Friday, January 27, 2006
Big Day Out, 2006
I've been relaxing nicely for the last week - making the most of my newfound calling as a man of leisure. Tennis has been played, and I went from undefeated champion (7-6, 6-4, 6-2) on Monday to 2-6, 0-6 devasted loser at the hands of Pete. Of course, conditions were not at all favourable and I was still nursing some niggling injuries from the previous match (well, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it).
Wednesday night involved seeing Juzz and Josh play at the New Market and then off to the Eastern. However, impending public holiday and ENORMOUS queues meant for some membership handing on - the result being the confiscation of Juzz' membership and the need to move on greener pastures (i.e. Cargo). And then the fun began.
JD is an animal - picked up two randoms, started some conversation, had me 'wingman' the 'uglier' one (his words and he owes me BIG time) while pulling the other. Against my back. Slightly uncomfortable. However, then she disappeared on him. 'I've never kissed someone who didn't like me before... weird' was his only comment...
Yesterday was Australia Day - headed over to Tor M's house for a BBQ and some beverages and then out to Big Day Out. Circumstances, the multitudes and just running out of luck meant that I couldn't get to meet up with Brad or Kroch. Despite this slow start, I managed to get reasonably close to the Mars Volta who were intense... 45 mins without stopping once - just an onslaught of their prog-rock/jazz fusion. Pretty incredible. Then over to Common, who was wicked and finally to 2ManyDJs - best dance set I've ever heard... 14,400 square metre pavillion, huge screens, wicked light show and some awesome tunes. They are my favourite DJs, hailling from Belgium, and they would drop some classics (Primal Scream - Get Your Rocks Off, Rapture, Prodigy, Kaiser Chiefs) right in the middle of their hard house set. Superb!
Sunday, January 22, 2006
Pool party...
Not much happening in Sydney since I returned from Queensland. I had to come back early (so Thursday instead of Sunday) for the AWARD school Open Day (an advertising course that I am HOPING to get into, though it's nigh on impossible!) but that finished earlier than expected. This gave me the opportunity to head over the Eastern Members party; quite a sight! Free alcohol and food meant that the place was heaving, though the usual demographic of 17 year old girls was thinner than usual. I did still hear a guy ask a girl in the bathroom queue where she worked, to hear the reply of 'oh, I'm studying..'. Quick to jump in, he asks 'what'? She flatly states 'the HSC'... oh, the antics of the Eastern.
Place DIED after the free alcohol ended (literally quartering in about 10 mins) and so we decided to hit the Cross. Ended up in Hugo's, comparing sleazy stories (though one, who will remain nameless, had slightly more intense stories than the rest.
Saturday was trying to be a quiet one, but ended up heading over the Alec's for a couple of beverages. Then got a message that Strace was starting his residency at Le Panic and that we should all bask in his glory. Ended up at the Cross til 3, and the highlight was Shivs' favourite kebab man moving next to Empire. "Hey Sexy-Boy", yelled from across the street, followed by a hug and kebabs for all.
Yesterday was the pool party, with a few people sinking a few beverages. Good times were had by MOST, though I think JD is a little miffed at his missed effort. Sank WAY too many beers, jammed some awesome tunes, enjoyed the 33 degrees pool and generally had fun. Will try to include photos...
Place DIED after the free alcohol ended (literally quartering in about 10 mins) and so we decided to hit the Cross. Ended up in Hugo's, comparing sleazy stories (though one, who will remain nameless, had slightly more intense stories than the rest.
Saturday was trying to be a quiet one, but ended up heading over the Alec's for a couple of beverages. Then got a message that Strace was starting his residency at Le Panic and that we should all bask in his glory. Ended up at the Cross til 3, and the highlight was Shivs' favourite kebab man moving next to Empire. "Hey Sexy-Boy", yelled from across the street, followed by a hug and kebabs for all.
Yesterday was the pool party, with a few people sinking a few beverages. Good times were had by MOST, though I think JD is a little miffed at his missed effort. Sank WAY too many beers, jammed some awesome tunes, enjoyed the 33 degrees pool and generally had fun. Will try to include photos...
