Pictures worth a thousand words

I've been absent a few weeks now playing around in London and Paris, where we spent my sister's 20th birthday. Here is a slew of pictures of us enjoying holiday festivities. I'll miss my sister :(

Josh Hartnett in Rain Man



Walking Hyde Park



Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace


Harrod's bear couch :)


St. Paul's Cathedral


Billy Elliot


Sloane Square


Alyssa's 20th in Paris!


Arc de Triomphe



Walking to Eiffel Tower




Soldiers with machine guns on the streets...scary!


Atop the Tower




Toast to her 20th


Last hours on Champs Élysées...


...and so so tired!


Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park - London



Why there was a gorilla going around scaring people at the Wonderland, I don't know!


Uber slide!!!


Thanksgiving at the Texas Embassy

Customer service sucks in Britain

It's as simple as that. I wasn't going to blog about this as I feel it's turning into a rant fest when my experiences here aren't all that bad. However, I woke up this morning to no hot water and this is not the first time it's happened. The fact that nothing works in Britain is a whole other story so I will save that for another time. It did set the mood for the day and reminded me I should just complain about what happened yesterday, what I attempted to ignore.

Yesterday my sister and mom joined my gym as guests. To keep the long story short, after much difficulty getting some customer service but after finally getting it sorted and paying £56 each (!!) for a mere 12 days, the front desk woman asked my sister if she could call me and just have me show her around. Now, for £56 I think they should show their asses around. Pardon my French, but that is just rediculous. That is not even half the story or battle, but it put the cherry on top.

You get what you pay for back home. Things work and if they don't you can get them fixed for a consistent amount of time. Here nothing works, nothing gets done, and nobody wants to work. How has this economy gotten to such a successful state? So frustrating!

Vegas girls come to play

My mom and sis have finally arrived L-town! This is my mom's first time in Europe (even though I don't really consider London traditionally European) and Alyssa's second. I think she'll enjoy it this time around more since she's spending her big 2-0 on the 24th. We're thinking Paris!

My sister's first request was lunch at Pret no less. I then wanted to see the look on my mom's face upon exiting Westminster station where the glorious Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminster Abbey reside. My mom, a very cautious person, seems up for anything these days, one of which includes the London Eye. This is major coming from someone who squirms in an elevator. Should be a fun two weeks.

We ended a long walk through Trafalgar Square up to Piccadilly Circus, where my sister has her name written all over it.

Finally we went to our local major Sainsburys and coming from two American girls who are used to large supermarkets, it was nice to see them have an easy time finding what they were looking for. I often complain because I'm the latter, then again I want a big slab of swordfish for $5, not a diet deprived white fish for $11. I think I'm just missing cheaper, larger portions of anything from home but at least now I have a year's supply of pretzels thanks to my mom.

Speaking of my mom, she has been such a sport considering she had reconstructive surgery on both feet less than a year ago and rarely has elevator options here, except of course -and luckily- at Westminster which is on the Jubilee line ;) ...And as mentioned in my previous blog, you know what I think about London, the diabled, injured, sick and the like.

Having two enthusiastic tourists will be a breath of fresh air. The only thing commented, which will never be surpassed from either locals or tourists - the weather!!!!!!

Roll Out

Had a very interesting conversation today with a colleague at work. I've recently noticed a lack of accommodating the disabled. There are no ramps. Limited underground stations have lifts. And let's not forget the impatient and rushing traffic in London. There are stairs and there are way too many people that appear stressed to catch a train that will have one proceed it within minutes. I feel bad for the disabled here; well there are none. They wouldn't survive in such a place. Nor would an injured person, someone rehabilitated, or someone recovering from either. I'll even go to the extent of saying someone with the flu. Has anyone here heard of equal opportunity? There are plenty of disabled that are fully capable of the same things we do and have in this city, and I think they are entitled to the same freedoms. A bad strike of luck and unfortunate nature shouldn't say otherwise.

