Friday, March 20, 2009

9 12 Project, Bonuses?

For all of you who aren't aware who Fox News' Glen Beck is first and foremost, he is an entertaining and enlightened man, and is passionately campaigning for the "9 12 Project." A mission detailed on the 9 Principles 12 Values site. An awakening that our forefathers would be proud to defend.

Please spend some time looking around on the site and participate if you feel as inclined to do so... I did. I think the discussion currently taking place around the country is one that encourages progress and that we should all take part. I feel so blessed to have been raised in a country that protects that as a fundamental right and I can exercise it at will.

From here on out, I hope everyone (all C-Level execs included) keeps in mind & heart that none of this would be possible if it were not for those brave Americans protecting and fighting for our freedom- that should never been taken for granted...
Where are their bonuses?



God Bless America & Never give up the ship.

Staying Healthy

We are the "Young Invincibles"

Monday, March 16, 2009

Day 8: Christmas Day

Wednesday, December 25, 2007

Before leaving for Hiroshima I took one last stroll around the streets of Kyoto through the shopping district in an attempt to do something traditionally Christmas-y, buy some gifts. Since I don’t have all that much to write regarding our events of the day, I will get into some of the trends and things that I have noticed since I arrived in Japan. Anyone that has some sort of cold or illness wears a mask covering their nose and mouth. It’s so common this time of the year that it’s no longer uncommon to see about one out of every ten people is wearing a mask. I guess its part of their “considerate” nature to not spread their germs or whatever. Almost everyone, and I’m talking like one out of every two people smoke cigarettes here. God forbid you catch a cold from someone, but cancer well that’s ok. Maybe their Surgeon General didn’t pass on the memo since the population is still booming here.

The one thing that has really troubled me, along with the language, is the lack of eye contact. Not only will passing strangers keep their heads down, but cashiers or anyone you attempt to speak to will not look you in the eye for more than a split second. This is tough for me cause I am so used to trying to initiate eye contact with everyone stateside and keeping it almost for the entire duration of whatever encounter it may be. Apparently the only reason you would look into another person of the same sex’s eyes is if you were trying to initiate a challenge of some sort. But when traveling to the 23 different countries that I have been to, I’ve tried not to get hung up on little cultural differences like that. This trip has truly been the most foreign I have ever felt.

Moving on, literally, we hopped on the bullet train called the JR (Japan Railway) and traveled southwest to Hiroshima. For all of you who have been living on the moon the past fifty years or have never taken an American history class, we (the U.S.) dropped the first Atomic bomb on August 6th 1945 at exactly 8:15 am. It will be interesting to see especially since we were the aggressors on that dark day in history. On the other end of the spectrum, I have been to Pearl Harbor and seen many people of Asian descent there as well. It’s funny that I’ve been to visit the place where WWII began for America and where it ended. Both visits were over Christmas breaks. Of course my dad and I have been shooting off our cynical jokes about how this ancient city looks relatively new and how we are going to go on a jog through the peace park yelling “Torah Torah Torah What!?” In all seriousness though, it will be a fascinating experience going to such a historical part of the world and having our countrymen be the ones responsible for the complete and utter devastation of an area and to see it from a different perspective. I feel so blessed to have this opportunity to see both ends of the historical spectrum that im sure only a handful of people have witnessed.
On the train ride to Hiroshima we traveled along the coastline where little towns and villages sat at the base of high, sharply pointed mountains. Before too long we finally arrived in Hiroshima. With only a few hours of daylight left we went to check out the Memorial Peace Park. The Atom Bomb was detonated about 600 meters above the area. I got to see most of the park including what was left of the original structure of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall. It had gone through very minimal preservation, as it was to remain as a reminder to the world of what weapons of mass destruction can do and also serve as a symbol of global peace.
Running out of daylight we decided to grab a bite to eat in the underground mall that was on the way back to the hotel. The Japanese have a lot of their shopping centers and retail space below ground and around the subway stations. They resemble American malls in just about everyway except there isn’t more than one floor and of course, they are underground.

Eating Christmas dinner at a Japanese restaurant wasn’t exactly traditional in any means but at least I was full after. We went to a place that served these pancake like things that were noodle, cabbage or onion based and we thrown on a huge skillet and cooked kind of like a pancake. We ordered three, which was more than enough, and they each had a variety of fixings inside including shrimp, squid, veggies, egg and some other stuff that turned out to be very good to my mother’s surprise!