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Back from Nooooooooosa
I have left Noosa this morning with the first day of rain, only to land back in Sydney to more intense rain. Woo.
Having gotten back from Niseko almost 2 weeks ago, I spent the first week catching up with people and doing bugger all. Good times. On Sunday 15th, flew up to Maroochydore and from there to our trusty room in Seahaven (been coming almost 25 years with only 1 or 2 omissions). Happy days in the sun, out in the surf and burning through my Chrissie books.
Highlights definitely go to jetskiing through the mouth of the Noosa river and into the surf. Reasonable swell and 70km/h top speeds make for massive jumps, HUGE stacks and general lunacy. Hitting the waves for about half an hour, it was time to come in. As I followed the guide, I blipped the throttle off one wave to flatten my landing (we were moving with the waves meaning a 3 foot drop over the broken wave wash). However, did not see the next smaller wave right in front of me and ended up submerging me and the jet ski about half a metre below the surface. Needless to say, looked like an extra from Waterworld and was very impressed with myself.
Otherwise nothing else to report, and waiting for drinks on Saturday at mine. Hopefully I can get a couple of photos to post.
Having gotten back from Niseko almost 2 weeks ago, I spent the first week catching up with people and doing bugger all. Good times. On Sunday 15th, flew up to Maroochydore and from there to our trusty room in Seahaven (been coming almost 25 years with only 1 or 2 omissions). Happy days in the sun, out in the surf and burning through my Chrissie books.
Highlights definitely go to jetskiing through the mouth of the Noosa river and into the surf. Reasonable swell and 70km/h top speeds make for massive jumps, HUGE stacks and general lunacy. Hitting the waves for about half an hour, it was time to come in. As I followed the guide, I blipped the throttle off one wave to flatten my landing (we were moving with the waves meaning a 3 foot drop over the broken wave wash). However, did not see the next smaller wave right in front of me and ended up submerging me and the jet ski about half a metre below the surface. Needless to say, looked like an extra from Waterworld and was very impressed with myself.
Otherwise nothing else to report, and waiting for drinks on Saturday at mine. Hopefully I can get a couple of photos to post.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
Slopestyle family in Niseko
Just a belated shot... this is from our last day on the slopes.. Dad, Mum, Me, James and Pete. That you can see us (i.e. there isn't a blizzard between the camera and us) is a miracle in itself.
Saturday, January 07, 2006
Bored out of my brain
So we've arrived in Tokyo airport after two hours in a car and an hour flight. But we've got 5 hours to kill before we can board. AND, because Mum and Dad are flying Business and have a QANTAS membership, we can usually get three kids into the lounge. But the staff at the door did not feel that bending the rules was a good idea, so Pete, James and I are taking it in turns to hit the lounge. Feels like at you're at a bar and need to fish around for girls just to get let in... not happy.
Last night was an absolute bender, getting headspins just from thinking about it again. Went to another lodge on the other side of town to meet up with some of Mum's QLD mates, and got absolutely lined up by 'Belly', one of the guys Mum went travelling with after school. Beer after beer, with no dinner, ended in some crazy stories and dancing, but I certainly paid for it. Minus 15 degrees required a run home across the town, followed by a couple of hours in the toilet at home. Passed out and woke up sprawled against one of the walls. Have been feeling like shit ever since - simply living on a Neurophen cocktail til I get home and can re-adjust.
Anyway, times up, Pete's next in. Peace out peeps...
Last night was an absolute bender, getting headspins just from thinking about it again. Went to another lodge on the other side of town to meet up with some of Mum's QLD mates, and got absolutely lined up by 'Belly', one of the guys Mum went travelling with after school. Beer after beer, with no dinner, ended in some crazy stories and dancing, but I certainly paid for it. Minus 15 degrees required a run home across the town, followed by a couple of hours in the toilet at home. Passed out and woke up sprawled against one of the walls. Have been feeling like shit ever since - simply living on a Neurophen cocktail til I get home and can re-adjust.
Anyway, times up, Pete's next in. Peace out peeps...
Thursday, January 05, 2006
More snow...