There's a movie called Music Within. Though I'm a flick-o-phile and appreciate just about any movie, it has to be one of my favorites in its genre - the inspriational. It's based on the true story of Richard Pimentel, a gifted public speaker who loses his hearing in the Vietnam War. He befriends a disabled fellow and becomes a pivotal figure in creating the Americans with Disabilities Act. I don't want to give too much away for I hope some of you will watch it after this puffery. Despite the drama and pancake humor (you'll see when/if you watch it), the significant element of the plot is the Disabilities Act and the realization of its importance to Americans and American infrastructure.

The Disability Act, signed by Bush Sr, has 5 parts:
1) Employment
2) Public Services and Transportation
3) Public Accommodation and Commercial Facilities
4) Telecommunications
5) Misc provisions

The law entitled the disabled equal opportunity in all the above stated. It's Title II and III which strikes me as I walk the streets of London.

The conversation with my colleague digressed into any and everything that doesn't really work in London, either because it's too old, the city wasn't built to accommodate such volumes, public apathy etc etc etc. Not to say that Brits aren't today integrating facilities for the disabled or injured. For example, the Jubilee line which runs northwest to southeast London is one of the newest if not the newest underground route and majority of the stations have lifts, Braille, and are more spacious. However, unless one is traveling from Maida Vale to London Bridge, it is beyond me how one would live, work, and be mobile within the city.

Ask anyone over here and they'll tease about the stereotypical people in electric wheelchairs at Walmart or the more transparent existence they have in the States in general. They may wonder why on Earth it's in the States you see these kinds of people - perhaps they're lacking or lacked the health care to prevent them from even being disabled - but I'm also thinking it's because we accommodate them to do the basic things we all do. Even if that means getting up a ramp to eat somewhere, riding the bus with their crutches or wheelchair, or shopping at Walmart. They are apparent in the public sphere. Can't say so much here. (My colleague later told me about a time he walked up Downing Street and saw picketing disabled protesting exactly what I'm talking about.)

Watch Music Within - you'll be amazed at what you notice within your city's framework and the importance of it.

God Save the Americans

It was a new dawn for me last night as I stayed up until the wee hours of 4am GMT to watch the numbers come in during the presidential race. I went to an election party last night held by Americans Away From Home. Predominantly occupied by Americans, the party felt more British with the catered cucumber sandwiches, pub atmosphere, and lack of organization. Even so, it beat watching CNN coverage over BBC on election day. And who could miss CNN show off all their gadgety things, especially the launch of Jessica Yellin's hologram.

The organizer of the party made a champagne toast soonafter the results of Ohio were released. One of her closing remarks was, "I know this is silly, it's really silly, but I've prayed every night for this to happen...."

There is nothing "silly" about praying everyday for this victory to happen. I often think Americans/religious people/a combination of both feel they have to walk on eggshells when they're anywhere but home, especially when it's an American citing their faith. Granted there's reason to, we should be proud of our values and stand tall. Especially now. When the close race of Georgia was projected, someone - an American - cried, "Stupid Americans!". Though it's a common stereotype, I don't think this is the time to underestimate our intelligence. THAT was a stupid American. I don't think Americans are stupid, per say; I think it is more a matter of being uninformed, to an extent of perhaps ignorance. We are not, however, incapable of processing information, having opinions, and making decisions on our own - being stupid more than anyone else.

This is a time we should stick together and be proud of our country, what we believe in, and aim for progress in our country. Shoot, if there is something out there, he or she sure heard our prayers because history has been made and we're up for a vivid future. Change and Obama - our daily cup of tea from here on out! YES WE CAN.

Why I Love London

Despite the often depressing, gloomy weather, high prices, stressful living conditions, crowdedness, and impersonal people, London is still one of the greatest places on Earth. And let me tell you why (I pulled an Obama there, like that?!). I think one of its greatest assets is its diversity and culture. For one, I don't think London embodies typical British culture aside from the pubs and individual reservation, although the latter could be a product of any metropolis of mass population. Nevertheless it is this mass population that is rich in diversity and one of the main reasons I'm always driven back to this city. It buzzes with its own history while it makes history with people from all over the world. Unlike many Americans, when a person here says (s)he is Italian, (s)he is not just talking race but also culture. (S)he may know a thing or two about the customs aside from spaghetti, pizza, and a last name that ends in "i". There's something exciting and enlightening about being in a place where there are people from all corners of the world.

