Day 88 (Thurs) *LA Day 5*

Last Day in LA and also Official Final Day in US - my adopted "home" country for the past 3 months or so...feelin juz like yesterday...mixed to be exact...i guess this will prob define the mood until i reach Taipei...haha...kindda of looking forward on the other hand...thanks in due to my healthy diet of the corny yet entertaining taiwanese variety shows back home...

did our final packing and checked out at 10am...this hostel really f-upped one...yesday nite try to do laundry but was told the laundry room only open from 4pm to 10pm...wah lau u expect us to stay back and do laundry meh like that...now wanna check out den ask whether can store our baggage here until our flight at nite...at first say cannot until later den say can but muz come back by 5pm to collect our stuff...wah kaoz plane only departing at 1am tomorrow so effectively only need to reach the airport by 11pm...expect us to stone all the way till den meh?? no choice also lah...we check out left our backpack in the storage area and our valuables in the lockers...den went for lunch at Macs...

our plan is to go visit UCLA today...den hopefully can make it back by 5pm to collect our baggage...if not i tink this lousy hostel really capable of keeping our stuff back one...but first we accompanied JK to the BOA branch at sunset to close his account first...reached back late last nite from his Disneyland trip coz apparently pple gave him wrong directions to come back...by the time we left for UCLA from sunset it was already abt 1pm or so...took another half hour on bus to get there...leaving us with limited time to explore UCLA properly...but still manage to take quite a few pics of this beautiful and serene campus...wow prob i will rate it the best lah compared to UPenn and NYU...so spacious with so much greenery ard...students lazing ard the grass surfing the net on their laptops...and to add UCLA is a campus with a strong sporting tradition...the students activities also very happening...with such a large students activities center...juz nice we go there they are conducting freshman orientation so got groups of blury looking pple walking ard the campus...haha...we hanged ard their arts and social science fac...andded walk ard their bookstore and much of the student activities center before deciding it's time to go back...no time to go visit our counterparts at engin coz quite far away...coz the campus is so damn big...prob a good thing also...the more i stay...the more i wanna come here for SEP lah instead of Waterloo...haha

Adolf Hitler honoured in Hollywood Walk of Fame?? which idiot did this??

Outside the UCLA campus

the broad and spacious pavements with trees lining along it

the seemingly endless patches of green...wah the campus is so nice lah!!

picture outside UCLA school of law...can pass off as their law student anot?? haha

"everyone pls pay attention to the board!!" was asked last minute to deliver a lecture at their philosophy class...haha

what better way to announce our arrival to UCLA...haha

Proudly presenting the rock band from NUS...LIVE in UCLA!!

a normal lecture back seater convert to sitting front seat

the kind of campus walkways that i envision...large wide lanes with falling leaves and reading a classic novel by the side...

is it too late to change my SEP to here ah???

beautiful red bricked buildings really gives u a Uni feel...so unlike the dull grey engin blocks

grass patches everywhere lah...people juz lying down doing their stuff...ahhh...tell me NUS where can lie down on the grass withou pple caling u "Siao" one

u call this a library?!?!! this is a fairytale castle lah

groups of freshies having their campus tour

UCLA's student activities center

the Californian Bear look like it going to snarl off my head anytime

the princely Bel air district juz opposite the campus

took a long time to find the bus stop that will lead us back to the hostel...in fact we got holland...walking around the campus on the perimeters with cars zooming by in the opposite direction...met one kind auntie at the bus stop who directed us to take the bus back to the central and from there we can take the bus back to Hollywood Boulevard...lucky the bus came quite quickly...so in the end we juz made it back to the hostel to collect our stuff in time...gathered our belongings...and went to Macs for a drink...Naf will be leaving us from this point onwards while me, ken and JK will be heading to Taipei...meantime according to him will be lazing ard the famous venice, malibu or santa monica beaches while we are at Taipei...haha...gonna miss this joker's company...the trip would not have been so fun without him...still can catch up back in NUS lah...