It has snowed every single day I've been here. That's extrordinary.
Yesterday was skiing as normal, but today was out of control. We did a course called "The White Room", where you learn about avalache survival, how to use a homing beacon and how to ski some of the most outrageous powder in the universe. Not exaggerating (which wouldn't be like me at all), the snow would flip over your head as you turn. Shoulder deep in some places, bottomless powder - it was just like in those skiing videos. I swear, I'll never ski snow this good again, just utterly amazing. You have to take all the lifts to the top, then take off your skis and walk to the summit, where we got blue skies for the first time since we arrived. The view was astounding. Best skiing, best snow ever. So pumped (as you can probably tell).
Last day skiing tomorrow and then I head back, so should be back on Sunday morning. I hope someone's prepared the parade and the stippers. (Male and fat Juzz, my favourite...)
Peace out OGs...
Yesterday was skiing as normal, but today was out of control. We did a course called "The White Room", where you learn about avalache survival, how to use a homing beacon and how to ski some of the most outrageous powder in the universe. Not exaggerating (which wouldn't be like me at all), the snow would flip over your head as you turn. Shoulder deep in some places, bottomless powder - it was just like in those skiing videos. I swear, I'll never ski snow this good again, just utterly amazing. You have to take all the lifts to the top, then take off your skis and walk to the summit, where we got blue skies for the first time since we arrived. The view was astounding. Best skiing, best snow ever. So pumped (as you can probably tell).
Last day skiing tomorrow and then I head back, so should be back on Sunday morning. I hope someone's prepared the parade and the stippers. (Male and fat Juzz, my favourite...)
Peace out OGs...
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
It just doesn't stop snowing...
Just a quickie because internet is an expensive luxury in the mountains.
Has been snowing non-stop here, but this has been affecting visibility. So while Day 1 was awesome, Day 2 was a little hairy as we couldn't see much at all. Sticking to the trees bred some vision but hidden branches under the snow meant for some hilarious stacks seemingly from nowhere.
Day 3 (today) was HEAPS better. Someone nicked my ski pass out of my jacket in the drying room (a season one worth about $400) but managed to get it cancelled and another issued. While this was a massive effort, when I finally got to the mountain, it was worth it. Constant snow, but with some decent visibility, meant the powder was out of control. Snow flying over the face and hitting some near vertical slopes that you would have to jump turn, resulting a 2 metre fall before landing in the snow and sinking another metre or more. Just incredible. Will try and take the camera out tomorrow and get some shots that I probably won't be able to Flickr, but they'll be up when I get back fo sheezy.
Only other thing was last night's dinner. "Hank's" is literally Hank's house, where he has Mr. Miyagi's identical twin (only with a beard) cooking sausages and Herring over the fireplace. So good, especially when the Gin Rummy tournament with Pete and James had been taking a very competitive edge, requiring the consumption of numerous beers to calm the nerves. Suffice to say, a Burroughs decathalon has been set in motion, with each member vowing to smash the others at their preferred sport. Boule practise is set for as soon as I get home!!
Nothing much to report, THOUGH, I notice JD (the mad advocate of the abusive comment) has not followed through with NYE report. Which makes me think that the waitress got the better of him. Bradders, find out and make him and Juzz report back to me!! Haha... They may get personal email attacks to guarantee some honesty.
Peace and love peoples...
P.S. Got a message from 0416 282 676, wanting a DJ for Sat night. Don't have that number on my new phone, so tell them I can't reply from Japan and that Adrian Bright MAY be interested (but for free, I doubt it). Also, let me know who it is.
Has been snowing non-stop here, but this has been affecting visibility. So while Day 1 was awesome, Day 2 was a little hairy as we couldn't see much at all. Sticking to the trees bred some vision but hidden branches under the snow meant for some hilarious stacks seemingly from nowhere.
Day 3 (today) was HEAPS better. Someone nicked my ski pass out of my jacket in the drying room (a season one worth about $400) but managed to get it cancelled and another issued. While this was a massive effort, when I finally got to the mountain, it was worth it. Constant snow, but with some decent visibility, meant the powder was out of control. Snow flying over the face and hitting some near vertical slopes that you would have to jump turn, resulting a 2 metre fall before landing in the snow and sinking another metre or more. Just incredible. Will try and take the camera out tomorrow and get some shots that I probably won't be able to Flickr, but they'll be up when I get back fo sheezy.
