Saturday, April 08, 2006
buryong, sumpong & other moods
this is one of those days. i've been locked up in my room all day, uploading photos. i did go out to the university for a cheap lunch with siege & eugene the russian guy. but the food was kinda horrible. and i tried to play it safe by getting omuraisu (omelette rice). but it was stodgy & the slaw nasty. got a soymilk and that too tasted horrible. it tasted not like fresh yummy taho, but like some vegetable matter sitting in the sun for a couple of weeks. the only thing to do on these days is take pictures of yourself and post them on a blog so that other people with more boring/interesting lives can look at you and say, "wow, she has a really nice jawline!"
my old room, before i moved into this closet
my old room on the 4th floor was much bigger than this. and warmer too. this makes crimson house a bit like a bapor tabo, don't you think? warmer & bigger rooms upstairs, tiny chilly rooms on the lower levels.
even the old bed looks cosier, even if my new one is actually the same size. i'm using the same sheets from that room and it all fits my new one perfectly. maybe the lighting made it all seem nicer.
i actually had a table and a workdesk with floating shelves above it. my new room looks third world in comparison, no matter the first world rent i have to pay for my 2.3m x 2.4m space. nyarf.
the night i packed my stuff to move to my new room, it looked like this. depressing no? i couldn't sleep that night, which was the sunday before classes started. tried to read but i couldn't concentrate.
so i decided to take pictures of myself. it can can be very amusing at 3 a.m. and you can hear weird moaning sounds coming from the room beside yours. but now that i think about it, it's weirder to take stalker-type pictures of yourself pretending to sleep.
but that didn't work. i still couldn't sleep. so i got up and took pictures of the view from my window. if you look very close, you won't see anything, heh heh.
but i do like this last one best. it evokes a certain air reminiscent of some scenes from in the mood for love but with bad lighting and a shaky hand holding the camera. i remember one recurring shot in the movie of a bare street lamp and one character or another walking under and past it. you don't know what the hell it means but it feels kinda important.
even the old bed looks cosier, even if my new one is actually the same size. i'm using the same sheets from that room and it all fits my new one perfectly. maybe the lighting made it all seem nicer.
i actually had a table and a workdesk with floating shelves above it. my new room looks third world in comparison, no matter the first world rent i have to pay for my 2.3m x 2.4m space. nyarf.
the night i packed my stuff to move to my new room, it looked like this. depressing no? i couldn't sleep that night, which was the sunday before classes started. tried to read but i couldn't concentrate.
so i decided to take pictures of myself. it can can be very amusing at 3 a.m. and you can hear weird moaning sounds coming from the room beside yours. but now that i think about it, it's weirder to take stalker-type pictures of yourself pretending to sleep.
but that didn't work. i still couldn't sleep. so i got up and took pictures of the view from my window. if you look very close, you won't see anything, heh heh.
but i do like this last one best. it evokes a certain air reminiscent of some scenes from in the mood for love but with bad lighting and a shaky hand holding the camera. i remember one recurring shot in the movie of a bare street lamp and one character or another walking under and past it. you don't know what the hell it means but it feels kinda important.
the ACPI welcome party at 63
the first party we went to was at the swanky 63 building, named because of its 63 floors. i think it's the tallest building in seoul. couldn't take a picture of it because yea jin arrived late at our meeting place (geongdok subway station) and we had to run from subway exit to the building in supercold weather. so instead, i got this photo from some other website. photo (c) NewWorldTourist co.LTD, whoever that is.
we had to wear filipiniana costume because it was the welcome dinner and orientation of the asian culture participation iniative (ACPI) program of korea's ministry of culture & tourism. we met other filipinos there but they live in other parts of seoul and go to other universities. lots of people wearing cool multi-culti outfits but we were more interested taking photos of ourselves. heh heh, we idiots. btw, pulling my hair back was a huge production number because the dry cold weather has made it impossible to control. but it was fun telling everyone that my outfit belonged to my late grandmother, something she had worn in the 1950s or thereabouts.
