Remember to visit me at www.helloaperture.com instead!
Long time no talk!
Wow! Quite a break from blogging…well, in terms of the blogging world, anything more than a couple weeks seems like a “really long break.”
I just got back from Seoul last week. I want to go back right NOW! Haha~Yes, it was that awesome. I was able to spend some quality time with family and friends. I was there for 20 days but it didn’t feel like enough time. I found myself tiring out at the end of each week. I think I did nearly everything – I’m happy about it! I truly love Seoul and would move there in a heartbeat if things lined up! No doubt about it.
I’m eternally grateful for my family in Seoul. They treated me so nicely and they are so sweet! I miss them already!!!
In other news, check out my website! I finally bought a domain and am uploading photos from Seoul daily.
Yup! Hello Aperture is me!
Too many pics of me holding stuff
I shouldn’t really go into this because if I have one complex about myself it’s my hands. I have man hands. Yup, thanks to my dad…definitely got his “hand” genes, haha. Sometimes they look arthritic?? I actually didn’t realize I had so many photos of me holding stuff until I started going through all my photography files today (in the midst of making my website). I edited a few.
Most of the photos are from my time in Tokyo cuz I took like 20963067947 photos during my stay there.
are THESE hands real (see below….)??
i googled “hand model” and this was one of the images.
at the expense of sounding too self-deprecating, my goodness, I wish i had hands like these instead! ^_^v
East Borough, I love you
One of the nicest surprises I’ve found while living in the OC is that there’s a plethora of delicious Vietnamese restaurants. I really like Viet food and I like that it is somewhat reminiscent of French food (the whole colonization thing is probably part of it….). But really, Viet food is uniquely its own.
A favorite Vietnamese eatery of mine is East Borough. It’s very simple and a more modern take – the bahn mi and spring rolls are really good.
Haha, which one is not like the others…..
Beef stew bahn mi. I also really like their chicken one.
Chicken and shrimp spring rolls. Their tofu ones are pretty good too.
MMA interviews, Werdum + Babalu + Cordeiro
Had the opportunity to take some behind-the-scenes photos for a Werdum and Babalu interview. Werdum is extra famous for his win against Fedor (who was at the top).
Babalu (Renato Sobral) is also an MMA fighter. You can check him out here and then some.
Rafael Cordeiro is “The Master.” You can find a good amount of information here.
Fried chicken kind of day
Sunday was a fried chicken kind of day. Dunno what that means. Sounded nice in my head, haha. I made the “mistake” of putting peas on the plate. Josh didn’t eat any of the peas. But I did. I love veggies.
- Buy chicken thighs (or drumsticks) with skin-on
- Using thawed chicken (never frozen), salt and pepper each side to your liking.
- Preheat oven to 475 degrees farenheit.
- Heat a cast-iron skillet/pan with cooking oil in it, about 4 tablespoons of oil should be fine, just enough to completely cover the bottom of the pan.
- After skillet is hot, carefully put chicken thighs in the pan, skin side down. Quickly cover pan with an oil splatter or just a paper towel sheet (to help absorb oil splattering everywhere!)
- Let the chicken cook for about 4 minutes.
- Rearrange the chicken in the pan for even cooking. Cook another 2 minutes skin side down.
- Flip over the chicken and cook for about 3 minutes or until you don’t see pink on the outside anymore.
- Flip the chicken again back to skin-side down. Cook another 5 minutes or until you see a nice golden brown crisp.
- Put the cast-iron skillet and chicken into the oven and let cook for 12 minutes.
- Using a meat thermometer, make sure the internal temperature is at least 165 °F throughout (per government safety!) before serving.
- Salt and pepper to taste again if you’d like. I added thyme in mine because I didn’t have rosemary – worked out just fine!
Pikku + Angela Liguori ribbon
Just got my ribbons from http://www.angelaliguori.com/!
I like their whimsy and prettiness!
