Ukuleles: Happiness comes in 4 strings

It was Tracy McConnell-Mosby that gave me the impression on Ukuleles. That scene from How I Met Your Mother (9x16 "How Your Mother Met Me") where she sang La Vie En Rose was one of the most memorable scenes for me.

After a year, my friends were getting married and they asked me to sing on their first dance (Well, technically I sang during their 1st-more-serious-dance. lol). Months before the wedding, I asked the bride what song/s does she want. She was hesitant to request at first but then we were actually thinking of the same song, You and I by Ingrid Michaelson. Which for me, fits them because they are both free-spirited. And just to add on that, their wedding theme is Bohemian. Perf! She also requested Somewhere Over The Rainbow by Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole.

The venue was far from my home and I don't want any hassle so I thought thought of buying a ukulele since it's easier to bring anywhere and the song was actually played on ukulele.

It was really hard finding a good and affordable one. Since I'm going to use this on a wedding reception, I figured the one I'll buy should have pickups (If you have this, you can plug and play your instruments on speakers/amplifiers). Until I found Clifton Guitars (fb.com/cliftonguitars) online, they have guitars, ukuleles, accessories, and also do customization. So I bought this Rosen Ukulele, concert size, with the price of 2015 pesos that comes with free classic ukulele strap if paid in exact amount. It has nice finish and great sound quality. I customized it with pickup with built-in tuner and strap hooks, then I also bought this Enya padded ukulele gigbag.

Ukes are very handy, it's easy to learn, I'ts something worthwhile. Go get one!

I had a gig where everyone else were rocking hard, then there's me.

Japan, Favorite Place on Earth

This is the 2nd time I visited Osaka, though this was a shorter visit than before. The last time I went in Osaka was back in July 2013, with my previous company. This time I was allowed to extend my stay and go to Tokyo.

We stayed in Hilton Hotel, the location was nice. Shopping malls, train stations, coffee shops, restaurants are nearby. I stayed there for 2 nights, I went to Tokyo on the 3rd morning, exhausted because of Universal Studios and no sleep. But it was all worth it, I got some sleep while I was riding Nozomi Bullet Train from Osaka to Tokyo. From Hilton Hotel, the Osaka train station was a walking distance but it was raining so I had to call a cab. then from Osaka, I took a train going to Shin-Osaka which was 10 minutes away. From Shin-Osaka, I waited an hour for my scheduled bullet train trip going to Tokyo, travel time was approx. 3 hours.

It was thrilling traveling alone in a non-familiar place where people hardly speak English. I tried to stay awake during drop offs on stations. It was really nice to see the beauty of the provinces, there were mountains up until you see buildings and feel that you're getting near the city. The city where I found great memories 11 years ago (2004).

I stayed in Adachi-Ku with my aunt, uncle, and cousin. We drove days and nights in Tokyo, it doesn't matter what time it is. there are restaurants and shopping centers and spas that are open until...I'm not even sure if they are open 24hrs.

We drove to Shibuya to see Hachiko, it was late midnight and people there are everywhere like it was still 6PM. Of course,

I wouldn't forget to go back to where I first fell in love with a street, I came back to Ochanomizu. It was a place where music stores are everywhere. Sadly, it was not like 11 years ago, where you see bands walking with their gears, streets are loud and guitars are literally everywhere. I stopped by some shops and bought some for me and my drummer brother. We almost bought a telecaster type guitar, I'm not sure if it was Fender though it looked customized. I didn't bother to hold it and take a picture because I already decided not to buy it, and it breaks my heart.

After roaming and reminiscing, me and my aunt left Adachi-Ku and stayed in Fussa. We shopped and drove around. And man, have I told you I'm a thrift shop junkie! I can spend the whole day just looking for Home-use items. We also shopped inside U.S. base, too bad my timing wasn't perfect because there was a sale after I left Tokyo. We also pub crawled, and this time I felt more homey, as there were more Americans than Japanese, so it was easier talking to anyone.

Right now, the only countries I've been to was Japan and of course Philippines. And still, Tokyo's my favorite place on earth. That's why I want to travel more and see if I will still have those butterflies when I'm in other places.

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Songs for the 90's Kids

Publishing my favorite playlist here on my blog for people who doesn't have Spotify (Best Music App as of today).

I continuously edit this playlist whenever I remember nostalgic songs, songs that personally take me back 10 years ago.




I also have other playlists from/for other genre or moods.

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JOURNEY JETT'S SPOTIFY