Hope Santa was good to all of you and enjoyed the holiday!
-GB

Day 7: Last Day in Kyoto

Tuesday, December 24, 2007

Another full day of sight seeing ahead of us we hit up Starbucks at the hotel and set off, this time by bus. The agenda today included the Ginkakuji or commonly known as the Silver Pavilion, then the Kinkaku- Ji or the Golden Palace and lastly the Nijo region. In Nijo there is a Shogun castle that was home to many Samurai over the centuries. That was more impressive than many of the other Shrines or Temples that we visited so far.

The Silver Pavilion had an enormous Zen garden that included huge sand & rock gardens and a beautiful little pond surrounded by the same type of trees traditionally seen in the gardens. It also has a trail of rock stairs that led you through the gardens and up the hills with a bamboo railing. Flowing throughout the garden was a waterway that I suppose used to bring water to the individual temples. Once up in the hills the trail provided another breathtaking view of the premises and overlooked the neighboring town. I got to peek inside a typical classroom for whatever teachings that went on in the temples. Similar to most of the other places we visited Cherry Blossom trees littered the area but looked more like trees out of a scary movie do to the fact that it was winter. The Silver Pavilion was one of the few places that had bamboo growing in plain sight of each of the temples.
We stopped by the imperial palace of Kyoto on the way to the Golden Palace but since it was not open we only got to stroll through the not so impressive gardens. The Golden Palace is not golden in name only, it is a temple set right on the lake that was literally coated with a golden leaf lacquer. It was a bright sunny day so the entire temple sparkled and glistened. If only it weren’t so windy there would have been a reflection off the water. No one was allowed inside the temple or even remotely close, but that certainly did not take away from the beauty and grandeur of the temple. Of course, it is accompanied by rock gardens, waterfalls and other symbolic statues.
The last spot of the day was the Shogun Castle in the Nijo district. This was particularly interesting to me because for those of you that don’t know Shogun is essentially the king of all Samurais. At the main gate you walk through my first thought was that the Shogun might be held in higher regard than even the Emperor. The gates were just as imposing as the rest, with big strong solid doors but this time they were accented by beautiful golden works of art including dragons, peacocks, cranes and other symbolic animals. The gates are complimented by massive temples, which are uniquely accentuated by golden pieces of art as well. The main temple was the most spacious of any that I had seen thus far. The huge rooms were decorated with paintings of animals and nature. A thin sliding wooden door separated each of the rooms. Large double-sided wooden carvings that differed from the adjacent room punctuated each one making individually different from the next. Unfortunately no pictures were allowed but I managed to sneak a few anyway. The temple’s wooden floors squeaked loudly on every step. A provision taken by the builders in order to allow the warriors inside to hear if someone was sneaking around. The place was thoroughly fortified, including a double moat and extremely high barricaded walls. The Shogun Castle has one of the more extensive gardens that provided the warriors with long peaceful walks with the Shogun.
Following the eventful day we went out to a local restaurant and ate some “new generation Japanese food” as the hotel manager described it to us. As we entered the restaurant we removed our shoes in traditional Japanese fashion and immediately noticed that the floors were actually heated, a nice accommodation for a chilly night in downtown Kyoto. We enjoyed some Curry pizza that was especially delicious, a kind of chicken Kabob, and of course my favorite kind of sushi fried crab and a Yesibu beer to wash it all down. After another mini-meal, the Japanese apparently don’t believe in feeling full (nor do my parents at their age), we walked to the hotel through “Fish” street. This is the main fish market of the area. Another day down, we head out to Hiroshima tomorrow, Christmas day oddly enough. Now I will retire to bed dozing off to the appropriately named BS News newscast trying to catch up on what is going on in your end of the world. Hope Santa treats you all well…

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.
GB

Day 6: Ancient Kyoto

Tuesday, December 23, 2007

With nothing to report about our first day in Kyoto other than it was a long train ride in some shitty weather, I will leave it at that. After a terrible night’s sleep on the world’s hardest and shortest bed, we were off to our next selection of sites. The day’s agenda included Nanzenji, the Heian Shrine, the Yasaka Shrine and Sanjusangendo.


