Gaylord National Resort - ICE!

I had been wanting to see this since I lived in Reston a while back. It's an annual exhibit at Marriott's Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center.  Finally got around to see it with Jason and the fam on day after Christmas.  It was good fun, but there are few draw backs.  First, it's expensive - about $35 for a self-guided tour that lasts 30-45 minutes.  Second, it's REALLY cold inside (since they have to keep the ice from melting.)  Definitely bring warm gloves and hat.  Your camera or phone could run out of batteries too from the cold.  Lastly, they color the ice!!  I hates that part of it.  It makes everything look like plastic instead of ice.  It was a nice exhibit, but they could have done with more uncolored ice.

Tinder

After a long break from dating I finally got some motivation to get back in the game about a month ago. To that end a friend was kind enough to suggest Tinder. I wasn't having much luck on other online dating platforms so figured I'd give it a shot. Turned out this is the perfect app for me. It requires the least amount of effort to meet the most number of available men that are with in your search radius.

Here's how well this is going:

1) Brett

His profile picture:

What he really looks like:

He claims he hasn't been on in couple years and didn't get around to updating photo. I'd say it was more like 10.

2) Andy

34 friends in common. Yep, someone I see on a regular basis. He's such a nice guy but I didn't have the balls to swipe right nor the heart to swipe left. I ended up restarting the app just so I can move on without swiping.

3) Austin

Me Tarzan. You Jane.

Down side of app full of lazy people.

4) Jesse

I was visiting my brother for Thanksgiving and came across my ex-boyfriend from high school. It was over 300 miles from where we went to school but turns out he'd been living in the same town as my brother for last 10 years and neither of us knew. Small world.

Just where am I supposed to sleep?

How Much Do I Love My Dog?

 

For as much as I love Millie, my black lab, I don't write enough about her.  So this post is dedicated to my baby.  I love my dog so much that...

• I give her treats just because she's cute.
• I drove three days for a three day meeting just so I can bring her with me.  Then I drove back for three days.
• My superhuman strength kicked in and carried all 70lbs of her down a mountain to seek medical care when she got attacked by a porcupine.  (Ok, that was my ex, but I would've done the same.)
• Her farts don't stink.  (Ok, another lie.)
• I want Millie babies.  
• I let her wipe her eye boogies on me. 
• Cuddling on the sofa with her is my happy place.
• I blow kisses to her when I leave for work.

The list is endless....

SUPing

Stand Up Paddle Boarding, or SUP, seems to be a popular thing these days.  Yet, it never really crossed my mind to try it until one of my jiu-jitsu mates opened up SUP Riverbend Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy.  Yes, you can fulfill all of your BJJ and SUPing needs in one place.  Anyway, when one of the girls suggested an outing there, I jumped on it.  My primary motivation was to engage in an activity I could do with Millie.  Summers are just too hot for hikes so a water activity sounded good.  Unfortunately, I left her with the hosts on the run down the river.  I wasn't sure how well it'd go with a dog on my first time SUPing.  Probably a wise decision.  There were some minor rapids and shallow areas where the board kept getting stuck.  We only went out for an hour or two, but it was fun.  (Would be more fun if not so shallow.)  Once back at the lunch point, I did take Millie out on the board for a bit.  It wasn't so bad.  She didn't jump right off.  Although she did move around more than I'd like, making it a bit wobbly.  If I could get her to sit still or even lay down, that would be best.  Maybe next time.

BJJ Blue Belt!!!

Last night was a big day for me - I received my blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at Tony Passos BJJ!  It has been almost a year and a half of training, with a two month break back in February and March.  I honestly did not expect I would get my blue belt so soon, but nonetheless I was so happy I teared up a bit :)  I think each person is their own worst critic though, and it is no different here.  I don't see myself as being that good.  The few times that I rolled with girls from other schools, I did not do so well.  Their experience level was around the same as mine, or maybe a little more.  Still, I remind myself though that everyone is different.  I think each of those girls have competed.  I think those that like to compete are also the same ones that go around visiting other gyms to roll with new people.  I can think of million other excuses for myself on why I don't roll well other girls (they're bigger, I'm older, wasn't feeling so well, etc. etc.) but you know what... fuck that.  I don't suck.  I trained my ass off since day one.  My techniques are about as solid as they should be for where I am in my training.  Also, there will always be people who will be faster, stronger, and better than me.  I can't compare myself to others.  I am doing my best, and that is all that matters.  My coach said, there will be a day when a white belt will beat me.  That's just how it is.  He knows, and he would not have promoted me if I did not deserve this.  

