Nantes: Not "like a bullshit yea ?" but le corbusier.

Eric,

so, i am crazy but u must me so proud of me. i went out of my way to see an architecture piece and not just any architect's work but Le Corbusier ! Yes. i walked 1 hr 30 minutes looking for the Maison Radieuse. its actually not in nantes but in another suburb called reze. and yes i walked all the way there. which i m glad i did because i saw lots of other interesting things long the way. boy, i am impressed !

Day 12 - casual encounters

so i thought i stay one more day here and i m determined to go look for le corbusier's building. from the map i got it didn't look too far but i didnt realize the map was scaled at 1:1000. fucking hell !

Encounter #1
This woman came up to me and went "blah blah blah blah".
jxe, went "huh ? english ?"
woman "oh" took out a poster showing god and destruction.
"do you believe that god and he brings destruction to the world" (along that lines but broken english)
jxe shook his head
woman, "how u explain that ?"
jxe removed his sunnies, looked into her eyes and responded, "bad karma !" and put his sunnies back on.
woman laughs profusely and responded, "maybe haha!"
jxe walkes away.

along the way i saw some really interesting buildings, warehouses, structures and cranes. one that i was most impressed was the Palais de Justice.

Encounter #2
i was taking pictures, this guy came up to me and went "blah blah blah blah".
jxe, went "huh ? english ?"
he went, " no blah blah blah blah ..."
jxe just noded and noded and smiled and noded ...
more, "blah blah blah" and then we shook hands and we walked away.


(Palais de Justice)


(Maison Radieuse - in sight)

when the Maison Radieuse was in sight, i got very excited because with my lousy sense of direction, i was actually heading the right direction. the booklet said i should call and make a booking for a guide and pay 5 euros. though fuck this shit i'd just turn up and look for the guide. when i arrived, i was really impressed by the building. i was surprised that its a residential apartment and people live there. really run down building. went to the reception but no one was there and everything was written in french. so i thought fuck it. i m here i may as well give myself a tour and go up the elevator.


(Maison Radieuse - ground level)

people were all staring at me and all going blah blah blah. i just ignore them and went to every level. its just literally a corridor leading to the individual units. so i saw nothing.

Encounter #3
she saw me lost and all clueless. "blah blah blah, tourist ?"
jxe, noded, "yes, english ?"
woman, "a little, blah blah blah, come come, blah blah blah"
jxe followed.

anyway, she took me to her pad, unit no 633. she had a little 4 year old kid. could tell she didnt have much, living very modestly. yet she was really proud that she is living in a designer building. to my surprised, she took out a folder filled with information about le corbusier and the building and started explaining to me about the building. the pad is a duplex and give me a tour around the pad. she was explaining the desgn concept of the pad to me, the balcony, the kitchen, the arched doors to the toilets and baths, the colors, the floor materials etc. i could only understand 1/4 of what she said but enough to put the pieces together. she even had a 3D section of her pad. i was so impressed with the spacial planning of the pad. i tot it was abit inappropriate to take any photos, so i took pictures with my mind. its such an experience. love it.


(Maison Radieuse - roof top: kindergarten)


(me and Maison Radieuse and more)

when i left, it rained, so i had my packed lunch under the building.

head back to the city and it rained some more. i ran to a shelter.

Encounter #4
this guy started talking to me in what he later claimed to be japanese.
jxe, "errr english ?"
guy, "oh i love speaking in english, i love expressing myself in english"
jxe, what the fuck ?
anyway he went on about shit and more shit, to world piece and how he just found out he is a jewish and there are jewish out there who dont even know they are jewish.
jxe rolled his eyes.
he asked me what i did today and i said i went to the Maison Radieuse.
guy, "no way. i live there !" he took out his wallet and showed me his address and then went on and on again.
the rained stopped. jxe smiled. we parted.

what a day.

back at the hostel at night, got abit upset that i couldnt book anything for bordeaux tomorrow.

Encounter #5
this korean guy saw me feeling disturb and asked me whats wrong. i told him why and he said, "no problem, go to la rochelle, very nice."
so i said, "really? ok!" and chatted to him and his wife all night.
coincident ? its the moon cake festival tonight and mr korean is called Moon !

i love this city. this is by far the best city i have been. love to live here for a couple of years. if only i could speak french ... and what a day !

xxx. j.

Nantes: it gets better and better

Hey Brooke,

so found me on facebook and we are friends again. haha. hows everything ? like i said i have so much questions to ask but i m sure u will soon write me a long email telling me all about it from japan to now in canada. i bet you had a great time and now is my time. glad u found your way to this post and u are loving it.

Day 11 - second impression
ok. i had to catch a train and a bus to get here. it took me 4 hours to get here. my first impression of this city is em. boring.

additional notes from me journal:
ok i walked into a park after arrival and i saw a couple in their 80s french kissing. boy i was scarred !!!

but as i walked around it grew on me. i dont know what it is but maybe just the vibe. people are quite friendly here. they all give me the friendly smile. but hey, i'd do the same to me.


