Encounter with Nature... Yosemite!

Its 3am on the 31st of May... Almost time for me to go back to Singapore. Well, I miss a plenty of stuff. Its time I head back. But I got to say, this one month has been great. Really seen a lot! One of which was Yosemite... If you all didn't know, its pronounced as (Yo-Se-Mi-Tee). :) Its a national park... Really nice and beautiful, especially if you like nature. I've come to realise that I do like nature and like being around it. :)

It was a good experience to stay 1 night at Yosemite. We stayed at the lodge and it made me feel very close to nature. Also, the weather was cool and cold... Great for sleeping. Though the sleeping conditions may look dodgy, I actually feels great! One of my best nights sleeping in America. Furthermore, our lodging was near the waterfall, so that was the first thing that invited us when we woke up. Really nice! Emm, talking about nature and stuff, I remember I use to have such 'outings' back in Secell... Thats really way back. Night-walks, Stayover at Yishun Damp, Endurance Camp. And when I think about them, I think about David. Brings back memories too... Ok, enough said... Below are the pics.


Our beds at Yosemite...


Lodging... The 'hut'...


My breakfast. Camping style... Sardines and Meat


View of Yosemite's Half Dome. Pic w Dawn n Jon


View from our 'hut'... There's a waterfall (if you can see it)


Spot me! At the waterfalls... Feels really good to be sprayed by the falls.


Waterfalls! My favourite!


Look at the clear water from the falls. Can see my feet. Ha... The water was quite cold. But still, it felt SHIOK!


These creatures are everywhere... Squirrels... Photo dedicated to Rochi-mochi.
(No worries, I'm not afraid of them)


Another water-fall...


Great view of Yosemite. Sun, Trees, Waterfall...


Pic on top with background scenery of Half-Dome


And we watched the sun-set... Great View from the top! Praise the Lord for His wonderful creation!

Tata! God bless!

-LeB-

the journey continues...

I have been away from home for... 21days. wow... didn't realise it was that long. the days have been going by real quick, with lots of things to do and a rushed schedule. Everyday I would wake up to rush to go out and spend a whole day out before heading back to my 'shelther' for a bath and sleep. Perhaps I should adopt such a lifestyle when I'm back in Singapore.

It has been great so far, lots to look at, lots to experience. Officially been to Atlanta, New York, Toronto, Ontario, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Diego. Different cities of America and all feels different. I stayed at a hostel in Los Angeles and was rooming with an Australian couple and 2 English girls. The Australian couple were friendly and it was fun talking to them... These people have been travelling for 4-5 months; of which their travel plans are a 6 months stint. Amazing! And I met a girl from Ireland who plans to travel for 1 year. Its such people you meet that makes the travel more interesting. And my thought is... how can they just put down everything to travel. Emm... perhaps its a culture overseas by not observed in Asia. I think that travelling for 1 month is long enough to experience a 'long trip'... Another thought I had... Its amazing how everyone speaks English but yet has a different accent. The Brits have their own accent, Aussies have another accent and so does the Americans. Well, Singaporeans speak English their own way too... Its just interesting. I could sit in the room and just hear the Aussies and Brits converse. So interesting! Languages are beautiful. But if there's another language I could choose to master, I would want to speak in Cantonese well... I think it sounds so so well. Kudos to Frances who is going over to Hong Kong! (stupid Joel who didn't want to tell me :P... arggh) Alright 'indecisives'... no more planning needed. We shall just head to Hong Kong for a holiday.

Its now 12.21am over here in Los Angeles, my last night over here. Oh man! I got to say that Universal Studios was great! Its a great place of interest where they show you how movies are made... etc etc. I took down some videos and hope to post them up if I know how and if I can. Universal was so much better than Disney. I think my younger brother will love Universal... He so loves watching movies. Sad thing was that on the day we went Disney, it was the premier for 'Pirates of the Caribbean'... thus lots of attractions were closed early or closed for the day. The park was also closed earlier. And nope, I didn't see Johnny Depp or Orlando Bloom although they were supposedly there... (when I left). Running low in funds now thus I'vebeen only having 2 meals a day. Brunch and Dinner. Pathetic right? Especially for LeB who loves to grab small bites so much. But its still good... We always splurge on dinner... Shall upload photos on my meals. I'm always looking forward to my meals.

One thing I really enjoyed doing over here. Driving! I drove to Grand Canyon and Death Valley! Oops... Sorry to my Dad who told me not to drive over here. But no worries, Caleb is all safe and fine. It is just fun to drive in a different environment with 'left-hand' drive and with different cars. Also, over here the cars travel quite fast... and cause we drive to faraway places, we tend to drive faster too... emm... like a 'little' faster than in Singapore... 16*km? feels good. Blehz... it was a long drive to both Grand Canyon and Death Valley. But I enjoyed the drive. Nice scenery...