One thing that has really helped though is having new girls at the school.  They really could not have shown up at a more opportune time for me.  I was at a point where I was debating whether to continue with my training.  Rolling with guys, big ones at that, all the time was exhausting and felt a little limiting.  Plus, I really could not tell how well I'd do against people my size.  Rolling with the new girls though made me realize, hey, I do know things.  I did learn a lot in the past year.  They might beat me in an all out brawl (I hope not, but you never know), but in class, using Jiu Jitsu, I clearly have the advantage.  Best part of it all is that they are really great bunch of gals.  They are nice and fun to be around. I really needed more female friends in the area so I am ecstatic.  We have all been talking a lot outside of class.  Last Sunday we all went to see Cirque Italia together.  We may do a paddle boarding outing in couple weeks.  I am just really glad they are training with me at the school now and hope that our friendship will continue to grow.  

Turkey

A week ago I got back from a trip to Turkey.  A friend was going to Istanbul for conference and I got talked into tagging along.  While not high on my to-go list, I did have a lot of interest in seeing Cappadocia so I went.  As I expect

Hagia Sophia

I spent two days in Istanbul and saw Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, and Süleymaniye Mosque. We also did a boat ride on the Bosphorus.  Istanbul was an interesting city.  It was half European, and half Middle Eastern culture, with tons of history.  Food seemed mostly the same in most restaurants though - kabobs or some other meat dish.  Our hotel in Istanbul had the most ridiculous breakfast buffet though.  It was the largest I had ever eaten at.  All you can eat of almost anything you can ever think to eat at breakfast, and then some.

There was security everywhere in the city.  Metal detectors to get into malls, big hotels, and museums.  I had also never seen so many ATMs in a city.  They were everywhere.  Selfie sticks are getting popular too.  Many people had them at the tourist sights.  To get to the sights, we took the metro - easy peasy... Except for one Sunday where everyone in Istanbul and their brothers and sisters seemed to be out and about, some of the public transports were jam packed - like how it gets in Japan during rush hour.

Rose Valley

While my friend was at a conference, I headed to Cappadocia. Not really having done much research up front, I just booked 3 day tours back to back with Turkish Heritage Travel.  I also spent one day with my friend who joined me after his conference.  Cappadocia was all I expected and more.  I really liked it out there and am glad I spent 4 days there, even if some of the things I saw were similar to each other.  It is not likely I will go back to Turkey any time soon, so figured I better get my fill of the place on this trip.

Monk Valley - Fairy Chimneys

Most of the sights in Cappadocia were outdoors - there are many interesting and beautiful geological formations that make the place great for hikes.  It was quite hot there though, so I was kinda glad the hikes on the tour were on the short/flat side.  Would really be interested in going back some day to do longer ones though, in cooler (but not cold) season.

Cappadocia also has many underground cities. I toured a few of them, and it was interesting to see how people lived in these dwellings. Not something I'd want to do....

The whole area is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Oh, and something not to be missed in Cappadocia is the hot air balloon flight.  Every morning there are flights that take up tourists to catch sunrise over beautiful Goreme.  While I was not keen to go up, I did get up bright and early to watch the flights and it was so worth it.  It was one of the most amazing and unique things I have seen in my life.  Here is a short 30 second clip of it.

After Cappadocia, we flew to Izmir for the night.  From there we visited Hierapolis and Pammukale.  Hierapolis is an ancient Greco-Roman spa city.  I was pretty jaded when it came to ruins, but I really liked Pammukale.  It was different.

Travertines at Pammukale

Latrines in Ephesus

The next day was Ephesus and Priene - more ruins.  I didn't care for much at the time, but I am now glad I went.  Got some nice pictures out of it anyway.  One thing I had never seen or noticed at other ancient Greek or Roman sights though were the latrines. For some reason I found it interesting

Well, I'd hate to end on this note, but that was pretty much the end of the trip.  While it was great, I was glad to be home.  More pictures from Turkey trip can be found at https://www.flickr.com/photos/dancingnomad3/sets/72157654719382769.

Back to BJJ - and the fun of training with new girls!!

