a musing: derivations of a non-conformist idealist

a musing: derivations of a non-conformist idealist

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Corregidor in Pictures, Part 7

When the tour guide said that after the war, Corregidor was, like, so war-torn that hardly anything grew there, and then the government had to seed ipil-ipil to re-forest the whole island; but now, more than fifty years later, it is teeming with greenery, it's either that's so unbelievably amazing but true or the tour-guide was making stuff up as we all go along. The power of suggestion: tourists unconsciously are "told" to return.
A nice image of a dock with a small boat tied to it.
And another dock we didn't get to visit. How were the other tourists able to get there? And there's even a party tent!?!
Flags. Of nations who contributed to the restoration of the island and of the hotel?
This hill is alive with the sound of silence...
When the color turns to a darker shade of blue, it means the water is deeper, cleaner, and therefore no longer part of the Philippines.
At the Japanese cemetery. A statue looking into a pond. And the open sea behind it. That's deep!
A lonely tree at the side of the road. How old could it be? Did it see the carnage that was World War 2?
And that concludes our picturesque journey to Corregidor. You might want to go yourself. Bring a camera.

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Kimono Ken @ The Podium

The menu... Well, the front cover of it.A Japanese-looking plate with tissue and chopsticks artistically laid out. Yeah, ok.
Way inside the restaurant, at the bar and counter, where the kimono-clad waiters and waitresses hang-out.
And there's always a nice hanging ornament or lamp to raise the ambiance and/or the cost.
We were hungry. I forgot to take pictures of the food I ate.
But indeed, Kimono Ken serves affordable Japanese food. And from the look of my bowl, it was quite tasty too. So if you're near the cinema area of The Podium, check out Kimono Ken's menu. You might see something you'd like.

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Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Disturbing


imdb
wiki
rotten tomatoes

Oh, man, oh, man, oh, man! Shia LaBeouf follows up Transformers with a gripping suspense story laced with the repression of a young man's desire to go out and have his way with the hot next-door chick. Oh, well, what could a guy do but just hang out inside his room with his member-of-the-cultural-minority best-friend. And spy on the hot next-door chick. And his other neighbors, one of which, unfortunately is... You have to see the film! Don't know where to hide the bodies of people you murdered? See this film.

Ironically, as we were watching this movie, a couple in the seats in front of us were unbelievable noisy. Yeah, disturbia indeed.

3 out of 5 stars.

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Saturday, September 08, 2007

Cocorama @ Shangri-la Mall

At the cinema level of Shangri-la Mall in Edsa is this cool pancake place that also serves fried and grilled goodies: Cocorama.Here's their groovy VW van design of a counter... and a counter-girl...
The disco ball solidifies the disco theme... disco at the beach- quite a mix.
Nothing says "I love you" better than a table-top ceramic vase with three fake orange flowers.
A table setup in front of the VW van counter...
The lucky golden cat waving its arm charm... Charming.
The paper placemat...
And now, the food: Ooh, big plate goodness! Buttery rice (actually, Star margarine which is why it's named Star rice) and a big boneless piece of country-fried chicken. Gravy-licious!
And here's two pieces of chops with two eggs any way you want them, scrambled or sunny-up, plus bread.
Next time, I plan to sample the pancakes.

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Corregidor in Pictures, Part 6

Life is like an island full of wacky tourists...
(in the Pacific War Museum)Do not piss on the wall.
Statues of women soldiers... paid by the hour?
Kung-fu warriors?
Did a bomb go off behind them or what?
Prisoner of war, smiling.
In dire need, yet smiling.
Gorgeous sea view... windy though.
...you'll never know when you step on a hole and fall.

Upcoming in Part 7... Sights, scenes, and foliage!

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No checking into a hotel room 1408

Official Website

Click on the title for the IMDB entry.

Rotten Tomatoes review

I like the film very much. It's scary and wow, it was mostly in one room and it was mostly just John Cusack. Wow. He should get a nod for this.
He must've regretted saying "Just give me the key."
Best line though would be: "Nobody lasts more than an hour." See the movie and find out why.
Definitely 3.5 stars out of 5.

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Bubble Tea @ MegaMall Foodcourt

A cramped snack and dessert place. You could sit outside along where the rest of the MegaMall crowd passes going to the Foodcourt though. Nah.A nice lemon-green hanging lamp.
"Ooh, I love the cake!" We didn't have cake that time.
A listing of what they serve... and a server...
A bubble tea. I didn't like the bubbles (those sticky sago balls) and the large straw. Was never into the Zagu fad.
Wtf?! There's a finger in my pasta! Oh, it's just a finger pointing at my pasta not a finger IN my pasta. And it's actually pointing at the awful looking shrub growth in the middle of my pasta. It was ok, nothing spectacular.
Still, if you want to impress a girlfriend with an upscale-looking tea-with-sago stand, this is the place to bring her.

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Hula-Hula @ Shangri-la Streetscape

Hula-Hula Seafood and Barbecue House at the Shangri-la Streetscape.Here's their chopsticks holder, a totem-piece head thingee. You'd make the same face if you had a chopstick lodged in your skull.
A hanging lamp that looks like a barrel somewhat.
What's a bar without alcohol (um, 40% isopropyl?)?
And a barmaid, dressed up and ready to go. No, she's not for take-out.
The food's great. The bill was a thousand and that's for two people already and all the food you see below.
The maki-looking rice roll and the foot-long barbecue...
Baby-shrimp (shrimpies?) rice.
And bangus belly which, be careful, there are still some fish bones.
All in all a nice dinner or date place. Go check it out.

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