Hope everyone is well and fine in Singapore... Miss the food back there... Well, I also miss the people... EVERYONE! do receive me from the airport. Ha... alright gtg... Tata!

Hotel Rm in Las Vegas... Stratosphere

Chinny Chin Chin... maybe its a sign for you to set up a cafe.

Grand Canyon... Great Sight. No wonder its called 'Grand'

Ice-cream after hike at Grand Canyon... Feels great.

Just felt like playing a fool... Reminded me of chocolate fountain.

Drive to Death Valley...

@ the sand dunes of Death Valley. The weather was hot!

But my mood was good. When you feel good, you feel like jumping!

Disneyland... I've been to 2 disneylands in half a year

its been a long time since I sat on the swing.

however, my bum has grown... the sit didn't quite fit.

nevertheless, realised my desire of sitting on a swing

@ the beach of Santa Monica...

sometimes you wish life was so simple and fun

kids by the beach of Santa Monica catching bubbles.

a great sight I caught.
life at its simplest.

this photo is dedicated to xuanie!

HOW'S PATRICK??

I had a super strong craving for Japanese food.

I love Jap food.

This was my meal at 'Little Tokyo', Los Angeles.

Thought of the times my family went to the Jap Restaurant at J8.

Anyway, the food was superb! Even came with green-tea ice-cream

2 thumbs up for the restaurant!

-LeB-

Purely Pictures

New York Stock Exchange @ Wall Street (photo goes out to my brother)

Trump Building. Rich!

Maid of the Mist... Niagara Falls!

It was a wet ride...

The big bed at Marriot Hotel. Marriot, Niagara Falls Rox!

Self-taken pic at Chinatown, Toronto... Excellent picture taking skills thanx to Frances.

-LeB-

Itinery... Pictures... Familiarity

Awesome! Spending the night at... ... McCarran Airport, Las Vegas. Finally off to yet another place. Left New York for Las Vegas. Emm... Decided to write down my itinery so as to update and for myself to keep track.

(3rd May) Day 1: -Arrival at Atlanta, Georgia after a 25hr flight, reached at night, super tired.

(4th May) Day 2: -Went walking around Atlanta, nice cold weather and a different environment
-Ate at Mary Macs, authentic southern food

(5th May) Day 3: -Went to Georgia Dome for Georgia Tech's Graduation Day
-Had hamburger steak for lunch (first time trying!)
-Left for New York, reached at night... Walked along the streets of New York
-Spent the night at West Side Inn... One word to describe... "Cui!"

(6th May)
Day 4:
-I went to church! And amazingly, we had to queue up 1hr 30mins to get into the church. The Abyssinian Baptist Church. Apparently the church is featured as a tourist attraction in 'Lonely Planet'. They held a traditional church service with a choir behind. Interesting! It was like Sister's Act. Ha... Just that they were not as hip. Lots of Soprano and Bass singing though. It was located along the streets of 'Harlem'... Where a majority of African-Americans reside. So, the church was filled with African-Americans. Emm... In my impression, I think they are very cool people! nice... The message spoke to me as well, talking about -Conviction -Commitment and -Prayer :) Thank God for speaking to me even during this time of travel...

-Excursion to Central Park! Woohoo! Thats one place I like in New York. Real big, nice scenery and nice weather!
-Walked around Times Square

(7th May) Day 5: -Took the ferry to Statten Island to view the 'Statue of Liberty'
-Wall Street & Ground Zero (which had nothing)
-Visit to UN (nothing much though... just had some grotesque pics)

-Broadway... Watched 'Phantom of the Opera' (sad thing was, I slept during the show) :( too tired. By day 5, my legs were aching like mad and I was having insufficient sleep compared to what I had in Singapore. Just too tired to watch. Sighz. I'll catch it again someday!

(8th May)
Day 6: -Breakfast at Famous Bagel shop near 'West Side Inn'... Had Poppy Bagel w Raisins and Walnut Cream Cheese... Nice...
-Empire State Building. View from the top.
-Visit to Metropolitan Museum of Art. Spent 3hrs there... I got to say usually, I would not go for such things. It was a tourist attraction and seems like everyone goes there. So we went. I got to say it was quite enjoyable. Interesting. But, the musical instruments section was closed that day. So sad.
-Greenwich... Went to 'Blue Note' a famous jazz pub. Only Dawn and I were there... But I went in after much persuasion from her though, and, I did not regret it at all... The pianist playing was great! Every note, every phrasing was clear... and played with lots of expression. He was just... really good!
-Late late dinner at 'Applebees' ... arrived back at my inn at 3am... Had to leave for Toronto, Canada at 5am. Shag.

