Eric's Travel Blog

Taipei is Great!

2005-12-25T09:41:00.000+08:00

Taipei really reminds me how much the US is lacking in nighttime activities! I've been eating like a pig and I'm not sure how much longer my stomach can take it but I know my mouth can't get enough of the sweet Taiwanese food!

I've been taking pictures, as usual, but haven't processed them for posting, as usual. I don't have much time in Taipei. I really should have spent more time editing in Singapore.

By the way, logging in to Google, Blogger, or Gmail from a Taiwan IP shows everything in Chinese! It doesn't sound like much but that's pretty cool to me.

Hopefully, I can put some pictures soon because I think Taipei is a lot more photogenic than Singapore but then again, I'm also a lot more cautious and hesitant to shoot here than I am in Singapore. I've seen some funny stuff!

Going to Taipei Soon

2005-12-23T09:35:00.000+08:00

I'll be packing up and heading to Taipei, Taiwan for a while before returning to San Diego. Hopefully I'll be able to get more pictures up while I'm there but I'm so backed up I don't know if I'll manage.

Had Fun, Now Tired

2005-12-23T00:14:00.000+08:00

Well, I had a very interesting day. I got to meet some friends for a while. I met in this order: Jon Kong, Brian Leung, Alice Lo, Kim Lo, Joyce Liu, Jacob Silverman, Nick Haslett, Patrick Linton, Mr. Silverman, Kaelen Morris, Meg Leseur (sp?)... then I'm not that sure... I guess Jennifer Liu (?) (from way back when I was a frosh and she was senior) and Mark Nerney.

Sometimes I met eyes with a couple people and they looked like they were waiting to see what I had to say to them, which was a bit strange because I didn't know who they were and I most certainly had nothing to say to them. Then they would give me a small smile and a nod and I would follow suit. I guess that happens all the time at functions like that when people aren't sure if they know you or not though.

I was a bit unsure if the receptionists/concierges recognized me or not... Siti and (I can't remember now). But the captain of the restaurant still remembers me by first name and says "Hello, Eric!" to me every time I come home, which is nice. I also couldn't tell if the SAS front desk lady, Azizah, recognized me and wasn't really happy to see me or didn't really recognize me. I thought it was funny that she is there every day at SAS at the front desk of the main office, and there she was at the front desk (sign-in) at the alumni event. I can't think of a better way for her to help students remember who she is.

I Still Have Friends Here?!

2005-12-22T12:49:00.000+08:00

It turns out the Maki somehow knew that I was in town, and told Mr. Jon Kong who then AIMed me to ask if I was in town. He told me tons of people are in town and Garrick was even here for one day... AH! I want to see these people and I never can but finally we are in the same place and I didn't know! I always try to post on message boards and stuff to see who will be in town, but usually not many people are around so for once I didn't bother. Turns out, this was maybe the biggest turnout ever (we'll see). There is a "Young Alumni" from Singapore American School (SAS) event at the American Club.

Wherever you are Maki, Thanks!

The Shaker

2005-12-22T11:54:00.000+08:00

The Shaker
Originally uploaded by ericpan.

Sorting through the desk and organizing the stationary, I found this:

Was this big in the US too? I'm imagining it was simply by the fact that it was huge here. Although, I don't recall seeing any stationary adverts in the US. We had all kinds of TV commercials for this pencil and its many iterations. I still remember The Shaker 2. I was like, "Wah... shiok, man! So sleek! So well balanced!"

Last Day = Cleaning Up + Packing

2005-12-22T11:10:00.000+08:00

Well, I didn't make it outside yesterday except for a nice exercise session consisting of weights, running, swimming, and sitting in the jacuzzi trying not to faint. :-P

But, today is the last day here in Singapore so that means I need to clean up all the junk I have created and spread around and pack it up or throw it out. I ended up throwing out a bunch of stuff this time - more than I have ever been able to throw away before. I always thought everything was too precious to throw away because of the sentimental value. I guess my values have changed a bit. I still kept the majority of the stuff, but I can't believe how much I threw away! Also, I got better at sorting things I guess. I also tried my best to use post-it notes to label what was in each box so I would know it had been sorted, who it belongs to and the contents (a la Kato, Feder & Suzuki Law).

I also have to try and turn my old room into some kind of an office for my mom so I'll be working on that soon. I found a bunch of electronic odds and ends (adapters, cables, etc) that I have been wanting to buy sometimes so I'll bring those home to San Diego with me. I'm considering to bring back my MD player/recorder. I didn't get to use it much since I left the adapter in Beijing during the summer of 1999 but I have a bunch of blank MD casettes. I'm not sure how it can rival the iPod though - what a waste.

There is an electric Ibanez bass at Derek Dieu's place near the old American School campus near Ulu Pandan. I wanted to go get it but I'm not sure why I didn't. I'm not sure if I'll be able to get any gifts... I don't have much Singapore money and I don't know if I have time... :-( Researching Nintendo DS stuff and Derbi SuperMoto stuff took a lot of time.

Orchard Road Beckons

2005-12-21T14:13:00.000+08:00

Orchard Road is the main downtown street filled with shopping, entertainment, food, etc. I realized I have barely been there this time and I still need to pick up a couple things for some people. But I'm so tired after having worked out and swimming this morning. I want to nap pretty bad. Well, I guess I could go later. I always forget how in the US everything closes so damn early compared to most asian countries.

I definitely am looking forward to Mos Burger downtown, and I'm sure I'll see a bunch of other stuff that will make me glad that I went, but there are so many people out there it makes me tired just being there.

Is it just me, or is it kind of difficult to walk quickly in Singapore? I always feel like I'm walking behind someone who is contemplating a deep philosophical question. Someone should really do a study.

