this nice girl bythe name of Patsy on 7/16. She's always in the Saturday intro step move classes... always at the back of the class just right behind my space. I don't usually socialize or talk to the people (there the language problem, of course) but it was a nice change to meet someone and talk to them. She's a doctor, not to mention. How she can be a doctor and still attend Saturday afternoon aerobics classes is beyond me, but I found it impressive :)

Movie Review: Fantastic Four

One would wonder why this movie received poor reviews. As a comic book movie fan, I love watching my favorite comic book characters transforming from the comic book version to the cartoon show and into the big screen, and this one has been one of the few shows I watched during morning tv cartoon line up when I was a kid.

Its not really that the movie sucked; for me, it didn't. Its just not as spectacular as what I'd expect it to be, with the likes of Spiderman, X-Men and Batman hitting the box office, big. But poor, no. Even at this very moment, still couldn't understand why reviewers thought it was a failure (sure... maybe at some points it was a bit cheesy.. but THAT didn't last for very long) Here's the lowdown on the latest comic book adaptation to hit the big screens:

Ioan Gruffudd stars as Mr. Fantastic, accompanied by Jessica Alba (from the TV series Dark Angel) as Invisible Woman, Chris Evans as the Human Torch and Michael Chiklis as The Thing.

Movie starts off Reed Richards (aka soon to be Mr Fantastic) , together with friend and partner Ben Grimm, submitting a proposal to Victor Van Doom for financial backing on a planned study of anomaly cloud storms found in space and its effect of human DNA genetic evolution. Victor presses to attend this study, bringing along his science lead (and also Reed's ex girlfriend) Sue Storm, and the employed pilot and younger brother to Sue, Johnny Storm. Everything goes horribly wrong during the trip, exposing all 4 scientists directly to the cloud storm, and thus turning our scientists into a messed up cream of corn soup team. On the other hand, Von Doom seems to have no problems since he was not directly exposed to the clouds, having been sheltered deep within the space station, when the cloud anomaly struck. Until he starts feeling a bit weird himself at the latter part of the movie... uh-oh.

They made a great pick by casting Julian McMahon as Dr. Doom. The man possibly reeks of self-arrogance and evil with those penetrating eyes and slightly sneering and upturned lips. He did play a good role in Charmed as Cole Turner, who began in the series as a high level demon, although it felt rather weird since I found myself seeing him as Cole Turner right at the beginning of the movie. But his character progressed well enough while the movie went on, so its somewhat believable to see him as Victor Von Doom, the impressively rich and shrewd businessman. Not as good as Alfred Molina's Doc Ock, but still worthy of a bit of appraisal. (You should be Liam Neeson as Batman Begin's archenemy... its a flop. I cant imagine him in any costume-fantasy related role except for Star War's Quigon Jin)

Ioan Gruffud was a bit of surprise. First off, the name was not familiar, so I looked him up at imdb, and to my surprise, he played the role of Lancelot in Jerry Bruckheimer's recent 2004 version of King Arthur. And a sneaky looking Lancelot at that. Shaving off the goatee did transform his persona and made him look like a good guy :) He actually managed to pull off as the leader for the Fantastic Four, although I would've appreciated a bit more command and decisiveness come into the character. He's supposed to be a brilliant, emotionally inept scientist, but right after he was coined the leader for the "Fantastic Four", I was expecting a bit more from him.

I'm sorry to say Jessica Alba didnt fit into the role of Sue Storm... sure, she's pretty, and sure, she has a nice body, but, she looks like a neophyte actress after seeing her in this movie. Trying too much to look sexy and smart.. but falling short.

Chris Evans played a decent role (sorry, he just so looks like he was typecasted ... no not typecasted as a human torch :P ) as Torch.. fast, feisty, do now and think later type of guy. But Michael Chiklis did a pretty good job portraying an anguished The Thing right after the freak accident. Although it seemed like stayed pretty much at the background compared to Gruffudd, Alba, McMahon and Evans, his character plays a central role to the movie's storyline... and pretty much believable.. until events start transpiring like fireworks.

Fine, I have to admit, the movie was sprinkled with cheesiness all over, staring with the silly (but still a bit charming) exchange between Johhny and the nurse right after the accident:

[puts a thermometer on Johnny's mouth]
Nurse: Oh.. You're hot!
Johnny: Why thank you, so are you!
Nurse: No I mean, you feel a little feverish.
Johnny: Look, I've never felt better in my life
[close up to thermometer rising to 170 degress fahrenheit]

To one of the cheesiest lines that made me close my eyes and cringe :

Reed [to Ben, seeing that he's "rock" all over]: I swear to you, I will do everything in my power, until there is not a breath left in me! You're going to be Ben again!

Oh, but there are some finer moments (albeit not great) to offset these.. not spectacular, but ok enough to warrant a popcorn movie passing grade. I think they showed a good fight with Dr. Doom. Not as spectacular as Ock Doc, but good enough as an adaptation from the comic to the tv series to the movie. The only quirk that I have was that in the end, becoming a super hero was just a matter of turning on and off a chamber that recreates the same space cloud storm they were exposed to earlier. That one was a poorly made story line that didn't really explain much and didn't really make any sense. One would wonder if the moviemakers believe that their audience could hold their suspension of reality THAT far.

A bit incredulous, but still funny, a tad heart warming, cheesy in some parts, but not as bad as what they reviewed it as. Maybe they just had high hopes and expectations for the film. But I didn't. Maybe that's why it was more or less, ok...

When You Get That Sweet Call...

Hellooo!

I'm now a year and a day older, and ehm...