bade our farewells to Naf and took the train to Union Station where we had a noticed a direct shuttle bus to the airport...we can actually change train lah but save us the hassle and somemore bring us to the terminal directly...very heavy the backpack and mine and ken's look like capable of giving way anytime...reached LAX at ard 7.30pm after a 45min ride...and not due to check in until like 11 plus got like 3 hours plus on our hands...first hour tried to get some internet connection...gave up aft a while and played Hearts until my batt died...later nap for a while at the couch...2nd hour went looking ard for some magazines to read...stopped by to read motoring magazines...haven been reading them for quite a while...decided to buy a book "The Lions of Lucerne" by Brad Thor to read...3rd hour reading The Lions...my 1st novel for almost a year...how i wish can juz spend my time lying down on a hammock on some deserted island reading a good novel some day...haha...at least something to accompany me on my 13.5 hour flight...finally time to check in at 11.30pm...but not before changing some Taiwan notes at the exchanger...quite disorderly the airport i muz say...but somehow manage to check in on schedule this time rd...learnt our lesson from JFK...haha...ok finally time to say Goodbye USA...Off to Taipei!!

fond memories and final group shot at our beloved Macs...haha

the trip would not have been so fun without this joker ard...haha

Day 87 (Wed) *LA Day 4*

It's downtown LA for today! or at least for Ken, Naf and me...JK has decided to stick to his stand to visit Disneyland while we go ahead with our plans for downtown...initially contemplating whether we should go Disney too...but den again...the cost of the tickets at 59USD is one reason...and 4 guys approaching their mid-twenties going to Disneyland seems kindda of weird...i mean issn't it suppose to be the happiest homecoming on Earth?! haha...and shouldn't this special homecoming be preserved for like loved ones, families or kids in the future?? i don't know lah maybe it is juz me...but i still think going there 4 of us it juz feel a bit funny lah...taking pictures with Mickey and Minnie...Donald and Daisy!! (trying hard to sound excited) andden trying desperately to squeeze our bodies into the small teacups and spin ard...haha...and also the whole Disneyland is so super duper huge...i don't tink one day is enough also...so made a decision not to go in the end...have fun with Goofy JK! =p

so went on our separate ways with JK...we took the subway down to Union Square Station...decided not to pay for the tics this time to see how...worse come to worse can always use our most lethal asset...pretending not to speak english...haha...with that reached union square ard noon...explored the colourful and flamboyant Olvera street or the Little Mexico...otherwise also known as the birthplace of the City of Angels (Los Angeles)...and lots of interesting stuff to see along the street markets...the Mexicans are known to be deeply religious pple...and it is further exemplified as we walk down the street...u can see plates, bowls and utensils with the figure of Mary on it...canvasses and ceramic statues of Jesus and Mary...and at the end of the street there is a large Cross and beside it is the famous "Old Plaza Church"...still very much active among the Mexican immigrant community...

reaching Union Station...LA's answer to New York's Grand Central station

the historic Olvera Street Market

colourful spanish guitars lining along one of the shops

the large cross at the end of the Olvera Street Market


the person on the right look like he will chase me with a hacksaw if i dun give him a generous tip


bought these 3 boxes of Worry dolls...according to Guatelaman legend put tell one worry doll ur worries and out it beneath ur pillow when u sleep...the dolls will take ur worries away...not that i believe lah...juz for fun lah

after we were done with Mexico...we went across the street to China...Chinatown as a matter of fact...juz nice spotted the Bank of America down there...wah the whole architecture of the bank even shaped like some ancient China Ching Dynasty Palace...and even the bank staff are all chinese...haha...settled our bank account for once and for all...den the counter staff told me i got a debit of 2 dollars...huh??!?! the other day i juz drew out all my $$ at the branch in sunset boulevard den now tell me i owe the bank 2bucks?!! still say tell me better clear the "debt" if not might affect my credit nxt time...lucky in the end the customer service officer over the phone helped me write off my debt and no need to pay anything...so good lah...finally can leave the country in peace tml...haha

had a damn solid cai fan for lunch at one of the shops along Chinatown...very generous servings and for only 2 bucks...coupled with the chrysanthemum herbal tea that i bought...wah shiok in this hot and humid LA weather...afterwhich went to tour Grand Central Market...realised it is nothing juz like the wet markets back home...paid a short visit to Angels Flight across the street which is apparently the world's shortest ever built rail track...interesting how they actually thought of building this in the past to shuttle the rich from uphill down...next we cut thru the outskirts of Pershing Square to go and check out Little Tokyo...little did we know we had juz stumbled onto one of the infamous slums of LA...in the short walk of 1 minute down the street...we witnessed 2 skirmishes involving the homeless and the authorities...the authorities are not police but they wore some safety patrol uniform...my guess is that things are quite out of hand in this district that they need people like them to patrol since police cannot be everywhere all the time...quite an experience actually...Little Tokyo is like its namesake...with streets of Japanese restaurants, supermarkets, clothing stores and DVD rental shops etc...it was quite dead the hour we went...with little human traffic ard...in fact i have observed this for much of LA...it is so sparse and quiet with hardly anyone walking ard in downtown...sometimes the whole street u hardly have any passerby...so unlike New York...

