Category: travel

50 Shades of Hype

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If you have access to the internet, friends that live in countries that have books, or generally do not live under a rock, you have probably heard of 50 Shades of Grey. Notorious for its promiscuous content, this novel has taken the world by storm and is soon to be a major motion picture – on Valentine’s Day, no less.

An avid reader and an admittedly avid consumer, I decided to purchase this work when in an airport preparing for a five-hour flight. It was definitely fun to snap a picture of the familiar cover of the book and upload it to my Snapchat story, immediately to receive texts from my friends asking me “WHY?!”.

To be honest, I wanted to read it to see if it really was what everyone said it was: fan fiction you could read out of a book. In other words, a bunch of pornographic material slapped in between a meekly written romance. It ended up being exactly that. The book follows a quiet and innocent but opinionated girl named Anastasia fresh out of college. She meets Christian Grey, a rich, handsome CEO of a huge company. One thing leads to another, and they begin a very interesting relationship that I cannot elaborate on, as this is a school blog.

The book itself is not very well written – if it was not as widely discovered as it was, it probably would not have been successful at all. The writer, E.L. James, probably owes her success to the internet and honestly, the immaturity of teenagers. The over-hyping of this “sex book,” spread by young adults, is probably how it got so popular – the simple novelty of it, reading it, owning it.

Now that I own it and have read it, I can confidently say that 50 Shades of Grey does not live up to the hype, it simply is hype.

Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia
Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia

 

The Happiest Place on Earth

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Rightfully named “The Happiest Place on Earth”, Disneyland is one of my favorite places of all time. No matter how hard I try, this is going to sound awfully cheesy; but there is something magical there.

Maybe it’s the adrenaline from Space Mountain, or getting to see your favorite character in person, but there is definitely a certain buzz emanating from the Disneyland grounds.

This last weekend I got the fortune to visit this very magical place once again. Straight away we were off to Tomorrow Land which houses two of my favorite rides – Space Mountain and Star Tours.

https://i0.wp.com/thehostelhopper.com/uploads/3/0/0/4/3004751/35617_orig.jpg
Photo Credit to: http://thehostelhopper.com/

These two rides never seem to lose their lust with me. But maybe that’s the thing about Disneyland – no matter how old or young you are, or how many times you’ve been there – fun has no age or time limit.

Across the Country

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Photo Credit: http://www.telegraph.co.uk

With most of my family living on the East Coast while I’m in Oregon, it’s hard to get everyone together and have time to catch up. My sister and I go to New York every summer for about two weeks, where we stay with my Aunt, Uncle and cousins.

Those two weeks provide endless fun – we go camping, sight-seeing and enjoy each other’s company. It’s also refreshing to escape from my hectic life and relax into a different lifestyle.

However, since my sister and I traveled all the way across the country, we hope to see even more of our family. Through extensive planning, we hold a family reunion, where I see the rest of my Aunts, Uncles and cousins. It gets pretty confusing though, for I have two Uncle Dan’s, two Uncle David’s, two Uncle Jeff’s and two Uncle Johns!

During that time we usually go to a park and have a picnic, with lots of good food and great conversation. My sister and I are the reason for the gathering, so I get asked plenty of questions, often repeated and usually pertaining to this school. It lasts for about 4 hours, when everybody then goes their own way and continues on with their life.

My annual short and sweet gathering, and my trip to New York are always a success – I get a chance to see my extended family and I have a wonderful time!

A comparison of two ages

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The Americas were discovered in 1492,a little over five hundred years ago, much has changed since then. Living in the United States and looking around it is hard to imagine that the journey to the Americas was once a voyage filled with hardship guaranteeing nothing but hardship and possible death. However the periods between 1492 and 1750 were one of the most explorative periods in human history. Humanity still has at least one more massive exploration opportunity ahead in the foreseeable future. That opportunity is the settling of Mars.

O Swell

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O gee willikers mister. Today on the magic yellow dragon with wheels I had the privilege of traveling to lower. It was so nar. As I jumped in the clean pool the water greeted me with a warm embrace. It was swell. After mingling and speaking to my fellow OVS students I went on the greatest walk I’ve ever been on. A magic bear appeared before me, it said “ if you could have one wish would it be.” I simply replied “ I wish I wish I was a fish.” After that I wish came to true I turned into a great black fish whom was able to swim the seven seas.