When I stopped training back in February I did not expect I would go back.  I felt I should, but somehow lacked the motivation.  Work had been hell for a while, and I contemplated getting the fuck out of there one way or another.  One way to get the fuck out of Virginia.  I was missing hikes in Alaska, I was pining for different type of work, and various ideas of what else I could be doing with my life entered my mind.  Then I went to Japan and my whole view on things changed.

I saw Japan as an obligatory trip and was somewhat stressed about going.  The trip actually turned out great, and I think it was because I spent so much time with friends and family during the week. My take away from the trip was, I need my family and friends.  While I would have that in Tokyo, moving there wasn't an option for me now with my beloved Millie.  Where I am now is actually the best place for me.  I have many friends in the area, and my brothers are in driving distance.  Work is actually not so bad, despite the two months of hell.  My home is affordable and is perfect for living with Millie.  I have just about everything I need within a 15-20 minute drive.  Drive a little further and I have even more - H-mart, Spa World, DC, more hikes, etc.  If I wanted something completely different, I could travel.  Hell, I get four weeks of vacation and 10 holidays.  My decision to stay put wavered over the last two years, but after my Japan trip I all the sudden felt content where I was. Once my focus was back on building a life here, going back to Tony Passos BJJ was an option again. At the beginning of May I decided to go back to a class to see how it goes, and rest is history.

Even before I went back I knew the benefits of training.  Working out with others is more motivating and more fun.  I thought I could keep up the work outs on my own, but I didn't even come close.  The classes I took at Sports Pavilion didn't make me work as hard as Jiu-Jitsu did.  I didn't have the discipline to push myself on my own.  As sad as that is, it was the reality.  After I stopped Jiu-Jitsu, I could feel myself getting weaker, and eventually fatter!!  (Eating so much in Japan didn't help... ha ha.)  I also started to feel something was lacking.  I needed a hobby, but didn't find anything to replace BJJ.  I knew the longer I waited the harder it would be for me to get back, so I said "just do it", and braved my first class back.

The plan was to go back and stick with it, but I honestly did not know how I would feel after my first class back.  Turned out, it felt great.  Oh, the rush and stress relief and just the general awesome feeling you get after a good work out!  Ok, so I can back into this.  And I will take it easy so that I won't burn myself out and leave myself energy for things on weekends.  Or so I thought.  While I was gone couple of new girls had started training there.  That changed everything.  Up until now, I was usually the only girl in class.  And the Monday/Wednesday classes I go to usually had all the big guys there.  That meant I most of the time getting crushed... literally.  It got old after a while. Now though... mwah ha ha... there's fresh meat.

Not only were there two new girls when I started, within two weeks, there were three more new girls!!!  And they are all roughly about my size!  (Though one girl is much much smaller.)  With one full year of experience and three stripes under my belt, I had no excuse not to have the advantage over them.  Sure enough, for the first time ever, I felt that advantage.  I got my first real tap (when I tap the guys or upper belts I assume they 'let' me have it)... and then another... and then another.  And all in between I mostly held the upper hand in my positions.  Granted, I won't say it was easy.  Most of these girls were athletic and strong and put up a good fight.  Some also did the white belt spaz thing.  I held my own in the face of the crazy moves.  This meant that the training was working.  It felt really good to finally be able to spend more time on the offense rather than defense.  Until now I was limited in my ability to practice moves during rolling, but now I have that opportunity.  This is a total game changer for me.  If BJJ was fun before, it is even more fun now.

I feel again the motivation and passion for the sport... well at least at Tony's gym.  Not only is it nice to see these new girls, but it was nice to see all the guys too.  Everyone at the school is just awesome. Training there is not just a work out but a social outlet for me.  It's my happy place.  Now, I must keep training hard to stay one step ahead of these girls :P

Japan 2015

Not a whole lot has been going on this year.  While last year was a bit of a blur with my focus on BJJ, it did not continue into the year.  I did start January off with training, but by end of the month, my hands were getting torn up from playing too much spider.  I tried to play top, but with most people heavier and better than me, I seem to end up on bottom a lot :(  Well, that led to a break to rest my hands, which led to an even longer break for other reasons (snow day, etc.), which led me to stop training altogether since work got crazy in February.  On February 23rd we were switching to AWIPS II at work.  That required a lot of preparation which has been on-going for years, and the weeks that followed were just a nightmare from having to deal with everything that broke as a result of it.  I was hating life in February and March.  By the time April came around, I was more than ready for a vacation.

