defrog: (devo mouse)
I am in you. 

Specifically, I am in this tiny hotel room next to the Ginza.



Please enjoy the view.



It’s been awhile. The last time I set foot in Tokyo was probably nine or ten years ago. I’ve been to Japan a few times since then, but not Tokyo.

I used to travel here pretty regularly. I had a lot of fun. Of course, my idea of “fun” is spending a few hours in Tower Records Shinjuku looking for new Japanese bands. But there was also that time we went to a nightclub in Roppongi where they had a Beatles impersonation band called The Parrots. Musically they sounded just like the real thing. The stage banter was less so, though mainly because it’s hard to imagine John Lennon speaking Japanese.

There won’t be any of that this trip, probably – I’m only here for a couple of days. But there will be a Tower Records visit. You bet.

No music no life,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I fly a lot.

Which is why one of my favorite author blurbs is the one for Douglas Adams, where it said he could usually be found in airport book stalls.

I can identify with that. I always bring a book on a flight, and pack a spare one in my luggage for the trip back. But sometimes I find myself in need of an emergency book – usually because the book I have takes a shorter time to read than I thought, or I had more time to read than I thought, or whatever.

The good news: airports always have books. Also – and I mention this because I typically travel to countries where English is a second or third language – most airports have English-language books.

The bad news: the selection is usually limited to the kinds of books I usually don’t read – mass-market fiction, Top 10 best-sellers, business advice, self-help books, romantic vampires, 50 Shades Of Whatever, etc.

So the challenge is to find a book I’d actually want to read, even if only because it’s either that or having no book at all. On the plus side, it’s a way to force me out of my comfort zone and try an author I normally wouldn’t try, or an author that I’ve kind sorta thought about trying, but have been putting off/avoiding. Sometimes the results are abysmal. But sometimes they’re quite rewarding.

Anyway.

The above scenario rarely ever happens. But I love browsing in bookstores anyhow, so I’ll usually stop in the airport bookshops while I’m waiting for my flight, whether I need a book or not. And I find myself playing a game:

Emergency Book Search!

The objective: try to identify at least one book I would actually buy if I needed one.

For example, I recently did this in the Barcelona airport, where the bookshops don’t have a very big English-language section, which makes it a bit challenging. Still, I managed to narrow it down to three:

1. Ross MacDonald, The Goodbye Look
2. Roberto Bolano, Antwerp
3. Cormac McCarthy, All The Pretty Horses

I’ve read McCarthy before, and wouldn’t mind reading him again. And I’ve never read MacDonald before, but I’ve seen his name on books since I was a kid, so I was curious.

Still, I think I would have gone with Bolano – partly because he’s semi-local to Barcelona (he’s from Chile, but he lived near Barcelona from 1977 until his death in 2003), and partly because I became aware of him via an intro he wrote for another book. He seems like someone who might be worth checking out.

I didn't buy the book, of course, because I didn't need one. And I also didn’t need the extra weight of another book in my carry-on. But if I had needed one, that’s the one I would have got.

And yes, I do this all the time.

NOTE: The Barcelona results were actually kind of atypical. I don’t usually get that many options, and they’re usually not that literary. In most airports, I’m more likely to end up with something like Terry Pratchett (and that’s assuming it’s a Discworld book I haven’t read yet).

Ready for boarding,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
Just like it says, Jim. 

1. A big dog outside a Burger King.

BURGER KING DOG photo 2013-02-25040435_zps2d1bf23b.jpg

And then ... )

Same time next year,

This is dF
defrog: (Default)
This is quite possibly the post you've been waiting for.

Some of you may remember that in the wake of Presidente Obama’s first election victory, a number of entrepreneurs worldwide raced to cash in on his name. One of them was a restaurant/bar owner in Barcelona. 

I have proof.

 photo 2013-02-28095144-2_zps9e4a0b6a.jpg

 photo 2013-02-28095234_zps9b98f170.jpg

The building that houses it is under renovation, so that banner covers the original storefront signage, which looks like this.