(streetscape)


(some castle)

a cross between a old and new city works very well. lots of industrial looking buildings. i wondered to this place called, la galarie des machine. the structure looks amazing with the giant mechanical elephant looks so in place.


(la galarie des machine)


(me and la galarie des machine)

after spending half a day exploring, i have decided to stay another day coz i m loving this city. also i feel its more economical to stay more than one day at a place. another great traveling tip from jxe !

got chatty with this french dude who was doing fashion design. he is specializing in designing clothes for kids. i managed to talk him into designing for dogs too coz i said there's a big market in australia. haha. i dont even like dogs but it made me look intelligent. hell i am intelligent. haha.

xxx. j.

Mont Saint Michel: AWESOME

hey basil,

so i took your advise and i made it to mont st michel. glad i did. its really amazing. theres a road heading up there now. so you dont have to check the tides anymore. its great but i think it would have been nicer with the tides and all.

Day - 10: eye + Z
met a japanese chick and an aussie bloke at the bus stop to mont saint michel. clicked straight away. meet ai and trent.



(ok meet ai and trent)


(i m in the lord of the rings set)


(looking up ...)


(from a distance ..)


(we left out mark ... eye t z)


being inside the mont st michel, the street up towards the abbey feels like a scene out of "the lord of the rings" its great. i was ready to draw "my gigantic sword" and hit everyone on the head. haha. being in this place is something one has to experience for themselves. i cant seems to put it onto words. i'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

xxx. j.

additional notes from me journal:
so ai and me was saying we are craving for rice. so for dinner we went to this pizza place. we ordered pizza (of coz) and i randomly ordered salad nova without understanding what it was. it was literally rice with a bit of leaves, corn, green apple and mayo. damn french ! fuck its hard to type with a european keyboard !

Saint-malo: its no bondi

hey mark,

so you are still my good friend. i need more friends like you. u know. some good karma will do me good. anyway, how's size management going ? em. i meant chatswood going ?

Day 9 - house keeping.

my first impression when i saw the beach was eeeuuwww. people actually swim in there ? fuck look at them rashes growing ! hah !

anyway. didnt get to much today. the train ride took almost 6 hours. also i had to get organized. need to do my laundry. finally the smell of clean fresh underwear. mmm. get information on how to get to mont saint michele etc.

good karma:
oh yeah, almost had my second loss today - my diesel sunnies. i left it at the reception whist checking in. the guy came chasing after me ! how kind.

visit the old town. thought nothing much of it. the sunset save the beach though.



(the so called beach. look at the stairs to the beach ! - scary)


(the old town)


(sunset at the beach)


bad karma:
ok i had to share a room with this MEGA HUGE french guy. he is some 400 pounds and he had problem breathing. went i went to bed i wondered why would anyone make coffee at 11.30 pm ? then i tough no maybe some on is vacuuming, after 20 minutes or so i worked out that it was FATS who was snoring. fucking hell. he kept me up all night. no wonder my cough is not healing. i had my ipod on to max volume and i could still hear him. i took 2 sleeping pills and i could still hear him. fuck fuck fuck. he woke up at 7am and left. suddenly thought i went deaf. yes it was that bad.
humph ! not happy.

xxx. j.

Lille: French Gateway

hey gloria and wenmin.

so, how are the girls going ? hope all is well with your studies and painting. keep me in the look ok ?

day 8 - my first loss

so, i had to go through immigration at the train station to get into france. the whole security check and x-ray scan of the bags. which is all fine. i almost forgot my rainbow umbrella. the security guard came after me to give it back to me. got up the train, 30 minutes to lille. was so excited to get into france BUT i left the umbrella on the train !!!! fucking hell. just dont tell susanne ok ! susanne u r not reading this are you ?


(random shots of ME !)


(lille streetscape)

Ok i am finaly in france and i am loving it. the thoughts and the feeling compliments.

Loving it:
1. the smell of fresh bread from bakeries
2. sitting at a cafe by the streets, having a croissant and cappuccino, sketching and watching beautiful people walking by
3. no buses with a groups of people wearing the same hat with a guide holding a banner or some sort.



(never seen before food - edible ?)


(window art)

4. no insipid tourist. i am a tourist but i have taste. i avoided the crowd and went exploring. i found a street where artist hangs their painting out on the windows. the whole street seems like a out door gallery and the best part ... its free !


(ok whats with europe?)

ok can somebody tell me if H&M the equivalent to giodarno in hong kong ? they are everywhere in europe. cheap and nasty ?

talking about cheap and nasty ? they've got bata here ? i'd always thought that bata is a malaysian brand. its so cheap and nasty we literally call it Buy And Throw Away. haha. i guess its a french thing too.



