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Sunday, August 26, 2007 @ 10:09 pm
ClubMed at Bintan 20-22 Aug.

Day 1

Supposed to meet at 9.30am at Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and i was already there at 9.05am cos my dad drove me. Turns out that the ferry only leaves at 11am so just sit and wait for people to come. Our group consists more of those families so the average age is much younger. My colleagues' babies seem like angels compared to my nephew lol. But it's a different thing for toddlers. Cos they can start to run around and you really need a lot of energy to control them. Makes me think twice about ever having a child of my own haha.

The ferry leaves promptly at 11am and it's a 1hr journey. I took a seasick pill just in case. There's tv and a snack bar on board but i just listen to my MP3 and try to sleep. When we arrived, it was drizzling. After we get our room keys, we get on the bus which took 15mins.

We get a warm welcome from the staff at ClubMed and after a short briefing, we're showed our rooms. Our rooms are quite far from the main building and a bit disappointed with the room cos no bath tub and the toilet which is separated from the shower, doesn't have it's own basin. The good thing is that our room mates in the connecting room is Lavina and CK. Went to lunch at Waterfall restaurant. It's buffet-style with different cuisines like western, japanese, indian, korean etc. They do change their menu everytime so it's refreshing to try new food.

Went to explore and walk on the beach. The beach is quite nice but because the sky is grey the photos taken on day 1 was not very nice. Cos it's still dizzling, we went back to our rooms to rest. And i took time to play my gameboy haha. After an hour or so, we decide to go to the snack bar to get some food. The weird thing is that they don't serve drinks there only food and the bar only serve drinks no food. They really should combine the two together.

After dinner, some decide to play mahjong while we decide to chill at the bar. Had a nice talk with Lynn and Precia. Went to sleep about 1am.

Day 2

Wake up at 8am cos there's a workshop at 9.30am. After breakfast went for the Harrison Innerview Profiling Workshop. Not as boring as i thought, interesting how some people display certain traits. But it had to end early cos some were rushing for time.

Decide to go to beach since it's a sunny day. After getting our drinks, we found a spot to laze around. However end up we went to play in the seawater. The water is super salty, more than Singapore's beaches.

As we plan to go for archery at 4pm, we went to shower and grab a late lunch. Archery is so fun! Too bad didn't see any monkeys hanging from the trees though lol. The bow is not as heavy as i thought and the strain on the arm wasn't that bad. Definitely want to try again.

Since it was still early, went to get some drinks before having dinner. Didn't really eat much cos i'm finding it's more of a chore to eat, a way to past time lol. Since most are planning to play mahjong, we went to bar again to get drinks. My mahjong skills need some brushing up haha, cannot match up to the pros. Went back to sleep around 1 plus.

Day 3

Had plans to watch sunrise but unfortunately it was raining so went back to sleep. After waking up, pack my stuff and went for breakfast. We decide to go Factory Outlet near the ferry terminal to shop so we extend the room check out to 1pm.

Took a taxi out, about $40 SGD for two-way trip and we managed to squeeze 8 people in a taxi. Quite cheap i would say. The prices at the Factory Outlet are quite cheap but sizes and pieces are limited so in the end i only bought a sleeveless top for $12.50 SGD.

Went back to get our luggage to check out then go for lunch. After that while waiting for departure, we get our last drinks at the bar.

Arriving at the ferry terminal, there was still some time so shop around for souvenirs. Depart at 4.30pm and finally reach Singapore around 6.30pm.

Overall this trip is ok, a nice resort and everything. But maybe i'm not really into beach-sea type of person so i don't think i would want to go back again. Those who like the beach and sea sports would find plenty of reasons to go there.

I need to practice abstinence, it's the third time now. I think i should just stick to the norm. It's not that hard, maybe it's just the company around me.

Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal

Arrival at Bintan

My room

The bathroom or should i say shower room

Fountain

Poolside

The swimming pool

Day 1 at the beach

The beach chairs

Actually supposed to be darker but kinda like how it turns out

Day 2 at the beach

My drink, Karma made up of orange juice, mango juice and the rest i forgot lol

Nice pic of the sea

Waves rushing to my feet...

...Resulting in sandy feet

Chess anyone?

3 blues: The sky, sea and the pool

The horizon

Our drinks, the blue one is mine, Blue Hawaii, not very nice though

Monday, August 20, 2007 @ 8:18 am
Going to Bintan from 20-22 Aug.

I'll be going to Bintan from 20-22 Aug. Will be back on 22 Aug in the evening. No phone with me so if anyone want to contact me better wait till 22 Aug lol. Will update about the trip when i'm back.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007 @ 11:57 am
Crackdown Act II.

This is a long entry, hope it doesn't bore you lol.

Saw the newspaper yesterday "StarHub must give names of illegal anime downloaders" on Straits Times page 3. Well what can i say? No one is safe anymore. Previously they target Singnet users and now they're going for the rest of the internet service providers, StarHub and later PacNet. I kind of lost track whether a certain company is a company for local anime distributor or prosecuting illegal anime downloaders.

Firstly, let's understand the situation. Certain company is suffering from loss of profits and the cause is because of illegal anime downloaders which is a reasonable assumption. Why people download anime? Is it because they're cheapskate? Fans of anime usually have other side interests aside from anime, such as manga, gaming, collecting figurines/merchandise to even cosplay. Are any of these hobbies inexpensive? Using me as an example, i calculate how much i spend on collecting my Detective Conan manga. So far there are 57 volumes and based on the price of 1 volume now is $5, total i spend $285. Considering that the series is not finished, the actual amount i may spend is more than $285. In addition, i have other manga series so the actual amount i spend on manga should be more than $500. Expensive, a definite yes since i started when i was in secondary school and my pocket money was $8 per day.