OBAMA BAR 03 photo 2013-02-28095254_zps28c9d90d.jpg

 photo 2013-02-28095305_zps64b662f7.jpg

As you can see, the Obama pub sports a British-African themed décor. Which is, to say the least, a little tacky, if not outright controversial. I don’t know if the décor was already in place when the owner came up with the name: I’m assuming it was.

Still, it’s the sort of thing that Orly Taitz or Donald Trump would find funny. Or compile into their Big Box O’ Evidence. Trump would probably buy it and open a chain of them across America if he thought it was worth the grief he’d get for it. Or if he was the least bit interested in the restaurant business.

Anyway, it is what it is, and I specifically took a detour to get a photo of it. Because I live to entertain you people.

Also, I live to annoy the kind of people who get annoyed very easily by Obama’s popularity. Which, of course, I find hilarious.

PRODUCTION NOTE: I didn’t have breakfast there, no. I was tempted, of course. But I didn’t really have time. And according to online reviews, it’s better for drinking than eating.

Up next: the random!

Somewhere in Africa,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
Well, it’s Barcelona. Of course there are statues. 

METRO ROBOT ART photo 2013-02-25005112_zps0aafa129.jpg  photo 2013-02-28095534_zpsb730cf56.jpg

NUDE WOMAN, WITH ICE CREAM photo 2013-02-28095043_zps6bf1c1b9.jpg

FUN FACT: The one with the reclining nude lady? At first glance I thought she was holding an ice cream cone.

I know.

Up next: The POTUS!

No one’s here for art,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
A minor point, but I suppose one worth mentioning:

I flew on Emirates Airlines for the first time. And the plane they put me on was an A380, also for the first time.

And, as it happened, the A380 that flew me from Dubai (my connection hub) was the first A380 to land in Barcelona.

THE FIRST A380 IN BARCELONA photo 2013-02-24193416_zps5ac22f3b.jpg

They greeted us with water cannons. As you can see from this screen shot from my personal entertainment screen.

WELCOME TO BARCELONA photo 2013-02-24191940_zps1e981ca0.jpg

As for what it’s like to fly on an A380 … well, it's pretty much like any other plane. It doesn’t give you more meaningful room in economy class. The only real advantage is that everything is new – which means an up to date inflight entertainment system with on-demand video.

As for Emirates … I thought they were all right, as airlines go. I will say that flying to Dubai comes with a trade-off.

Pro: it takes what would usually be a 13-hour + 2 hour flight (there being no direct flight from HK to Barcelona) and reallocates the travel time to 8.5 hours and 6.5 hours, which is somewhat easier than having to sit on a plane for 13 hours at one time.

Con: it takes longer to get there once you factor in the layover. Added up, I spent over 18 hours traveling one way. And considering I don’t sleep well on planes, that is a long time.

Finally, a couple of comments about my first time in Dubai airport:

1. It’s the first airport I’ve ever been to that allows you to keep yr water bottle during the transit security screening.

2. It's the first airport I’ve ever been to where the shops and restaurants are open 24 hours.

Isn’t that interesting?

Up next: the art!

Making history,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
As some of you may know, Barcelona is big on funky architecture, thanks to Gaudi being a local. 

As it happened, his most famous building, La Sagrada Familia, was so close to my apartment that I had a view of it.

Sort of.

GAUDI ON THE HORIZON photo 2013-02-24213710_zps239019cf.jpg

Also, Torre Agbar (not a Gaudi project) was a five-minute stroll away.

TORRE AGBAR WITH GRATUITOUS WITCH HUNTERS photo 2013-02-24223308_zpsc36ac65d.jpg TORRE AGBAR AFTER DARK photo 2013-02-25032715_zpsfad455fa.jpg

There’s an obvious joke here. Feel free to contribute in the comments. 

And finally, there was the Hotel Porta Fira across the street from the venue of the event I was attending.

It looks like this.

 photo 2013-02-26101914_zpsc5a3f5c7.jpg

And that’s all I got on architecture.

Up next: the airplane!

They don’t build ‘em like they used to,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
Me: And we’re back.

