Hong Kong: Where to Stay?

From our 5-day trip to Hong Kong, 1 thing I observed is that this place is not cheap. You'll definitely get what you paid for. We stayed at Crystal Hostel inside Chungking Mansion during weekdays mostly because we thought we'll spend most of the day wandering around, but then it was really tiring (bring really comfy shoes) so we kinda take rests during late afternoon since Chungking Mansion is in Tsim Sha Tsui (located at the center of most tourist spots).  We transferred to Stanford Hotel during the weekend since most of these cheap hotels' rates rise up to which they are the almost same price with high-end end hotels.

Stanford Hotel, Mongkok

Pros:

• Very spacious room (Skyline room)
• Affordable and very accessible
• Near the MTR, malls, restaurants, food stalls, street markets
• Good breakfast buffet
• Very cozy and clean room
• Nice window view
• A free phone you can use while roaming around
• Very friendly staffs
• Complimentary water
• There is a user-friendly safe
• You can also leave your luggage in the lobby if you are checking out but still want to go around a bit more

Cons:

• The only thing I can say that may be needed to be out in there is that, there was no bidet. lol

Note:
There is a 500HKD deposit, not sure if this goes up if you stayed more than 1 night. Better use a credit card so you won't have to take that money off your vacation budget.

Chungking Mansion: What to Expect

You can check out this video if you wanna see what's inside Chungking Mansion.

We Stayed in a double room at Crystal Hostel, booked thru Booking.com.
Note: When you book here, you'd be credited by some percentage only.
Their system only holds the amount for reservation, then you'll pay the whole amount when you get there via Cash or Credit card.

Double Room (Crystal Hostel)

Pros:

• Tony the receptionist was excellent, he was accommodating and polite.
• Room temp is cool, we didn't use the AC on some nights. it was 25-32 degree Celsius outside, just to give you an idea on what the weather was.
• It is very near establishments, train station (Tsim Sha Tsui-red line)
• It is located in Block E, at the back of the building.  more people go to Block A, near the entrance.
• If you just need somewhere to sleep because you'll be out all day, this is the place to be.
• Safe and secured. we had no troubles leaving valuable items in the room
• The Western Union(first one on the left side upon entrance) inside Chungking Mansion has the highest money exchange rate from what we've seen around Tsim Sha Tsui and Mongkok area.

Cons:

• So many Indian people that might come on aggressive in some sort to sell you something or offer you rooms, if you're not comfortable with this, do not book here. although my partner was relieved when we enter the hostel because our receptionist is polite. I just told her to not look at anyone when we get past all the stores since the hostel is in Block E.
• It is located in Block E, at the back of the building. 
• The room has limited space. we had to put our luggage under the bed, and also enter the room one at a time.
• The toilet was also cramped but doable.
• I suggest bring your own toiletries, towels, and blanket.
• There were stains on the blanket.

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.

MORE PICTURES HERE

VIDEOS ARE HERE:

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.

Follow me on Spotify:
JOURNEY JETT'S SPOTIFY

SJcam SJ4000 Wifi

If you like to go on outdoor activities, take pictures and/or videos and also happens to be a budge savvy. Fret no more! We now have an alternative for GoPro. 

Introducing the SJcam SJ4000!

At first glance, it almost looks the same as GoPro 3+, people may thought of this, especially those who are not familiar with the details of the looks of GoPro. 

Every year, me with my best friends, we go to places we haven't been before. Or at least we try to take the time out on these busy manila streets. So this year we decided to go to Puerto Prinsesa, Palawan. We usually bring our cameras, tripod, and some lenses with us and yes they are quite a baggage, just them alone. So now we decided to get an action camera. Of course our first and only option back then was GoPro since it was the only handy sports camera I knew and it's the most leading brand everywhere. But considering I don't usually go outdoors like mountain hiking/trekking, hell I even hate the deep sea waters(but yes, I like the beach shores), I did a research on other sports camera brands and found out that there are several brands that can stand beside GoPro. 

Xbase SJ4000 and SJcam SJ4000

Yes. They have the same model. I read from some forums that they have rebrandings on different countries. 

The experience

Before I get into the goods, I'd like point out first the issues I encountered for your checklist. 

