The Vegas Trip

stupid acts. unchecked foolishness, and unbridled drunkenness. sleeping at 5am, waking up at 2pm. not showering for a couple of days. getting upset about paying for a beer, but not worrying about laying down 5 bucks for a hand of blackjack. winning hundreds of dollars, just to lose it all in under an hour. that's what the vegas trip is all about. in the end, it doesn't matter how much money you lost. It's all worth it 'cause you got drunk and had fun. and that's what the vegas trip is all about.

I make about 3 or 4 vegas trips a year. That's a lot for most people that live in LA, way too much for a graduate student. But I consider myself a relatively smart gambler - although I understand that gambling can never be smart - so I guess I survive by just losing a 40 bucks here or 50 there, and occasionally I even come out on top. This last trip cost me a total of 500 bucks - including hotel, food, gas, drunkenness, and cab rides.

What's the attraction of vegas? It's not just the gambling, although there's something about laying down money on the table and hoping that you can turn that one hundred dollar bill into two or three hundred while at the same time knowing that the odds are stacked against you. It brings out something in people they didn't know existed. It's as if we imagine that we could strike it rich right there, and then our lives would be made. If we get rich while having someone bring you drinks, what else could we possibly need in life?

But even after you lose your one hundred bucks and stumble away from the table, you're not ready to give up and head back home. There's so much more to see and do in vegas, something for everyone. Sure, it's a lot of money, but there's still dollar mixed drinks at the Boardwalk casino! And there's the sports book, you can always make money betting on something you love to watch even when money's not involved. And then there's the great restaurants, the fabulous clubs, a gazillion different bars or lounges, shows, and most importantly the atmosphere. The streets are always buzzing, even at 5am, even if the buzzing you hear is coming from inside your head, begging you not to order that next long island ice tea even as you reach from it from the waitress and hand her a dollar, your last dollar, as a tip. And when you're absolutely broke, when you've reached the limit where you know you just absolutely cannot gamble more because you know you'll regret it when you get home, you live vicariously through your friends. Watch them go through the highs and lows, cheer for them or against them, and watch them carelessly throw down 5 or 10 or 50 bucks on a single hand of blackjack. Win or lose, they keep playing, and watching you get the sinking feeling that this will end soon enough because no matter whether they win the next hand or next two hands or next fifty hands, they will keep playing until all their money is absolutely gone. But it won't matter, because you're in vegas and there's always something else to do.

Yes, the rafblog is back. I know, it's been months. I never intended for it to get this bad, but I stopped posting, never made the effort to get back to it, and I regretted every single day that went by. Now I'm back, and I remember why I did this in the first place. Yes, it takes a while to post pictures, format them, and write a little snippet about the, but it's soooo much fun.

A pic of my girlfriend Michelle. How would I summarize here in one sentence? She's a salsa-dancing, french-speaking, LA-born 'n raised girl with a good fashion sense, a love for musicals, coffee shops, cooking, and random outings like this one to Palm Springs on a Monday.

Having fun in the snow. Yes, you can see snow if you live in LA, but you'll need a car, some money, and a lot of patience to wait in traffic, in line, and in traffic again. I'm not complaining, I'm just telling you how it is. It's not like other places where seeing snow is as easy as stepping outside your own home, here you've got to make a determined effort. And it's totally worth it.

Family party in Mexico. A happy jumble of people laughing, hugging, singing, screaming, and having a lot of fun.

My cousins' kids. I blame them for my Mom's griping about not having grandkids yet. Too bad Mom, you'll have to wait at leat a few more years (I think).

Mexico-s 7-11.

This is science, this is what I do. Some people look at this and see bright, pretty colors. I look and see microscale structure manifested in the periodic intensity variations characteristic of a diffraction image. Pretty cool, huh? Well, at least I think so.

My rugby team engaged in a scrum. Don't ask.

Famous LA Architecture

I thought I had seen most of LA's important buildings. I had seen city hall, the Disney Concert Hall, and had at least driven through downtown and glanced at the various skyscrapers and historical monuments. Come to find out, I'd missed some of the most highly regarded LA architecture, at least according to this book. So last Saturday I headed out with my friend Michelle to check out two of LA's most highly regarded architectural feats, the Watts Towers and the Hollyhock house.

The Watts towers are older and built not by a famous architect but by a little known Italian immigrant in the mid 1900s. After he had built the towers, which he did so completely without anyone else's help, he was invited to an architecture conference in Berkeley. They asked him why he did it, he said just because. He wasn't trying to make a name for himself or for his community, he simply felt like converting his house in the Watts neighborhood into a magnificent but bizarre structure made of steel, concrete, and tossed out articles like soda and milk of magnesia bottles. After about 20 years of working on it, he gave his house to his neighbor, moved to San Francisco, and never saw his towers again.