Tokyo isn't exactly my idea of a "vacation" since it is more of an obligatory trip to see Mom and family.  It's been five years since my last trip to Japan. Plus, I have a lot of friends there I would like to see and knew I'd spend most of my time running around seeing people.  I only had six full days there though, so I made a point to contact only a few friends.  Also made sure I had a few hours of down time here and there.  The week turned out really well.  I had lots of fun seeing people, and also felt rested and de-stressed by end of it.  Here's how the trip went:

Day 1 - SIM Card Search and Arriving at Roppongi

It was a bright and early start with a 0530 flight to Dallas and a few hour layover, followed by a 14 hour flight.  Flight was uneventful, and I slept most of the way and caught couple of movies, including The Imitation Game, which I liked.  I got into Narita about 2ish and was greeted by my mom.  It wasn't necessary for her to come, but she wanted to I guess.  Once there I tried to sort out my phone situation.  I had a Nexus 5 so I should have been able to swap it out for a SIM card in Japan.  They run about 4,500YEN for 1GB data good for 30 days.  You cannot place calls with this card tho.  One place (SoftBank?) offered something similar that lets you also make calls for about 5,600YEN.  The unfortunate situation was that the pin hole to eject the SIM card on Nexus 5 was so tiny the standard pins don't fit in it.  So I could not get the card out.  I had the ejector at home but it didn't do me much good there.  I decided I would gamble that I would manage without it, and bought a 1,000YEN phone card just in case I needed calls.  In the end, I had enough free WiFi access to manage.

After wasting time on SIM card search, I withdrew money from Citibank ATM.  From past experiences there were only two places you can withdrawal money with a foreign ATM card - Citibank ATMs and post office ATM.  Then we booked a limousine bus ride (3,000YEN) to Roppongi's Grand Hyatt where Otoe met me.  Mom's house is too small and in an inconvenient location so I never stay with her when I go to Tokyo.  Plus, she'd drive me nuts if spent that much time with her :P  Mom, my friend, and I ate dinner at a near by place.  It was a yakitori place.  First of many yummy dining experiences to come.  Then back to my friend's, a shower, some chatting, and then bed.  It was a very long day.

Day 2 - Shibazakura at Hitsujiyama Koen

I knew I was going to miss cherry blossoms in Tokyo, but it was Spring time and I knew there had to be flowers.  After some searching for ideas, I decided I wanted to see this: http://www.sainokuni-kanko.jp/eng/sightseeingspot/023.html.  My friends, Otoe and Chiho, were going to join me on this day trip.  We almost didn't go because weather was iffy, but we went in the end and had a good time. We saw the Chichibu Jinja, ate soba noodles for lunch, and had a nice walk around the park.  The shibazakura wasn't quite peak, but still beautiful.  There were also lots of cherry blossoms everywhere.  I was glad we went.  By end of the day though, I was dying.  I think I woke up around 5:30 due to jet lag.  I went back to Otoe's place for the night.

Day 3 - Crab meal with family

I have a lot of family on my mom's side and made plans to meet with the ones I'd known since I was a kid.  It was Mom, my uncle, 3 cousins, and their families.  We went to a crab place in Ginza for lunch.  The women ordered a set course (~3,500YEN) that brought out all sorts of crab dishes - crab gratan, crab meat, crab sushi, crab this, that and so on.  It was all very good.  I went easy on breakfast thinking I was going to feast, but the portions were really tiny so I wouldn't say I was very full after the meal.  The men ordered a la carte and drank lots of beer.  It was a good time.  Afterward, I hung out a bit longer with mom and one of my cousins.

Tonight I was switching to a hotel so I stopped to see Otoe once more, grabbed my things, and headed to Richmod Hotel Premiere in Musashikosugi.  I could've stayed with various cousins here and there, but I didn't really want to lug my luggage all around Tokyo every couple days.  I also didn't want to stay at any one place too long so as to not impose on anybody.  Japan housings are small, and surely guests are not convenient.  The hotel turned out to be very nice.  They had every amenity you may need.  Even a charger with different adapters.  Location was also very convenient.  Despite it being in Kanagawa Prefecture, there were couple different lines going to the station, and the express trains stopped there.