Next gaming. Depending what platform you play on, all the platforms cost easily about hundred bucks and more. Think about PS3, $799. Unless it's free games on pc, otherwise games can cost up to $50 and above. And since people don't usually own only 1 game, the amount spend could be so much more. Again, it's expensive.

Collecting figurines/merchandise is a very broad hobby, meaning almost anything can come under this category. Which is bad for your wallets. Needless to say it all depends how much the fan is willing to spend. I won't be surprised if the most avid fan has everything from posters to figurines to handphone chains to stuff toys or even cards. And since there are various characters in an anime, fans can purchase 2 similar items with the only difference of characters. A nod for expensive.

Up next is cosplay. There are alot of things to consider in order to put up a convincing cosplay. First the hair, from the colour to the style, one can either buy a coloured wig or go to salon to get it cut or dyed exactly the same as the character one is going to cosplay as. Unless they are fortunate to have the same colour and style, otherwise most people have to spend money on this area. Next is eye colour. In anime almost any eye colour is possible. So the solution is coloured contacts. In addition, most people are myopic, so for the best comfort, they ordered coloured contacts with degree. Which up the cost they're gonna spend. The most important thing is of course the costume. They can choose to sew it themselves or ask a tailor to do it, with the latter being more expensive. Another thing to consider is the materials needed. If the character wears leather or intricate costume, sad to say the cosplayer have to spend a bomb on the materials. Additional accessories are things that can be associated with the character like a mask or a weapon. Weapons usually are made by themselves unless cosplayer can manage to buy one that's exactly the same. All this to put up a good cosplay is taxing not only on efforts but also expenses. Since there're various cosplay events held throughout the year, cosplayers would normally choose to do different characters each time, repeating the above everytime. A hand up for expensive.

Conclusion, if anime fans can spend that much on the above hobbies, they're no cheapskates and definitely can spend the same amount on anime. So there must be a reason why they are not buying that certain company's products. Looking at the products, it's mostly vcds and a few dvds. About the vcds, it's standard packaging for all. Not exactly attractive but still ok. Quality average, voice-acting so-so. Subtitles are not always accurate, sometimes missing even. Price for a box of vcd with 13 episodes, about $30. Number of titles available, not much mostly a few years old. Ironically, with the list of licensed anime they have here, half of the titles are not even available on shelves. So is it worth buying their products? Not really considering what kind of quality you are getting in return.

Another possible reason for the downloading is of course people want to know what the story is about. It's the same with music and movies. Who would buy a cd or dvd on impulse just because of the packaging or they like the story summary? Most won't i believe, even if reviews highly recommended the product, people still want to hear or watch to find out if they really like it. Of course another way to watch anime without downloading anime is of course by watching tv. Excluding the fact that some have cable tv, the only choice left is the Channel U slot from 1am to 2am on Sat and Arts Central slot from 11pm to 12am on Wed to Fri. Both are late night and looking at what they're showing, it's not the latest anime and they do censored some scenes even though the timing is pretty late. I wonder when i get to watch Code Geass on local tv, probably 2 years later where my interest has already waned or i bought the imported version. The other option is to watch anime being streamed online but who knows when this option is open for long. Perhaps not long in the future they may resort to tracking those who uses this option to watch fansubs, continuing their prosecution of those who refuse to buy their products.

Overall, what that certain company is doing only serves short-term purposes. They should think of new ways to improve their products or allow people to download anime legally in soft copy form, just like online music. Some people likes to watch anime from their notebook/pc which is something they should consider. Their actions may be right but they have lost more customers due to their actions.

Wednesday, August 08, 2007 @ 7:12 pm
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion.

Yesterday went to watch Secret with sc at cine. First movie that Jay Chou directed, pretty good i think. The plot twist at first made me think it was a horror movie. Lucky it's not though the idea is quite similar to a movie i previously saw. That's all i'm about to reveal, go watch it if you want to know the story.

Here's an anime that's a must-watch. I'm talking about Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion. Though many people find some similarities with Gundam Seed and Death Note, i feel Code Geass surpass both of them. It's a perfect blend of action and storyline, which neither Gundam Seed nor Death Note manage to achieve. A second season is in the works, rumoured to be aired in october in Japan. Here's the summary from its graphic artbook.

On August 10th, 2010, a.t.b., the Holy Britannia Empire overpowered Japanese forces and conquered the country with their robotic weapons, the Knightmare Frames. Japan lost its freedom and rights and was renamed to Area 11, under the complete control of the Holy Britannia Empire. The Japanese people, stripped of their identity and now referred to as "Elevens", are now forced to survive in ghettos, while Britannians live in first-class settlements. Yet rebel elements exist, as pockets of Japanese nationalists continue the fight for their independence.

A young boy named Lelouch made a pledge to destroy the Holy Britannia Empire after witnessing the destruction around him caused by the invasion. Seven years later, he stumbles upon a group of rebel Elevens who have stolen a military secret. With the weapon of Geass that he obtains from the secret, he finally has the tool he needs to face the Britanian empire and take his revenge.

Saturday, August 04, 2007 @ 11:58 pm
Whirlpool of emotions.

I can't really describe what i feel now. I feel anger, upset and tired, a mixture of emotions all swirl together. And just a moment ago i was actually in a cheery mood. I can't believe i'm having mood swings. Or maybe my mood is too easily influence by the things around me. I can say my mood recently is in pits and the things i'm encountering are damn shitty. Maybe that's why i find myself looking at travel ads recently, looking for a getaway, far away from all these matters.