There's also a funny story about his car. He was able to get a hold of a police siren and zoom through traffic by blasting the thing and making people move out of his way. The police caught wind of it, though, and so he had to hide his car somehow. He decided to bury the evidence, literally; he buried his entire car in his backyard. He told this story to some of his friends, but no one believed it until about five years ago when they actually found his car buried in a lot right next to his house.


A shot of the upper part of the towers.


The lower part of the towers.


A shot from inside the towers.


This is a part of the structure just inside the front door, which you can see on the left hand side of the picture.


A close-up of a wall inside the house.


Afterwards we went to the Hollyhock house, built by famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright, the self-proclaimed best architect ever. Something amazing about Frank Lloyd Wright is that over the course of his 70 year career as an architect, he designed a new building every two weeks, on average. In this particular house he used a design that somewhat abstractly represented the hollyhock plant.


The side of the Hollyhock House.



A common feature of the Hollyhock house that abstractly represents the hollyhock plant.


A shot of the East side of the Hollyhock house.


A picture of Michelle next to a bamboo plant and under the statue of half a dog with a pelican on top. This was not part of the Hollyhock House but of the museum next to it.

Fall Colors at Argonne

I went to Argonne a couple of weeks back. Argonne is a small city outside of Chicago and the site of Argonne National Labs which hosts a bunch of cool instruments like a synchotron and a neutron source. Possibly the coolest thing about the place, though, is that there's a nature preserve right next to the national lab. I saw some wildlife, such as white deer, and I took pictures of leaves turning colors, something you don't see much of in California.

The Grand Canyon

My brother came to visit me last weekend. His name is Miguel, but I've always called him Mickey and have recently started calling him just Meegs. The first thing we did was check out the beach, the very quiet Playa del Rey near Santa Monica. Then we checked out Korea town and then a cool coffee shop in Pasadena.


The very serene Playa del Rey.

Hanging out just in Pasadena and LA with my bro would have been cool, but instead we decided to see something that we hadn't seen before: the Grand Canyon.

Some people say that the Grand Canyon is just a big hole in the ground. This is true, but it's also an archeological masterpiece, a naturally diverse ecological museum, and a damn beautiful site. That's why I went there last weekend. Here's another good reason to go, this one from the government's website about the Grand Canyon:

"This canyon is a gift that transcends what we experience. Its beauty and size humble us. Its timelessness provokes a comparison to our short existence. In its vast spaces we may find solace from our hectic lives. The Grand Canyon we visit today is a gift from past generations. " Indeed.

We, me my brother and a my coworker Suneel, arrived on Friday evening, a little surprised to find out the South Rim campsite where we stayed was actually in a forest, the Kaibab forest. From all the pictures of the Grand Canyon, we expected to find a dry and barren land.

The next morning we woke up early to head to the rim and find whatever trail would give us a good view of the canyon and a good hike. We first walked along the rim, got stunning views of the canyon, and made friends with a spotted squirrel.

My very first shot of the Canyon.

Another picture of the Grand Canyon from the South Rim.

A squirrel on the edge of the canyon. You're not supposed to feed squirrels, but it's hard to resist when they come up to you and beg for food.

We then found a nice trail, the Bright Angel trail, a rough hike that takes us down into the canyon. Getting to the Colorado River is about an 8 mile hike, and signs warn you repeatedly about not attempting to go down and back in one day. A 6 mile hike takes you down to Plateau Point from which you can see the Colorado River. So we hiked for six long miles mostly downhill, being fascinated by the view of the canyon and the various types of rocks and plants we came by. We were surprised to find out that there were many bushes and trees along the trail. There's a desert near the bottom where there's no shade or water to rescue you from the oppressive heat. This last part was definitely the most difficult part of the downward hike.

Here's a shot of me about 1 mile into the 6 mile hike down to Plateau Peak.

We saw many types of rock along the trail. Here's a type that consists of many thin layers of rock.

The trail before us.

Miki and Suneel. Notice the natural red and silver colors of the rock.

Near the end of the 6 mile hike, we came upon a true desert, the so-called Indian desert.

Another shot of the desert.

The maker of this archeological masterpiece; the muddy Colorado river.

Three friends at the bottom of the canyon.

Here's Mickey eating rye crackers and pondering the meaning of life.

The East view from Plateau Point.	The West view.
The North View.	The road ahead.

Plateau Point at various distances from the bottom.

