Mood Music

I'm a music person. I won't say that I can't live without music, because I'm pretty sure I can, but I don't think it would be a pleasant life.

During my morning and evening commute to and from work I usually just set my mp3 player to shuffle all songs. I do this when I'm too lazy to think of what I specifically want to listen to (which is most of the time). Also, it's so I get to listen to the rest of the songs on my player, which I don't get to listen to a lot or have forgotten about.

There are times when I just select certain albums and listen to them over and over. Some of my loop albums include:

• Hey Monday's "Hold On Tight"
• Owl City's "Ocean Eyes"
• Incubus' "S.C.I.E.N.C.E."
• Incubus' "Make Yourself"
• Sara Bareilles' "Little Voice"
• 30 Seconds to Mars' "This Is War"

Sometimes I listen to just one song over and over. Yes, that's right, I listen to one song on loop for hours like an addict. There are times it's because of a certain mood I'm in, like when I'm stressed over work. Most of the time, though, it's just random songs.

Beijing Part 2: 1st Day

It was around 10 or 11 in the morning when I woke up after 4 hours of attempting to sleep in the hotel lobby. It was the 15th and officially our first day in Beijing. According to our itinerary we were to visit the Lama Temple and Qianmen.

When we woke up Jex's dad had already come back from his solo exploration. He had already bought us Yikatong cards for the Beijing subway. Similar to the Octopus card in Hong Kong, the Yikatong is a contactless stored value smart card that you can use for paying for rides in the subway, bus, and even taxis. We never got to try using the Yikatong for other means aside from riding the subway, though. It costs 20 RMB to buy one card. You can load additional amounts into your card in stations using reloading machines. You can return the card, where you'll receive your 20 RMB deposit plus the amount of any remaining load in your card.

Photo credit: http://www.ginza-mall.com

Beijing Part 1: Introduction

Warning: Long post with lots of photos ahead

Beijing, also known as Peking, is the capital of the People's Republic of China (PRC). I honestly didn't know what to expect for our trip there, except that I had to bring some clothes fit for cold temperatures and comfortable walking shoes. Aside from the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, and maybe some temples, I also didn't know what else I'd be able to see there. I only did very light research on places to visit, traveling by subway, food, prices, and the weather. Compared to our Hong Kong trip last year, I was totally unprepared for Beijing. I wasn't too worried, though, since I'd be travelling with Jex's family.

We decided to have our bags cling wrapped for the flight going to Beijing. Why? Just to be safe. I'm not sure of the statistics, but there have been incidents where drugs or contraband were slipped into an unknowing person's bag in the airport. And with the recent execution of the 3 Filipino drug mules in China, well, you get the idea.

In NAIA Terminal 3, the wrapping service is provided by Protectabag. You can find their store/stand right near the counters where you pay for the
terminal fee travel tax. It only costs P160.00 per bag, no matter what size. So, what's the point of having your bag wrapped?

• Easy to detect if someone has tried to insert anything into your bag
• Easy to detect if someone has tried to open or get anything from your bag
• Accidental opening
• Minor handling damage
• Rain damage

I never knew you could open a bag's zipper by poking the zipper with a ballpoint pen.