Football

Every week I play football with the office team. Usually it's just an easy game, the skills or physical level is minimum. But one guy had this idea to enter our office team into the league of corporations. We agreed, and now every week we are playing other teams. Real football. Totally different than what I'm used to. Yesterday was my first match with the team and I can feel the difference. I don't have time to control the ball, do a fancy trick, hell I didn't even kicked the ball properly (only once, and that was from a free kick). More practice and trainig and we will get there. If I continue like this, my physical level will (hopefully) go up.

Tonight: Holland vs France, football friendly. Some big names are injured and/or tired (vNistelrooy, Stam, Seedorf, Kluivert, Robben, Zidane, Vieira, Pires) but it still be an interesting game. Raffie will start the game, maybe Sneijder as well. Heitinga should start as there are not much defenders left and hopefully de Jong will get some first minutes. These four guys are truly the future of Oranje (with Robben, Stekelenburg and vPersie as well).

Watched Along Came Polly the other day. A girl like Polly would be an ideal girl for me at the moment. Better if she actually looked like Jennifer Aniston. The movie itself is just a rip-off of There's Something About Mary. Too bad for Aniston and Stiller as it could have been so much better.

"everything... is everything"

Dance

It's still a weird feeling being home after that nice relaxing vacation in Koh Tao. If only I could stay longer there. Or not come back at all or something. People are never satisfied, are they?

Anyway, back to Switzerland. The weather is starting to pick up and getting a bit nicer although still cold. The sun is out and the time has changed (daylight savings time) so the days will seem longer. As long as it doesn't rain it will be alright.

Friday went out, to combat any jetlag I have. Nomad was having a NY disco DJ or something and it was indeed some disco songs, 80s style new wave disco shit. Really cool. Saturday had a housewarming party. I fell asleep on the couch, woke up and realized almost everybody left. So I jumped in my car and headed to Shakers. Had fun in Shakers. Being able to dance helps a bit I guess...

If you haven't guessed already, the pic is of my tattoo. It means dragon, cause I was born in the year of the dragon. Somehow I'm proud of this thing. I designed it myself. The wound is healing pretty good so in a couple of days the real tattoo can be seen.

"Dance. Nothing left for me to do but dance."

Back To Reality

I wish reality was the life I was living for 6 days on Koh Tao. Unfortunately, reality for me is ol' boring Switzerland. After 3 more days in Bangkok I was back home then. In the cold and rain. What a way to get back down to earth.

Okay, holidays are over for me. But I did learn/notice a lot of new stuff while on holiday. Some of them:
1. Drink lots of mineral water with ion, not distilled water. It prevents dehydration, brings back the salt level, avoids cramps, prevents hangovers, etc etc etc. I learned this from 'Bomber', my dive instructor who was a chemist before (he explained it to me using a chemist language so it seems a good idea to drink lots of water).
2. Everybody travels with a rucksack/backpack. I only saw 2 or 3 people with a suitcase. And a rucksack is much easier to carry around.
3. Hitching around Ireland with a fridge is possible. Go read Round Ireland With A Fridge by Tony Hawks.
4. Some Aussie lingo: piker, tea, dry as a dead dingo's dinger.
5. Patpong is just weird/mad/funny/crazy/unbelievable...
6. Pot offenders in USA get worse punishment than murderers. Read Reefer Madness by Eric Schlosser.
7. You don't need a comfortable hotel to enjoy holidays.
8. Thailand is mad about ManU for some strange reason. They don't even play good football...
9. People do mix up Switzerland with Sweden.
10. Getting a tattoo done hurts a little...

That list can go on and on... But now I just want to chill out and pretend I'm on Koh Tao even though I'm in my living room and the outside air is blowing in at 4 degrees with no sun.

Tattoo

I did it. I got a tattoo. It was on my 'to do in Bangkok' list so I just did it. Kinda did it by accident. I did have the design on me (of 'dragon' in chinese - I was born in the year of the dragon) and while I was walking down the mall today I saw a tattoo shop. In a decent mall. So I stopped and asked how much etc etc and 30 minutes later a woman was hurting me with her needle while saying 'relax, relax, not hurt'. It does hurt woman!!!

But the pain didn't last long. Only about 20 minutes. Once I can post pictures, I'll post a picture of my tattoo and you can judge whether it looks good or not.

I got my new cleats/football shoes today. A pair of nice Adidas. Not bad.

Passed by Patpong today. I can safely say: I've seen it all.

Anyway, this is my last night here in Bangkok so I'm going to go to Lava and see what's happening there. After Dry Bar, Lava is a nice place to got to as well (although country miles behind Dry Bar).