-When I change the settings thru my iphone app, it doesn't save.

Problem figured out:

There were delays on wifi transfers.

-I had some power issues. Probably because of a defective battery. The time when the store staff was showing me a demo for my newly bought device, they were charging it. -It was charging while while were testing it- So I thought and asked them, shouldn't the device have at least a factory charge. And I totally forgot what they answered. And so, when I got home and charged it then used it the next day. I noticed that the battery indicator is still in "charging" mode while it was unplugged already. After a while we noticed that the "charging" mode is gone but the battery is halfway through or only one bar was left. Another power issue was, the device keeps turning off even though the Auto Shut Down and Screensaver options are OFF. 

Problem resolved: I went back to the shop (bad experience when I explained the issues all over again to 3 different people because some of them doesn't know the What's and How's of SJ4000 since GoPro's the popular one that they know of, unprofessional) however, after all the hassle they replaced my battery, and so far that solved the issues.

What I like:

It also has a wifi feature so you can pair you android/ios device with sj4000. You just need to download the app, you can find the QR code for the app's link on the side of the box. You can use this as remote, preview, and configurations.

Wide lens. most sports cameras have wide lens, but there are also some that don't. I almost bought a GoPro 3 White edition since it's the cheapest of GoPro 3 variety. But comparing the lens, I'd totally go for sj4000.

LCD. Yes! built in LCD, although at first it kinda looked cheap because it's very tiny. But it's really helpful.

Accessories. There are lots of mounts that came with the package, actually week after I bought the camera I still don't know how to use the other mounts. Plus there's also a spare back cover for the underwater case.

Sample shot (low light)

More pictures will be posted on my photography "Eyes Cream" section soon.

Sharmila, Dampa Experience

I decided to make a review for Shamila after our 2nd try there since I also happen to find blog reviews before going there.

Sharmila is located in Dampa, Macapagal, Pasay City. The restaurant is almost at the back of the line near the parking lot.
As usual, food is great, the ambiance is good for eating. They have tables outside, airconditioned rooms on 1st and 2nd floors and they also have karaoke.

What I like about them (compared to other restaurant I tried in Dampa) is they also ask you for shrimp size, mussel size, and they suggest if you are not sure what to order.

Princess Ronabeth's 18th

What: Princess Ronabeth's 18th birthday
Where: The Gatherings Villa, Malabon
When: December 20, 2013

Photos are taken by: FUMO Photography - Journey Jett

Other great photos are coming your way soon by kuya Joseph and kuya Dan.

How to import DB Files from old XAMPP folder to new

I was updating my XAMPP htdocs folder on my 3rd computer at my office (I had to change because of defects and upgrades), when I realized that my old works was not in my current htdocs folder. I decided to copy the old files into my new folder and when I checked it on a browser I forgot that the DB files are not yet imported. I searched for automatic and manual methods, but then I found nothing(Or at least I thought, I usually eye the first 3-5 results on Google). And so, what I did was, I browsed every folder on XAMPP that would give me hints what to do.

Until I reached the 'mysql' (In terms of common sense you would go first with 'phpmyadmin' and 'mysql') then I found folders inside /xampp/mysql/data that are named as what my old DB's were.

I copied these specific folders pasted them into the same folder on the current xampp folder, then Voilà! You can now check your phpMyAdmin and see your old DBs listed on the left sidebar.

Matured me visiting Osaka, Japan

Why did I mentioned ‘matured’ to describe a guest from an underdeveloped (I was about to use ‘third world’ to describe my country. But after I researched, I found out that there are people considering Philippines as not a third world, maybe a level higher than that. But I will not discuss about that here) country to one of the most established country in Asia? 

I first landed my feet in Japan way back 2004; I was still in High School. My mom used to do this surprise trips for herself when she was younger, well actually it was me and my dad who were being surprised at that time. We got there through Philippine Airlines, it was my first time to ride a plane and so I did funny things like pressing a lot of buttons I see there. It was a very memorable moment, first time I’ve been to Disney Land (though I was having a bad day because of migraine), first time I went to Ochanomizu, Tokyo; I almost drooled literally because of the music shops around. The food and people were great. If there’s one thing I don’t like about Japan that would be the scary feeling that all this Asian mostly Japanese horror films are almost real because I was right there living in a house same with the movies. Haha. And so, I really hoped that I would go back there someday, until my current company gave incentives to the whole office and planned an international trip. The original plan was to go to China but then during the planning there was flu spreading or at least there was news that there is indeed flu in China so my company decided to change it to Singapore. But most of my office mates had already gone there and so Japan became the theme and everyone was so excited! I am shocked because when it was still China I decided not to come, and yes, Japan is my deal breaker that time.