I played tourist this weekend as we had guests in town from Denmark. I showed them around a number of places I thought they would find novel such as Brick Lane, an authentic Japanese restaurant (which is hard to find where they are from), Columbia Flower & Spitalfield Market, and Tower Bridge, which okay, the latter three I'll hand to the Brits. Of course Big Ben and the South Bank was in there somewhere, and I'll admit that the House of Parliament is a glorious structure.



The main two occasions that really gave me the London buzz was strolling down Brick Lane. As LondonTown puts it, "Brick Lane Market is pure East End London, which means Jewish bagel shops, Bangladeshi curry houses, Indian sari silks - and Cockneys crying out their wares. This chaotic, bustling market is half way between jewel and junk heap. It attracts lots of young Londoners, in search of second-hand furniture, unusual clothes and bits of this-and-that." It continues to say that the joy of this market is that you never know what you'll find, anything from cheap leather clothes and old magazines to Art Deco. Places like Brick Lane make you feel like you've escaped the city.



The second event over the weekend was when I watched, and don't laugh, "Heartthrobs London UK 2008" at the London Palladium, the original venue for Sound of Music. Heartthrobs showcased what I would describe as a mix between variety entertainment Filipino style and basically the Brad Pitt of the Philippines singing and talking to the audience. Alongside the infamous pinoy audience, I felt like I was back in Manila. I also felt at home despite being thousands of miles away.

Even though London, or any big city, can give you feelings of lonesomeness, at times these big cities like London make up for it in its rich culture and diversity. There are secret places throughout the capital that can make you feel both at home and enlightingly foreign. Now...if only the sun would come out and the dollar go up!

Make me sweat

Today I submitted my first feedback card at my local gym David Lloyds. For the fifth or so time, I had had enough of what seemed like a lack of encouragement from group fitness instructors. Generally speaking, most of them are talented and informed but for the most part they lack any sort of push and challenge towards their students. Most of the time I never break a sweat. In order to do so, I modify movements so I can test my limit and increasingly get stronger. What I've found, however, is many of the instructors have called me out and said something along the lines of "Don't do that yet - low impact first" or "take it easy - you might injure yourself" or "we're not there yet." My favorite: "Don't kick so high." What most of them don't know is that I've either warmed up already, I am very conscious of form, I have much experience in training, and sincerely appreciate their interest in my safety. What I find wrong with this training strategy though is a lack of challenge, a lack of pushing people to exercise to be stronger, faster, fitter, whatever their goals may be. Instructors should encourage such motivation if they see it in their students' actions. Especially if it is at a gym and people come to work hard.

A typical session in a group fitness class in the States embodies a mentality of "You're here for an hour so push yourself!" Instructors are motivating, challenging, exciting, and fun. They do not downplay any signs of inspiration or enthusiasm. The absence and denial of this is really beginning to bother me. And any form of disregard on my part would only make me seem arrogant.

It's a rainy, cold Saturday morning so I took two classes today - step and body sculpt. The first class was good. My only complaint is there was all this twirling and choreography. Where's the workout in this? I tried exchanging twirls with squats and of course the teacher told me not to. The previous mentioned occurred in the second class. The teacher even started class 10 minutes late because a student said her stomach muscles hurt. The teacher put her on a mat and did a little inspection. This cut into our class time. Additionally, before she started class she even insisted this other student spit out her gum. Why? I need gum all the time in aerobic classes. Some studies have shown that it actually assists in breathing. There are too many requirements and babying going on in this gym, and it's supposed to be the "highest end" fitness center in London.

David Williams and Matt Lucas poke fun at two American stereotypes Tom and Mark in the US version of Little Britain.
I agree that certain body builders and American fitness "enthusiasts" are borderline vain and unhealthy, some way beyond borderline. The characters are tongue-and-cheek and undeniably funny. But after experiencing much discouragement in fitness here, I see the existence of challenge and motivation not necessarily a bad thing. They're taking the piss but can they even push themselves?