Internet: You were gone?

And so it goes.

Anyway, I spent last week in Barcelona (as part of my annual job-related pilgrimage to the world’s biggest mobile industry conference/exhibition), and the weekend recovering from the jet lag. Yes, they have Internets there, but as usual, I was too busy and too tired to liveblog anything non-work-related.

And long-time readers know what that means: a series of posts with pictures in them.

Starting now.

Things were a little different this year, thanks to (1) the event moving to a different venue and (2) my company’s incessant desire to spend as little money as possible on trips like this. Meaning: in past trips to Barcelona we’ve been staying at the same hotel, but the location was never that great, so we figured we’d try someplace different. The problem is that hotel rooms are hard to come by during convention week, and any hotel room you can get goes for something like 4x the normal rate.

So this year we tried something different: renting an apartment.

Turns out Barcelona has lots of apartments that tourists and traveling salesmen can rent on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. And they’re comparatively cheap, depending on when and where you book. Also, if yr going to share a room with yr boss, a two-bedroom apt has its advantages over a single room.

So that’s what we did.

Here’s what it looked like.

APARTMENT LIFE 01 photo 2013-02-24213512_zps18c4e77e.jpg APARTMENT LIFE 02 photo 2013-02-24213525_zps3de59b87.jpg  photo 2013-02-24213635_zps47a23bc5.jpg

The apartment was pretty old (hey, it’s Barcelona – some of those buildings date back centuries), but in decent condition, and it had heat and (more importantly) free Wi-Fi. And the location wasn’t too bad, even though it takes longer to get to the venue, but that’s largely the product of the venue change – if they’d stayed in the same place, it’d be a slightly shorter commute.

If there’s a downside to it, it’s that, unlike a hotel or a serviced apartment, there’s no linen change, daily cleaning or concierge service. Also, no breakfast buffet. But that’s pretty minor.

Overall, it was an interesting experience. And all that for 750 euros (for five nights).

That might sound expensive. And it is. But seriously, the three-star hotel we used to stay at charged us at least 50% more, and for just a single room. So all up, it’s a bargain.

Up next: architecture!

Renting not buying,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I was in Kuala Lumpur a few weeks ago. I didn’t see much of it.

But I did see this caution sign outside my hotel.

Photobucket

And then I saw this one a little further up the street under a footbridge.

Photobucket

I’m guessing this is the new public menace in KL.

Also, while we’re at it, quite a few of these were also posted close to my hotel.

MORNY GIRL MASSAGE

I didn’t call them, no.

Me so morny,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I’ll be broadcasting from Kuala Lumpur the next couple of days.

Also:



[Via Fat Man In A Little Coat]

Carry on.

Jackpot,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I was in Singapore last week for a few days.

And I’m going back again today for a few days.

Broadcasts will continue as normal.

Meanwhile, here’s some appropriate send-off music.





I get around, 

This is dF

defrog: (Default)
I’m in Seoul, by the way. Have been since Monday, though I’ll be going back to Hong Kong tomorrow.

Since I haven’t had a chance to kick around much, here’s the obligatory view from my hotel room window.

MILLENNIUM VIEW, View from the Millennium Hilton, Seoul, June 2012

Just behind that is Seoul Station (a major railroad station) and Seoul Cultural Station 284 (a.k.a. the old Seoul Station building, built in 1925), which looks like this:

CULTURE CENTER 01, Seoul, June 2012

Across from that is Seoul Square, which looked like this:

SEOUL SQUARE 01, Seoul, June 2012

That walking image on Seoul Square is animated, incidentally.

And that’s about it from Seoul. I spent most of the trip in the hotel MCing a conference or typing furiously. And I head for the airport in the morning.

If you want to see more Seoul, you can always look at my pics from my last trip here two years ago. That’s what I do.


Which is relevant, actually, since I actually visited this very hotel during that trip. Or rather, the Seven Luck Casino right next to it.

Small world, eh?

