Chivas On The Rocks

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

What Happens In Valencia Stays In Valencia....

**Change the channel**

Now back to the Spain trip....

After 3.5 days in Madrid, we traveled over to Valencia via the Renfe train. We could not miss the opportunity to experience the European train ride across the countryside of Spain (well it was actually only 3 hours away). However, it was the perfect departure away from Madrid and into Valencia, the 3rd largest city in Spain.

Time To Board

Passing Through The Countryside

Welcome to Valencia

Valencia was the leg of the trip that was most surprising of all. Unlike Madrid, Valencia was that Vegas weekend getaway that you've been dying to depart to. The hospitality was excellent (e.g. Holiday Inn Swedish Front Desk Chick). The Valencians were friendly, hilarious, and refreshing. Every taxi driver was a comedian, constantly entertaining us during each cab ride. The most hilarious of all, is when they pretended to be lost. In general, people had a good sense of humor, and actually enjoyed your company. In regards to food, all you need to know is one thing....PAELLA. OMG! It was the best invention that the Valencians came up with. It was truly the best thing we tasted in Spain, and definitely lived up to its hype. We even found our first Asian Buffet. We turned that place inside out, and ate so much we couldn't even get a buzz from the alcohol at the Caribbean.

Getting Ready To Grub At La Pepica

Boyz Will Be Boyz

Paella de Mariscos

We also had one of our best moments chillin' at Plaza de La Reina for 3 hours, sipping on some chocolate martinis, dipping churros in hot chocolate, and enjoying good times in a beautiful city. Wait....also we have Dave! LOL.

Melt In Your Mouth Not In Your Hands

Relaxation

MEET DAVE!

Thanks to our friends from Valencia, we were able to go to the best discoteca in town, L'Umbracle Terraza and M.Y.A. A hidden gem below the Valencia Science Museum, we discovered the most beautiful woman on the trip, MUY BONITA! Shots of Jose Cuervo after another, we experienced ultimate highs. Especially, Dr. Chan....HAHA. The boy got soooo excited and drank soooo much, he prayed to the porcelain gods all night long (He was looking for his medical card in the middle of the night...LOL).

Since our boat ride to Ibiza got cancelled, we ended up passing out at Playa de La Malvarrosa on our final day in Valencia, and enjoyed the sound of waves from the Mediterranean Sea. However, like Vegas, 2.5 days of Valencia was more than enough.

I Believe I Can Fly

Still Hungover

Village People

Village People From The Phillipines

Village People From Hong Kong

Chris Brought His Umbrella

Hold On Dave

Typhoon Season In Spain

Typhoon Season In Spain Part 2

For complete set of Valencia pics, Click Me

Next Destination: Party Capital of The World....IBIZA!

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Things To Do At A Dodger Game?

So my best friend, Kelvin, won Dodger tickets from work and decided to "Take me out to the ball game, Take me out with the crowd...." It was his first time at the historical "ghetto" stadium (probably his last) and my second visit (probably my last also). Being the bitter sunflower-eating Angel fan, he booed throughout the game, pointed out how many security guards were on the field (see Oakland Raiders), went back and forth on Angel and Dodger comparisons, and praised the Angels for acquiring Mark Teixeira from the Braves.

Why Am I Here?

Dodger Stadium

I too was beyond bored....so what did we do for 8 innings? We busted out our iPhones and compared notes. As the iPhone 1st Gen (Slow G) specialist, Kelvin advised (and he attempted to charge me for his services....i guess knowing the guy for 15+ years doesn't mean anything...haha) what applications needed to be loaded on the iPhone.

1. Google Search = Goooooogle it!
2. Loopt = Spyware which allows you to locate your friends.
3. AIM = Gotta have it since the chat app is blocked at work.
4. Yelp! = I will never starve or struggle to find a bar anywhere again.
5. Bloomberg = Need to get up to speed when it comes to my financial news (that's how I can afford the iPhone 3G...hehe)
6. eBay = Man we won Tampa Bay Buccaneers using this client....Bid Bid Bid!
7. Pandora = Internet streaming radio (Thanks Kelvin! By far my favorite app)
8. Remote = Use the iPhone to control your iTunes on your Macbook (everyone needs one).
9. Shazam = Can't identify that song on the radio...Bam Shazam! It even recognizes Spanish tunes...Feliz Navidad
10. Voice Notes = So I can record mi sexy voice over and over and over.....
11. PhoneSaber = Pay tribute to all the Jedi Knights of the world...Dave this ones for you!
12. myLite = Don't have a Maglite or glow sticks handy at the raves.

