Up, Down, Twist, and Turn!

And just like that, I had the time of my life!

Seeing the theme park from the outside already sent my heart racing. There were just so many roller coasters, and big ones at that! For someone who dreams of flying, fast and huge roller coasters may be the second best! Nothing beats tempting gravity!

Some of the photos taken from the parking:

Cameras aren't allowed when you're riding because of the high probability that it might fall. So here are few of the pictures I took of the parts of the coasters. It's difficult to take a shot of the each whole ride because of its huge size. And now the twists and turn:

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The wonderful thing is that every ride presents a different experience, sometimes with feet hanging, or a standing position, or a squat-like position, etc. There's just a wide grin on my face after every ride. Some people just scream from start to end, and you can fill they're thrill! At times though, even if I wanted to, I just couldn't scream. The rides took all the air from my lungs! :)

There are rides other than roller coasters, and they're equally entertaining. I exhausted all my energy and tirelessly went to all the max (they are categorized according to intensity) ride I could take. My feet were tired, the walking and running were natural fat burners, but my energy level and excitement maintained its peak throughout the day!

I tried moving my hands and feet while this was rotating, and I couldn't.
I was pinned to the ride. Nice!

My favorite rides were Tatsu:

3,602 feet of blazing track. 62 miles per hour. 263 feet in plunges. Ready to take on Tatsu? Aboard the wings of Tatsu, you'll fly at speeds in excess of 62 mph through deep plunges, huge spirals and sharp dives that send you flying through the Park's mountainous terrain. This gives you the sensation of flight.

and X2:

Unlike traditional coasters where trains only parallel the track, X2 sends riders screaming around its 3,600-foot maze of steel track aboard massive wing-shaped trains where the seats extend off of the track to the sides of the vehicle, allowing them to independently rotate you head over heels, forward and backward creating a one-of-a-kind "don't know what to expect next" sensation. X2 launches the extreme thrills of X into a new dimension with the addition of a light experience that changes with every ride.

Last two photos from the web

My Magic Mountain

Probably the best time I had in the States is at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. The park perfectly summarized the Six Flags experience in a few words: Massive monster coasters. Awesome adventure rides. Fun family attractions.

I have always loved the thrill of super fast roller coasters, I love it so much, it probably would have qualified as a death wish (kidding!). But this theme park is not just roller coasters (roller coasters on another post), but also a place for the kids and family. The place is huge, with 260 acres of world-class roller coasters and over 100 rides, games and attractions. If you're not the "riding" type, looking and walking around would entertain you, not to mention it being a weight loss formula. This is Warner's answer to Disneyland, and frankly, I love this place more.

Our new friends!



The price for every game is reasonable, though it's a bit addicting.
Note: It looks easy, but it's damn hard to win!



It's a carrot world out there.

Can't resist the kryptonite =)

Our day ended with this funnel cake, with strawberry toppings!

Business As Usual

A day after typhoon Bashang hit Manila, I went to work. I was lucky to have water, when some neighborhoods in our area lost both water supply and electricity. I only lost electricity and celphone signal.

Our company here in the Philippines is composed of a small group of people, more than half of whom last Wednesday were absent. Water supply was the primary reason, and one was because a neighbor's roof fell on theirs. Makati was a quiet place. And there were still traces of the storm that just passed. The city was powered only by generators, and the underpass was devoid of light, at least the makukulit people insisting on orienting you to something or to some apidexin scam were not there, though because the underpass was so dark, even at daytime, I feared for thieves or others who would take advantage.

Despite of these power failures and the mess that the storm left, I found it fascinating that Makati was business as usual. Probably, this area had correct planning and sufficient securities and measures in case of natural disasters, and well, probably, they'd be ready for anything. I hope the whole country is as well.

The Famous Stars I've Met

At least the shapes of their hands and feet.

After Beverly Hills, we proceeded to the Hollywood Walk of Fame. They said it looks better at night. The street was full of lights, and there were many people. Some were tourists, some were locals, some were offering tours, and some were distributing pamphlets of body building supplement reviews or city tours.

I saw those family in Springfield that I love a lot and that duck friend of Mickey Mouse...

and some great actors...

and I was happy to see that this young actor was already in the same area among those big US stars... did he magically make his way there?

We missed the world premiere of Iron Man 2 earlier that evening (as if I can go!), but I felt somehow excited that Tony Sparks and Pepper Potts were just there, though I only got to see the crew packing up.

Anyway, as it was tiring day, we treated ourselves to a sumptuous Japanese dinner...

itadakimasu!

