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in 4 hours I’m departing for one of the 7 wonders of the world: The Grand Canyon. With 3 other friends crazy enough to join me, we’re driving over 1400 miles in 2 days (over 21 hours one-way), and will drive about 3000 miles in 1 week. Yeah, that’s a lot more than the 13 miles I ran 2 weeks ago. Gas prices are crazy, but this is the time to do it.

What am I seeking? I’m not quite sure. I’d say some time away from the craziness of the ‘real world.’ This last week has been nice not working in an office, but I’ve still been really busy with lots of side projects and errands. Part of the inspiration for this trip was Don Miller’s book Through Painted Deserts where he documents a road trip from Houston to the Pacific Northwest (yeah, kinda like me but I didn’t do it all at once in an old Volkswagon van) and has a stopover in the Grand Canyon.

I trust that God will allow us to have a good time, but also that he would speak into my heart and maybe give me a glimpse of all the ridiculously crazy stuff he has for me in the future.

Time to hit the road.

I’m about to take off and drive the wonderful 2+ hours to the glorious land of Vancouver, British Columbia. This magical place has amazing Asian food (esp. in Richmond), beautiful architecture downtown, is home to my favorite places of Stanley Park and Granville Island. But I won’t be enjoying all of that this weekend. I’m on a mission. The goal is to run 21.097494 kilometers.

[photo courtesy of kk+]

Remember when I was talking about training for the Vancouver Half Marathon back in February? Well, the time has finally come. My training has been streaky: it started off well, and then I got sick and the weather in Seattle is not quite conducive to outdoor running (at least not for a Texas boy). I loathe running on treadmills. While they’re easy on the feet, I just get absolutely bored, and I feel trapped or like a hamster in a wheel. Unfortunately, the Microsoft gym doesn’t have as beautiful scenery as the Stanford gym Green Lake does. So it wasn’t until the beginning of April that I started slowly training again. I was a little worried, but last weekend I was able to power through a 10-mile run through the wonderful Seattle rain.

It’s not going to be easy, and honestly it’s more of a mental and psychological challenge than a physical challenge if you ask me. But I believe God will give me strength to get through. I was telling myself last weekend as my fee, ankles and knees were in pain: this pain is really nothing compared to the pain that Oliver went through. I guess he’s still inspiring me in new ways.

Since 13 miles didn’t motivate me to get a regular training schedule, I might have to raise the bar. Depending on how I feel after tomorrow’s run, I’m considering signing up for the Seattle Full Marathon. I’ll have more time this summer, and Seattle weather is absolutely gorgeous in the summer and perfect for running. If I do that, I’ll probably try to raise money for Oliver’s memorial fund which supports colon cancer research at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. More details to come if i decide to actually go through with this.

Luckily I’m running the half marathon with my two friends Derek and Kenneth. I’m excited to hang out with these guys and go through the pain together. May the Force be with us.

I spent the past weekend in Vancouver, Canada as part of a trip with my community group from Quest Church. We usually meet for a few hours every Thursday night in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle to hang out, study the Gospel of John and pray together. We’re only used to seeing each other in a pretty specific context. Well, we did a volunteer project at a homeless shelter awhile ago - but on this trip lets just say we go to see different sides of each other that we never knew about.The plan was pretty simple: Drive the 2 hours to Vancouver. Eat. Eat some more. Walk around a bit. Eat again. Go out for the night, have a few drinks. Eat a late snack. Go to sleep, wake up. Eat a big breakfast. Do a little shopping. Walk around the park. Get coffee and desserts. Go out for sushi. Eat Gelato. Fall asleep on the way home.

That’s pretty much what happened. Of course we had a lot of good conversations, jokes, laughs, a few crazy stories, but mostly a lot of eating.

I’ll let the pictures tell the rest of the story.

Of course we left on St. Patrick’s day and I wasn’t wearing any green outside of the crumbs on my face from my green bagel.

Lindsey and Han Mae are ready to hit the road.

Our first stop: Dim Sum.

Chris is ready to rock and roll.

Yeah, only one meal down and Linda and I already felt like exploding.

We definitely ordered alot, as Nick found out when he opened the check.

Of course the next stop was for some pearl milk tea.

We then proceeded to Granville Island where they had a nifty public market.

Inside they had all kinds of colorful fruits, vegetables and other foods.

Don’t foget about the arts and crafts.

Did I not mention that it was pouring rain all day? Here’s a shot of a metal table with a neon sign reflected on the surface.

Nick finds shelter under an umbrella.

A little rain didn’t ruin the gelato for Lindsey and Crystal.