We walked through a humble countryside town until we encountered the first of the bunch, Nanzenji. Located at the foot of Kyoto’s eastern hills, the grounds are absolutely breathtaking.
It is widely considered as one of Japan’s most important Zen temples. Built originally as an imperial villa in 1264, its main building is famous for its daunting size and surrounding rock garden. Now it is the headquarters for the Rinzai School of Zen. There are a number of smaller temples in the hills and even a full functioning water aqueduct that can be found close to Nanzenji’s main buildings. Arriving at around eleven o’clock we walked up to the main temples and then proceeded through the foothills to the smaller ones.
There was an eerie mist coming from the forest and it rolled off the rooftops creating a mystical phenomenon…
You could just tell there was something about this place…
You could even feel it- as if it were tangible...
Once you set foot on the grounds, you sensed it, immediately.
I don’t know if it was because of the magnificent visuals the gardens provided or the massive temples or even the serene sounds of the passing water but there was certainly something else here, this was certainly an ancient presence.
I know very little about the way of Zen and the whole idea behind the philosophy. But hell, Phil Jackson used the school of thought as a way to unite Kobe and Shaq for three championships. I had certainly never witnessed anything like this before...
Truly there is no other place on earth like this.
The Heian Shrine had an unusual color scheme to it, as my mom accurately pointed out. We entered the shrine through a massive red-orange Torii that was accented with gold. Most of the shrines and temples were more of a dull darker color as you can see from the pictures, but this one was distinctly different. The red-orange color of main part of the structure seemed more like Communist China red to me but was still pretty authentic Japanese nonetheless. There is a ritual that takes place here that is loosely translates to “Adult Day” where teenagers literally and symbolically cross a bridge into adulthood.

Yasaka Shrine was another location that intrigued me. It resembled just about every other shrine that we had visited aside form the fact that it was set right in the steepest hills of Kyoto. It is famous throughout the country for being the home of one of Japan’s largest cherry blossom festivals in the spring. Up the massive set of stairs sat the main temple, which like most was very imposing and surrounded by large stone lanterns, gardens and other subtemples. I decided to take the road less traveled, far behind the last temple, up a set of stairs to what turned out to be a graveyard. I climbed up to the highest point that provided a stunning view of the temples and the main city.

The last location of the day, Sanjusangendo, was kind of a big deal. It was home to over a thousand national treasures, most of them made out of gold, including a large Buddha. Unfortunately we weren’t allowed to take pictures inside the temple but I managed to sneak a few anyway. So if my plane goes down on the way home, it is due to bad karma and thousands of generations of angry monks acting their revenge for the picture. The statues you can see in the background behind the God of Thunder are of the goddess of Mercy, Kannon. Each was about six feet tall and gold, there were over 1000 of them. The main temple that housed the golden statues at Sanjusangendo is Japan’s largest wooden structure, spanning over 100 meters.

Trekking our way back to the subway station after we had spent sufficient time looking at the various statues in Sanjusangendo, we crossed over a bridge that provided a view that would take anybody back to feeling as if they were in the “old country.”All three of us were pretty tired from all the hiking and walking so when we got back to the hotel we just chilled until we indulged in a fancy dinner at the hotels main restaurant. Four different locations across the span of only a few hours with lots of distance between certainly had taken its toll. It’s Christmas Eve tomorrow, when we traditionally open our presents from the family. Unfortunately it’s a bit of a anticlimactic celebration this year as my trip to the far east not only accounted for all my Christmas presents but graduation as well. So far it has been well worth it and I still have more than two weeks left.
More coming from Kyoto tomorrow,
GB

Day 4: Toyko Solo

Tuesday, December 21, 2007

With the parents back in Yokosuka, I took to the Tokyo streets alone. Having decided to hit the parks in dt Tokyo, the zoo and the electronics district, I had my plan of action. The subway ride was a quick ten-minute trip uptown and the parks/zoo area was right next to the subway station.


Before I went into the park, I decided to check out the streets. It was very much like I had expected, high rise buildings covered with colorful ads and animations and nothing I could read. Navigating through the densest part of downtown was not as challenging as I had imagined because well, you take four lefts and you are right back where you started. What logic!



Anyway in the backstreets and side alleys of the city there were a number of bars and shops just like you would expect. Never did I imagine seeing the massive amounts of, what I guess we would call “strip clubs,” even though I am sure they were hardly just stripping inside. Being the devout Christian that I am, I didn’t go inside any of them (cough no money cough) haha kidding. It was shocking to see how many there were on just one block, usually multiple stories high. I should have come to expect it cause of how perverted this part of the world tends to be in general. So I departed the backstreets for the zoo and the various temples that were nearby.