Only other thing was last night's dinner. "Hank's" is literally Hank's house, where he has Mr. Miyagi's identical twin (only with a beard) cooking sausages and Herring over the fireplace. So good, especially when the Gin Rummy tournament with Pete and James had been taking a very competitive edge, requiring the consumption of numerous beers to calm the nerves. Suffice to say, a Burroughs decathalon has been set in motion, with each member vowing to smash the others at their preferred sport. Boule practise is set for as soon as I get home!!
Nothing much to report, THOUGH, I notice JD (the mad advocate of the abusive comment) has not followed through with NYE report. Which makes me think that the waitress got the better of him. Bradders, find out and make him and Juzz report back to me!! Haha... They may get personal email attacks to guarantee some honesty.
Peace and love peoples...
P.S. Got a message from 0416 282 676, wanting a DJ for Sat night. Don't have that number on my new phone, so tell them I can't reply from Japan and that Adrian Bright MAY be interested (but for free, I doubt it). Also, let me know who it is.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
From the slopes of Niseko...
Having been dragged out of the Tokyo Apple store, it's taken me this long to find more internet access. I am now chilling in this little Japanese cafe, but they don't have broadband up in the mountains, so this is taking me ages.
Now I'm just going to quickly burn through the last couple of days and I'm inserting the preamble now that if there are any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors (unless glaringly obvious ones), they are the result of the freaky Japanese keyboards.
On the day after Boxing Day, did not do much.. shopping and packing, jammed some beach volleyball up at Neilson (formidible UMJ decimated [yes, reduced by 10 JD you gimp] the lowly competition of Marcus and Yank) and then headed to Hannah's farewell at the Dolphin in Surry Pills. P.S., for a place that looked utterly shit from the outside with wall-to-wall pokies, it has a mad interior, nicely priced beverages and some smashable cocktails. Well worth a repeat visit. Then met up with Jess for a late night coffee and bed.
28th - just got ready to leave on the 10pm flight. Nothing amazing at all.
Flew into Tokyo airport at 6am, and hit up the bus into the main part of town. We were lucky enough to be staying in the Grand Hyatt at Rappongi Hills - a huge shopping complex - which meant that there were more tourists than elsewhere and a reasonably central location.
After settling in, we headed out for a walk to Shibuya, a main shopping district. However, Pete and I were a little optimistic in our map-scale reading and the walk ended up taking a solid hour, in 5 degrees, under a motorway. Not to be shaken from out path, we marched on and were treated to the main square of Shibuya in full force. It seems that Tokyo is on holidays and most people head back to their villages etc for the four days over the New Year, so it was surprisingly empty compared to my expectations. But we saw some of the hectic fashion that I had been looking forward to and there were numerous sneaky pictures taken of the family in an attempt to catch them on film.
Lunch was provided by this dingy hole in the wall, where I had pork and SALT sauce. Ordering blind off the menu turned into a massive fluke because we all enjoyed the meal. Well, kinda. It was certainly not the traditional Japanese food you get in Sydney. AND, before you blow up, Italian food tastes the same in Sydney and Rome, so it's not ridiculous to assmume the same from other cultures.
From Shibuya, a short train ride up to Harajuku (though how we managed this on the hectic train lines is a mystery - Brad must agree that if you can't read Kanji, it's a nightmare. A walk down the main streets of Harajuku provided some amazing sights, with foot-high hair, a couple dressed in 19th century children's outfits and all kinds of punk attire seemingly the norm.
By this stage, the afternoon was coming along, so we headed back to the hotel. Having not really slept on the flight, most of the family had been up for 34 hours non-stop and an early night was called. However, Em and I had been struggling to meet up (no contact between Australian mobiles and Japanese ones) and when I got back to the room, there was a message to meet out the front of the Hyatt at 9pm. A daunting task to kick on, but I thought it would be cool to go get a drink in Tokyo with a friend.