What are the odds,

This is dF



defrog: (Default)
And finally, here’s a photo taken inside McGhee Tyson airport outside the news kiosk: a photo of a Tennessee volunteer statue surrounded by the 50 Shades Of Grey pseudo-bondage trilogy.

50 SHADES OF TENNESSEE, McGhee Tyson Airport, May 2012

Which I find amusing, all things considered.

For my next trick I’ll need a volunteer,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
And now, nine (9) random things about my side trip to Tennessee:

1. Full frontal nudity

I went through my very first full-body scan machine. Which means you can now see me naked on the internet somewhere. (Presuming you haven’t already.)

2. Sleepless nights

I had a lot of them, thanks to jet lag, 4:00am pick-up times, and a suicidal deer.

3. Air Force One

We passed it, according to the driver who took me to San Francisco airport at 4am. We were passing Travis Air Force Base at the time. It was dark, and all I saw was what looked like a jumbo jet silhouetted by floodlights, a shadow on the tarmac. I presume it was to do with this.

4. Joe Biden

I didn't see him, but he delayed my connecting flight out of Charlotte. Not personally – he’d arrived at the airport just before we were supposed to pull away from the gate (I presume it was to do with this), and they shut down all air traffic until he was clear of the area. Which took about 45 minutes.

5. More than a feeling

I had no CDs to listen to on the way to Nashville, and there was no iPod port, so I listened to the radio. I heard an awful lot of Boston, for some reason. Also, they're Light Rock now, apparently (though an argument could be made that they’ve always been Light Rock).

6. Used (and new) media

I had CDs to listen to on the trip back, thanks to my traditional stops at the Great Escape and Grimey’s. Now I have a new stop – McKay, which sells used books, CDs and videos. I’d been to the one in Knoxville (and went there this time too), but apparently they recently opened one in Nashville as well. Which means I now have some new Spinrad to read. And I have my old Cheech & Chong records back.

7. The ongoing death spiral of TV news

Why is it that when the US TV news media kicks into high gear and covers a story with hours of in-depth expert analysis, it's about something like Justin Bieber punching a photographer?

8. Pitbull

I saw him perform on the Today Show. The audience screamed for more. I wept for America.

9. Drunk shirtless cowboys and hookers

Spotted hanging out in front of a hotel next to a truck stop outside of Knoxville where I was refueling. I didn’t manage to get a picture, sorry.

To be fair, I don’t know for sure that they were cowboys and hookers. All I know is the guys were all shirtless, drinking beer, wearing cowboy hats, and accompanied by women in halter tops and Daisy Duke shorts. And they were all drinking Rolling Rock. It could have been a graduation party, for all I know. Or an office team-building retreat. Or something.

FWIW, I also saw a Hell's Angel walking a bulldog. 

Anyway, that’s about all I got.

Barbarism starts at home,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I eat food.

There was much of it this US trip. Too much, actually. Which is typical of my stateside trips – a friend ordered a small salad and it came on a plate the size of a large pizza.

Also, as usual, most of this took place in the kinds of restaurants where the servers are yr new BFF to the point where you want to punch them. Especially Chili’s. But they are designed for hanging out with actual friends for a couple of hours, which was what I was doing there in the first place (otherwise I’d be eating at, I dunno, Sonic or something).

I’ve already covered the IHOP in Santa Clara, so here are some bloggable highlights from the Tennessee leg of the trip:

1. Bel Air Grill

CLASSIFICATION: Bar and grill with pseudo-50s décor and a pseudo-50s menu.

BLOGGABILITY: the gratuitous pseudo-Elvis statue out front.

BEL AIR GRILL 01, Maryville-Alcoa, TN, May 2012

THE FOOD: I had an overpriced chili dog. It was pretty good.

FUN FACT: I passed by an antique store in Nashville, and there were about four identical pseudo-Elvis statues out front. I’d have bought one if it wouldn’t have put me well over my baggage weight limit.

2. Rafferty’s

CLASSIFICATION: Ostensibly a steakhouse, but if you've ever been to Ruby Tuesday's, TGI Friday's or Shooters 52, you pretty much know what's on the menu.