Last Day on Koh Tao

Yup, I will be leaving tomorrow morning on the 10.30 boat to Chumpon then the bus to Bangkok. It's just weird that I will be leaving this place, especially now that I'm having good fun and met nice people as well. Anyway, life goes on and mine is somehow back in fucken Switzerland.

I just wanted to write about how basic the facilities are here on Koh Tao. I'm staying in a small room, 4x4m with a 1.5x1.5m bathroom inside it. The toilet doesn't have a flush facility, you just flush it with water. No toilet paper or anything else can be thrown into the toilet. The shower only has cold water. There are two beds and then nothing else. Electricity only runs from 6pm to 6am, so from 6am to 6pm I don't have lights or cooling fans in the room. The lock is a padlock. Even though it's basic, I still survive and probably can survive longer. Everything around here is pretty much the same anyway.

Fortunately they have internet cafes otherwise I would be truly lost.

I'll be missing this island, the nice people I met and the cool places I hung out (especially Dry Bar during sunset).

Advanced Open Water Diver

I finished my PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course today. It consisted of 5 additional dive, each of them having a special focus. It's pretty cool to go diving all the way to 30m, or to dive at night. Anyway, no more diving for me, but now I got my certificates so I can dive wherever I want.

Thursday night I got so hammered. We were celebrating the end of our Open Water course and started downing alcohol since 6 pm. At one moment I climbed up a palm tree, then realized there were barbwire (I was barefoot) walked on it, jumped off and landed on my back inches away from concrete. Oh well, one more thing to add to the list of stupid things I've done when drunk. Apparantly I was entertaining that night (which is always a good sign).

I'll be leaving Koh Tao on monday. I'm a bit sad that I have to leave. I'm having such a good time here, hanging out meeting people doing different stuff on a nice tropical island. Well at least I can say that I've been there.

Still at Koh Tao

I just got certified as a PADI Open Water Diver. What does that mean? It means that I can now dive in normal open water up to 18 meters deep. It's really amazing swimming at that depth. I saw a shark today, which was really cool. It's not one of those "jaws" shark but it was still a shark.

After I came out of the water, I felt satisfied. I've done one thing on the list of "things to do before I die". Instead of walking away with this satisfaction, I signed up for the PADI Advanced Open Water Course. This will make me eligible to dive up to 30 meters, including night dive. Can't wait to get into the water again.

But tonight I will get hammered!!!

"It's better on holiday"

Koh Tao, day 2

I did my confined water sessions for the PADI Open Water Course. It's pretty basic, but it was fun nonetheless. Being underwater in really clear water, with some fish swimming around us is fun. Tomorrow will be the real dive though. Hope that I make it.

The beach looks lovely in the morning, during lunchtime, and at night. I got to see an amazing sunset at Dry Bar. It's one of the most loveliest I experienced. Just sitting there with a beer and some chill out music playing in the back. Couldn't ask for more.

I almost finished my book, so I have to get a new book. Not sure what to get but anything will be worth reading around here. I'll just scoure the used books shop.

If only life was like this... I'll be loving it...

Koh Tao, day 1

Finally made it to a beach. Yesterday night I went to the meeting point in Bangkok at 8 pm. A girl walked us to the bus stop (which was 5 minutes walk from the meeting point) where we waited for one and a half hour. At 9.30 pm the bus came, we stepped in and it left at 10 pm. It's supposed to be a Super VIP Deluxe bus. It probably was in 1973. Anyway, I couldn't sleep much in the bus. Not enough alcohol I reckon. We got to Chumpon at 5 am in the morning where we waited for another one and a half hour before loading up to the ferry. It's supposed to be a super-fast ferry. It probably was in 1974. Anyway, got to Koh Tao at 10 am where I (and some other people were picked up by someone from the diving shop. Then to Sairee on a pick-up. Finally got there after a long and tiring journey but it was worth it. Just look at the picture. That is the actual beach I am staying at. Yes, you can envy me, hahahahaahahaha...

Bangkok, pt. 3

It's 15.30 and I'm sitting in an internet cafe updating this blog. Actually, there's not much to update, it's just that it's so fucken hot outside so I went inside where they have air conditioning. Makes life a lot easier...