I literally had no sleep before our 7am flight. The only time I get to rest my eyes was during our fly. 4 hours is travel time, but I had to stretch and stretch my legs so I napped for roughly 2 hours. 

Itinerary:

Day 1:    Arrival at Kansas Airport,

              Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan

              Osaka Castle

              Lunch and Dinner at Dotonbori

Day 2:    Universal Studios

              Lunch at Universal

  Shinsaibashi shopping

              Dinner around New Otani Hotel

Day 3:    Kiyomizudera, Kyoto

  Tōdai-ji, Nara

  Lunch at The Buffet Style Sara, Kyoto

  Dinner at Ramen house in Dotonbori

  Free time-shopping

Day 4:    Free time- bike around

              Departure

We stayed at New Otani Hotel

I thought I will not enjoy this trip as much as I enjoyed going to Tokyo 9 years ago. I actually felt like not going back, it’s some place you can feel more than home (without your loved ones). I feel safe, comfortable, even if I’m just reminiscing I still feel like dashing through clouds while sipping cold drinks.

If ever given the chance, I would live there.

Wordpress: How to Manually Add Users in wp_user

What you need:
-phpMyAdmin access
-Wordpress Database Name
-Wordpress Database Username
-Wordpress Database Password

If you don't know your wordpress website's DB info, you can locate them in your wp-config.php file (located at the root folder). Although from what I experienced, I did not use the DB login details but still, if ever there will be cases you'll be needing it, it's safer you already know where to find them.

There are 2 tables to edit. First would be wp_users, we will ad a new user profile in this table. Then wp_usermeta, where we will put permissions and privileges.

Adding a user on wp_user:

Click on the wp_user table and then click Insert tab.
Table fields:

ID	By default, this is incremental so leave this blank
user_login	This will be your username for Wordpress access
user_pass	This will be your password for Wordpress access (note: use the function, MD5 - this will make your password encyrpted)
user_nicename	This will be you name displayed on front end pages. This is different with username
user_email	This is your own email address for reference and future password retrieval
user_url	This is your own URL. this is not required
user_registered	Date when you registered
user_activation_key	leave this blank
user_status	leave this set to 0 (zero)
display_name	Same as nicename

If you entered all the necessary details needed, click Go at the bottom of the page.
If there are no errors with the SQL commands then you can proceed to the wp_usermeta table.
(If there are errors, please repeat the insertion of details and double check every word)

Adding user permission on the wp_usermeta:

After adding a user on the wp_user table, we will set administrative permissions to that user by adding wp_capabiilties and wp_user_level on the wp_usermeta table. Before inserting any data here, you must first check and get the ID  that was auto-generated to the ID field from the wp_user table.
Click on the wp_usermeta table, click Insert tab.
Table fields:

Insert data for wp_capabilities

umeta_id	This is Incremental so leave this blank
user_id	Enter the User ID that was auto-generated a while ago from the recent wp_user addition
meta_key	Enter here wp_capabilities
meta_value	Enter here a:1:{s:13:"administrator";b:1;}

Insert new data for wp_user_level

umeta_id	This is Incremental so leave this blank
user_id	Enter the User ID that was auto-generated a while ago from the recent wp_user addition
meta_key	Enter here wp_user_level
meta_value	Enter here 10

Double check everything and then click Go to insert the rows.

After you follow these steps you would now be able to login using your new user account details. You can update you profile information once you enter the admin page.

Perspective: How people see every photo

Any picture can be viewed differently depending on how the taker wants the subject to look like.

We can add drama to a simple cup.

A close-up shot matched with a notebook. People might think you're a deep person with lots of thoughts inside you.

Or someone who wants others to know what you're up to, that most of that 'others' really don't care about.

Or maybe, make use of everything around you and just capture the great yet simple place you're at.