BLOGGABILITY: The gratuitous rack of flatscreens.

SCREEN BANK, Rafferty's, Madison, TN, May 2012

One screen was tuned to the World Poker Championship (or something involving poker, anyway). Cat, Suzie and I couldn’t stop giggling at it, especially when they showed the guy wearing the Brazilian flag as a cape and looking bored to death.

THE FOOD: I had a bacon burger drowned in BBQ sauce. Tasty!

FUN FACT: The server was a good sport who pretended to get my Thin Lizzy references.

3. Misaki

CLASSIFICATION: A Japanese steakhouse – the kind where you get yr own chef grilling meat with knife-fu, juggling utensils, throwing bowls into his hat, setting the table on fire, etc.

BLOGGABILITY: See above.

THE FOOD: I had the ribeye and teriyaki chicken with veggies and fried rice. Very tasty, but way too much of it.

FUN FACT: I’d never actually been to that kind of restaurant before, and my sister was keen to take me. Entertaining, it was.

And there you are.

Check please,

This is dF



defrog: (Default)
I rent cars.

Sometimes they're not cars so much as pick-up trucks.

DEERSLAYER 01, What a deer did to my rental car. Maryville-Alcoa, TN, May 2012

I should stress it was the only thing available. But it is handy when yr renting a car in East Tennessee, because you just blend right in (provided you put a Tennessee Vols logo and a window sticker praising Jesus on it).

Anyway, I hit a deer with it on I-40 East.

DEERSLAYER 02, What a deer did to my rental car. Maryville-Alcoa, TN, May 2012

DEERSLAYER 03, What a deer did to my rental car. Maryville-Alcoa, TN, May 2012 DEERSLAYER 04, What a deer did to my rental car. Maryville-Alcoa, TN, May 2012

You should see the deer.

In a weird way, I was lucky on just about all counts except for the part about actually hitting the deer. For a start, it happened at 1:30am in the middle of nowhere, which meant no nearby traffic, so I had all the room in the world to swerve and avoid a head-on collision, albeit not enough time to miss it completely – I clipped it with the right front corner of the truck. You see the result.

Apart from that, I was lucky that I was able to drive away from it, and that I was driving a truck in the first place. (Ford trucks really are Built Ford Tough™, you know.) If I’d been driving (say) a Chevy Aveo, even a glancing blow like that could have potentially crippled it (and possibly me). I speak from experience – I hit a deer with a 1988 Subaru Justy on a two-lane blacktop at 60mph. The repair bill was $3,500.

So all in all, I got off light.

But then again, maybe not. I have no car insurance (as I don’t own a car), and after forgetting to sign up for the cheap full-coverage plan offered by Priceline, I was dumb/cheap enough to opt for the lowest insurance plan offered by the rental car company – which, I’m told will probably only cover the cost of a new grille. I’m also told that car rental companies can be pretty ruthless about this kind of thing. So I’m expecting the worst, and to be a lot poorer before all this is over.

Fucking deer. Where’s Ted Nugent when you need him?

BONUS TRACK: Oh, and when I came back to HK last night, United Airlines was kind enough to lose my luggage. 

Again

The hits keep on coming,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I’m still in Santa Clara. I won’t be for long. My telephones journalism is done, and my ride to the airport is five hours away. Which is a drag as it’s almost 11pm. They’re picking me up at 4am.

This is where 3.5 years of military training pays off.

Anyway, here’s all I’ve got to add about the Santa Clara gig:

1. I did not meet Douglas Coupland.

The company organized a dinner last night at the San Jose Museum of Modern Art, with an after-dinner speech by Coupland. I would have gone, but the jet lag kicked my head in an hour before the bus left. And while meeting Coupland would have been bloggable, it occurred to me that I would be killing myself just to see a guy who is one of the few authors who I’ve never read yet can name at least a half dozen of his books.

So I crashed instead. This was wise in retrospect. I heard he was good but talked a looooooong time.

2. I really am across the street from Yahoo! Headquarters.

YAHOO: STILL HERE, Santa Clara, CA May 2012

See?