Having waited outside for a cool half hour (and cool means -2deg), she FINALLY arrived and we walked around the local suburbs, catching up on all the goss. But we couldn't find an open bar (even the one with the metre-wide disco ball only had 2 people) so we settle on the Hyatt one for a very 'Lost in Translation' moment (footnote: I can only guess because I haven't seen the movie, shock horror). She left at 11:50 because the trains stop at 12, though I think she got on the wrong line and I'm not really sure whether she got back ok or not!
30th was spent at the Ginza district, which is the main shopping area with all the ridiculous stores etc. A short wander brought up the Sony Store, 6 levels of concepts and new technology. Not as impressive as I would have thought (though you all know my theory regarding Sony's inability to innovate) but the Aibo robodogs were awesome. Dad was able to make one sit, and the reactions were awesome. We then headed over to a vertical pinball parlour, which was insane. The noise deafening and we hadn't the slightest clue how the game worked though we saw some massive payouts. Just massive sensory overload.
We then headed to the Apple Store, from where I made my last post. Nothing massively new, but four levels was impressive enough. We then hit up another hole in the wall where absolutely no English was spoken and that was an experience. We still don't know what we got - it was totally unrecognisable. I didn't mind it, but general consensus was disaster. We then hit up one of the major temples in the area where Brad stayed (but I can't remember the name). Interesting, though the markets definitely detracted from the significance. And another monster walk home.
On NYE, we had a very early start to get the monorail to the airport, but of course we forgot our ski boots and the rush to get there on time was intense. Hour long flight, followed by a 2 hour drive to the snow.
Our place is reasonably nice, though I don't think anyone has ever stayed there before. Got settled in, and just chillaxed around for the arvo.
Mum had made a booking at some random Japanese/Italian fusion food to make sure that we had something to do. But was done by 11 and was asleep for midnight - not really cut because had never planned for a massive night. Though I received a couple of drunken messages so I'm hoping that everyone in Sydney had a blinder.
Today, got up for first lift at 8 and oh my god. The snow is knee deep everywhere and it just snows all the time. It took a couple of runs to find my ski legs again, but these are the best conditions I've ever skiied. The goal of the holiday was to do movie turns with the powder hitting you in the face and we achieved that by 11am! Constantly off-piste, the visibility ranges from sketchy to wonderful when the clouds open and you can see everything. I'm really looking forward to the next week!
More importantly, I want to here about people's NYE's. Comment on this post with your stories because I have none of my own. Also, I can receive messages, but can't reply because there is no Vodafone here, only DoCoMo (the local provider and not synced with Aus). Will try to email as best I can, but with only dialup, the blog will be the source of my info. But I want to know what's happening domestically, so JAM ME COMMENT AND GIMME THE INFO.
Now I'm just going to quickly burn through the last couple of days and I'm inserting the preamble now that if there are any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors (unless glaringly obvious ones), they are the result of the freaky Japanese keyboards.
On the day after Boxing Day, did not do much.. shopping and packing, jammed some beach volleyball up at Neilson (formidible UMJ decimated [yes, reduced by 10 JD you gimp] the lowly competition of Marcus and Yank) and then headed to Hannah's farewell at the Dolphin in Surry Pills. P.S., for a place that looked utterly shit from the outside with wall-to-wall pokies, it has a mad interior, nicely priced beverages and some smashable cocktails. Well worth a repeat visit. Then met up with Jess for a late night coffee and bed.
28th - just got ready to leave on the 10pm flight. Nothing amazing at all.
Flew into Tokyo airport at 6am, and hit up the bus into the main part of town. We were lucky enough to be staying in the Grand Hyatt at Rappongi Hills - a huge shopping complex - which meant that there were more tourists than elsewhere and a reasonably central location.
After settling in, we headed out for a walk to Shibuya, a main shopping district. However, Pete and I were a little optimistic in our map-scale reading and the walk ended up taking a solid hour, in 5 degrees, under a motorway. Not to be shaken from out path, we marched on and were treated to the main square of Shibuya in full force. It seems that Tokyo is on holidays and most people head back to their villages etc for the four days over the New Year, so it was surprisingly empty compared to my expectations. But we saw some of the hectic fashion that I had been looking forward to and there were numerous sneaky pictures taken of the family in an attempt to catch them on film.