DelicousExported

2005-12-20T10:11:00.000+08:00

I tested an exporting tool from a third-party developer called DeliciousExporter.

It can be found at ericpan.net, which now serves as a portal to similar internet nonsense I churn out.

Hello, Hairbut!

2005-12-20T00:44:00.000+08:00

I decided to do something for no reason: re-tool ericpan.net and try make it a portal for this mess I'm creating on the internet.

Anyway, I'm thinking that it would be good to infuse some photos into this sea of text. I suppose that would require flickr.com work and I'm kind of lazy about it right now, seeing as how I've got about 300 photos to sort through and process.

Comments on the hairbut?

I Did it! Supercard is Mine!

2005-12-19T19:03:00.001+08:00

Supercard SD
Originally uploaded by ericpan.

I bought two SuperCards from Ken from supercard.sg and he was really nice to help me flash my DS and explain a lot of stuff that I had to ask. He even let me watch him do it. Watching is a very big thing for me. I like to watch how people do stuff, haha. I even made him test both SuperCards for me to make sure they worked. He was super nice and even offered to be available via phone if I needed any help in the future.

Oh yeah, he said my DS is not the new firmware so it should be easier now.

Happy!

Sounds, Colors, and Shapes

2005-12-19T14:24:00.000+08:00

I forgot how there are flies everywhere! Even in the food courts... damn, it's pretty annoying to have to fan flies away from your food all the time while you eat. They're really aggressive too! You have to swing at them like you mean it!

Also, today I went back to where I grew up, Nanyang Technological University, and looked at my Dad's offices and our old neighborhood, etc. I went and stood next to my old building and stood there looking at the forest behind it. I really miss having my entire field of view filled with all types of green. There was a really nice breeze and I felt totally immersed in the environment. It turns out that a tropical forest has its own symphony of tons of cicadas and an amazing variety of bird calls. It's actually kinda loud. I really miss that music! It just feels so relaxing to me for some reason to be standing there, feeling the warm breeze, looking off into the familiar foliage shapes, and listening to the engulfing noise.

By the old neighborhood playground, there were some kids, a few expatriate kids like myself. They were basically doing what I used to do with my brother and our friends. Just run around those streets, chasing each other, kicking a ball around, playing with the wandering cats, or sit around and do nothing. I spoke briefly to one of the boys - he was probably in earlier elementary school and spoke with a thick British accent. I wondered if, when I was growing up there, another "graduate" of our 'hood ever walked around reminiscing as I did. The playground was entirely empty, except for a little baby boy sitting on one of those rocking horses, wiggling around, making funny little noises. He looked so happy, in his own world on that horse. It was really funny. I wondered what he was seeing in his mind.

Later, I went to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve with my Dad and we saw a bunch of monkeys. Monkeys are so funny and cute! Their mannerisms are just like people. It's so funny when they scratch their heads like confused people and when they display fine manual dexterity (picking little bugs out of their fur). And the bebes!! The bebe monkeys! Hilarious! They hop around like little aimless crazies.

Internet-Happy

2005-12-19T14:22:00.000+08:00

Google hasn't been very useful to me when I look for obscure items such as some Nintendo DS stuff and info on a motorcycle I've been looking for... in fact, A9 is always a last resort for me (mainly because I always forget it exists), but it always comes through when Google is absolutely useless, somehow.

My parents asked me why I was smiling at my computer so much earlier tonight. It was because I found SuperCard in Singapore!! I'm just guessing but, I think it looks like it's pretty big here from the look of the website and the fact that the SuperCard is its primary product. I emailed the sales rep and asked for a multi-unit discount and offered to do a pickup in Jurong East so there would be no shipping costs.

Also, I made further headway on research for a potential bike, Derbi Senda Supermoto and everything looks good to me so far. Very happy. What a good day.

Must Go Out

2005-12-17T15:04:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I didn't go out at all and stayed at home and worked on editing the photos for the journal and I started cataloging all the books that I thought were interesting in our home in Singapore. I used this cool program called Delicious Library that is really nice and easy to use. I can't remember what games and movies I have and stuff like that so maybe this will make it easier if I want to play or watch something but I'm not sure what. It was funny when I showed it to my Mom, the first thing she said was, "It looks delicious!" Maybe that's why they named it delicious library. haha

Travel Web Journal (Photos)

2005-12-16T05:46:00.000+08:00

Well, I guess I'll post photos at ericpan.net since Apple's Aperture seems to have a pretty easy web gallery builder and I'm editing in that application.

Enjoy!

First Thoughts

2005-12-14T16:03:00.000+08:00

So I just got in yesterday around noon (Singapore time) and about 30 meters out of Changi Airport, my Rainbow flipflops started to squeak a bit. Damn humidity.

I've been here for about 28 hours now... the iBook can't go online because no one knows the WEP password anymore. boo.

Spent most of the time researching Nintendo DS stuff so I can try get one here at a good price compared to the US prices. Osvaldo has been helping to learn me in that respect.

I never noticed before but, it's kind of a trip to see all asian people on all the ads. Never noticed that before. I went to Orchard Rd. to have lunch with my grandma, mom, and a family friend, Alice Wong. I can't believe her youngest son, Jason, is 17 years old! He is going to Sydney for university... I'm taking f o r e v e r to finish school. He used to be a tiny kid!

Anyway, I couldn't stay at Orchard Rd. to hunt for DS stuff because grandma wanted to go home due to the heat. I think I'll go check out Bukit Timah Shopping Centre or Beauty World or something like that. Maybe I'll have some photos later. (I really want to take pics of this sweeeet Subaru STi in the garage)