The next morning it started raining at 3:30 AM. Suneel jumped out of the tent to place a plastic cover over it, and not surprisingly Mickey slept though it like a rock. I got up to make sure everything was alright to find out that the moon was shining so brightly I could see very well without a flashlight. I've never experienced this and decided to explore a bit. So, amidst the howls of coyotes and beneath the brightest moon I've ever seen, I walked to the rim of the canyon. I was quite impressed with the sight of the canyon illuminated by moonlight, and tried taking several pictures. Unfortunately, very few came out. Nevertheless, I was able to see a beautiful sunrise that slowly pushed away the soft mooonlight and brightly illuminated the entire canyon.

5:36 am.	5:38 am.	5:40 am.
5:43 am.	5:46 am.	5:58 am.

A shot of the canyon at 6:09 am.

On the long 8 hour drive home the next day, we drove passed the Mojave desert reserve and stopped to take a picture. We also thought about driving on Route 66, buty it turns out there wasn't anything too special about it, at least according to a cashier at a gas station.


Suneel in the Mojave desert.

Mom and Dad come to LA

This weekend my Mom and Dad came to visit me in Los Angeles. I decided to do my best to show them Los Angeles, and learn more about the city in the progress.

We first went to Venice beach, also known as muscle beach for their outdoor gym, basketball courts, and generally very buff dudes. We walked along the beach enjoying the beach culture and afterwards took a stroll down a nice canal near the beach.


A street performer showing off his belly.


Mom and Dad amongst the tatoo parlors, street performers, and other interesting sights at Venice beach.


A shot of the very scenic Venice canal.

We then headed out to get dinner...at Korea town! Where else, I had to introduce them to some Korean food. So we grabbed some chopsticks and ate some beef galbi (Korean bbq) at a nice Korean restaurant. I even spoke some Korean, but confused the number 4 -'sa' with 3 -'sam.'


Mom and Dad sampling some beef galbi.

The next day we did our best to see as much of LA in one day. We stayed away from Hollywood since we had seen it before and weren't very impressed. So instead we headed to El Pueblo de Los Angeles (the town of Los Angeles), which is the site of some historic buildings and a lively Mexican market on Olvera Street. A good way to get here is to take the gold line all the way to Union Station, which is right across the street from the market.



Some of the crafts being sold at Olvera Street.


Me and my mom try on some large hats Mexicans like to call sombreros.

We then headed out to the Fairfax district, the site of 'The Grove,' which I read was a nice place to have brunch. We arrived to find a festival next to a large outdoor shopping mall (the grove) which was surrouding a Farmer's Market. I wasn't too impressed with 'The Grove,' (it's just like any other mall, really) but had a good time investigating the various foods and goods at the farmer's market.


The entrance to the grove.


The view inside the farmer's market.


We spent a while chateando under this tree in which many small birds were perched, chirping happily away.. I was able to take a picture of this bird sitting on the tree.

Then we headed downtown to check out the new Walt Disney Concert Hall. We got there, and I locked my keys in my car. It happens. But we still got to check out the Disney Hall, the nearby Cathedral of the Lady of Our Angels, and various buildings in the vicinity.



This is how my Dad spent his time while we waited for AAA to come open my car door.


A mural on the side of a building near downtown LA.


The Walt Disney Conert Hall.



A shot of the main door into the Lady of our Angels cathedral.


The heavy door leading into the cathedal was intricately decorated.


My dad pondering a statue of the first Filipino Saint.


A statue of the virgin Mary. My mom was dismayed to find out that this was apparently the only representation of "La Virgen" in the cathedral.


A large cross-shaped pool filled with holy water.


The mausoleum inside the Cathedral. For a hefty fee, your ashes can be kept behind these walls, along with those of celebrities like Gregory Peck and also priests and others associated with the church.


The chapel.


Some of the buildings found near the Disney Hall in downtown LA.


Downtown LA isn't very "green," but you'll see some trees, and not just palm trees. This is a fig tree.


Los Angeles City Hall.

A weekend of festivals

On Saturday I went to Korea town to experience the LA Korean Festival. I was hoping to see korean foods, people, and in short to feel like I was back in Korea. I got there and was a bit surprised to find hordes of people linig the streets to see the parade. I wasn't expecting this to be a huge event, but there were certainly a lot of people out to see what the Korea festival was all about.

Another cool thing about the festival was the Korea-Mexico mix. I guess this is not surprising because the festival was held in Los Angeles, but Korea town also happens to be right next to an area heavily populated by Mexicans. I would say there were more Mexicans at the festival than any other ethnicity, but there were a significant number of Koreans as well.

