No monkeys were harmed in the making of this blog post

So far my weekend has been filled with buffalo, new suits, dried mango and dvds.  To elaborate slightly (and to dispel the idea that my weekend has been particularly interesting) the buffalo was very much dead and found its way into a spaghetti bolognese and burgers.  The dried mango is just delicious and I have been eating it to be perfectly honest…

Slightly more interesting is my new suit!  Last week I ordered a suit to be made for me.  I have to be honest, I felt quite fancy when picking out the materials.  Alas, they did not have any silver material and I decided white would become dirty the moment I left the shop so I settled on a black stripes...plus I am not a 1940 gangster nor a pimp.  For £66, it was damned good deal!

Finally, for those who know me, I love films and spend a lot of time and money buying films.  I had half hoped this would subside slightly coming out here.  Oh, how naïve I was!  It has gotten so much worse.  It is now a regular feature of my weekend for me to visit my local dvd shop.  And by local dvd shop, I mean a cardboard box filled with dvds in front of a fruit shop.  It also does not help that dvds cost about 20p.  I predict by the time I leave Nepal, I will have at least one copy of every dvd ever

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Anyways, back to my catching up with what happened during the long gap of New Years.  Monkeys.  Lots of monkeys.  A temple full of monkeys.  My dad and I decided to take a trip to the Swayambhunath complex, which is located on the top of a forested hill overlooking the valley.  I could discuss its archaic beauty, religious significance and natural surrounds but I know most of you would prefer to talk about the monkey that tried to steal my plastic bag and associated present.  Yes, this monkey the audacity to try and steal the present I spent ages picking out!  Not on my watch!  After the monkey that stole my breakfast, I am suspicious of monkeys and their thieving ways.  This particular monkey was slowly sidling up behind and slowly reaching out to my bag…when Bam I punched it!  Hahaha revenge for my stolen sweet potato!  I casually moved my bag out the way and shooed it off.  Ah maturity.    

Since then, nothing much has happened other than getting work sorted out and my trying to order my life slightly so I can undertake some other projects I want to get started e.g. yoga and martial arts as well as some research whilst I am out here.  I also have a few other projects/ideas for the blog which will eventually be implemented but this will only happen when they are finished which may take some time sadly!

Anyways, onto the link section!

Fullmetal Alchemist - Brotherhood  - Ok, so I have to admit that I don't exactly have an interesting website to go to this week.  However, I figured I would link to something anyway.  This time, it is the anime series Fullmetal Alchemist - Brotherhood.  A dark and mature series which deals with various major issues e.g. morality, identity and family.  Well written characters, intense action and a rollercoaster storyline helps make this a hugely interesting series to follow!  God, I sound like the blurb on the back of a dvd but seriously, if you are an anime fan or even just want something different to watch, check it out!  

Finally, two songs today!  I have been listening to them a huge amount recently as they help wake me up in morning!  Revolting Cocks - Red Parrot and Mortiis - Marshlands:

So once again, enough monkeying around by me!  Don't forget to tell your enemies about my blog and I will talk snidely about them for you!  Only £1 per comment!  Bargain!   Until next time!

Maybe the breadcrumb shirt was a bad idea...

Pigeons are massing around me.  I have seen ’The Birds’ and know that this isn’t a good sign!  Hopefully they will let me post this before they attack.

My god, it has been a while!  Almost an Axl Rose length of time between updates!  That said, I haven’t changed all the band members and brought out a poor album…However, it has been a while and so I apoligise!  This has been down to three reason.  The first illness, the second business and the third laziness (boo hiss!).  As it happens, over Christmas and New Year, I was sadly struck down by the combination of a bad cold and a bad cough, who then invited their friend, food poisoning, over for an extended stay (Ok, not exactly a brilliant image but this is the internet) and as I am sure you can imagine, I wasn’t exactly up to blogging my antics.  Plus it would be made up mostly of this:

“Cough, splutter, cough, achoo, cough”

Even I can admit my normal writing is slightly better than that.  The second was business.  Over New year, my dad came to visit me so I spent a lot of time with him, so less blogging time then.  Once he left, the college finally moved into our official building and so I had to help deal with that.  Though that does mean that I get my new office! 

  

The main advantage of this is that I know longer have to worry about being stared at when I am listening to a catchy song and I suddenly get to the urge to dance…  Finally, I have been quite lazy so that is my bad!

So what is new then?  Well first of all, Happy New Year!  Also, from tomorrow, Happy Chinese New year (Gong Xi Fa Cai to any chinese readers!).  I spent the evening sitting on a roof terrace with my dad and other people, overlooking the Kathmandu valley which was pretty amazing to be honest.  I even ate caviar!  It tasted like I imagined… which for me wasn’t exactly a good thing but I tried it, which counts and it wasn’t awful either.  The shepherd’s pie was the highlight though.  The wine and port were a close second!  Starting to get hungry now…

 That is the view from where we ate breakfast each morning.  Pretty beautiful and a nice escape from the noise of the city.  Not to mention a brief respite from having to avoid the hundreds of taxis who are vying for my attention (Told you there would be taxis Dawn).  Any taxi drivers reading this, honking at me whilst I walk past you actually lowers your chance of me using your services.

Whilst staying at Shivapuri Heights cottage, my dad and I decided to take a walk up to the top of Shivapuri.  After a late start and some lost wandering around, we eventually made it up to the national park and almost all the way to the top.  Sadly, due to the aforementioned late start etc, we started to run out of daylight and my dad (rightfully so) wasn’t up for stumbling down in the dark. 

  

Hmm, think I will end it here today as I feel this has been a fairly fragmented blog entry and so should probably retreat to gather some thoughts about my next entry.  Teaser: there are monkeys involved but this time I was wise to their actions.

So onto my picks of the post!

Questionable Content - A webcomic with over 2000 entries that I found and have really enjoyed following the story of the various characters.  Worth a look if you have enough time to be reading my blog

Music video of the day?  Hmm I actually had a lot of trouble today when deciding who to choose.  It has been such a long time since I posted and have had hundreds of songs I want to post.  However, my choice today has been won by the underdog!  First Aid Kit - The Lions Roar.  First Aid Kit is a band that I found when I saw them on my youtube page and decided to listen!  This was my Christmas song!

As usual, tell your friends about my blog, word of mouth is key!  Also, if you haven't already, join my facebook page I created! (http://www.facebook.com/pages/One-way-Ticket/279222415462522).  I will come back soon (I promise) with hopefully something a bit better.  

Happy chinese new year!

This post was brought to you by discounted coffee, Bratwurst coffee, sunny rooftops and social awkwardness.

Ps. Ask your friends if they know Ellen Page.  Then if they don't, ask them to ask their friends.  Keep this going and by the power of six degrees of seperation (I think I read somewhere that it is now closer to four), someone will know Ellen Page.  When this happens, please point her in the direction of the blog.  I may as well try to complete another of my four goals!