JK at Disneyland...we also not any farther...Disney Concert Hall in Downtown LA...haha

Cheers to Chrysanthemum Herbal Tea!! haven't had it for 3 months...no wonder feelin so "heated" up these days

my damn big plate of cai fan at Chinatown LA

ahhhhh shiok...every bite of it juz feels so much at home

At the Chinatown can't remember Eastern or Western Gate

Instilling some much needed wisdom into my brain

Grand Central Market - LA's largest and oldest open air market

Selling all kinds of fresh produce all ard Sunny California

Angels Flight - The world's shortest ever built railway track

The board depicting Angels Flight history...a somewhat big thing in those days when only the rich can take

Little Tokyo LA...Ohayo Gozaimasu...Konichiwa!!

Inside a Japanese supermart

we decided to cut our trip in Downtown short close to evening and go back to the hostel to rest at ard close to evening before we head down to Melrose Ave later at nite...got back to the hostel and oyah did i mention the day before? we have 2 new neighbours who came in last nite when we got back from Universal Studios...a couple from Ireland in their late twenties who have been backpacking for quite some time...quite nice pple but there goes our privacy also...and we know they are nice chaps but it juz don't feel as safe when strangers are ard...anyway got back and took a little nap...as usual Naf fell into deep slumber everytime he sleeps and me and ken decided to let him sleep a little longer while we head back to Universal Studios the shopping boulevard to buy genie's Abercrombie...last proper day in LA and promised to get his abercrombie polo tee...and nearest is at US...so left Naf to sleep and we both went to US...wah the polo tees seriously not cheap siah...cheap cheap one also cost 50USD...aft asking the salesgal got the one that we looking for...den head back to the hostel...

by the time we got back it was already 9pm...and Naf was awake surprisingly...apparently he didn't see our note and thought where we went without him...decided it was late and also need to pack our bags so we decided to juz go eat dinner at Macs den hang ard Hollywood Boulevard...haven't really explore the area and we r living right in a very tourist attraction...heh...juz slowly take a stroll along the Boulevard and wind down our mood...tml we will be catching a plane to Taipei at midnite...so officially our last nite in the States...mixed emotions really...one thing is getting closer to going home...another is gone with the carefree days...feelin more sad den leaving wildwood...obviously when this time is leaving the country for good...celebrated all the times we had over Sake which Ken had bought from Little Tokyo earlier...and over toasts of Sake juz reminisce the moments we shared from the time we were cuddling outside Wawa from that very 1st fateful cold & chilly nite...haha...how happy times really flies...it's been almost 3 months in this country already...and tml we will be leaving liao...with a plastic cup of sake in our hands...Sayonara USA...thanks for all the memories! :)

breakfast, brunch, lunch, tea, dinner, supper...our meal supplements for the past one week in LA

wah finally spotted him...Tom Cruise!!

wah so cute all these miniature wine bottles!!

and more of these bottles in the shop

ok that's it!! i'm gonna start a new hobby...going to collect all these mini bottles and have even more than this shop has one day...haha

ok starting with my very 1st bottle...Absolut Vodka!!

key chains for dear friens back home

hey genie...u betta tell us this is the shirt that u wan k!

Day 86 (Tues) *LA Day 3*

Universal Studios is the buzzword for the day!! have been waiting for this trip for a long long time ever since the start of the work and travel thingy...have heard so much abt it u see...the movie themed rides...and friens have been telling me since 10 years ago about this must-go "Back To The Future" ride...and the special effects performance...the movie sets...ahhh bursting with excitement the minute i woke up...settled our brunch quickly at guess what...Macs!! andden went over to the visitor center to buy our universal tickets...cost like 52USD or so...wah quite exp ah actually...and Disneyland even more chow...at 59USD...hopefully the rides value for $$ lah hor...next took the LA subway one stop up to North Hollywood...bought our 1day pass at the metro station and realise there is no need to tap or insert the ticket pass...in fact anybody can juz walk thru the gates in the subway station...no control stations or whatsoever...wah lau...waste our 3 bucks like that...learnt our lesson...decided not to buy the tickets the nxt time we take subway liao...haha...maximisng our every dollar indeed...

