Below the fold is a review I just wrote on the Villa we stayed at in Antigua.  

You can goto the booking site here.

I’ve finally done it and organised all the pictures from my 40th Birthday in Antigua.  The location has moved from before as I’m trying to use a system for my photo’s as I add them to the site.

You can find all the pic’s with comments in the gallery here.

To my dear friends who were there thank you so much for a wonderful holiday. It was my best significant birthday ever!

That may sound strange, but having a birthday just after christmas is awfully boring as every is just over christmas mode and in NZ on holiday at the same time.  My 21’st was very nice with alot of family and friends around, but not quite me.  My 30th the next big holiday was spent in a flat in London with the flu and everyone out of the house on holiday somewhere (and a breakdown in the heating, which if you have ever lived in London, is quite and issue in London).  I was still very happy as I’d started my travels.

more after the fold.

I was trying to find a slick title for this entry, but my mind is not really in full processing everything at the moment.  Call it brain overload!  I think after almost three weeks of holidays (we had public holidays here before I left for Antigua) my brain hasn’t quite switched on fully yet.

Then again will all the information I process on a daily basis its not really all that surprising.  These days I need a good 10 seconds to switch between subjects.  In geek terms page out all the information I’m currently working with, then load in the new problem someone whats me to look at.  Unfortunately they haven’t figured out how to upgrade brains yet!  Cos I certainly need brain 2.0

Its been a very up and down week with news from home about family and friends not being all 100% and then re-connecting with old friends from New Zealand and my travels all within days.  It been great to catch up with these old friends and I now have a number of emails I need to write, along with a tonne of work ones as I’ve not been working at night since I came back.

Well, better to be busy that wondering what next I should be doing.

Today has been a really odd day for me.  This morning I was trying to form an entry to say that my friend from a previous entry is doing really well, and when I got home tonight I had an email telling me an old school friend had been caught up in a porn scandel in New Zealand.

I’ll leave the entry on the recovering friend for few days as he is doing well, and concentrate my focus here on what is happening to my old school friend.

The major article is in the New Zealand media at the moment.  The main article is here.  It lists all the names, Garth Stirrat and Steve Parnell (They are publically listed so I’m not revealing anything here.

I’m actually really rather appalled at what is going on here.  I haven’t seen Garth since we parted as friends over 20 years ago, but I still keep some track of what they are doing.  He has been the head of the NZPGA for a number of years and to all apparent records served them very well during that time.

Today I got news from New Zealand that one of my families dear friends has enter the final few days of his life.  He is still in great spirits and sending out group emails to everyone on how he is.  He has not been well for a long time now yet his spirit pervades us all.  Before I loose the plot completely here is a link to some of his wonderful photos.

Ted Chappell a photo tribute.

more below the fold.

Back now from two glorious weeks on the Caribbean Island of Antigua!  Took a bit of effort to get there from Japan, but was totally worth it!  Had the most fantastic time there and was so good to catch up with the friends who came.  We had the best time and it was a truely a fantastic way to celebrate a big birthday.

Pictures are coming shortly.

Say nothing, live on!

Such easy words to type and say.  But you know what they aren’t.  It is singularly the most devastating disease to live with. Actually I sorta got that wrong. It’s singuarly the most devastating disease to live with and soul destroying to those who have to live with it.

Why because I know, and I really really wish I didn’t.  I’m going to say something many people will find terrible but it was actually easier to watch my grandfather die of cancer than to see my grandmother did from old age with Alzheimers.  And yes I know cancer up close and very way to personal. (I walk around with one testicle and my mum walks around with survivor breat tatoo’s, so umm we have an few thoughts)

Even after all this I still hate with a deep passion Alzheimers.

Well for the moment. It was thought that working for an investment bank was easy money, and yeah for sure alot it was.  I look I won’t deny that probably our totaly packages have been very good.  But not all of us who work in the industry pull down the huge salaries you see in the media.  Most of us are the back office people who enable it all. And guess what, who are these cuts hurting.  Not the ones who made the money.  They are gone.

Whats left are the ones who worked behind it all and thats who is being laid off around the world now.  Not the ones who made huge killings on the market, just the ones who goes back to the kids and wonder about the mortage.

I’m lucky, in this round of cuts I still have a job, am I sure I still will have one.  No.  As the markets keep going down the componies keep cutting.  That means more people out of work and not spending.  And guess where that is now hurting?  Take a look at the auto bail out going on in the US and you are no far off.  Its moving down now.

Want to know what really pisses me off is that all the people who caused this whole issue, many of whom made alot of money are now out of it and just watching it all goto crap.  Call it the free market maybe?  But legistlature allowed this to happen, why because those whom made the money had interests to allow it too.

I thought I would spend a few minutes on what I consider the big five on Kyoto.  Let me list them first then comment.   So in no particular order.

Kyomizudera – A truely spectacular temple on the hillside to visit, and the view is amazing. 

Ginkakuji – The Silver Pogoda – Of the big five my personal fav as the gardens (particularly the hillside views are amazing)

Kinkakugi – The Golden Pogada – One of my most over-rated scoring places.  Try and get there well before the crowds.  It is good, but so so so exploited.

Ryoanji – The Zen Garden – I do like Ryoanji, but its also part of the tourist route and most don’t seem to get the concept that you are suppposed to stop talking at this place and respect the silence of it all.  The concept of this garden is quiet contemplation, not tour buses of people taking picutures and chatting away.  It loses alot because of this.

Maruyama Park – Shared Nomination.  This one covers the general area actually as Mauryama park is entered via Yakasaka shine and during Spring and Sakura is a total mess.  To be fair here there are alot of areas around here that are not quite so touristed depending on the time of year.

Arashiayama – Shared Nomination. Part of the big five depending on the time of the year.  Included because in spring its a not there, but in Autumn its huge.  Everyone goes there.

I’ve not include Nazen-ji or the philsohpers walk here as they are very popular, but tend to less seen by the tour bus groups and are also two of my most favouristes.

more below the fold.

Our last day here. The plan was to head over to North Easy Kyoto to some of the least visited sites. They are certainly not on the ‘Big Five’ list.