Paul Hartrick » Travel

Gundam in Tokyo

-Paul — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 08:08:09 +0000

I thought I would have been one of the last people in Tokyo to visit the 18 Meter Tall Gundam robot in Odaiba. I was also hoping that choosing a work day to visit Gundam would also pay off with less people. That was until I reached Shimbashi Station and walked over to the Yurikamome Line. Oh well I suffered the crowds and continued on to Diaba Station and found my way to the Gundam Robot.

Once at Gundam the crowds weren’t that bad, only a 5 minute wait to get to touch the 59 foot tall Robot and pleanty of room to get any angle shot you want, however it was very hot without any shade so I didn’t mess around, got my photos and headed back to the station.

For those looking for directions to Gundam in Tokyo take the JR Yamanote line to Shimbashi Station then take the Yurikamome Line to Diaba Station, get of the train, head down the stairs and walk towards the park then turn left once your near the waters edge… or just follow the crowds. Here is a google maps image and link that maybe useful.

Select image for Hyperlink

I will probably head back down this weekend and get some more photos during and after sunset to get some more dramatic shots. For now here are the daytime photos. You can see the full resolution shots at my Flickr Page.

Graffiti in Spain

-Paul — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 03:59:38 +0000

While in Spain I took all the usual tourist photos but what grabbed my attention more than most was the amount of graffiti decorating some fairly ancient buildings. I thought it was pretty cool to walk out of a Pablo Picaso exhibition only to see another form of art on the side door of the museum. To tell you the truth there isn’t a lot of difference between the Graffiti and some of the crap Pablo Picasso turned out. Anyway, here are few shots with a Picasso at the end for comparison… At least the graffiti has some color…

Bull Fighting in Spain

-Paul — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:35:51 +0000

On my recent holiday I had the opportunity to go to the Sunday Bull Fighting, for 5 Euros I had a front row seat to what I would consider a very controversial sport outside of Spain. If you are an Animal Lover I suggest you don’t read any further…

The Bull Fighting was quite spectacular and disturbing at the same time, I don’t think I would go again…

The show starts with the introductions of the Bull Fighters and the supporting crew. After they all take their positions the bull is let loose and then tormented for a while before driving it to the man on the horse with the spear… who then proceedes to stab it between the shoulders to slow the bull down a bit, twice… What was interesting was if the guy on the horse left the spear in too long the crowd started to boo(whistle), as to say stop cheating and give the bull a fair go. Next come the guys with the job of spearing two smaller spears into the shoulders of the bull with the spears remaining in the bull, 3 guys, 2 spears each, 6 in total, you need courage to perform this stage as it is very dangerous for the bull fighter. Once this stage is complete the featured bull fighter grabs a fake sword and show boats for a while to tire the bull out and to show how close he can get to the bull, so close in fact that their beautiful costumes end up rubbed with blood, the mark of a good bull fighter. After about 5 minutes of show boating the bull fighter swaps his fake sword for a real one and goes in for the final kill. A deep thrust between the shoulder blades to the heart and the bull is done… A good bull fighter will kill the bull almost instantly whereas an average bull fighter often misses the mark and the bull need to be finished by the helpers with a few stabs to the back of the neck with a special knife… After the bull is dead it is dragged out by 3 costumed donkeys… then its time to start the process again, 6 bulls were killed in total for the 2 hour event… I wasn’t quite sure what to think while it was all happening…

If the bull fighter puts on a great show and kills the bull quickly then the president of the bull fighting association, seated in the grand stand, will wave a white handkerchief indicating a great fight and to reward the bull fighter the most coveted prize in bull fighting, of one of the bulls ears, and if the fight was exceptional the bull fighter will get both ears… all of which is heavily influenced by the crowd… It’s hard not to get caught up in the whole atmosphere and at the same time feeling guilty about the death of an animal…

Here are some of the 350+ photos I took during the show… as I said earlier… don’t look if you don’t like this stuff…

Spain and Portugal

-Paul — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:32:27 +0000

I’m off on a well deserved, long overdue holiday. I will be enjoying two weeks in Madrid, Majorca, Barcelona and Lisbon. Looking forward to great beaches,great food, great wine and bull fighting…

Circ du Soleil – ZED

-Paul — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 22:53:43 +0000

Yesterday I had the pleasure to see Circ Du Soleil – ZED. The show is held in one of Circ Du Soleil’s purpose built theaters which is located next door to Tokyo Disneyland.

I can easily say it was the best stage performance I have ever seen and I am now keen to get tickets for Circ Du Soleil – DRALION located in Harajuku.

If you ever get a chance to see a Circ Du Soleil show then jump at it, and don’t be shy to spend the extra money on the best seats, it’s worth every part of $200 a seat.

Here a few photos of the show I found on the web.

After the show I spent the next 4 hours exploring Ikspiari, the shopping and entertainment area that adjoins Tokyo Disney Resort and the Circ Du Soleil theater.

There is so much to see do at Ikspiari you could spend a while day just exploring the surrounding areas. Here are the photos I took of the day, looking forward to heading back with my proper camera to get some more dramatic shots.