asmarani wearing a jilbab. a lovely person who misses her two children terribly. she's a workaholic in a tiny package, an asian writer who actually has an agent. her advocacy includes helping woman workers find their voice via writing.
cecep syamsul hari, the indonesian love poet. he likes to explore the city alone. chainsmokes clove flavored kreteks and is constantly giving out packs of gudang garam. he's usually outside our dorm, smoking. and when you sit in the lobby of crimson house, you can actually smell the kretek seeping through the glass doors.
cecep and yea jin talking at sunset, ignoring the city below them. siege said this looks like a movie moment, and you wonder what lofty things they could be talking about. at some point, i actually overheard yea jin say something about vedas and mahayana buddhism. am not making this up.
my first seoul sunset. you can't really see much here because i botched the shot. even today i'm still not sure how to use the camera. but i'm getting very good at taking photos of myself.
we had to wear filipiniana costume because it was the welcome dinner and orientation of the asian culture participation iniative (ACPI) program of korea's ministry of culture & tourism. we met other filipinos there but they live in other parts of seoul and go to other universities. lots of people wearing cool multi-culti outfits but we were more interested taking photos of ourselves. heh heh, we idiots. btw, pulling my hair back was a huge production number because the dry cold weather has made it impossible to control. but it was fun telling everyone that my outfit belonged to my late grandmother, something she had worn in the 1950s or thereabouts.
asmarani wearing a jilbab. a lovely person who misses her two children terribly. she's a workaholic in a tiny package, an asian writer who actually has an agent. her advocacy includes helping woman workers find their voice via writing.
cecep syamsul hari, the indonesian love poet. he likes to explore the city alone. chainsmokes clove flavored kreteks and is constantly giving out packs of gudang garam. he's usually outside our dorm, smoking. and when you sit in the lobby of crimson house, you can actually smell the kretek seeping through the glass doors.
cecep and yea jin talking at sunset, ignoring the city below them. siege said this looks like a movie moment, and you wonder what lofty things they could be talking about. at some point, i actually overheard yea jin say something about vedas and mahayana buddhism. am not making this up.
my first seoul sunset. you can't really see much here because i botched the shot. even today i'm still not sure how to use the camera. but i'm getting very good at taking photos of myself.
flying away*
title stolen from smoke city's seminal album flying away, and i mean seminal in the best way possible. below are some pictures of the day i flew to seoul.
the love of my life, with the stepmum who has promised to foster her while i'm gone.
kuya and the wiley wonkers kabonkers saying goodbye.
me & buddy siege on the plane after the first of our many korean meals together.
view from my window seat, somewhere over luzon.
somewhere over taiwan. the flight wasn't very interesting.
ngrarag from the 4-hour flight. in a taxi with yea jin & siege, on some highway from incheon to seoul.
very long drive over flat dry & cold landscape. it doesn't look cold here, but it is. like a full-body slap that you shakes you down to your bones.
more of the same. fell asleep from boredom & lack of sleep from the night before, spent packing & checking english 1 exams. woke up at crimson house, whose motto is "you belong to crimson house!!"
with indonesian writers asma & cecep. our first dinner in chilly seoul, a restaurant that opened 1971, on a street we call pedro gil (chang-something-gil is its real name) near korea university.
this is yea jin, our program manager. when she met us at the airport, she looked like a serious young woman working for a government institute. as you can see, krung krung pala siya. hindi naitago ang tunay na pagkatao niya. heh heh.
the love of my life, with the stepmum who has promised to foster her while i'm gone.
kuya and the wiley wonkers kabonkers saying goodbye.
me & buddy siege on the plane after the first of our many korean meals together.
view from my window seat, somewhere over luzon.
somewhere over taiwan. the flight wasn't very interesting.
ngrarag from the 4-hour flight. in a taxi with yea jin & siege, on some highway from incheon to seoul.
very long drive over flat dry & cold landscape. it doesn't look cold here, but it is. like a full-body slap that you shakes you down to your bones.
more of the same. fell asleep from boredom & lack of sleep from the night before, spent packing & checking english 1 exams. woke up at crimson house, whose motto is "you belong to crimson house!!"
with indonesian writers asma & cecep. our first dinner in chilly seoul, a restaurant that opened 1971, on a street we call pedro gil (chang-something-gil is its real name) near korea university.
this is yea jin, our program manager. when she met us at the airport, she looked like a serious young woman working for a government institute. as you can see, krung krung pala siya. hindi naitago ang tunay na pagkatao niya. heh heh.
