Well, who would have thought it would be so hard to write about something each week? At this rate, I think I’m going to need to start hitting all night clubs and spending all weekend in a euphoric daze wandering about new places just to keep my word count up. Alas, before I could kick into full-blown party mode, I got sick. In fact, someone suggested it may be dysentery. So yes, I’ve had another semi-lazy weekend but fear not my dedicated reader, for I do have some stuff I can talk about! And no, it’s not related to light switches…
So before I get started on household appliances again (I have a really annoying fridge) I will talk a little about my weekend! For those keeping track, this was my first full weekend off in over a month…as I ranted about on my facebook I’ve had 3 days off in the last 40 days…so I earned my time off. I can’t do justice to how nice it was sleeping until 9am, going to the farmers market then having pancakes with a latte for breakfast. It was glorious…just glorious. The sun was shining, my pancakes were syrupy and the coffee strong. I even got the 5th book of the ‘Wheel of Time’ series (only 9 still to read plus a prequel). A pretty good start to my Saturday morning.
Later in the afternoon, my friend Bishal arrived to take me to a hilltop temple (can’t remember the name sadly) but it was stunning (if a somewhat bumpy scooter ride). Colourful murals adorned all the walls whilst a huge golden Buddha statue watched over all the visitors as they arrived. The main temple itself was beautifully equipped with hundreds of miniature golden statues covering the walls, creating an elegant vision to accompany your silent wanderings (you can’t speak in the temples).
Sadly, it was overcast and raining so I couldn’t get a good view over the valley but what I could see truly highlights the natural beauty around Nepal, especially once you get out of the city. Also, on a geographical note, it was enjoyable seeing the various crops being grown around the place and being able to identify the old terraces that had been cut into the hillsides. Woo educational outings! It always amazes me at how nice these temples can be, especially when you find them in the middle of the countryside. (Hmm mentioning terraces just reminded me of a fun time when a geography friend and I used to have to race from our geography lecture to archaeology, where our ragtag group of friends would be waiting for another day talking about cairns and monuments…or Tiffin and Panda bears. I used to have a very small series of drawings called ‘What not to do to a Panda bear’ which I drew in archaeology. Maybe I should bring it back to life – Ed)
Panda Rules 1: Don't go skydiving with a Panda. They can be dicks
Finally, after a cup of tea in the rain, we headed for dinner. I got to try some more Nepalese food ‘Taas’ which is made up of crispy (?) rice, barbequed meat (in my case mutton), some vegetables and mango pickle. We also had some traditional mutton soup to start with. A nice traditional evening and a nice way to spend a Saturday evening as well. The one downside was the fact that due to my current ‘illness’ and very bumpy roads, it felt like my stomach was being attempting some sort of new G-force experiment.
In other news, I have also started Taekwondo this week as well. Two lessons in and I’m pretty sure my instructor is trying to kill me. Or at the very least, make me throw up. He trains me very hard and because it’s private one-on-one lessons, there is no opportunity for me to slack off either. I do prefer this though, as it means I’m being pushed further and will hopefully advance quicker. I’m glad I’m back doing a martial art (actually my 4th I’ve tried now, if you don’t count obscure ones that I’ve tried to learn myself from books) as I really enjoy learning them and I love the ideals of most martial arts. So far I have learned various strength building exercises, warm ups and 6 kicks, 3 blocks, 3 punches and 1 strike.
The main reason I enjoy martial arts is not only due to getting fit whilst learning something that could one day save your life, but it trains both your body and mind. I’m not going to talk about how now I’ve had two lessons, I’m suddenly zen and awesome and all ninja-esque but I have done a fair bit of martial arts and this is what has attracted me to it the most. You learn breathing, you learn about how your body reacts and you learn about what not to do with the skills you learn. And I love it. It especially helps as, unless I’m with someone, I often get quite bored at the gym. Plus, as it is one-on-one, it’s a lot easier for any mistakes I make to be corrected as well. All in all, awesome but tiring!
I apologise for this not being the most exciting post in the world, but as noted it is often hard to find a lot to write about, especially when I’m working all week and need a weekend to relax. That said, what I’m going to start doing is actually planning in advance what I’m going to talk about. By doing this, I can improve my writing plus ensure I have something to talk about most weeks (hopefully making it more enjoyable for you). Another issue (and I’m not complaining) is that I’m spending quite a lot of my time writing for various things. Not even including my day job, I’m currently in a huge (and thoroughly enjoyable) discussion with a friend about films; I’m planning my holidays; I’m writing some travel guides and reviews; I’m currently writing emails as part of my master plan; and I’m still continuing to write my various scripts amongst various others things. I love what I’m doing but it can be pretty overwhelming! Though it was a nice pick-me-up to open up my anime script and see I already have 23 pages done! I will need to go back and expand on the various points of the anime and maybe, just maybe, I’ll post something up here about my scripts!
Pick of the week
Wild Arms – I am going old-school in honour of the something special I’m working on this week. Wild Arms is a PSX RPG from 1996 that I desperately wanted to play (as it’s not exactly easy to get). Eventually, I managed to get hold of it when I was in university (and went through a period of getting rare PSX games) and it was worth the wait for the music alone, though the rest was not even close to a disappointment. Set in a wild-west themed world, you travel around the world with three characters trying to prevent a great evil being resurrected. Standard stuff except for the wild-west settings, the puzzles and the fact is was one of the first RPGs for Playstation.
The setting itself was brilliant; a wild-west themed world that still had plenty of variety from gorges to rivers to tundra. Exploring the various towns, you’re transported back to the frontier times as you explore old-west towns but with the odd European town thrown in. Due to the wild-west setting, guns are used in the form of ARMS, forbidden weapons that add an extra dimension to turn based combat. The ARMS allow your characters to use a power ‘Force’ which is split into 4, giving each character a variety of abilities to use.
The game also separates itself from normal turn-based RPGs by the introduction of puzzles in the world. To proceed through certain areas and dungeons, each of the three characters have different tools which have to be used to solve different puzzles, in the vein of Zelda. I won’t talk about the characters as it’s been a long time since I’ve played but even so, this game is a classic.
This is a very quick/short review of it but overall, Wild Arms makes it easily into my top 5 RPGS and as noted, was worth the wait. I would recommend anyone that has a PS3 or PSP to play it (as it’s downloadable now with a remake as well) or you could buy a physical copy from ebay if you want to spend extra.
Music of the week
I couldn't pass up on this! Wild Arms Opening Theme... Enjoy!
Sticking with video games, I also present the Final Fantasy 8 opening!
Ok, I've threw in a few random clues in the blog about what the surprise is but I'm hoping to have it in a few days! As I said, I'm going to work harder on this blog as well, so please keep reading and share the blog. Word of mouth is always key. Thanks!
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