It's only been a week and I already have so much crap loaded....stay tuned as I tweak IP3G some more.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Why So Seriousssss.....

I'm literally backed up on my thoughts for the past couple of weeks. Who knew that blogging can be soooo time consuming. However, two weeks ago I had one of the more exciting weekends outside of drinking and lounging. Besides getting the iPhone (I still can't believe how much of my time is consumed in such an amazing gadget...haha), I was able to catch the new installment of the Cape Crusader and his arch-nemesis, The Joker (Heeee...Heyyyy...Haaaaa) on IMAX @ Irvine Spectrum. Yes I'm one of those nerds who stood in line for 2 hours to grab a good seat. As Kent clearly put it, "I don't think I've ever dedicated my whole day around a movie". Now you have!

This was probably the best movie I've seen in along time. Storyline, character development, and the fact they paid a good tribute to the beauty of Hong Kong (and no its not all about the masaage parlors as depicted in Rush Hour 2) was worth every single penny of the $17 ticket price. I'm not going to even go into the movie and spoil the fun for some of you, since its all over the Internet. However, I do have to point out Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker was priceless. After watching his performance, you can't help but feel somewhat disturbed by how well he plays the Jokester.

**Beware some SPOILER news**

Despite its greatness, I did have some minor complaints: a) Why is Batman's voice soooo much deeper than in Batman Begins? So much anger...GRRRRR! b) It did NO justice to cast an older-looking Maggie Gyllenhaal to replace Katie Holmes' character (I'm glad they killed her off...hehe) c) Action sequences were nothing compared to the first d) Two Face's actual burned faced looked a little too fake. Other than that I'm definitely going to take a another crack at it in the upcoming weeks. Here are just a few pics of our day....

Let The Wait Begin

This Heat Wave Is Killing Me

The Golden Ticket

IMAX Experience

HAHAHAHA

Buckle Your Seatbelts...Here We Go!!!!

Tune in tomorrow — same Bat-time, same Bat-channel...HAHA

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

E.T. iPhone

When I woke up this morning, I was thinking of dedicating today's post to The Dark Knight IMAX Experience, or even further back, July 4th BBQ. However, due to today's change of events, this virtual space is locked and loaded for my one and only iPhone 3G. It was only a few days ago, I was determined to wait 3-5 hours at the Apple Store, but I was left only to find the iPhone sold out at most Apple retail stores. Frustrated at another failed attempt, I decided to reserve it at the AT&T Store and wait 10 business days. But today, I unexpectedly received a phone call that my reserved iPhone 3G Arrived. Since the debut of the original iPhone last year, I waited patiently for the 3G version. The wait has finally paid off, and now belongs in my sole possession. I introduce my iPhone 3G.....HAHAHA

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

¡Hala Madrid!

I finally finished my set of Madrid photos (Madrid Set). Even though photo editing has taken me a month, it was an awesome experience going back and reliving every moment photo by photo. From planning the Spain trip to capturing every moment, I can honestly say I'm proud to be part of this amazing journey.

Madrid was by far our favorite destination. The capital city not only offered a taste of cultural and political importance, but it also surrounded us with a true sense of life in Spain. Because of the strong sense of tradition and authenticity, the Spaniards in Madrid were not as friendly and open as the other cities, except for Dave's pink scarf-wearing secret admirer (he was happy to show Dave the way to Museo Del Prado...LOL). A perfect example is getting directions from the locals. The difficulty level was amazing. The directions were some how always lost in translation, left really meant right and vice versa, which helped contribute to our endless walkathon. We also feared that the Siesta period would interfere with our schedule; however, we hardly saw any signs of places closing down in the afternoon (i guess blame it on the economy and the fact that there were days we didn't wake up until 4pm....maybe that explains it). The dining service was extreeeeeeeeemmmmelllly slooooowwwwww. However, the timeless approach allowed us to enjoy the moment, so I can't complain too much. The Asian community was a culture shock to us. It felt like we were at the bottom of the food chain. The only places you found Asians at: convenience stores (called Frutos Secos - we owned all of them), a few Chinese restaurants, and street vendors selling Jamon sandwiches @ 4AM in the morning...WTF. Whereever we went, we stuck out like a sore thumb.

Regardless, we still live by to the tunes of ¡Hala Madrid! (Hail Madrid!). It is in Madrid, we were able to get sick of Tapas, experienced our only museum visit in Spain, witnessed an amazing bullfighting event, and journeyed in and out of numerous plazas. Because only in Spain, is "Where Madrid Happens"....

Museo Del Prado - Standing In Line