Day 4 - Kabuki and Komparu

Forecast called for rain today so I decided to do some indoor things.  The morning was spent sleeping in and relaxing.  I needed those few hours alone to chill after a busy few days.  Around noon Mom joined me and we headed to Kabukiza for lunch and to catch 1 act of a Kabuki show.  I did not think it would be my thing, but my mom had been big into it lately and suggested I go.  The tickets for 1 act go on sale at the last minute, about hour and half before, and is unreserved seating in the nose bleeds.  Actually, they were not bad seats at all.  You could see very well even from the 4th floor. Mom recommended the audio guide since even the Japanese people can hardly understand the Edo period dialect that is spoken in Kabuki.  It was a good call.  I really liked the story line, and do not think I would have enjoyed it as much if I didn't understand it.  What was annoying though, was that in the English guide they will speak over the actors.  Mom said that in the Japanese version they do the explanation between scenes so that you can hear the actors.  Next time I will get the Japanese audio guide.

After the Kabuki, we went to meet Otoe at a dance show - Komparu. I had no idea what it was, but apparently my mom passes it all the time on way to work and was wondering what it was about... so we went.  It turned out most of the dancers were drags or trannies.  Interesting.  Not my first drag or tranny show, but it has been a while.  Amazing how these men can often look prettier than the women.  The show was lots of fun.  There were three who played the role of men (they were men, but one was... um, trying not to be?)  and while they did not seem like much during meet and greet before the show, it's amazing how hot they can look while dancing.  One was really really cute :)

Day 5 - More friends and Tsukiji Fish Market

Today I met up with couple of friends I met while in high school.  They came to Virginia as an exchange student for the summer and one of the teachers asked me to befriend them.  We hung out then, and continued to remain friends all these years.  The three of us typically get together whenever I visit Japan.  Their unique personalities makes the dynamic quite interesting, so I always enjoy my time with them.  We started the day off in Omotesando's Kiddyland.  One friend is an otaku and is currently really into Rirakkuma.  I'll admit they are cute.  From there we migrated to the famous Tsukiji Fish Market.  Hard to believe none of us have ever been there.  I actually heard they are moving the fish market elsewhere (outside Tokyo?) so seemed like now or never.  Once there, we found a kaiten-zushi place for lunch.  There were lots of places to choose from, and I'm not sure this was the best place.  Felt like I was filling up on rice.  But oh well.  Was still good.  We didn't see any of the fish auction, just shops.

After Tsukiji, we went to a cafe for tea and cake.  A very fancy place in the Shiseido building in Ginza.  Apparently it's the chic thing to do... and we went in jeans and sneakers.  After another hour or two of chatting, one friend had to go to pick up her son from day care.  I called it quits for the day too since I knew next couple days would be busy.

Day 6 - Takato Sakura

Today Mom and I departed on a two day tour from Yokohama.  The first day was mostly spent riding towards the alps, with a short stop to see the Takato Sakura.  Cherry blossoms in Tokyo were no more, but I saw tons from the bus.  We were a bit unfortunate though, as it started raining just as we got to Takato.  Apparently this is one of the more famous places to go for cherry blossom viewing.  Today though, there were tons of tourists toting umbrella through muddy trails to see them.  Had the weather been better, the crowd would have been a bit more dispersed and stationary under the trees.  It was still nice in the rain since they were peak or nearly peak, but not the most ideal viewing conditions.  It was even more annoying that it stopped raining just as we were boarding the bus again.
Day 7 - Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route

Mom booked this trip because I wanted to see the alps.  This day began early, and were at the bottom of the mountain by 0730.  This place is somewhat interesting, in that you take various kinds of transport to get to the top.  After the bus ride, we took a trolley bus, cable car, and a rope way, and another trolley bus to get to a place called Murodo.  Along the way we saw the Kurobe Dam and nice views of the alps.  Today's weather made up for yesterday.  The weather is often bad on the mountains, so were really lucky to have clear skies.  At Murodo, we had a short (~10 min) walk to see the great snow wall.  It was impressive, but pretty much like you see in the pictures.  The highest point was 19m.  Mom really seemed to enjoy the trip up this mountain.  She kept saying how wonderful it was, and that this will be first and last time to see such magnificence. She's 69 this year, so she's not that old.  Hopefully she'll have many more nice experiences in her lifetime.