Friday, April 07, 2006
that last goodbye*
top 5 things i miss most right now:
1) kitty, the love of my life
2) the other love of my life, nyahaha
3) my friends & my family, especially B & R
4) a kitchen where i can cook own food & bake
5) warm weather, sunshine, the beach -- all things summery
so here i am in my monkish cell dreaming of getting a sunburn. it's warmish in my tiny room but warmer under the covers. the past few night before i drop off from sheer exhaustion, visions of Hangeul characters dancing in my head, i find myself needing to go through pictures stored in my camera. i watch videos of kitty and look at the people i love. i miss you all terribly, you know, and this little ritual helps to make things a little better.
B at sunset, taken at that little CBTL at the new ortigas parklet.
the genius P generously giving me bootleg mp3s as a farewell gift.
me looking very equally genius when actually just ripping own CDs into mp3s to take to the land of the morning calm. photo taken by P.
what we like to call metaphotoraphy when we don't know any better.
more of the same. senti sunset photos follow. try not to laugh.
the view from oyster boy cubao after a certain level of blood to alcohol ratio is achieved.
* no apologies to jeff buckley because he's dead.
1) kitty, the love of my life
2) the other love of my life, nyahaha
3) my friends & my family, especially B & R
4) a kitchen where i can cook own food & bake
5) warm weather, sunshine, the beach -- all things summery
so here i am in my monkish cell dreaming of getting a sunburn. it's warmish in my tiny room but warmer under the covers. the past few night before i drop off from sheer exhaustion, visions of Hangeul characters dancing in my head, i find myself needing to go through pictures stored in my camera. i watch videos of kitty and look at the people i love. i miss you all terribly, you know, and this little ritual helps to make things a little better.
B at sunset, taken at that little CBTL at the new ortigas parklet.
the genius P generously giving me bootleg mp3s as a farewell gift.
me looking very equally genius when actually just ripping own CDs into mp3s to take to the land of the morning calm. photo taken by P.
what we like to call metaphotoraphy when we don't know any better.
more of the same. senti sunset photos follow. try not to laugh.
the view from oyster boy cubao after a certain level of blood to alcohol ratio is achieved.
* no apologies to jeff buckley because he's dead.
have you got any seoul?
i've been here for 10 days now and i have yet to post anything about what's been happening to me. precisely because so many things have been happening. i barely have time to sleep. and but so finally, here are some pictures. a photo story of sorts.
first off, some pictures from the many despedida thingies thrown for me the week before i actually left manila.
my friend emre and me at CBTL gateway. M says he looks like ewan mcgregor na turkish. heh heh.
we all love paolo manalo. paolo manalo kissing orgy at TOSH katipunan.
marby and me at chateau verde. paolo and ricky not in picture. the oysters were very good.
really yummy seafood dinner with tito and cousins at fish & co shangri-la mall. very fresh fish from vietnam turned into the perfect fish & chips dish. too bad it's not ecologically sustainable.
mark, gina and the lovely B also at CBTL gateway. we love QC!
first off, some pictures from the many despedida thingies thrown for me the week before i actually left manila.
my friend emre and me at CBTL gateway. M says he looks like ewan mcgregor na turkish. heh heh.
we all love paolo manalo. paolo manalo kissing orgy at TOSH katipunan.
marby and me at chateau verde. paolo and ricky not in picture. the oysters were very good.
really yummy seafood dinner with tito and cousins at fish & co shangri-la mall. very fresh fish from vietnam turned into the perfect fish & chips dish. too bad it's not ecologically sustainable.
mark, gina and the lovely B also at CBTL gateway. we love QC!
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