I have way too big of a ribbon and paper collection…..ain’t gonna stop meee! Haha…
<3
Weekend with Hipstamatic, what’s new?
I frequently hear “you’re always taking pictures!” I sheepishly smile and continue snapping away. The beauty of it all is that I’m not always lugging around my DSLRs – I’m using my handy iPhone camera via the Hipstamatic app. So this weekened…..
…made “Baked eggs with spinach and bacon.” i love my mini staubs!! the photo above is the uncooked phase, going into the toaster oven.
…took a picture of my prep counter - the small stand i do most of the prep work on. my poor oven mitt, i should get a new one. it’s been through a lot, haha.
…i hand-drafted my business card. nothing is final, including the name, but i do want a gray-blue graph paper background on the business card. and letterpress on thick cardstock is a must!! i must have letterpress…haha. maybe in an orange. i have a lot to think about.
…ate at our beloved shinsengumi!
<3
Zion National Park, May 2011
We went on a seemingly last-minute trip to Zion National Park in Southern Utah over Memorial Day weekend. We Josh decided on Zion National Park about 3 days before leaving….haha. Yeah, that’s how we do…Thank goodness for REI, one stop shop! I’m somewhat of a hyper-planner/control freak so I was a bit cranky. But once I looked through gorgeous photos of Zion and hit the road, I was excited! Take it from me, it’s worth the trip.
The drive from Orange County, CA was about 7 hours total with a couple of stops and driving pretty fast (70mph average). The drive back was terrible since we got stuck in Memorial Day traffic. It took us nearly 9 hours…! Poor Josh drove the entire time!
Some tips and suggestions:
+ The Thermos we took was awesome. We put ice in it with some water on Saturday morning around 3am and didn’t have to refrigerate it until Sunday night because the ICE was still there!! The water stayed super cold the ENTIRE TIME! WTF?! Yeah, awesome.
+ Some people suggested we take fruits on our hikes but it was unnecessary…they make a lot of waste (like apple cores, seeds, etc.). Dried fruits were sticky and attracted bugs, haha…Just takes lots of water and easy to put away snacks like trail mix or granola bars. A light efficient load is the way to go!
+ We definitely took our camera gear with us. Can’t miss the opportunity to document such a fine trip! I recommend taking a water and sand resistant bag or something to cover your camera. Explained in my next factoid….
+ I don’t know what it’s like during July/August but we got a lot of STRONG winds that came with dust and sand blowing in our faces. I had a bunch of sand in my ear by the end of the trail! BE CAREFUL not to get any in your eye! I wore sunglasses and still got dust in my eyes. Emerald Pools trail had a lot of water flowing and spraying everywhere. With the wind, made the water unpredictable!
+ Definitely wear sunscreen!! I always do when I go on trips like these but really, cannot emphasize enough…i would consider sunscreen a must, not optional. hahaa….Hat is helpful, optional really, but my scalp got a bit burnt from the sun (where my hair parts) and now it hurts…haha. Then again, it was very windy when we went and a few people lost their hats!
+ Josh and I really loved Oscar’s Cafe in Springdale (the town that is RIGHT NEXT TO Zion park). The Murder Burger and steak fries are great! So delicious…ugh I want one right now! Haha…
+ The Driftwood Lodge is such a wonderful welcome after a long day of hiking and being out. It’s clean, modern, and has all the ammenities you would want. I was really skeptical but it’s a great place to stay! Lovely views and even a 2 horse pen behind the lobby!
+ I complained to Josh about him buying expensive hiking boots. In my head, my running shoes were fine at Yosemite and Mt. Baker so why not at Zion?? But he insisted and got me a pair. Amazing hiking boots. I don’t know how they would hold up in something even more strenuous but they got me through Angels Landing perfectly. Thick, cushy, wool socks helped a lot too. The shoes were practically slip-resistant on sandy rocks and muddy paths. It took me a while to get used to but once I got the hang of it, great!!