For dinner we decided on Malaysian food. Here’s a sample of one of the eggplant dishes.

Chris and Laurel, our resident married couple on the trip, at the dinner table.

Me, Mark and Jeff anxiously await our food. No, we aren’t falling asleep. Our eyes are just that small.

We had some fun stuffing 15 people into an elevator.

Later that night we headed out for some drinks. I chose the Granville Island Honey Lager - and highly reccommend it if you’re ever in Canada.

The girls chose a little classier wine.

Lindsey and Robin with their drinks. Props to Robin for knowing how to enjoy a good dark beer.

Nick and Linda chose mojitos.

Carrie and Jeff share a Pina Colada.

At some point that night, Nick, me and Mark decided we were too cool for school somehow.

The whole group outside of the hotel on Sunday morning. Luckily the weather had dramatically improved.

Tina and I were feeling particularly gangsta before breakfast.

Han Mae eyes her french toast hungrily.

Our hotel.

Boats from Stanley Park, with downtown in the background.

I caught a sea plane taking off from the harbor.

There’s a Chevron station on an island in the middle of the water. It’s a gas station for boats!

The coast with a lighthouse in the background.

A family admires the crashing waves.

There was a small totem pole exhibit in the middle of the island.

I stood at the base of the lighthouse until I caught a bird flying overhead.

Me, Tina, Lindsey and Esther pose by the waterfront.

Another group trekked around the island on bikes. The trouble with bikes is that I tend to fall on my face while trying to ride them and take pictures at the same time.

Another shot of the coast with downtown in the background.

You can see the convention center with its cool looking roof.

A fountain framed by cherry blossom trees in downtown.

Someone supporting the http://www.freehugscampaign.org/ cause.

Mark looks a bit disappointed with his chocolate dessert.

However, Lindsey is quite excited about her sweet treat.

Nothing like some chocolate and coffee to keep you going.

We stopped for more gelato before heading home.

It’s apparently so delicious that Nick can’t take his eyes off of it.

I think this is my favorite shot from the trip. I spotted a bird flying towards me and had to whip my camera out and take a quick shot. It ended up a bit crooked, but I kind of liked the effect so I left it that way.

Overall this trip was a lot of fun packed into less than 48 hours. There was definitely a lot more that happened than these pictures (by that I mean we ate a lot more but I was too busy stuffing my face to take more pictures.) But, you can see more pictures from Sunday here. I have a feeling that our C-group will have a few more fun outings before the year is over…

When I was booking my flight to the Philippines, the travel agent told me, “Well we have this flight for you, but it requires a 8 hour layover in Taipei.” Normally, spending 8 hours in the airport would be pretty boring, but I had no intention of doing that. I told the travel agent, “That sounds perfect.” You see, last summer I participated in a summer program through the group Volunteers in Asia (VIA) where I was a host for foreign students from Taiwan and Japan as part of the American Language and Culture (ALC) program. Basically, I got to know about 70 different students from Japan and Taiwan during their one month program at Stanford. I thought that this layover would be a great opportunity to see some of the students again.So I stepped off the plane in Taipei around 3pm and proceeded to customs and then the information desk where people thankfully spoke passable english. I asked how to get to Nationa Cheng Chi University, and they guy handed me two maps. I was supposed to take a bus and and then a train to the Taipei Zoo, which was very near the university, and then I could walk or take a quick cab ride. My other option was to just take a can straight from the airport. However, it’s over an hour-long drive to Taipei and the cab would cost about $50. Besides, doesn’t navigating the public transit system in a place where I can’t read any signs nor speak to anyone sound like a fun idea? I thought it did.

I managed to make my way there through a lot of pointing and grunting, nodding and shaking my head. The info desk guy circled a couple key places on the map he gave me so I just kept pointing at those places to the different drivers, and the MRT station had some English on it. The train system wasn’t quite as complicated as the one in Tokyo where I spent the summer of 2005, so I was able to figure it out. I called my friends from a pay phone once I got on campus and they proceeded to give me the grand tour.

First stop was to pick up some authentic pearl milk tea. Quite good if I say so myself.

In front of the main library with my many tour guides.

This was definitely the highlight of the trip for me. Eating lots of fresh, hot and delicious Taiwanese food. I’m not even going to attempt to explain all that I ate, but it was basically awesome.

At this point the only other guy Alex had to take off and it left me in a rather interesting position as the only guy at a table of girls. This defintely doesn’t happen at Microsoft.

Sadly, the night came to an end all too soon. They walked me to the bus station and Nicki, Yvonne and Tina were gracious enough to accompany me all the way to the airport. This was supposed to be a “tough Jedi” pose. But Nicki isn’t looking so tough. It’s okay though.