Strolling in Beverly Hills

Since I was in California, my friend said he'd take me to see Beverly Hills. He said, laughingly, that we'd go there to take pictures. Of course, we couldn't afford to buy things there, unless I want to buy a dress worth my month's salary. :)

There are gadgets stores that sell iPad (first time I saw it!) and tm-t88iv, sports outlet, fabulous bag stores, and expensive restos. And as expected, the high-class boutiques are there. Here are some of the pictures I took in Beverly Hills without me haha:

expensive shops are lined in this street



fancy restaurants along this lane



We entered the huge Nike store and a whole corner dedicated to Pacquiao's merchandise! Nice!





first time I saw brand-new Ferraris (other than my toys!)

And my friend said that this drive is the place for the rich and the famous:

Rodeo Drive

like a practical joke

I have the heaviest school schedule on Thursdays. My class is straight from 530 to 930 pm. I have two minor subjects and one minor subject that feels like a major one also. Also, the present dean and the past dean are two of my professors. They're both very good, but of course, they have high expectations!

I was on deck (meaning I might be called on recitations) on the two major subjects. However, I find Negotiable Instruments Law hard to digest (all about checks and promissory notes), and it puts a lot of stress on me, evident by my aggravated need for hair loss cure and pimple treatment. Anyway, the whole day was spent studying that subject. Of course, I wasn't able to read anything on the other two, Sales and Public Corporations.

So Dean Sundiang of Nego was the first class. I was preparing myself to be called. I thought to myself, I prepared for this, so maybe somehow I can answer his questions. What do you know? I wasn't called. Dean Jara (present dean), the professor of Sales, however, called me. I was on recitation for like, forever (30 minutes actually). He asks the most thought-provoking questions that it's hard even if you read the book. What more if you hadn't? Well, my whole recitation was based on guesses and last-minute readings, and it's a good thing he was somehow guiding me to the answers, though I'm not sure if I got his hints correctly. haha.

When I sat down, I could only shake my head and laugh of how ironic the day I was. I prepared for one subject, I wasn't called. I never read a thing in the other, I was called. It was like a practical joke. Lesson of the story: read all or read none at all. ;)

my new ability

I like this new skill I have developed: sleep fast.

Before law school, I find it hard to sleep. It's either I cannot sleep for hours or have a light sleep.
Dad also has insomnia; doctors even prescribe him high-dose sleeping pills, which he does not take and which I want to take from him. haha. But now, in every chance I get, I sleep. And I just can. :)

At home, whenever I move to another subject or even to just another chapter, I rest by sleeping for 10 minutes. A minute after closing my eyes, I already doze off. And I'm not kidding, I sometimes have dreams in that 10 minutes. In buses, whenever a friend's with me, I sleep and sometimes, this is a bit embarrassing, with my mouth open. Ewww! :D

I wish I could also sleep just about anywhere, like him!

In Santa Monica

In Santa Monica, in the winter time,
The lazy streets so undemanding
I walk into the crowd
In Santa, Monica, you get your coffee from
The coolest places on the promenade
Where the people dress just so
Beauty so unavoidable, everywhere you turn
It's there
I sit and wonder what am
I doing here?

I know why. I wanted to see the beach. At least what a beach looks like in another country. So my friend took me here:

It was a very cold (at least to me) and windy day. So though we went there about noon and the sun was still up, I was still chilling. What I find amazing is just about a few meters away is a busy road and a few meters more are the normal commercial city. We went ahead to the road sloping downward to check the area. There weren't too many people, and there weren't any resort! haha. But there were park rides (see middle, top of picture):

I was glad to see that some people were also wearing jackets. I thought I was the only silly person who's having a hard time with the cold. There were a few of us. Thank goodness there was Coffee Bean down that slope, so my friend and I took a cup each and sat outside the store, enjoying watching the almost undisturbed beach and the shine of the sun.

But these were what actually caught my fascination:

It was wonderful that these birds weren't flying away when people were just arm's length away from them. And some were majestic when their wings were spread out and they were just gliding in the air.

After coffee, my friend and I walked in the sand. It wasn't as beautiful as what we have here. But at least, this beach is just a few minutes away from the city. I hope we have one like that here, if only Manila Bay is clean. I wondered how cold the water is, having an illusion of swimming, or if they also have variety of fishes with colorful scales. But my illusions were abruptly stopped when my friend told me that in certain areas, there are sharks!!! No way, I will never swim in there. ever. haha.

Here's my friend emoting in the beach...

But with the sudden rush of the tide...

haha. =)