The Yasaka Shrine | Kyoto | Japan Travels

Not a lot of people would share my sentiment but I found Yasaka Shrine to be really gorgeous and romantic. I have a knack for liking smaller and simpler things which I guess influenced how I felt while visiting this so called ‘only-average’ shrine.

My friends and I were quite lucky for consulting the locals before hand. They were really helpful in giving us the down low on the shrine and giving us advice on when to visit. Perhaps having just that little bit more information over others made our visit more memorable. The locals advised us to visit at night, which we did. 

Crazy Kim Jong Min has no clue what USA means | 1 Night 2 Days Season 1

In episode 27, Jong Min is given the opportunity to showcase some of his leadership skills. After watching the whole episode, my verdict comes down to: he’s not very good. His decision making is on par with a maniac’s and his thinking process… well, it’s very questionable. So when he was faced with a sudden and ridiculous quiz, his reaction wasn't surprising - just extremely entertaining.

Bboy GIFs

I've been seeing a lot of bboy-related gifs recently. Thought I'd share some.

Mascot Battle

Kim C’s Popularity Outdone Over Buns | 1 Night 2 Days Season 1

Ok, clearly 1N2D Season One ended a long time ago but here I am anyway watching it all over again! You know, watching it while expecting something to happen is actually really fun – like seeing Kim C realise he wasn’t as popular as he first thought he was. Kim C may have begun the show with a popularity ego shot up to the roof but man did he learn to just take the back seat at every popularity contest the members had among themselves.

Physicx Interview by Stedlove | Bboy Spot Article

I love that photo with the monkey! An interview had recently been published at the Bboy Spot about Physicx’s whereabouts and business this year. Apparently he's been travelling around and has made Thailand his new home for the time being.

Ben Tafau on Bboying in South Korea | Asia NZ Foundation

Ben Tafau | Picture credit Ben Tafau

In 2010, one of our local bboys, Ben Tafau, visited South Korea on behalf of the Asian New Zealand Foundation and underwent what must have been the meanest research project that has ever existed - researching the South Korean bboy culture. I would take a job like that any day. Jealous.

Taeyang Throwback "Where U At" | Shaun Evaristo & Lyle Beniga

I know it’s old but I reckon this video needs mentioning in my blog. It’s a crazy thought but once in a while big companies like YG Entertainment actually recruit choreographers through YouTube. Back in the day their scouting led them to dancers from Movement Lifestyle, most notably Shaun Evaristo and Lyle Beniga, who eventually choreographed Taeyang’s Wedding Dress and Where U At.

Typedelic Wayfarers | Ray Ban

This may seem like old news to some people but I've been meaning to post this up since last year. In 2012 Ray Ban came up with the Typedelic design to add to their Wayfarers series. These shades are pretty mint. The outer face is simple and mono-coloured but the inner side features a colourful graphic design, which is honestly some kind of expensive scribbling. I mean that in a good way.

Shogun Residence | Nijo Castle, Kyoto

Ninomaru Palace

Going to Nijo Castle was both an exciting and bitter journey for me. I loved learning about the samurai, their duty to protect feudal lords and their way of life, but on top of that I felt a little spiteful too because I was promised a visit to a ninja museum. Who knew that among my friends were still the rare population of people who believed the samurai and ninja were identical -_- Technically at some point in history some samurais became ninjas but that still didn’t make them one and the same.

Rapper Ill Mitch? | Funny and Buzzy

One unfortunate afternoon a particular local bboy caught my attention. During practice he was halfway attempting something quite extraordinary and I wanted to see stick around to watch. Sadly, I had to gap early. Someone passed me his bboy name so I decided to google search him just in case he had any dope battle videos floating online.

Instead - I found someone else. Someone strange. With a strange website. A website so strange it was interesting. So interesting I stayed there for 10 minutes with my head spinning. Then I decided I had to share it with the rest of the world. Click the picture to visit his website.