A fact about me: I don't like museums. Don't know why but I always try to avoid them when I'm on a trip. But today as I was walking I veered into the National Museum. Not to actually enjoy the art or history but because it is hot outside. I was trying to get to the river, but made a wrong turn. Instead of walking back, I just went into the museum figuring that it must have air conditioning. It did, so I stayed for a while. And they also have cheap food in the cafeteria (50 baht for noodles and beer. That's less than 2 chf, less than a quid, around 10,000 rupiahs, or about USD 1.50). So now I know that Thailand is a kingdom with a bloody history behind it.

Last night I went out again. Khao San looks like a market, it was full of everything. Veered into a club called The Club but it was nothing, so I went to Lava again. Nice place. I bumped into a crowd of girls celebrating somebody's 23rd birthday.

Tomorrow I'll be on a beach... Woohoo!!!

"why don't you talk in Thai?"

Bangkok, pt. 2

One thing is for sure, Bangkok is hot and humid.

Last night I went along Khao San Road and found a couple of places to drink. I was drinking beer and vodka tonic and suddenly the lights went on in the club. At 2 a.m. all the clubs close. Which was bad cause I was in the mood (from all the alcohol). Oh well, at least I did some (cheap) drinking.

Today I walked to the Grand Palace. Pretty amazing palace, with a golden thingy and all. Afterwards went to the temple near it, Wat Po or something to get a real Thai massage. It felt good, but tomorrow I'm gonna get another one. My body definitely needs a massage.

Whaddya know, Thai people are friendly towards tourists if they want something. When I was walking from the Grand Palace to Wat Po, a guy came up to me, started talking and said that Wat Po won't be open til 2, and that I should visit other temples. He offered a Tuk Tuk for a cheap price. I said "no, maybe later". And just around the corner from Wat Po, another guy came up and basically said the same thing. I just insisted on going all the way and found that the place is open. So even though they are friendly, don't believe a word they say.

Anyway, after that I went to the mall. Hahahahaha. I'm trying to be a backpacker, but I feel home in a mall. Only bought one CD but spend a lot of time just walking around in it. Just like my university years. Oh, I had lunch at Foodloft @ Central Chidlom. The place is really nice. Highly recommended.

Tomorrow I'm off to Ko Tao, so we'll see if I can still update my blog with my vacation adventure...

Bangkok

I finally got here. Bangkok. It's 32 degrees, with sun and pollution fog. Got to my hotel, which took 45 minutes cab drive from the airport. The cab driver didn't turn up his meter but charges me THB 300 instead. A quick calculation shows that that amount equals to CHF 10. So I said yes, because where I live a cab drive of CHF 10 will only get you to the end of the block.

My first impression of Bangkok, it looks a lot like Jakarta, where I grew up. Only it's about 20 years behind. The buildings are all dirty etc etc. But it looks like a friendly place. The cab driver was very friendly.

I've booked a diving course already at Koh Tao. I'll leave on sunday night, get there monday morning and will be learning how to dive for the next 4 days. What I'll do afterwards, we'll see.

I wanna put links, but since the internet is fucken slow you just have to google all the things I write.

Singha Beer is okay...

The Grey Album

The hottest item in music today: The Grey Album by DJ Danger Mouse. He mixed The Beatles' White Album with Jay-Z' Black Album, so that Jay-Z is rapping over Beatles' music. It's one hell of a record because DJ Danger Mouse did it really well. Unfortunately, this album never made it on a record label because he didn't do anything about the copyright. There were about 3,000 editions but they are all gone. Fortunately there is a thing called the internet. Just google it and you'll find it. This is the first time I downloaded a full album, believe it or not. I would love to pay for it, but I don't know where or who to pay. One thing is for sure, if you want to listen to the album, go look and download it yourself. I'm not gonna make any copies for you.

Manchester United is out of Europe. After gazillion times winning in the last minute it's about time they lost in the last minute. Well, they didn't lose the game yesterday but htat last-minute equalizer just did it. Although I don't like Porto either. Actually I don't really care about the Champions League anymore. Ajax isn't playing there anymore. Next year will be better.

Tomorrow I'm off for my 2 week vacation. Woohoo!!! I still have to pack though. Can't do it tonight cause I'll be out and can't do it tomorrow cause I have to work during the day. We'll see what happens. At least I'll be going somewhere for 2 weeks. Woohoo!!!

