Bier...

For some random reason, Germany looooves its bier (beer/German version of water... YAY)! So I'm devoting this entire post to beer related things in Germany. Basically this is my way of making you all stare at my own personal slideshow of pictures. So, get some popcorn ready and click on the pics to enlarge them.

So...I went to a Biergarten in the countryside not far from Nuremberg last Thursday. Apparently I was in the region of Franconia. I had German soda... as you can see in the following picture:



And during the weekend, I was at a carnival next to that giant structure where all those Hitler Propaganda films were filmed... you know, the one where he's speaking to a massive crowd in a giant open arena/stadium. Anyway, at the carnival, there were Carnies, empty rides, and Beer Halls. There was even a beer tent the size of a concert hall:



In the center, there were enough long tables and benches to fit 500 people beneath the many chandeliers; on one side, there was a stage with a band with kiosques selling beer flanking it; and, on both the long sides of the tent, they were selling beer:



And lastly, between the two entrances, there was a bar selling beer, and an entire cow being roasted on a spit. Yeah... ummm... an entire cow! (For the protection of the food industry guys in the picture from such groups as PITA, I have sadly blocked out the face of the cute guy on the left... and some random guy on the right)



Well, that's it for all the pictures. But I do have one last surprise, if you will:



I'm sorry... I seriously just can't stop laughging my ass off. Don't'cha love Deutschland?!



This has got to be what happens when good carbs go bad.

Nuremberg, Baby!

I'm sure you've all been forgetting about me... especially since I haven't posted a blog in a while, but there's actually quite a good reason for why I've been missing. I've been travelling.... AGAIN! Right now, I've settled down in the city I will actually be living in for quite a while: Nuremberg (Nürnberg), a city in the Bavarian province of Germnay (Deutschland) famous for its wooden toys, some pastries called Lebkuchen, an actual "berg" (castle), and some other stuff like domes on old buildings that pop out of the skyline looking like female nipples... seriously. I guess the city is famous for other things like the Nuremberg Trials and the Nuremberg Chronicles... and all that Nazi background and stuff, but seriously... the dome on the main train station here looks like a gangrenous female nipple.


Do you see it? Do you see it?

So... apparently, I'm not the first person to point that out. Anyway, here's how my flights to Germany went. I first flew out of JFK to Liverpool, which was fine. While in Liverpool, I checked in for my flight to Berlin... which sucked. The ticket didn't have a gate number, and they made me stuff my second carry-on into my first, which didn't fit and was busting out at the seams like a crazy bursting banana that's about to spackel the inside of a microwave, before going through security, and I was pretty much lost for half an hour. Here's what happened when I asked some random lady for help:

Me: Um... my ticket doesn't seem to have a gate number. Do you know where I can find out where I'm supposed to go?

Evil Lady: (with a british accent)Oh, dear. I'm sorry, but I don't speak a bit of English... Why don't you ask that queer looking old lady with the blue bonnet waving her cane around at people when they approach her. She seems like a nice old American.


Well, I reached my flight safely after using a fake British accent while asking some other couple where I'm supposed to go (which they then proceeded to ignore me when they noticed I had an American passport), and I got to Berlin in about two hours only to find myself waiting at the baggage claim carousel next to that Evil Lady who supposedly didn't speak any English. Oh well, who cares? I'm in EUROPE! YAY!!!

A Special Congrats

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Post-Surgery Recovery

My surgery went well. I had one of the best surgical doctors in the area, so it was no surprise that the the surgery took a third of the original estimated time, which is great, espeicially since it meant I had less side effects from the full anesthesia. I actually wasn't nauseous and I didn't feel like I had a hangover afterwards... well, my bitch level was nonexistent for the first few hours after the surgery. I still can't believe how nice I was after I woke up. I even hugged a nurse after I was released from the hospital. I'm not exactly sure if being pleasant was good for me... everyone else seemed to love it though.

Anyway, the incisions will be healing for a few days, so I can't spend that much time blogging. I will actually be fully healed in two to three weeks, but I'll be in working condition probably after a week or so. I still wanted to say something to everyone who sent me well wishes during this awkward time in my life: Thank you; I really do appreciate you all. Damn, there was that pleasant attitude coming back. Oh well.

And to Lex Sabre: if you serenade me over the phone one more time within the next week, I will have to hurt you, especially since you won't smuggle me cigarettes.

Sorry I haven't been around lately...

I know I've been absent for about a month and I apologize. It's not that I didn't want to post, it's because I couldn't. Allow me to explain:

After returning back to Los Angeles, I had only a few days to stay and catch up with friends before my parents sent me on a trip to Shanghai to visit my brother. The trip was awesome, and I had the chance to explore all the hotspots of the city and all the great bargain hunting in random neighborhoods known for ripping people off for false antiques. I actually acquired a lot of great things due to my superior bargaining skills (one of the random things I bought from an antique store is pictured to the right... how perverted were my people back then?). It seems people there were afraid of bargaining with me because they thought I was Japanese... which I'm not. I'm not exactly sure, but I think being Japanese in China means something. I'm not sure, but it was an interesting thing to deal with. Either way, I couldn't, for some reason, access my blog while in China. It probably had something to do with my brother's internet connection, so the situation was out of my control.

Anyway, After I came back to LA, I had to go to a lot of doctors to deal with some injuries that developed before my trip; they became more serious with the strenuous traveling. I don't have a disease or virus, and I know this because I've had my complete bloodwork done in the last few days as per my mother's request, since my father has been diagnosed with diabetes like my mother... Needles are painful, by the way; at least I know that I'm completely clean... no hepatitis, no HIV, no TB, no meningitis, no syphilis, etc. What I have are a few physical injuries that need to be dealt with, so I'm headed to the hospital for surgery later today. It was only confirmed yesterday and I really didn't want to blog about any of this unless I definitely needed surgery. So, now I'm dying of thirst and hunger since I'm not allowed to eat or drink water before surgery... and I really just want a percocet. After I come back, I'll probably be hocked up on painkillers and drugs, but I'll catch you guys up on my trip to Shanghai and all the stuff I did before that.