(9th May)
Day 7: -Drive to Toronto, delayed by rental of car and some passport issues. 9hrs drive.
-Arrived at 8plus at night. Went to CN tower, I didn't go up though. Had the opportunity to catch a 'live' baseball match at the dome. Coolz!
-Dinner at Chinatown. After a week, I had chinese food again.
-Checked in to our hotel. Although it was cramp cause we had 6 people staying in a room, it was much better compared to 'West Side Inn'. Woo!

(10th May)
Day 8: -Dim Sum for lunch! Nice. Canada has quite a lot of Asians, especially Hongkongers, made me feel like I was in Hong Kong. Dim Sum was nice. :)
-I became the driver for the day. Coolz! Left-hand drive and drove a MPV. We went 'tou tou feng' ... sight-seeing
-Went to Casa Loma, some castle in Toronto. Didn't go in though...
-Highlight! We checked into MARRIOT! Super nice! Posh living at affordable pricing. Why? Cause we booked a couple room and bunked in 6 people. But still, it was comfortable... The best deal was, we are staying on the 17th floor and... just outside the window is the view of Niagara Falls. Great view! Awesome!
-Super costly dinner of USD$30 at TGI Fridays. Nice food and portions though.

(11th May)
Day 9: -Woke up early morning. Went to the balcony... The sight of Niagara Falls early in the morning. Beautiful. Beautiful. Still beautiful...
-Walked the streets of Ontario, Niagara Falls. Lots of nice shops around. Colourful town.
-Finally reached the Niagra Falls. Took the 'Maid of the Mist', a boat ride what brings you very near to the falls. A wet ride. Very enjoyable.
-Continued to stroll along the streets beside the fall.
-Headed back to New York

(12th May)
Day 10: -Checked in to 'Jazz on the Villa', first time staying in a dorm with 10beds.
-Went to SoHO, Little Italy and Chinatown. I miss home. Being at Chinatown somewhat gave me a sense of familiarity. Unlike in Singapore, I do find the Chinatowns here attractive.
-Early night with a call to Mum. Happy Mother's Day

(13th May)
Day 11: -Went back to Chinatown and Little Italy
-Went to Brooklyn Bridge
-Found famous ice-cream shop at Chinatown
-Flight to Las Vegas

Alright... Finally completed my itinery for the past 11days. It has been a good experience.I am starting to miss home, my friends back in Singapore and things I am familiar with. Thats good. and... ! J-boy (my younger brother) messaged me. Ha... So happy to receive his message. 4 messages from him so far.

message 1: Where r u u got buy mi anything

message 2: Call mi

message 3: Where r u u got buy mi anything

(I replied)

message 4: I finish my exams already u must buy mi some clothes also u got see pimp my ride buy mi games ok

those were the exact words. so cute! hahaha... for that, he'll get many many presents. ha

arggh. posted so many photos but the lappie had some probs. shall post photos next time.


just 2 photos for now...




View from Marriot Hotel Room! Rox! Niagara Falls...


Candied Apples. (Hao Kan Bu Hao Chi)... Looks superb but... its super sweet...

Alright gtg. Take care allz... will be back. Tata! God bless!

-LeB-

A short entry

Finally! Finally got the chance to use the net. And now, we are outside a motel in the car, tapping on their network... Ha! Damn cool... Currently in Niagara Falls, Canada, Ontario. Oh man! Niagara Falls is spectacular! God is great! His creation is just amazing! Enjoying myself every minute. Soon, I'll be heading back to New York before flying to Las Vegas. I'm excited to go to Las Vegas... Hope it'll be great too. Should be visiting Death Valley and Grand Canyon... Coolz... Weather here is great and its just been really enjoyable. :) Miss my family and peeps in Singapore though... Hope everyone is doing fine. Take care everyone and God Bless! 3 more weeks... Tata! Hope I can upload pics soon. :)

-LeB-

Television comes to "Live"...

Alright, I guess what I'm about to say is going to sound dumb, but this is how I really feel. Walking on the streets on Atlanta and roaming around is like television coming to "Live!"... Cool! Reason being I have never really encoutered people speaking like they way they do on american tv... I have never seen architecture and layouts like on tv... So, its like being in a whole different universe.

The weather is great here... Its almost like the weather in Genting, except that it is cooler. The streets are filled with great architecture around, or rather, stuff that you don't see in Singapore. Travel really widens your horizons.