Lunch was provided by this dingy hole in the wall, where I had pork and SALT sauce. Ordering blind off the menu turned into a massive fluke because we all enjoyed the meal. Well, kinda. It was certainly not the traditional Japanese food you get in Sydney. AND, before you blow up, Italian food tastes the same in Sydney and Rome, so it's not ridiculous to assmume the same from other cultures.
From Shibuya, a short train ride up to Harajuku (though how we managed this on the hectic train lines is a mystery - Brad must agree that if you can't read Kanji, it's a nightmare. A walk down the main streets of Harajuku provided some amazing sights, with foot-high hair, a couple dressed in 19th century children's outfits and all kinds of punk attire seemingly the norm.
By this stage, the afternoon was coming along, so we headed back to the hotel. Having not really slept on the flight, most of the family had been up for 34 hours non-stop and an early night was called. However, Em and I had been struggling to meet up (no contact between Australian mobiles and Japanese ones) and when I got back to the room, there was a message to meet out the front of the Hyatt at 9pm. A daunting task to kick on, but I thought it would be cool to go get a drink in Tokyo with a friend.
Having waited outside for a cool half hour (and cool means -2deg), she FINALLY arrived and we walked around the local suburbs, catching up on all the goss. But we couldn't find an open bar (even the one with the metre-wide disco ball only had 2 people) so we settle on the Hyatt one for a very 'Lost in Translation' moment (footnote: I can only guess because I haven't seen the movie, shock horror). She left at 11:50 because the trains stop at 12, though I think she got on the wrong line and I'm not really sure whether she got back ok or not!
30th was spent at the Ginza district, which is the main shopping area with all the ridiculous stores etc. A short wander brought up the Sony Store, 6 levels of concepts and new technology. Not as impressive as I would have thought (though you all know my theory regarding Sony's inability to innovate) but the Aibo robodogs were awesome. Dad was able to make one sit, and the reactions were awesome. We then headed over to a vertical pinball parlour, which was insane. The noise deafening and we hadn't the slightest clue how the game worked though we saw some massive payouts. Just massive sensory overload.
We then headed to the Apple Store, from where I made my last post. Nothing massively new, but four levels was impressive enough. We then hit up another hole in the wall where absolutely no English was spoken and that was an experience. We still don't know what we got - it was totally unrecognisable. I didn't mind it, but general consensus was disaster. We then hit up one of the major temples in the area where Brad stayed (but I can't remember the name). Interesting, though the markets definitely detracted from the significance. And another monster walk home.
On NYE, we had a very early start to get the monorail to the airport, but of course we forgot our ski boots and the rush to get there on time was intense. Hour long flight, followed by a 2 hour drive to the snow.
Our place is reasonably nice, though I don't think anyone has ever stayed there before. Got settled in, and just chillaxed around for the arvo.
Mum had made a booking at some random Japanese/Italian fusion food to make sure that we had something to do. But was done by 11 and was asleep for midnight - not really cut because had never planned for a massive night. Though I received a couple of drunken messages so I'm hoping that everyone in Sydney had a blinder.
Today, got up for first lift at 8 and oh my god. The snow is knee deep everywhere and it just snows all the time. It took a couple of runs to find my ski legs again, but these are the best conditions I've ever skiied. The goal of the holiday was to do movie turns with the powder hitting you in the face and we achieved that by 11am! Constantly off-piste, the visibility ranges from sketchy to wonderful when the clouds open and you can see everything. I'm really looking forward to the next week!
More importantly, I want to here about people's NYE's. Comment on this post with your stories because I have none of my own. Also, I can receive messages, but can't reply because there is no Vodafone here, only DoCoMo (the local provider and not synced with Aus). Will try to email as best I can, but with only dialup, the blog will be the source of my info. But I want to know what's happening domestically, so JAM ME COMMENT AND GIMME THE INFO.
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