A long, paved walkway wound its way through the park. It had a few temples and shrines along the way. Eventually it led me to the main park and zoo area. There were bell towers that were over half a century old surrounding the areas of worship. Of course the large lantern statues littered the adjacent gardens as well.

Once I passed through the main gate to the zoo, front and center was the panda house. Ever since I saw the Red Panda on an episode of Planet Earth I was determined to see one on my trip out here, but didn’t think I was going to be able to since I wasn’t in the northern mountain region where they typically reside. To my surprise, there were a number of them lounging next to the world famous Giant Panda Ling-Ling. The zoo had a ton of other exotic animals on display including Lions, Tigers and Bears… Oh My!

After what was probably entirely too long a time at the zoo for a 22 year old, I got a little too artistic with the camera and ended up taking like a zillion pictures of the animals, I crossed the street to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Tokyo.

A short time later, I left… I don’t always get art. So I proceeded to some more shrines and temples. Walking through the park I noticed a massive congregation of homeless people. I thought it might be some sort of conference or reunion before I realized that they were unloading a bunch of food from a truck. The people were actually waiting in line to receive their donation.

What a country, back in the states we consider them a bunch of freeloading bums but here in Japan no one goes hungry, or maybe it was a one time deal. I dunno it was a lot of drunk bums chillin... Speaking of hungry…

Before I hopped on the subway to hit the electronic district I stopped in at the Hard Rock Café Tokyo (so cliché I know) for a drink and maybe a bite to eat. The notion of food escaped me after a round of Cuervo. Eventually it turned into a few bruschi’s, as I would strike up a conversation with a 31-year old, divorced electrical engineer from Finland! We covered a number of topics including global politics (which was the bulk of the three hour long convo), his upcoming trip to the US for the first time, his past fourteen experiences in Japan, love, life and just about everything else under the sun. I know, I know… I would. A few hours later we parted ways, each with a newfound perspective. I would also have you know that I quickly made friends with the bartender, Tomo. He was furiously tossing around liquor bottles and juggling shakers a la Tom Cruise in Cocktail. Keeping in line with the cultural norm I couldn’t tip and sadly left empty handed due to the fact that each beer was about $6!

Deciding to see what this country had to offer in terms of technology, I checked out the widely popular area known as the Electronics district or Akihibrah. I didn’t realize it was starting to get dark because as I came up the stairs the neon lights brilliantly illuminated the streets, resembling an arcade. To be honest it freggin looked and felt like one too. There were video game characters on billboards, video game stations on the streets and flashing neon lights everywhere. It was a video gamers wet dream. Looked more like a Playstation 3 vommitted up a city to me, but hey at least I didn’t see anyone dressed up in costume and looking for a convention. And knowing I could still whoop anyone of these geeks asses in Madden was comforting.

I only went into a few stores to check out the technology they had for sale but I didn’t see anything that was too far out of Best Buy’s stock. I did spend a good half hour inside the Mac store drooling and setting my standards for the upcoming laptop purchase I will be making. Tomorrow we’re going to take the bullet train to Kyoto for most of the day so I don’t know how much I will have to write but we will see. For now, I am off to the bar in the hotel to see if I can make some friends.

-Arigatoo & Kombanwa (Thanks & good evening)

GB

Day 3: Yasukuni, Asakusa, Imperial Palace & More

Thursday, December 20, 2007


My second day in Tokyo began wicked early. Bright eyed and bushy tailed from the long nights sleep, I woke up at around six thirty and shortly thereafter got to talk to a lil lovely laydy (wow how bout that for some triple alliteration?) After a great start to the day, I went down to the restaurant "Hero's" in the hotel and grabbed a quick breakfast sandwich and set off on the train not too much later. We planned to hit as much of Tokyo today as possible, including a variety of temples, monuments and as many other sights as we could fit in before our feet gave out on us.



We took the subway uptown to check out the first destination my mom planned to visit, Yasukuni Jinja. This included numerous temples and a rack of memorials dedicated to various wars and warriors. There must have been a field trip before we got there because as we were walking up there were a ton of young school girls wandering around the site in uniforms. The statue of Omura Masujiro stands right after the University of Tokyo for Arts and Sciences. It is a massive statue honoring one of the great Japanese warriors who lived in the mid 1800s. Masujiro is regarded as the founder of the modern Japanese army and contributed a great deal to this sacred spot. It was one of the first Western-style sculptures in Japan. It is surrounded by magnificent cherry blossom trees, which were unfortunately not in bloom (See Pic 1), lush greenery, smaller sculptures and Torii's (See Pic 2).