At The Hollywood/Highland Subway station...Universal Studios is juz one stop up north

The free LA subway...don't have to pay one lah...nobody check and can juz walk thru the gates easily

Ken and Me inside the subway on our way to Universal Studios

At Universal City...waiting for the tram to take us up to the Studios

the Universal Tram ride...offering paranomic views of the LA cityscape on the way up to the Studios

excitement buzzing all over me on the way in the tram

Welcome to Universal Studios Hollywood

reached the North Hollywood station and took a tram up Universal Studios...hang outside the shops outside for a while before we made our entrance into the Studios itself...wah damn crowded lah considering it is a Tuesday...really make big bucks leh charging everyone 50bucks like that...explored around the area...took a few pics here and there...with Shrek and Frankenstein...haha...Naf decided to go ahead with the Studios Tour first...while me, Ken and JK went ahead with the rides first...and decided to leave the tour for the last part...so we broke off from Naf and our 1st ride was the Shrek 4D Ride...hahaha damn interesting and entertaining...now i know why 4D...coz time to time...u can feel the effects literally...like when the Donkey sneeze...den u will feel water squirting at u...andden when Shrek disturb a spider nest...u can feel creepy crawlies moving ard ur feet...hahaha...can't help feelin amused by the whole ride when we left the theatre...hahaha...i muz say i am very impressed by how they made the ride so personal and interactive...kindda of enjoyed it...den we went to our nxt ride Terminator2...not as entertaining as Shrek even though there are live actors...and come to think of it...the main lead of T2 is Mr Governor of California himself...Arnold the man...

the shopping boulevard at the entrance of Universal Studios

looking forward to a fun-filled day at the Studios

wah they even laid out the red carpet for me...so honoured sia

Wah Desperate Housewives, Evan Almighty sequel to Bruce Almighty and Crossing Jordan all filming right here

Frankenstein...hahaha...finally back where he belong...

hahaha...with Shrek and a demure looking Princess Fiona

It's a carnival everyday at the Studios!!

Wah i did'nt know Universal Studios actually produce all these movies

Shrek 4D...our very entertaining 1st ride!!

a long lasting wish fufilled today

Terminator 2...this ride quite boring lah actually...

the blues brother...a popular sing and dance act at the Studios

aft T2...went to meet up wif Naf again...before we continued with other rides ard the Studios..."Van Helsing Fortress Dracula" is our nxt stop...need to walk thru the whole fortress with props and live actors hiding in ambush to scare u...quite spastic lah actually...haha but someone dunno who actually got scared 3 times (u know who lah if u reading this...haha) did'nt watch the movie so also can't really relate much to the "feel" of the ride...went off to the Lower Deck next where we tried "The Mummy Returns" Ride...have to queue super long for the ride but it is seriously damn worth it...no wonder it is voted the Number 1 ride in the whole Universal Studios...it is simlar to an indoor roller coaster...and at one point...the highest point i would say...u r zooming down at full speed into pure darkness...damn solid...luv it...wanna take again...but the queue quite a turnoff...

Van Helsing...quite lame lah walk thru it den get "scared" by live actors

there are live "street" performance everywhere as you walk thru US

LA cityscape atop Universal City

The Mummy Ride...by far the best ride at US

went to backdraft next...none of us have heard about the movie but still went ahead...some fireman show where they show the filming process...and some fire pyrotechnics in the studios...quite cool stuff seeing how they film the movie...the actors were seriously handling real fire in the scenes and literally putting their lives on the line to film some parts...but den again how much they get pay?? wah lau i dun mind lah if they ask me to act also...haha

inside the studios of Backdraft...Backdraft is actually is a technical term meaning when a fire is starved of oxygen and when it is later intoduced to the fire...it can result in severe explosion

the next ride was damn stupid lah...the Jurassic Park...queue up for 20 minutes even though we are in the single ride queue...sit on some dirty with foot print stains all over seat...go thru some river..."get scared" by the dinosaurs...andden one final waterfall drop and get all wet for nothing...somemore sitting at the edge where i bore the brunt of the splashing water...wah kaoz...wet all over lah when we got out...heng camera, handphone and mp3 still working...damn stupid lah...haha...