Overall, it was fun end to a trip that was altogether too short. I am going back to Japan and Taiwan at the end of June though (all the hosts are visiting together as part of the program from last year). For anyone from ALC2, I miss you guys!

I just arrived from Taipei, Taiwan last night, where I had an 8 hour layover on my way back from the Philippines to be a groomsman in my cousin Eloha’s wedding. I left on a Tuesday night and came back on a Tuesday night. I was gone for a week, but really only spent 5 days in the Philippines and the rest of the time I was just flying. Leaving at a 1:30am flight leaves the airport completely empty and I was totally bored and decided to pass the time with one of my favorite hobbies: photography.

 

Seatac airport is a ghost town at 1am on a Wednesday.

Apparently, that way is, in fact, down.

I arrived on a Thursday afternoon after a 13 hour flight to Taipei, a 2 hour layover and then a 2 hour flight to the Philippines. We soon went to the local mall where we shopped and had dinner at Pizza Hut.

Sporting my new Pizza Hut cap, my cousins Nico and Alexis wait with me for our food.

The next day I spend with my cousins Alexis, Ann, Junel and Joan. We ate at a traditional Filipino restuarant that had some awesome sauce with their fried chicken.

 

Next we stopped at the local SWAT team office where my cousin Jan works.

Inside the office. I’m about to get suited up and armed. (Just kidding)

The next morning Alexis and I took our Lola (that means Grandma in Tagalog, the main Filipino language) out to McDonalds because she likes the fries there.

I ordered the “McRice Burger” which comes with a bun made out of fried rice. It was pretty good I guess. The bun fell apart a little but so I had to be a little careful eating it.

That night we stayed at a local hotel in preparation for the wedding the next day. We were able to relax and kinda chill out before the next day of mayhem began. On Sunday we woke up early for breakfast and toured around the hotel’s recreation area. I took some shots of my cousin’s cousin (my 2nd cousin?) Jun.

This is one of my favorites. Isn’t she cute?

Then the wedding preparations began in full force. An endless stream of people flooded into our hotel rooms: Flowers, makeup artists, wedding coordinators, photogrpahers. It was insane.

Here’s a shot I took of some of the bride’s wedding accessories.

I also had the “honor” of wearing some makeup, lucky me. By the way, I’m wearing a barong, traditional Flipino formalwear for men. It works better than a tux in a place as hot as the Philippines.

My Kuya (respectful term for older brothers/relatives) Lito poses by the staircase, a patient groom. He’s waited over 5 years since they started dating to get married. He can stand to wait a few more hours.

At last, my cousin Eloha comes down the steps.

I caught another cute shot of Jun - don’t you like her dress?

My cousin Engel, the Maid of Honor and bride’s younger sister, and I.

Eloha and I. She scared me when we took this picture by saying, “One day you’ll be the groom in your own wedding.” Haha, as if that day would ever come..

The groom in the middle, surrounded by his best man and groomsmen.

The scene of the wedding - an elegant outdoor garden. The ceremony will take place at the front under the little gazebo.

There were tables set up all around the flower-filled garden - complete with a swimming pool.

The ceremony’s begun and here I am escorting my partner Joy (sister of the groom) down the aisle.

*Cue Here Comes the Bride music* Don’t the bubbles and mist have a nice effect?

Our part in the wedding was to attach a symbolic veil to the both of them, representing that they’ll be together through the good times and the bad together.

The newlywed couple poses after the ceremony.

During the reception, they call on me to make the “Grand Toast” for the couple. I don’t really remember what I said - I hope I didn’t stutter too much.

The wedding was a lot of fun and it was all done so well with such a beautiful ceremony and all, complete with fireworks at the end. More wedding pictures can be found here.

The next day, I went with Eloha’s family to a private island in Subic Bay where we spent the day before leaving the couple alone there to stay the night

The view from the boat as we leave the mainland for the island - a quick 30 minute trip.

As you can see, we had some fun playing in the water, riding inflatable boats while a motorboat pulled us along.

Here’s a picture of Eloha and me by the water. I like the pictures my new Nikon D50 dSLR takes :).

As we left the island, I took this shot of the sun going down approaching dusk.

I had a really good time in the Philippines. Though I was just there in December, this was different since it wasn’t the holidays and I got more of an “everyday” sense of the way things work (outside of the wedding preparations and celebrations). I really miss my cousins and I hope I get to go back soon. That’s it for my first post about the Philippines. I’m going to cut it here and talk about Taiwan in the next one. Thanks for reading :).