About the culture here, it is really different. I feel that back in Singapore, people are all quite reserved. However, at the place I am now, people in the service industry really SERVE you. They chat up with you even before they serve you! Was at the bank today, and the lady was going, "How's your day! Is everything alright?!? So how may I help you?" So actually, you would have to reply about 2 sentences before you state what you want. But its cool, cause they sound really friendly and nice. I think back in Singapore, people would think 'Siao!' And I met a sales-girl today who was all smiley. She left an impression... and I wanted to take a pic with her. But, I didn't have the courage to ask at first... and when I was at the shop again, she wasn't there anymore. What a waste!

Alright! Time for some pics.

Georgia Tech, where Dawn is doing her exchange. Nice looking University.

Some church that we walked pass... Its a methodist church. Looks really nice and grand! Just look at the tower...

Mary Macs tea room! Our destination for lunch. Nice place, looking 'old-english' and nice food.

Lunch time! The portions are really big... Finally found a place that could satisfy my hunger! (On the left is Caleb's lunch, smoked chicken over rice, sweet potato and spiced apples) (Right... Fried Chicken, potato pancakes (Karen! think you would love them) and okra which means ladyfinger with tomatoes) Authentic southern food... Damn! its nice...

Tea time! Ha, I'm still the same, eating almost every 1-2 hours. This is the famous 'Key Lime Pie'. I heard its a must have in the southern part. I think I took a very nice pic of it man... Its really sweet though, guess its to cater to the taste buds of the people here. They REALLY like sweet stuff, which might explain their... S*ze. *oops* Second pic is WHITE CHOCOLATE MOCHA! Nice nice... All things come in big packages though. It was really sweet and I couldn't finish it.

Fox Theatre...

The name says it all... 17 1/2 street. cool!

Alright, last pic of the day... Nice and big houses and a small Caleb. (this pic was taken many times, due to the fact that I didn't have an artistic photographer :P)

Till then... tata!

-LeB-

First stop... Atlanta!

I have finally 'flown' over. After a gruelling 25hrs, finally reached Atlanta last night. It was a smooth journey here and thank God for that. Spent the night over at Clarence's apartment, a friend of Dawn's. Her friends are very nice, specially made plans so that I could have a bed to sleep in. :) The travelling and sight-seeing has not really begun but, it was cool flying and getting round the airports. Suddenly, I feel so scrawny. Everyone around are so big in size and speaks in accented English. Definitely a change of environment.

I have always enjoyed taking flights, and looked forward to meals on flight. Ha, perhaps I'm weird. Had a couple of meals and drinks on flight. They were nice... but it could also be cause I was really hungry. Meals included stuff like, beef, sashimi with pasta, scramble eggs, sausage, pancakes... etc. I just love eating! And my first purchase was a slice of pizza from 'little caesars', costing USD$2.50, that was one of the most affordable things around and, the slice looked big! However, it wasn't enough for my humongous stomach. Looking forward to more food and adventure!


On my flight here, I managed to get a window seat for my flight from Narita-Tokyo to Detroit. And because of that, I actually saw some amazing sights out of the window. I could not decifer exactly what it was, but it looked like some hills or mountains. Also, I have no idea where are they located. The sight of it bathing in the sun was just beautiful. Reminds me once again of God's wonderful creations.


Alright thats all for now. Tata!

First place of purchase...

Caesar's Pizza

-LeB-

First entry!

My blog is finally up! Ha, after contemplating for some time, decided to get it up. For now, its just a simple blog with no fancy templates nor a tag board... But! I'll definitely try to do something to it. Ha...

Well, I'm definitely excited for my trip! Never thought I could have the chance to travel overseas for a month, and whats more, America. Also, I would think I am very fortunate and blessed to be able to travel on my own at a young age. :) Thank God for the freedom I have. With no other matters on my mind, I just want to have a good time out there, see the world, eat different kinds of food... and just relax. Hope to take many many pics of various places and post it here...

Before I leave, I just thank all my friends for all the well-wishes and prayers! I'll definitely need more prayers! ... And I should start praying and even remember God during my trip. Thanks to Sun Quan who called me up twice before I leave, it feels good to be remembered! Ha... A buddy for life! Will miss my friends here... especially the 'indecisives' and 'evofus'... Also, I got to say I'll miss my students at echomusic. Kinda realised that I love teaching music and my students are all very nice people. Praise the Lord!

Alright, time for me to go... Feel like I'm macaulay caulkin from 'home alone'. Ha... Its my favourite show since young. I guess its not 'home alone' now. Its 'leaving home alone'... Tata!

-LeB-