From my Yelp review (with adds!): Zion National Park compares my experience at Zion to Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon because I feel they all have a similar “feel” to them (but different, of course!). I am not taking into account my experience at Mt. Baker or Mt. Rainier for this review because I went to those two places in the winter time a few years ago.
Zion is one of the most family-friendly, organized national parks I’ve been to so far and I’ve been to quite a few! Zion has something for everyone, A to Zion! Har har…
Zion has things for hardcore nature freaks (obviously), for kids, the elderly, the mildly interested folks, for casual hikers, and even things to do (other than camping around) at night including a small movie theater that was playing Thor…..it’s all very welcoming. I was against going to Zion National Park but once I was there I was so elated. I only regret not doing even more during our time there!
There are in-town shuttles (Springdale is RIGHT next to the park), then there are in-park shuttles. You take the town shuttle to the Visitor Center. Then you switch to a park shuttle. All the shuttles come by to each stop every 5 minutes or so (during peak seasons). The in-town shuttle schedule is posted at each shuttle stop. The park shuttle can get really full even with two carts so sometimes you have to wait for the next one or stand during your whole shuttle ride which can be anywhere from 5 minutes to 60 minutes.
We did the following:
Riverside Walk – Really easy trail. It “felt” similar to the Tuolomne Meadows trail at Yosemite. Anyway, Our intention was to go take photos of the awesome Narrows but it was closed (*tear drop*). We sorta knew that but we wanted to try anyway. This walk wasn’t really “our style” without access to the Narrows but it’s great for small children and the elderly as it is basically a flat and easy walk. There are a lot of squirrels here. They are not afraid of people and will get right up to your feet.
Emerald Pools – Easy trail. The middle pool was supposedly closed but I saw people walking out from the trail. We had spent so much time at the lower and upper, we just simply didn’t have time for the middle. The lower and upper pools were awesome! The lower pool area in particular looked almost like Hawaii! With the water, greenery and flowers, colorful rock, etc….really nice and quite photo-esque! 
Angels Landing – Hard trail. WE DID THE WHOLE THING YAY! For me, the physical strain was similar to the steep Yosemite Falls trail but far more dangerous and with a lot less switchbacks. Yosemite Falls trail was hard because it was during really hot weather with barely any shade (and we didn’t take nearly enough water as we should have!). Angels Landing wasn’t as strenuous as the guides made it sound but we had breezy, clear weather. There was a LOT OF DUST and dirt flying into peoples’ face, which no one seemed to have anticipated….just you know, FYI!!
I red-lined the approximate Angels Landing walkway. It’s about 30 minutes worth of walking and it’s the last part of the entire trail….scary. That’s Josh in the front.
The way back down on Angels Landing. I’m getting vertigo just looking at the photo, haha.
I can’t imagine doing Angels Landing in scorching dry heat or temperatures below 70….It’s about 50/50 shade and sun exposure with some steeeeep climbs. We lucked out with really nice weather even though it was super windy and a bit cold at the top. There are lots of chipmunks at the top too! They are sooo cute.
Angels Landing is not for people with phobias of heights. If you’re just “sort of” afraid of heights, you’ll be fine! There are definitely moments of vertigo but if you focus and stay calm, you’re A-OK! I freaked out a bit on some parts but I found myself calming down when seeing everyone else just take their time and try to enjoy it. If you go during busy seasons, this trail might take a big longer than expected to complete since you’ll be making room for people that are returning from the peak/cliff or people in front of you that are slower. I suggest you just stay focused and take as many breaks as you need. Don’t worry about any pressure from other people!
FYI: The trail leading to the actual “Angels Landing” part wasn’t too bad and it’s easy enough to turn back at any point. It was quite nice actually, with lots of places to stop and take some epic photos. “Walter’s Wiggles” was nicely paved and has nice corner areas to stop and take a drink of water.
There’s Joshie, being a daredevil…
I LOVE AMERICA!