Pic 1


Pic 2

Up from the Omura statue are a number of gates that lead to the main shrines as you can see in the pictures. Alongside the shrines there are memorials honoring those that were lost in the various wars, including WWII. There is also a statue of a war widow surrounded by orphans. This stands as a tribute to the many women who were burdened by incredible loneliness and hardship as their husbands died in war and they were left with the children. Nearby stands statues of a dog, a horse and even a pigeon for the animals that lost their lives serving (See Pic 3). Yasukuni Jinja is still considered to be one of Japans most important shrines today. It is a beautiful and serene place to experience but for to fully appreciate the splendor of Yasukuni you should travel in the Spring, when the Cherry Blossoms are in full bloom.


Pic 3



Next, we proceeded to the Imperial Palace which sits right adjacent to the heart of downtown Tokyo. It was fascinating to me to see the stark contrast of the old Japanese style with the modern structures of the city. We walked through the spectacular East Gardens. The bright yellow and red foliage seemed to light up the mid day skyline when set against the metal and steel buildings in the backdrop. Most of the vibrant leaves did not hold on to their branches long enough for me to enjoy the full effect, but even under my feet they provided for a gorgeous path to follow throughout the gardens.



The Imperial Palace compound is a vast tract of land that was completely fortified (See Pic 4). The Palace even had a moat that is now filled with massive carp (See Pic 5). There are numerous gates surrounding the perimeter and were constructed in traditional Japanese architectural style. It is very clear where the line is drawn distinguishing the Imperial Palace from the commercial outskirts of downtown Tokyo. This dividing line has now become a busy road running parallel to Tokyo Station (See Pic 6).


Pic 4


Pic 5


Pic 6

After we felt was sufficient enough time spent at the Palace we set off into downtown Tokyo which turned into an Asian version of NYC's Time Square. We hopped on the subway and continued on after I was done admiring the huge Lacoste store and the other eye catching attractions of any other major city.

Asakusa was next and as you can read in the captions of my photo album this was the location of the oldest and most popular Buddhist temple in Tokyo. Asakusa, also known as the half way point to Sin City, introduced Tokyo to the striptease, the brothel and Im sure a number of positions that can be found in modern day Karma Sutra books. Before the great temple that is known as Senso-Ji, there is a giant smoking cauldron that is typically surrounded by people. It is tradition to put the smoke on your face to keep you beautiful for years, put the smoke on your head to make you smart and put the smoke in your pockets to keep you rich. Knowing that I cant possibly get any better looking or become anymore of a smart ass I tried to pocket as much smoke as I could. Call me shallow but I want to have a mansion and a beach house! ;-)


The Bengtson's had worked up a crucial appetite so we set off to the shopping district nearby to find a place to eat and maybe find some sort of token to bring home (See Pic 8). Staying true to myself and my insatiable hunger I insisted that we eat ASAP! After a loop around the streets in the shopping district we settled on a hole in the wall place that said they had English menus (IT WASNT THE ONLY PLACE WITH ENGLISH! i swear) I had a dish that had sushimi, pork and shrimp tempura, rice, seaweed salad, miso soup and something else that escapes me at the moment but it was DEEELISH! Sorry I was so hungry I forgot to take a picture of how pretty it was!

Pic 8

Six hours of sight seeing and walking around the city had taken it's tole so we headed back to the New Sanno Inn (our hotel for first time readers). Before we got there we stopped at a local grocery store and bakery where we picked up some delightful little treats. Vino, hummus, crackers and cheese of course, I am my fathers son what can I say? I also snatched a little something to eat for breakfast when I wake up too.

Tomorrow Benger Sr. has to head back to Yokosuka to hear a court case or do some sort of work. Mrs. B will be accompanying him on the trip so I will be traversing the streets of Tokyo by myself! We'll see what kind of trouble G-Filthy can get into O:-D




More to come tomorrow, hope everyone is having a good break back on your side of the globe!

