mcalex's abode

It's now nearly 4am and I am stil awake so here's my new year greetings to everyone.

I hope that 2014 is a good year for all and everything that can go well does happen :)



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I'm currently here in Uluru, having a mini-break before year-end. Call it an early birthday pressie to myself. The air is drier, my sinuses have cleared and I can see so many stars in the beautiful sky - no city lights and you can see Orion's belt (I think).

The iphone photo is actually nicer but here's a photo I took at sunset just now (I drove there).


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I had quite a lovely flight here; used some points to upgrade to business class, sat behind the cockpit and one of the pilots (he was actually there as an observer because there was a trainee pilot on board) sat next to me. We got to chatting about flying, the Air France aircrash... he used to be an airforce pilot. What a long and interesting history.

Anyway, time to take a warm bath, enjoy the night and head to bed as I want to see the sunrise tomorrow!

So I went to see the NYE fireworks in North Sydney but I was late and they'd closed the gates!!! Fortunately they reopened them and I managed to dash through... this year, derry667 and I were joined by tipper_green and her parents. What a treat.


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On Thursday Morning, I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Alex Kingston at the ABC store in Sydney, signing autographs. I missed out on the autographs because I couldn't leave work early enough and I also missed out on seeing Mark Williams aka Rory's dad/Arthur Weasley.

Nevertheless I was only a few feet away from her and she was very lovely and gracious. We were allowed to take photos freely and everyone was all polite (it wasn't too big of a crowd).

On Sunday, I will then go and see the BBC orchestra play music from Doctor Who at the Sydney Opera House. It should be fun and I look forward to seeing Alex and Mark there (hosting the event).

In other news, it's 2 weeks to xmas and all the international xmas cards were sent out last week. tipper will be in town in a bit and I can't wait to see her!

It's been over a month! Those of you who have received my comments know that I lurk around LJ. I do read other people's posts and comment when I can but as for my own life, there's not really much to say.

The last couple of weeks have been kind of busy with packing and getting things sorted as I have to leave the apartment in under 3 weeks' time. I didn't write because to be honest, I have been also a bit depressed. I'm sad about leaving and sad that no one seems to care. I don't mean it in a bad way but I guess people have their own lives to worry about and so far I haven't really had anyone come up to me and ask to catch up before I leave except for a few friends in another city.

The students don't seem to mind and I guess it's because they are teenagers and life goes on! But I will miss them with all my heart!!!

I have also been immersing myself in Civilization 5 (I'm obsessed) and also trying to catch up with various locals. I recently met an old lady to get lessons on wearing a yukata and tying an obi.

Here's a photo of me. The bow looks easy but it takes practice to perfect! She was really a lovely lady and I gave her grandkids some pressies. I can say that I'm now all out of kangaroo toys :)



Anyway, hope everyone is well. I suppose I should watch the last ep of Whitecollar last season before the new season starts! Otherwise, I'm really enjoying Franklin and Bash (not sure why but I love the shorter guy), Suits seems to have taken a different mood this season (I'm really loving Louis), Awkward's back, Teen Wolf seems to have upped the ante and I am really going to miss Eureka!

So I see some Avengers squee on the flist; I think that overall most people (well I haven't seen any overtly negative comments) liked it! If you haven't seen it, I do highly recommend it. Lots of action, good story, very hunky (and beautiful Scar Jo) cast plus good humour. It pretty much gave every character good screen time and from what I've heard today on twitter, there is going to be a sequel (can't wait!!!). I will definltely say that I loved Jeremy Renner's arms (hello Mr Bourne) and Tom Hiddleston's smile (and those eyes).

Also I saw a couple of posts on the flist about Simon Pegg and Zach Quinto tweeting about their time on the Star Trek movie set and their adventures in California along with Benedict Cumberbatch. I think that B. Cumberbatch is an excellent actor but on a personal level, I don't find him physically attractive. But he is compelling in the numerous roles that he has played and he is an incredible actor. I follow the Pegg on twitter so I am constantly amused by his twits and pics. If you haven't already seen this gorgeous photo that Zach Quinto took, check it out :)

I am now back at my apartment but I've been very tired because I am still recovering from a long week of exercise. It's kinda nice to be back in my own place again though strangely quiet and lonely because I was living in a big city for over a week! Also now that I am back, I have to actually do some housework.

I am still totally in love with Taiwan. I can't believe that I didn't go there sooner. The food, the people and dare I say, good-looking Chinese guys (who were very tall). I never found Japanese guys overtly attractive but I liked the way the guys in Taiwan looked!

Anyway, here is another pic and good night for now!


this is a photo I took from a train station. You can see Taipei 101 (2nd tallest building in the world) in the background

My only regret about leaving for Taiwan today is that by the time I get back, the beautiful cherry blossoms would have all fallen.

I have a list of things to do and places to visit in Taiwan, but seriously, I can't deny that I'm happy to be able to watch Avengers in English! (It's not released in Japan till August this year).

Until next time...

Though my town is still kinda harbouring around winter. No snow but it's windy and cool!

I went to Tokyo last weekend to do some volunteer work in a soup kitchen in Ueno Park. My biggest regret is that all this time I've been here, I wasn't aware of this charity work and never got the opportunity to help out till now. It would really have eased the loneliness I felt when I first got here.

Anyway, here are some cherry blossoms in Ueno Park. Unfortunately while it was warm on Saturday, it was also wet and windy. I wonder where those homeless people sleep? They were ever so grateful for the food we gave them but I can't help but worry and wonder where they are...

Living alone in the country can be very lonely so when I meet up with friends, I really relish the company.

And I like it that we're all from so many different countries and we can talk about so many things. I will definitely miss this because I don't get to meet people from all over the world in Sydney; I don't mix in the crowd that exposes me to international people... funnily enough!

Anyway, yesterday, a couple of us gathered together, went shopping and made Pizzanga... I Like it because it wasn't so cheesy (the supermarket didn't have ricotta and so we used mozarella and other cheese), we put a lot of veges in it (carrots, capsicums, onions, mushrooms) and it was quite tasty. I have to give many thanks to my American friends in Japan, who are way better cooks than me. But when I get back to Aust where I have an oven, I'd love to try this out!!!

It's now been over a week since the big Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami... it honestly feels like a month has passed because everyday of the past week, I was glued to the news (local mostly) and in contact or worrying about friends in the affected areas. I have had so much I wanted to say but I held back because at times I was just so distraught that I didn't know what I could say without sounding like I was all over the place.

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Well, here is a photo I took last week when I had to walk to elementary school. It snowed a lot as I crossed the bridge to the Tone river. If you wonder what the specks are on the photo, that's actual snow falling as I took the pic with my iphone.


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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12785274 which seems to logically consider some facts.