a seemingly drenched me outside the entrance to the Jurassic Park ride...queue up so long juz to get wet

by the time we finish Jurassic it was already close to 5.30pm...so we decide to go for the Studios Tour which Naf strongly recommended while he went ahead with Shrek and T2...wah really gotta see a lot of stuff during the tour...they bring u to their studios and movie sets directly...like Jaws, Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds where the devastation scene is fully preserved, the cars used in Fast and Furious, their "New York" city, cowboy saloon, Medieval Rome and even Wysteria Lane...home of the desperate housewives...haha...yes they actually film it in Universal Studios...too bad lah when we go they on dinner break...so no chance to see Eva Longoria...damn sian lah...they also show u all kinds of effects they make during movies...like burning subway stations...inside the Mummy's Tomb...rushing water and rain and so on...lots of interesting stuff lah really...really go behind the scenes sort of stuff...u would be amazed at how a simple setting they can actually film it to so grand on movie...like Skull Island of King Kong...it's juz a very small lake lah where they landed...and Apollo 13 the moon surface they walk on is basically juz a stretch of road in the Studios...wah lau u kan help but be amazed by how they actually transform the scene in the movie...andden feel a bit cheated that it is juz like that...hahaha...but impressive stuff indeed...

ready for our studio tour

this is where the directors and actors will stay during long shooting schedules

Little New York...where they create most of the New York scenes

the Back to The Future cars

...too fast too furious...

the cowboy saloons...in those classic cowboy hits...who shot the sheriff?? haha

can u believe it?!? this is where they shot King Kong the scene where they juz landed on Skull Island









The Medieval Rome...the backdrop for many of those Roman epics

aft the 1 hour tour...we went for the Back to The Future Ride...a ride i have heard so much about from friens over the years...but turns out to be quite a disappointment actually...maybe i was sitting at the 2nd row of the time machine...didn't really feel the effects head on...but i came out of the machine feelin nothing but giddy...haha...aiyah muz be Mummy haven't come out when my friens came lah...so much hype about it...but actually juz a machine giving u a headache...didn't really enjoy it so much...

"yah Hi i'm very pleased that i have won the Best Actor...juz like to take this opportunity to thank all my fans...i luv ya!!"

really waste our time yesterday hike all the way up when we can juz take here the pic will do liah lah

dwarfed by King Kong

Outside the Back to the Future ride...quite a disappointment it turns our to be...

next we head straight to Waterworld...the final ride we haven't try...not exactly a ride lah i would say...juz some sort of live performance by actors re-enacting the Kevin Costner's movie...quite exciting...with ski boats, gun shots and explosions...but i pity the actirs lah...some of the stunts really quite dangerous...one miscalculation and u might juz head the pole when falling down into the water or get run over by the skiboats...but nevertheless still a sterling performance even though i know nuts about the movie...

manage to catch the last waterworld performance for the day

rushed and ran to watch the 8pm showing of Fear Factor Live across the Studios...not exactly thr TV one lah...they pick like 6 contestants from the live casting during the day (obviously all yandaos and chiobus)...den do some of the stunts like on TV...like hanging on a bar until one drop...need to get flags...eating bugs...all slimmed down versions...but still quite entertaining as the actual one...they should have it in singapore lah seriously...and put allan wu as host...Fear Factor Singapore...haha

made our way back to the hostel after one full day at Universal Studios...and not before getting our staple of Macs for dinner before going up to rest...haha...now i know why the tics so exp liao lah...wah lau for that kind of entertainment is really worth it...the tour itself is already worth half the ticket liao...but i am a little disappointed that we did'nt got the time to visit the special effects stage and also there are not many rides actually...in fact the universal studios is smaller den i thought...but even if got also no time to go loh...so many pple and with our time limited also juz nice can go for all the rides...haha...but still enjoyed myself with the lads today...a long lasting wish finally fufilled...haha...

As night falls...so does our day at Universal Studios

Credits to Naf or rather his Canon SD30 for the excellent footage of the Universal Studios Tram Tour :)