Much Love & Be Easy,
G

Japan- December 19th, 2007

Well, not too much to report on the first full day following a 14 hour plane ride. We took the subway up to Tokyo and grabbed our room in the beautiful New Sanno Hotel. Taking the subway was interesting because of the way Japanese people go about their daily activities. The unique thing about this country is the fact that they are a very polite people and are also extremely trustworthy. My parents told me that if i were to leave my wallet on the seat of the on the train, that I would be able to go back to that very spot hours later and it would still be there. It was very strange seeing very young children traveling on the subway all by themselves, but that is just the nature of the Japanese. The mix of people on the subway ranged from the elderly to business professionals all the down to the youth. The younger demographic on the train was glued to their individual cell phones. It was crazy to see that almost no one was talking to each other when they boarded the train in groups. They stuck to texting on their cell phones, no conversations literally.

Although I was one of the few faces that stood out, for the obvious reasons that I was white and taller than most of the crowd, not once did I catch anyone staring at me. Not even eye contact usually, which was weird cause you would think just the opposite. I saw a few other people that were of European descent and every time we locked eyes and gave the classic "head nod." It's weird being able to identify with a minority in a country but kind of cool nonetheless. Another characteristic that is integrated in the Japanese culture is efficiency. From the leaders of the country all the way down to the maids that clean my dad's apartment, the Japanese pride themselves on being efficient. This is evident even in the architectural landscape of the country. Riding along the tracks for about an hour and a half altogether, I could not help but notice that there was not a clearing as far as the eye could see. Large apartment complexes were stacked next to one another and even conquered the mountainous terrain that normally limit the development of urban areas. Streets wound their way through the various cities we passed through with only a few feet separating the towering buildings and the traffic. Making use of every bit of space the country has to offer is a priority throughout the nation as they have run out of room to expand horizontally and are reduced to expanding towards the heavens.

We traveled to the US embassy (Benger had to renew the passport) where we passed through a security checkpoint, in order to enter. While I was waiting I got to check email and facebook of course, thanks for the love people! After that was taken care of, we strolled around a little bit. There was a sweet store that was called "Japanese Sword" and it had all kinds of Samurai armor, weapons and art on display. Red and black of course were the most popular colors for the armor but they also had some that were accented by gold which were beautiful. I should have taken some pictures but we were on the move so I will see if I can make it back there, or go somewhere that has cooler shit.

Ma B was getting tired because it was almost four... just kidding she hadn't slept well the night before and neither had Benger Sr. so we headed back to the room to chill and unwind. I hit the gym which was amazing. It was all glass windows and was above the pool and looked out to the streets so the view was fantastic. It had a greaet stereo system, which was nice cause I forgot the ipod but of course only played the corniest American music possible.After zoning out there for almost two hours, I desperately needed the break from the ol rents, we indulged in some vino and cheese before dinner and caught up on some Sportscenter. We then headed down to the restaurant next to the lobby called the "Emporium." Flashes of Mac desktops computers and neon lights immediately flooded my brain as I almost rain away in panic before I remembered "Oh yeah, I graduated and never have to be there again!" So I stayed to grab some dinner. Of course my parents would bring me to a place that servers burgers and had an Italian buffet special, come on... I had the duck, which was pretty good and washed it down with a Sapparo (an authentic Japanese beer that tasted like a stale Coors).

Done with dinner we headed back up to the room and it is now eight o'clock. I am typing with both of my tavelmates passed out in their bed. They promised tomorrow to be more eventful as we will travel to a number of different locations. So with the night just beginning, I guess I am reduced to my sofabed, a movie and thoughts of home, not the States, but you guys...

Love from the far east,
GB-son

Travels

The recent trip to Puerto Rico got me thinking about the other cultures across the globe that I have been blessed enough to visit...

Following my 2007 December graduation I got to visit the "Land of the Rising Sun." Since that trip pre-dates the blog and my mom flies out to Japan tomorrow as well, I thought I would share those notes & stories from the trip to Japan and my first visit to Asia...

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Unemployed Break 2009

After four days in gorgeous Puerto Rico spent with friends, old and new, my gf and I made the trek back down south to VTech and NC... and reality...

Puerto Rico is a destination rich with liveliness and culture. We learned to salsa, sailed a catamaran, snorkeled, visited deserted islands, hiked through a rainforest, toured Old San Juan, climbed a lookout tower, played in a military Fort, got a typical "gringo" sunburn and enjoyed authentic Puerto Rican meals and nightlife.
The people we met along the way were undoubtedly the best part of the trip and the only question we had leaving the blissful beaches of the Caribbean was...

Why is the Rum gone?

Salud!