THE LOCKUP

Ash and I got a recommendation to check out THE LOCKUP in Shibuya. Supposedly it opened last September and is a quite popular themed izakaiya. The concept is of a central European dungeon complete with cells and skeletons. Blue plastic mini-skirted policewomen meet you at the door after you walk through thier haunted house entrance including everything from caged crazy men that pop out of the dark to moving floors and doors that lead to no where. You're handcuffed and brought to your table where you're given a drink menu which reminds you of chemistry class!
All the themed drinks come in beekers. Some with petre dishes, crushing stones, syringes, or test tubes.

You can get drinks with fruit liquor and rock-pop cotton candy that crackles when you pour milk over it.

To mango juice with added passion fruit seeds.

To drinks where you drop in pills to add a little bit more flavor.

The food is cheap like any izakaiya and their plates all have skulls on them.

In addition to an eclectic course menu, The Lockup also promises to provide twice-nightly entertainment by turning out all the lights -leaving you in complete darkness for 2 minutes- while the staff runs around scaring everyone. It was FANTASTIC!!!!

I so want to go back!

Want to buy a house?

As many of you may know. My parents are building a new house and selling the old house I grew up in. It's in Shiner, Texas (pop. 2070). Both sites are still in working progress, but check them out-spread the word!!!! (My mom will be happy.)

Side note:

In Kitchen photo 11, you can see just a little glimpse of my bedroom in the hallway. Hopefully my mom will post pics of it soon.

Also, you can see my dad sitting (with his Shiner Bock beer shirt) at the kichen table (probably eatting dinner) in Dining Room photo 4 - hehe!!

Random Korea

Cool, huh!?!

Yeah - that's what I'm talking about. A local bar!!! :)

My looking like a total dork at my Korean drumming class!

School groups everywhere!!! I have to admit though, their English was really good. I had a 5th grade elem. kid walk up to me at the National History Museum of Korea and say "Welcome to Korea. My name is Ko-sung. Where are you from?" in almost perfect English. I would have been even more impressed if I didn't just want to run away from school kids in the first place!

Peace y'all. I'm off to Hakone for the weekend. Pam - have a lovely flat/apartment warming party!!! -cheers-

Grace came for a visit!

Grace dropped by to Niigata a week ago to say Hi, onsen, and do one last izakaiya trip! I swear, can nobody take a decent picture these days!?! ;)
Natasha's obsession with the fish.
I love how if you tell her to kiss the fish, she does it - no questions asked. That's what I like in a friend - blind obedience!!!

See - Natasha's does have a few good pics! :) Beautiful!!!

hehe And, then again!

Why do I have so many shots of the 3 of us?

Anyways, it was really great having you around again Grace. Weird thinking one year has already gone by, but I enjoyed our onsen chat and can't wait to meet up in Hong Kong!

Cheers Darlin'

Changdeokgung

This was probably my favorite place on my Korean trip!

The Palace of Illustrious Virtue
You can't look around this World Heritage palace on your own (unless you go on Thursdays)! Any other time of the week you have to join a 90-minute guided tour.

Cheangdeokgung was originally built in 1405 as a secondary palace, but when Gyeongbokgung as not rebuilt after its destruction in the 1590s, this place became the primary palace until 1896.

The grounds are huge and it takes over an hour to walk from one end to the other. It's famous for it's secret garden which contains a mist of trees and lily ponds. It's more nature than garden and was where the kings relaxed , studied, and wrote poems.

Deoksugung

Palace of Virtuous Longevity

Originally an aristocractic villa, Deoksugung became a palace in 1593 when King Seonjo moved in after the other palaces were destroyed during the Japanese invasion.

This palace is unique because within it's grounds is the National Museum of Contemporary Art. So, you have mixture of the old with the new!

Nanta = Cooking

Set in a kitchen, this long-running, high-energy show mixes varied ingredients -- magic, circus tricks, drumming with kitchen utensils, comedy, dance, martial arts and audience participation -- to produce a clever and enjoyable musical pantomime.

Audience participation was something I really wasn't expecting when I went. The whole show is about cooking for a wedding ceremony and they have to pick the wedding couple - so - low and behold I was the Korean bride. We had to eat some corn soup on stage for a bit and then this picture was plastered on the back wall at the end of the show when the ceremony took place - HILARIOUS!

Changgyeonggung

Botanical glasshouse

Completed in 1909, it is still full of plants. The park is so big that it takes 25 mins to walk from the entrance to the glasshouse, but I really enjoyed it!

The Palace of Flourishing Gladness

This palace was originally built in the early 15th century by revered King Sejong for his parents. Like all the palaces it was destroyed twice by the Japanese -- first in the 1590s and then during the colonial period from 1920 until 1945, when the palace suffered the ultimate indignity of being turned into a zoo.

The main hall, Myeongjeongjeon, with its latticework and ornately carved and decorated ceiling, dates back to 1616. The stone markers in the courtyard show where the different ranks of government officials had to stand during major state ceremonies.

The smaller buildings behind the main hall were where the kings and queens lived in their seperate households.