Oh and since I'll be gone for two weeks I have to bring some music with me. I have space for 20 CDs, so this is my preliminary list: The Grey Album - DJ Danger Mouse; Lapalco - Brendan Benson; Final Straw - Snow Patrol; Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand; Logic Will Break Your Heart - The Stills; Souls Sessions - Joss Stone; Stop All The World Now - Howie Day; 1972 - Josh Rouse; Stellastar* - Stellastar*; The Diary of Alicia Keys - Alicia Keys; OK Computer - Radiohead; Dear Catastrophe Waitress - Belle and Sebastian; Room for Squares - John Mayer; Learn To Fly - Foo Fighters; Satellites - Vega4; Love Is Hell pt 1 - Ryan Adams; Brushfire Fairytales - Jack Johnson; A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar - Dashboard COnfessional; Pet Sounds - The Beach Boys; and one suprise album (something I haven't listened to in a while). That should be enough no? I wish I have an iPod so that I can bring more music and no CDs. I'll get that iPod mini once it comes out here.

"Light up, light up
As if you have a choice
Even if you cannot hear my voice
I'll be there beside you, dear."

My Shoulder Hurts

It's the result of a good weekend up in Ovronnaz. Spent saturday and sunday snowboarding and the snow must have been the best snow I've boarded on ever. It was pure powder and I was just loving it. I did some jumps and one must have resulted in my shoulder hurting now. Oh well, at least I had a good time. The weather wasn't all that though, on saturday it was thick fog and snow, but on sunday the sun came out a couple of times.

And saturday after skiing we went to the thermal bath. Now that is nice, dipping and playing around in a nice warm swimming pool. I got rid of all my aches there. And with 25 other people, it's just plain fun. The fun hit peak after dinner, when suddenly there was a snowball fight. We might all be in our twenties, but when there's snow (and alcohol), we all turn into little kids. Especially me.

Got home a bit early on sunday, which is perfect cause I needed to do my laundry anyway. Then I watched the F1 race from Australia which I recorded. I almost fell asleep. Yeah Schumi & Ferrari won, and except for two/three moments, the rest is plain boring. If this is the preview of the season then it's going to be a long long season. So here's hoping it's not.

One of my best friend got married on saturday. She was the voice of my university band and out of 5, 4 are now married. I'm the last man standing. Which is fine, cause I don't see the need for me to get married soon. But weirdly enough, on sunday night I was talking to an 18 year old girl and she is dying to get married. She says that it will solve all her problems and that being a good housewife is what women end up doing anyway. She must be from another planet (or maybe it is me who is from another planet). Or maybe she just hasn't tasted the real world yet. Whatever, I still need a girlfriend first anyway before even thinking of marriage.

"on the inside, boyz will be boyz"

Start Your Engines

After months and months of no real activity, Formula 1 is now back again! The first race is this weekend in Melbourne, Australia. Before all the teams were busy presenting their cars, signing drivers, doing promotional work, signing drivers, signing sponsors, changing regulations, etc. But now it's the real thing, the race.

Last night the first practice session went underway. Ferrari was dominant and if these are the times that will reflect the season, expect another 2002 season. I (and a bunch of other F1 fans) are hoping that this is not the case. I'm fucking bored of seeing the red car win without anyone able to challenge them. So here's hoping for the best.

Too bad I can't see the race live. I'm going up this weekend to Ovronnaz for a weekend of snowboarding, thermal bath, table football (or foosball accordning to Chandler and Joey), and beer. It'll be fun, although the weather is going to be a bit shite.

Next week I'm off for holidays and I haven't done any planning yet. I still don't know if I should get a backpack or just carry my trusted Nike sportsbag. Any ideas? I'm not going to bring a suitcase. That's just not me.

"I didn't like you back then. I thought of you as an arrogant boy."

Messy

I was cleaning up a bit today because my cousin is coming tomorrow. Then I realised how better my living arrangements are compared to my previous appartment. The pictures you see are from my old appartment. As you can see it was quite messy. But that's just me. I don't like cleaning up, never did and don't think I ever will.

As you can see, I used to live in a one-room appartment. Everything was within reach, which makes it easy. But the lack of storage room means that everything has to end up somewhere, or in this case, everywhere. But I really like that place. It has great view (it was on the 6th floor) and a cozy feel to it.

My current place is much bigger. Twice as big actually with more storage room, so I can get rid of all the useless stuff. All I need to do is throw those empty beer bottles out once in a while. Usually when it comes up to 30 bottles, then I start throwing it out.

If only I was famous and MTV passed by to check out my crib, I would love to bring them to my old appartment and show it with all its glory. I would go, "On your right you have my bed, full of clothes (not sure whether it was dirty or clean). In the corner, my computer and books. In the middle is the 'entertainment' center, with CDs, records, and all the other stuff to keep me happy. Over there a dining table that I never use, which is full of junk. Oh, and watch where you're going, you might step on an empty Heineken bottle."

Yes, you can say it. I am a pig...