To Mars and beyond

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grtg

Humanity sits on the cusp of a new explorative era, one in which humanity will no longer be confined on a single planet. Setting foot on mars and the subsequent colonization that will occur will socially and politically transform Earth. Some have said that the cost, economically as well as in human lives is too high. To those I say simply look at an earlier era were the brave and foolish sought to push the boundaries of what is impossible.

Up and down

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It begins with a white red blast.

 

Will the velocity ever last?

 

Takes much time to break that one rule.

 

Reaching for such heights makes one a fool.

 

Stage one is simple, there’s no doubt.

 

The engines come alive with a deafening shout.

 

Stage one the last barrier is broke.

 

The fire of human ingenuity is stoked.

 

Stage two the rocket leaves earth behind.

 

The view could only satisfy mankind.

Dream Catcher

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The first time I knew about dream catcher was from a TV show and I was totally amazed by the beauty and meaning of it. However, I would never expect to really see it in real life.

During this break, we went to the Old Town in San Diego, where I finally met the dream catchers. There are lots of stores selling dream catchers in different colors and sizes.

Dream catchers are one of the most fascinating traditions of Native Americans. It was intended to protect the sleeping individual from bad dreams and let the good dreams go through. They are made with strings into a web and the good dreams would slip through the hole in the center of the dream catcher, and glide down the feathers to the sleeping person below.

Using a hoop of willow, and decorating it with findings, bits and pieces of everyday life, (feathers, arrow heads, beads, etc) the dream catcher is believed to have the power to catch all of a person’s dreams, trapping the bad ones, and letting only the good dreams pass through the dream catcher.

I bought one dream catcher and I hang it right next to my bed.
And I think it works pretty well!

So if you want to have a nice dream when you sleep, get a dream catcher and enjoy your lovely dreams!

San Diego, the Sleeping Beauty.

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Over the break, I headed to one of the most beautiful places – San Diego for a week.
I’ve heard of how attractive and magical the city is so I finally had a chance to discover this “dream place.”

Before we launched out journey, my dear friend Emmy made a three-page list including all the “must-go places” and “must-do things” in San Diego. She said, “you would never get bored in that city. There’s always so much things to do.” After all, I would say that she was completely correct.

We followed Emmy’s list to plan our schedules and each day we discovered something new about San Diego. We went to the USS Midway Museum to explore the history of Aircraft Carriers and got a chance to see the famous “Kissing Statue.” We went to the Coronado Island by the water taxi and visited the famous Hotel Del Coronado.

We also went to the strawberry lands to pick up our own strawberries. They were huge and super sweet strawberries and honestly I’ve never tasted that fresh strawberries! They were just amazing.

The next day we went to Balboa Park, where numerous museums are located. It was extremely sunny and warm. We walked around the park and visited some Spanish historical galleries.

Later in the afternoon we headed to the Old Town, which became my favorite site in San Diego. Old Town is like a small community full of culture and history. It is considered as the birthplace of California, where the first Europeans settled. The whole little town was filled with laughter and music. There were lots of stores and museums as well and mostly about the old European or Indian things.

We walked along the road and forget the time till we met the sunset.
The golden sunshine poured on the street and I believe I just saw one of the most gorgeous moments in the world. Then the lights became alive. I picked up my camera and saved the natural beauty. By the way, Old Town has the best Mexican food in the world.

Anyways, eight days are obviously not enough so I need to go to San Diego again to finish Emmy’s list.

I would describe San Diego as the sleeping beauty. She lies there, quiet but charming.

It is nearly impossible to not fall in love with her because once you awaken her, she would invade your heart gently and never leave again.

Travel.

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I broke through the choppy air
punctured the woebegone clouds
all of a sudden
something glaring right above warmed my entire body
That was the first time I felt you

As hours elapse touching my wings
I recall
our once ephemeral kiss
all the time
tender but fiery

I touched all the piece of sky
but could not get a glimpse of you
I erase the distance between cities, countries, and even massive continents
but still could not reach the edge of your luminosity

With the possibility of burning myself
I choose to fall into you fearlessly
the hottest center of universe

I will break through the clouds again
just to embrace you with my rigid body
Then it will melt
with each other we blend
towards the eternity

I fly.