I dont feel any different :)

The special day wasn't anything special, actually. I was just going through my weekly Saturday motions: Watched a movie (War of the Worlds) in the morning, went to the gym to lift weights, went back home to eat lunch, hung around the house until 3:30, then headed off to the gym again (this time for some intermediate step aerobics... omg I love this particular class)... went out dinner with family (moa, brother, sis in law, grandma, dad and nephew) at PearlyCity branch of Japanese restaurant "Iccho", and then went home and hit the sack.

Nothing special at all. But yet also enjoyable at the same time.

And add in a few birthday calls I received from friends :)

Actually, there's something about people calling up on birthdays... They're actually nice, mind you, it feels special, and you feel remembered. But I can't always help but be embarrassed when people do call. Label me weird, but I get all flustered and I end up not knowing what to say except "thanks very much". I always worry that the person who called at the other end of the line is shelling out money just to call me up on my special day, and I can't help but feel a bit guilty. In a twisted sense, it actually makes me feel worse, compared to when someone's forgotten my birthday. I figured this must have something to do with my confidence level, coz I tend to get embarrassed a lot on the oddest, smallest things. I dont like too draw too much attention to myself, and well... you know how it is with birthdays, you end up as the special person.

It must be because I stuck out as a sore thumb when I was young. Or maybe my parents bombarded me with "Shame" and "Humiliation" when I was still in pre-school, and have had a subliminal effect, subconsciously etching a message into my head about grabbing (or not) people's attentions.

Strange. But a well intentioned phone call is still a well intentioned phone call, and I'm always grateful.

Maybe I should have a birthday resolution of removing that attention guilt for my birthday next year?

A Very Short Movie Reaction: War of the Worlds

The movie!

Hmm.

Well, personally? Don't think its worth the money .. at least not in the latter half of the show. Have to admit it was a little engaging at the first half.. but that's just about it. Tom Cruise has never been believable in any of his recent movies, and you can add this to the list. Dakota Fanning is just a wide, doe eyed girl all throughout the movie (I always feel like I want to pluck them off...)

First half's a popcorn movie. Second half is a sleeper. Better read the book instead.

'Nuff said.

Tween-Aging and Marriage

There's something about growing old that threatens people. It always one of the more important things take note of. People constantly mention age in all types of conversations, particularly certain turning points: "Oh when I was your age..." , or "You're 18 already, you're a man", or was that "You're 21 you can drink booze now"?

When you get to a certain age, there are certain things you worry about. You're a kid, you worry about food (well ok, not really.. I don't think kids at a toddler's age even has the concept of worrying.) Sometime between grade school and high school, you worry about schoolwork, and then during highschool you worry about peers. Afterwards, you worry about work, finance, earning, marrying, kids, your health, your spouse's health.. list goes on and on.

At my age (for your information, im in my.. errr.. twenties.) and particularly a few years back, my friends have been getting married left and right. I think its a cultural thing, particularly in the Filipino Chinese community in the Philippines.. they seem to get married somewhere between 23-25. (Hmm.. I just gave away another clue for my age) No, they're not caused by "accidents", but just that they want to get married. The years have progressed, and strangely enough, I don't feel the urge to "settle down".

Some of my friends have been concerned about their age now.. they feel like they're lagging behind. Everyone's married.. how come they aren't? They don't even have boyfriends at this point, and their expectation is that they at least have to be together with their boyfriends for 2 years before that would be convinced that they have the "right" partner to spend their lives with. These are the people I know who's still living in the Philippines.

On the other hand, I have a circle of filipino-chinese friends in Hong Kong, and it amazes us that we've never really seriously wondered about still being single at this point. In fact, it feels strange to see our friends getting married so early; Sometimes it just baffles the mind. Why would anyone want to get married at 25? It doesn't mean that the thought of getting married leaves a bad taste in our mouths, nor does it ever occur to us that we should be married.. Its just doesnt seem as important or as a priority at the moment.

On the other hand, I've just had a thought this afternoon when I was riding the bus. Totally unrelated, but I heard news that one of my ex-es just graduated his bar exam this year and got a job somewhere. The guy just started working. And he's probably in his late twenties, maybe around 28. At that point, it made perfect sense that why we weren't even thinking of getting married at all. I've been working for 4 years, and I'm still not satisfied with my current standing at the moment. As an afterthought, my savings wouldn't be enough to start a family with. I'm totally engrossed with my work, I feel I haven't achieve a sense of fulfillment in terms of work-peer standing and expertise. And this guy here just started working! How many more years before he will seriously start considering a married life? How many more years will be enough before I consider mine?

Generally, Hong Kong ladies thinking of marriage at the age of 30. That's not an official statistic, of course, but generally from all the people I've met here, they've gotten married at around 30. I know of one who married at 40, not because she didnt meet her significant other late in her life, in fact, they were highschool classmates, but they didnt get married just because the time wasn't just right. Its really strange thing.

I suppose on my part, I've never really noticed my age progressing as the years pass by. I've always felt that I've just been out of school a few months back, and doing a fun, honest to goodness living. Maybe I complain about my job, complain about the weather, yack about stupid songs and awful, cheesy movies, but how's that so much different from when I was studying? I doesnt feel its been years since I graduated, and I certainly doesnt feel like I'm getting any older. I just feel.. the same. Probably the one and only reason why I'm not thinking of marriage (I DO have a boyfriend) so urgently.. or saving up for it, as a matter of fact :P

(Not that I loathe getting married, but it just not in my head. The only reason I bug my bf about getting married is because I dont want to have babies late in my life... if you can avoid late pregnancy, why not, right?)

This entry isn't really trying to say that getting married at a younger age of 23-25 is wrong. Its not even pointing out why people should marry later in their lives than earlier. All this is just a thought spawned out by a recall memory on what's been happening lately. I thought that I should take note of it. But I still think getting married at a "young" age of 23-25 is strange thought for me :)