== Bernie's brain backup of April 2009 == === April 21th ==== ==== Great temples everywhere ==== Yesterday was rainy, but it didn't stop us from biking around and visiting quite a lot of stuff: * the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/Ninnaji|Ninnaji temple]]; * the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/Ryoanji|Ryoanji temple]], with its puzzling rock zen garden; * the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/Kinkakuji|Kinkakuji temple]] (aka golden temple); * the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/NijojoCastle|Nijojo castle]], which is actually two castles for the price of one; * a quick tour of the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/KyotoDowntown|Kyoto downtown]]; * the [[http://www.kyotomm.com/international/english/|International Manga Museum]] was closed already. Grrr.... {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/Kinkakuji/00012.jpg|the golden temple of Kinkakuji|maxwidth=800}} ==== x264 goodness ==== I re-encoded all videos from MJPEG, the crappy native format of my Canon camera, to x264 (aka MPEG4). Firefox 3.1/3.5 still doesn't grok it with the ##video## tag, but I didn't have a [[http://theora.org/|Theora]] encoder installed. === April 20th === ==== Best hostel ever ==== The [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/UtanoHostel|Utano hostel]] in Kyoto would rival many five star hotels I've seen. Sorry I couldn't take any photos in the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onsen | Onsen]]. {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/UtanoHostel/00005.jpg|the hostel provides a traditional goan too|maxwidth=800}} ==== Impressive station ==== The [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/ShinKyoto|Kyoto station]] is an impressive modern building, worth a visit by itself. {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Kyoto/ShinKyoto/00015.jpg|Welcome to Kyoto!|maxwidth=800}} ==== Shinkansen tour ==== In a jounery report, the details of transportation are usually left out as uninteresting. Except if one takes the fastest train in the world! We took the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C5%8Dkaid%C5%8D_Shinkansen|Tokaido Shinkansen]] line from Odawara to Kyoto, riding on a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/700_Series_Shinkansen|700-series]] train for the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hikari_%28Shinkansen%29|Hikari]] service (not the faster [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nozomi_%28train%29|Nozomi]], but still very impressive). The ticket cost a whopping 11240 yen per person, and I'm not even getting a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galaxy_Express_999|machine body]] with it! ;-) See [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Shinkansen|the the photos]] and don't miss the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Shinkansen/00009-x264.avi|pass-through]] and the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Shinkansen/00011-x264.avi|on-board]] videos. {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Shinkansen/00006.jpg|Shinkansen|maxwidth=800}} === April 19th - Hakone day 2 === {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Hakone/FujiSanBernieSan.jpg|The Fuji-san (left) with Bernie-san (right)|maxwidth=1024}} We took the suggested touristic itinerary around the Hakone mountains which employs all sorts of transportation means: bus, cable train, rope way, cruise boat and bus again. Along the way, we could see the volcanic sulfuric vents and pools, the Ashi lake with its breathtaking view of the Fuji-san, the ancient cedar avenue, the old post, the detached palace gardens and the beautiful [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinto_shrine|shinto jinja shrine]] of with its [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torii|torii]] diving in the lake. Of course, I took plenty of [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Hakone/Trip|photos of the Hakone trip]]. === April 18th - Hakone === {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Hakone/Hostel/00008.jpg|Our japanese style room at the Senkyoro YH|maxwidth=1024}} We arrived in a small town near [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakone,_Kanagawa|Hakone]]. I'll publish photos later. **Update**: [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Hakone|photos of the hostel]] are now available. === April 17th - Ghibli museum in Mitaka, Ginza === {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/GhibliMuseum/00005.jpg|Robot from the ancient city of Laputa|maxwidth=800}} The museum was actually a bit of a disappointment, but maybe just because I had my expectations so high. Cameras weren't allowed inside, so I only took [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/GhibliMuseum|few photos]]. In the afternoon, we walked around the shiny neighborhood of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ginza|Ginza]]. See the [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Ginza|photos]]. === April 16th - Fish Market, Gardens, Tower of Tokyo, Temple === {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Tsukiji_Fish_Market/00013.jpg | Tsukiji Fish Market |maxwidth=800}} We had a very intense day where we visited a lot of places all around central Tokyo: * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Tsukiji_Fish_Market | Tsukiji Fish Market]] ([[http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3021.html|Japan Guide]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Hama_Rikyu_Gardens | Hama Rikyu Gardens]] ([[http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3025.html||Japan Guide]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Zojoji | Zojo-ji Temple]] ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zojoji|Wikipedia]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Tokyo_Tower | Tokyo Tower]] ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_Tower|Wikipedia]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Reiyukai_Temple | Reiyukai Temple]] ([[http://www.reiyukai.org/|official web site]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Imperial_Palace_Gardens | Imperial Palace Gardens]] ([[http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3017.html|Japan Guide]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Edo_Museum | Edo-Tokyo Museum]], which was already closed. We'll try again when we come back to Tokyo ([[http://www.edo-tokyo-museum.or.jp/english | official web site]]) NOTE: photos still being uploaded, gomen nasai! Seeing so many beautiful things at such a high frequency might make one's head spin. In fact, this evening I've been dangerously close to faint in an [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onsen | Onsen]], which was really scary because I had never lost consciousness before. I had walked all day with very little food and drink, which might have been part of the problem, but diving in thermal water for a long time has certainly triggered it. What a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaijin | gaijin]] who can't even take some hot water! {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Zojoji/1.00011.jpg | Zojo-ji temple (left), Tokyo Tower (center), Bernie (right) |maxwidth=800}} === April 15th - Skyscrapers everywhere === Compared to Tokyo, every other city I had visited would seem dirty, old, boring and disorganized. I can't find the words to describe my amazement walking around this amazing city full of wonders. {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Roppongi/TokyoMidtown/00023.jpg|Tokyo Midtown Gardenside seen from the Galleria building|maxwidth=800}} Photos for today: * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Shinjuku|Shinju-ku]] -- The district of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_Metropolitan_Government_Building|Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building]]. * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Roppongi|Roppongi]] -- A rich district hosting modern art museums (Art Triangle) and night life ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roppongi|Wikipedia]]) * [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Pachinko|Pachinko]] -- Popular Japanese slot machines **Update**: now finished uploading the photos === April 14th - Arrival in Tokyo === {{Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo/Sensoji_Temple/00081.jpg|The way to the Sensoji temple in Asakusa|maxwidth=800}} I couldn't resist grabbing a super-cheap round trip to japan, a place I've always wanted to visit. By "always", I mean: since when I was in kindergarten, watching great series like [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Jeeg|SteelJeeg]] and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazinger_Z|MazingerZ]] on TV. My dad accepted to accompany me in this trip even though he wasn't particularly fond of Japan. Until now, that is! The first day was simply amazing, but I'm way to tired to tell a lot about it. The [[Pictures/vacation/japan_2009/Tokyo|many photos and videos]] that I'm still uploading will hopefully serve documenting this long day appropriately. NOTE: if you can't watch the videos embedded in the wiki, get yourself a recent browser featuring HTML5 or send me a patch adding support for old-style HTML video embedding. === Negligent === Yes, I've neglected to update this blog for a few months. This isn't because I had nothing to talk about. In fact, these months were quite intense, with a lot of notable events, including: * 2009 Jan: Visited the [[Pictures/vacation/EastCoast2008|East Coast]] with Silvia * 2009 Jan: Attended the [[Pictures/conf/XOCamp2009|XO Camp 2]] * 2009 Feb: Attended the [[Pictures/conf/Fosdem2009|Fosdem 2009]] with a few friends from Italy and SugarLabs colleagues * 2009 Feb: Visited [[Pictures/vacation/brussels_riga_stokholm_2009/Brussels | Brussels]], [[Pictures/vacation/brussels_riga_stokholm_2009/Riga | Riga]] and [[Pictures/vacation/brussels_riga_stokholm_2009 | Stockholm]] with Tommaso * 2009 Mar: Organized a small revival of [[SystemShockBBS]] with a few original users * 2009 Apr: Attended a meeting/miniconf in [[Pictures/conf/Bolzano2009|Bolzano]] with WalterBender I am currently back in Florence, trying to find a way back in the US.