Okay.

And now I am off to East Tennessee. Yes. I decided to visit the family whilst I was in the country (and my international ticket was paid for). So that’s my Memorial Day holiday right there.

Broadcasting will be non-existent unless I can figure out a way to rent a USB dongle for a few days. Cos I’ll be staying with mom, and there ain’t no internet there.

Disconnected,

This is dF

defrog: (Default)
Reporting live from Santa Clara, California.

No, really.

I am in the courtyard suite of a hotel across the street from Yahoo! Headquarters (also across the street: the Great America theme park and an IHOP), and I am here in the name of telephones journalism.


Here’s how that’s gone so far:

1. I was hit up for secondary screening before I even got on the plane. They made me take off my shoes. 

2. I had the following exchange with the ICE officer who let me back into the country:

Him: “You know, you look like that guy from Mythbusters.”

Me: “Yeah, I get that a lot.”

3. I had lunch at the IHOP. Downside: the food took 45 minutes to arrive (even though the restaurant wasn’t all that busy). Upside: the waitress felt bad enough about it to comp the bill. Also, DAMN good strawberry/banana pancakes.

So we’re off to a rollicking start here in Santa Clara, I can tell you. Which is good because there’s bugger all to do here unless you have a car. Which I don’t.

And now, the jet lag and deadlines. To say nothing of this monster strip-mall burrito I must now deal with.

On the house,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
I’m back from Kuala Lumpur.

Not much to report, except for the following:

1. PowerPoint

I spent a lot of time looking at PowerPoint slides.

2. Landmarks

When I wasn’t looking at PowerPoint slides, I was looking at the Petronas Twin Towers. Which look like this.

TWIN TOWERS 01, Petronas Twin Towers via KLCC, Kuala Lumpur, May 2012 TWIN TOWERS 02, Petronas Twin Towers via KLCC, Kuala Lumpur, May 2012
TWIN TOWERS 03, Petronas Twin Towers outside Suria KLCC, Kuala Lumpur, May 2012

Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones not included.

3. Bookstores

When I wasn’t looking at PowerPoint slides or the Petronas Twin Towers, I was inside a very large Kinokuniya bookstore trying desperately not to buy too many books. I kept it to two selections. You’ll find out what they are one day if you keep following this blog long enough.

4. Television wasteland

One of the speakers at the conference I went to was from NBC Universal. That meant we got to see a short video showcasing all of their hit TV shows, cable news channels and Hollywood blockbusters. I was impressed because it pretty much summed up everything about American television that keeps me from watching it whenever I’m in the country.

I know it’s a mistake to assume that media is an accurate and comprehensive reflection of a given country, but I always imagine aliens seeing something like that as a capsule of American culture and thinking, “What a bunch of rubes.”

5. Penang chicken curry

I had some Penang chicken curry, because I likes me some Penang chicken curry. I did not like this particular Penang chicken curry. It didn’t like me back.

6. Huge doughnuts

I also had a raspberry doughnut from the café in the lobby. It was the size of a Whopper. I ate the hell out of it.

7. Petty crime

Kuala Lumpur International Airport owes me 6 ringgit. That’s how much I paid for a bottle of water that I thought I could take on the plane back to HK with me but, as it turns out, couldn’t. I’ll bet another 6 ringgit the security guard who confiscated it was secretly thinking, “Cool, I just saved me 6 ringgit.”

Lesson: airport security is a racket.

That’s all from me. Next week: Seven things about Santa Clara, California.

No deposit no return,

This is dF


defrog: (Default)
No half-assed series of Bangkok business trip pics would be complete without some gratuitous giant airport statues of local mythological demons keeping watch over the check-in counters.

BANGKOK AIRPORT DEMONS 01, Bangkok, March 2012

Talk about tough security.

See also: this display of (I think) demons and humans fighting over the Buddha.

BANGKOK AIRPORT DEMONS 02, Bangkok, March 2012

BANGKOK AIRPORT DEMONS 03, Bangkok, March 2012

And there you are.

High security,

This is dF

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