(Pl. de la Republique)



(my name is ...)

really love the square. could just sit here for hours. its for everyone, people come together to play drums, skate board, practice street performances, hang out, and ... art. some one was pasting posters of people holding a piece of paper saying "my name is ... " so cool. love it.


hating it:
1. my loss - the rainbow umbralla.

xxx. j.

brussels: chocolate city

hey roger,

so, we didn't get to meet before i left. i hope all is good. i have to tell you that i m so proud of myself. i have been wondering aimlessly for more than a week now and i haven't gotten loss ... yet. better still i managed to find the same place twice ! i m still found. hahaha. i know. i surprised myself. hey i did return from japan !

day 7 -
ok i arrived and i needed to take the tube.
silly moments:
1. at the subway, when the tube arrived, i was waiting for the door to automatically open. a guy jumped forward, pushed the button, rolled his eyes and walked into the tube. urgh ! and how was i suppose to know ?

rachael gave me a fantastic guide to follow around the city. i followed it like a GPS satellite. was great. went to every place she mentioned and when she wrote 'you will like it'... i arrived with a big grin on my face :)

mmm waffles and chocolate everywhere. unfortunately i m not a big fan of chocolate. even though i was tempted to buy some just because its belgium chocolate. i resisted. but had my share of waffles. yummy.


(chocolates - look they even come with a CD now)

the grand place was impressive both day and night. again. crowded with people and not very good photo op.


(grand place - day)


(grand place - night)

architecture moment:-
i guess the most impressive was the palais de justice. pure monument. the size of it is astonishing. the detaling, the ionic and corinthian columns fell in place, unlike some greek's houses in sydney. this made me wonder if belgium was once a communist country because the buildings here are all so monumental. someone google it and leave me a comment ok.


(palais de justice)

exploring this city is really exciting. every corner looks interesting and almost wants to draw you into it.


(brussels streetscape)

musical moment:-
and finally, i understood what falstaff beer is when sheryl crow sings it in 'a change will do you good' ! hah !


(random shots)

one thing i learned in this trip is that when you get really tired and need a place quiet and warm to rest, just walk into any church, sit on a bench and look like u belong. its dead quiet and people will just leave u in peace. this is when your ipod comes in handy.

drawbacks:-
1. anything looks remotely old and interesting that tourist would want to walk into, charge 5 euros for it ! urgh ! i m so not paying 5 euros to see a beer collection or some chocolate machine just so i can see the interior of a building.
2. i just cant seem to shake this cough. its getting fucking annoying. omfg. can i can i say fuck here ? fucking hell. fuck fuck fuck fuck. omfg i can say fuck in my own post. this is fucking awesome. from now onwards, my posts is so going to get so fucking interesting.

xxx. j.

antwerp: jackets galore

hey phil,

so i m glad that you have decided to go on a trip to the states at the end of the year. its so much fun to be on the road and i m sure you will have a fantastic time. keep checking the posts. i will will give u places to go in the states.

also, before i left, i managed to buy 'the wreckers' CD from HMV for 5 bucks. its now keeping me company on my trip. woo hoo.

day 6 - jackets galore
the train ride to antwerp was interesting. it was only a 1 hour 15 minutes journey. had another interesting conversation with this chick. this time she spoke no english and i spoke no french. anyway, i managed to work out that she wanted to use my cell. she is cute, so i let her.

architecture momment:-
i arrived to what i thought was one of the most beautiful station ever. one big massive vault structure above me. let the pictures speak for themselves.


(antwerp station. simply amazing)

i kinda fall in love with this city almost instantly.

plus :-
1. dogs can read sign.
2. tits (porn) are everywhere
3. shopping is great. they have really nice jackets everywhere. the prices are transparent. they are all displayed at the window. no need to go in and check the price and get hassled by the shop assistant. infact even when you go into the shop, they leave u alone. if u need help, ask ! SYDNEY LEARN FROM THIS !


(caption this)

my first impression of this city was 'this is a jewish city'. they were everywhere, with them hats and funny sideburns. anyway cityscape is ...
reminiscence moment:
kuala lumpur in the 80s. just the feel, the smell, the look. seems dated.

was walking around randomly and saw this same chick that was in the on of the old church back in brugge. i think she is stalking me. if i see her again in another city, i am going to go confront her. and yes. she is cute.


(antwerp streetscape)

went into the modern museum. bernhard willhelm was displaying his work. great fashion designer. had to go check it out. glad i did. love the jackets. almost ripped them from the mannequin and become one meself.


(modern museum - bernhard willhelm: love them jackets)

although this town is fully historical. lots of old buildings, there are so many cool shops. did i mention before ... jackets everywhere ... great. if it wasn't because i have no room in my bag, also i m going to new york ('nice collective' - here i come !)and paris, i would have bought 5 jackets already. i was told that the rent for these old shops are between 20,000 - 50,000 euros per month and they all run at a loss. that is why most of the shops are chain store which have other stores to recuperate the losses.


(jackets everywhere: prices are all transparent)


(random shots - look which flag is flying high !)

the lows ?
1. bad weather - windy and chilly
2. still can't shake my cough. although my nose is now clear. yippee.
3. the main square is again crowded with tourist. not very good photo op.


(main square)

again, lots of old buildings and churches. similar style.

xxx. j.