Megan Fox in San Francisco

Queen of the Night?

Trust Us!!

With a name like this, what could go wrong?

Dinner with Ume-chan

Glenn, Angie, and Tomoko Umeda at the Intercontinental Yokohama

Coke and Love Puppy

I've got to admit, I thought this was some kind of weird Japanese special edition can.

I mean, could 'love puppies' and a 'happiness factory' come from anywhere else?

Angie, Garr, and I found this today when I bought a Coke in Japan and thought 'what the hell'?

It turns out, though, to be a global campaign - as evidenced by this commercial.

I don't know what to say. The ad is cool enough, but finding this image on my coke can is slightly disturbing.

More Monkey Business

That's no way to make friends...

Despite the fact that I love the monkeys of Ubud, and that they seem to like me, I meet an occasional monkey who got up on the wrong side of the tree.

Just like humans...

Waiters & Waitresses of the World #1

Laras at Kajane Ubud, Bali

We meet so many outstanding waiters and waitresses during our travels, that I decided to honor them with their own series on CameraFood.

Today is the official start of Waiters and Waitresses of the World.

Laras lives and works in Ubud, Bali. She served us lunch as part of an trekking package we received with our stay at the Kajane Villas in Ubud. She's a smiler, with an easy laugh.

She started laughing when a gecko barked during our lunch, admitting that she doesn't really like the little lizards.

Monkey on my Back (again...)

My new friend in Ubud's Monkey Forest

I always have to visit the Monkey Forest to say hello to my funny friends there.

I was crouched down, getting some nice shots of a mother with her baby, when this guy climbed up my back, sat down on my shoulder, and started grooming me.

It's not the first time. The monkeys seem to think I'm one of the pack.

The men who work in the forest don't take too kindly to it though. They feel the need to chase away my little buddies.

Angie wasn't with me, so I had to take this 'blind' photo on my own. He's sitting on my right shoulder...

Chasing the Goddess

Evil Rahwana approaches Sita, disguised as an old man

When you think you've seen it all...

We've been to Bali 10 or so times, and we've seen 50 or more dance shows there. We never expect to be surprised, but then we see something new.

The surprise can be as simple as a different mask, new props, or an alternative approach to Hanuman (the monkey god). Last night, we saw all three of those in an excellent performance of the Hindu epic, the Ramayana.

We also saw this beautiful woman play Sita (Rama's wife). Now, all Balinese dancers are stunning. The Balinese have perfected the art of make-up, such that every dancer becomes an embodiment of the Balinese ideal of beauty.

But this woman was extraordinary. Every expression, every gesture, every movement was pure femininity. When you witness this flawlessness - like a goddess (or a Balinese Angelina Jolie!) - it is hypnotic and a little intimidating.

Fortunately, my camera wasn't intimidated...

THIS is a tropical rain...

Downpour at our pool (Kajane Villas, Ubud, Bali)

I haven't decided if private villa pools are the ultimate in decadence or the only civilized way to live.

I'm voting for the latter, but it feels like the former.

One underrated aspect of having a pool is watching raindrops dance on the surface.

We sat on the patio for an hour this afternoon, listening and watching this tropical shower.

The Poetry of Run-on Sentences

dog shouting love

We were exploring a rooftop sculture garden at Orchard Central, a new mall in downtown Singapore.

Accompanying a sculpture by Yayoi Kusama (this dog is one character in the larger piece) , is an artist's statement that I found as endearing as his work:

On the dazzling earth of life, death and illnesses seeking after the truth, I have lived my life shedding tears in my broken heart, I have always been in search of the sweet scent of tulips, dog shouting love, and on top of them, the numerous songs girls have been singing since the day they were born, which reverberate across the universe I want to secretly find shining stars in the sky in the dazzling stillness of sorrows and hopes, now as a girl incarnate, I found myself in the midst of never-ending peace, "Love Forever", and millions of hours brightened with life.

Humming like a Bird

extra energy? yeah, some...

There aren't a lot of creatures on earth that have more energy than a hummingbird. They pretty much feed on pure sugar.

But, my friends will confirm, when I'm buzzing I'll give any hummingbird (even this one I caught in Monterey) a run for his/her money.

Tomorrow, I fly to Asia for the first time in two years, so - yeah - I'm buzzin'!

You Can Never Go Wrong with Fairy Lights

Fishhopper Restaurant in Monterey, California

There are a lot of things you can do to screw up the looks of a restaurant: bad art, dirty windows, worn furniture, poor lighting; the list goes on.

There is one thing that I have learned in my life, however...

You can never go wrong with fairy lights.

Nature's Etch-a-Sketch

fleeting moments of zen

Alan Kay, a semi-legend in the world of technology (he was a scientist at Xerox Parc and Atari) once said, "Most ideas, you can do pretty darn well with a stick in the sand".

In that spirit, I found myself drawing in the sands of Asilomar Beach, near Monterey, during Christmas break. The wind, waves, and sand were so relaxing that I decided to create Jizo images. A Jizo Buddha is the patron saint of children and travelers (both of which I am accused of being).

Very quickly, I realized that the impermanence of life demanded these zen images be created in the surf break. So, I scratched an image, took a picture, and stepped back to let nature's etch-a-sketch go to work.