If you've never been to LA or Korea town, it is just west of downtown, about 5 miles from the skyscrapers that makeup the LA skyline. Korea town itself spans about 5 or 6 city blocks, but you can still see many signs written in Korean scripts well outside of these boundaries. About one third of all of the Korean's in LA live in Koreatown (according to Lonely Planet guide to the USA).


Proof that I had arrived at Korea town.


The many people lining the streets to see the parade.


A Falun Gong float.


Kids demostrating the martial art of Judo.


There were many vehicles like this in the parade. Each one had a different set of flags: apart from the US and Korea flag, I also saw a Mexican flag, and a POW-MIA flag among others.


Another set of military vehicles, this one featuring the US and Mexican flags.

After walking down Olympic Avenue from where the floats began the parade until the end, we went to the market. This was the part I was most looking forward to, I really miss the Korea style markets that are nowhere to be found in the USA. Sure, we have shopping malls, but you can't go shopping at midnight on a Sunday night like at Dongdaemun market in Seoul to shop, eat, or just hang out. Unfortunately, this market was a poor imitation of the real Korean markets. They did sell some Korean foods, but I didn't find any cool Korean clothes, artwork, or random items that make the markets in Korea so interesting. Alex sampled a juice and decided it was the worst thing he's ever tasted. It wasn't ginseng juice, and in my opinion the juice they gave us, whatever it was, was infinitely worse than ginseng juice, which is itself pretty disgusting. I got to speak a little bit of Korean with some old ladies trying to sell me some soybean drink they kept telling me had enzymes in it, and we saw some very Korean foods - dried fish and squid, fish cake, etc.



The market at the Korean festival was packed with people.


The best part of the market was the availability of foods that were distinctly Korean.

All in all, the parade was a little disappointing. Maybe I was expecting too much, but the truth is there wasn't really much the festival offered in terms of learning about the Korean culture. In all fairness, we didn't see much of the stage performance, but the ones we did see involved Korean kids dancing to American music, which prompted us to quickly leave.

Later that same day, after taking a good nap at my place, I headed to downtown pasadena to read and hang out at my favorite coffee shop, Zona Rosa. As I'm heading down there, however, I find out there's a Latino festival, right in front of the coffee shop and spanning about 4 blocks of a main street in Pasadena.

I had fun at the festival eating some good Mexican food - it was pretty authentic and cheap - and checking out the booths. Even though the festival was relatively small, it had a lot to offer - there were several booths featuring art by latino artists. I bought some things for my apartment, mostly pictures of skeletons (Dia de los Muertos style), and chatted with a few of the sellers. It seemed that most of them sold their art at festivals and markets like these, and also at ebay. Overall, a very cool festival.


Check out this pig they were roasting. You can see where they had removed meat from its side. Looks like there'll be a lot of left over pig!


Some Latino art by a local painter who had also worked as a designer for Fox Sports. Each piece of art had some Mexican dicho or saying written on it which the artist collected from his Mexican friends and family members.

The Great Sand Race

This past Sunday I participated in my first ever competitive race. There was both a 10K and a 5K (that's about 6 and 3 miles) race, and the winner of the 10K would be awarded a free trip to Rio, Brazil. Me, Matt, and Chris headed out very early Sunday morning - 7am - to sign up and get ready for the race. I decided to eat donuts for breakfast, which Chris informed me was a very bad idea.


Chris and Matt gear up for the race.


I'm ready to go.


Matt gave himself a bad haircut the night before the reace started.


A shot of Long Beach - the reace started under the pier shown here.


We started at 9am with about 100 other runners of ages ranging from late teens up to people in their fifties. One dude I met in the bathroom was definitely over 50, and he told me he was running the 10K. Most of the race was in the sand, and we couldn't run on the hard sand the entire race either - we had to run around the life guard posts. There were also parts where we had to run in knee-deep water, crawl beneath a fence, and run up and down several flights of stairs. It was a brutal race, at least two people vomited during the race, and the guy that won finished about 10 minutes before the second place finisher. You can check out the results that incorrectly (I promise I ran the 10K) placed me in the 5K race, coming in a good 20 minutes behind everyone else in that race.


Wow, a great shot I of me I found on the Great Sand Challenge website


Another pic from the Great Sand Challenge website just before I cross the finish line.

Afterwards we were treated to Mexican food and drinks at a nearby restaurant. Awards were handed out, coronas and sangrias were served, and everyone relaxed after the long, tough race. Chris and Matt were a little upset that they didn't do better, but I was just happy to be spending a beautiful Sunday morning at Long Beach.


Though we're tired and sweaty after the race, we can at least manage a smile.


Chris won second place in her age group - here she is showing off her award in the restaurant at which the after-party was held.


A final shot of Long Beach I took before heading back home.