New York City 2012: The Wishful Student at Columbia University

Ever since the movie, The Bucket List, there's never been a week that I haven't seen someone post/tweet/upload anything related to his or her own personal "bucket list".  I guess we all have our aspirations before we, well, kick the bucket.  Like most of my friends, one of the major things on my list is to really travel and see the world.  Apart from the generic, I have this specific travel goal and that is to visit all eight Ivy League schools in the US.  This is a real goal of mine, not something fabricated impromptu as a result of being at the right place at the right time.

I've always been fascinated of the Ivies since I was in high school and dreaming of where I would like to go to college had I been rich enough, smart enough, and active enough in community service and some other worthy advocacy. Anyway, enough about my sob story.  Just to give a brief background, there are eight Ivy League schools in the US and fortunately for me, they are all in the East Coast.  They've been called as such originally because of an athletic conference formed by the said private schools but the term came to be accepted as with reference to academic excellence and selective admissions.  

With no further ado, the eight Ivy League schools, and the same eight items on my specific "Bucket List", are: Harvard, Yale, Brown, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), Cornell, Dartmouth, and.........

Columbia University, New York City, New York!

If you've read my prior posts, you'll remember that I was roaming the streets of Manhattan like there was no tomorrow.  But then, I made sure to leave enough time for me to visit the first "scratch off" opportunity on my list.  Believe me, I am not exaggerating when I say that I was filled with too much giddiness.  If I only knew their Alma Mater song, I would have sung it.

But no, I wasn't an alumna, I was merely a visitor in this open campus.

Unfortunately, I cannot really go inside the buildings.  On a brighter note, however, I was free to look around the outside and take as many pictures as I wanted.

The stand-out building for me is the University Library.  It looks so imposing yet comforting at the same time.  Good thing I wasn't able to go inside or else I'd just drool all over the precious book collections that maybe date back centuries ago.

That's me wishing that I had the right to call Columbia my Alma Mater. Sob!

With my back to the library, this was the whole line of my sight.  Or my camera's, that is.  I paused for a minute just to imagine what it would be like if I were an actual student, a back pack and all, crossing the grounds to hurry to my next class.

I also wondered where the dorms were.

So I guess I wasn't the only tourist in the grounds.

Oh well, enough self-pity.  One more photo then a kiss farewell.

The neighborhood is just so... colonial, for lack of a better word.  I love every corner of it.
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Just a parting shot of the back view of the main buildings. 

Goodbye, Columbia, my Ivy League #1.

For tourists, this is one less popular New York City attraction that I think is worth a visit.  I took a quick cab ride from Central Park West Avenue.  Here's the address: 116th St and Broadway, New York

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Hawaii 2012: The Streets of Waikiki

The East and the West have converged to create a tropical paradise in the form of Hawaii.  In these islands, Honolulu is the capital city where one can experience diversity in culture and food; the climax of which can be found the beachfront neighborhood that is Waikiki.

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Hawaii 2012: The Big Island

When you think of Hawaii, certain things come to mind… like sun, sand, and sea. It’s like the land of eternal sunshine; a topical paradise at best. I can probably summarize it in an image like the one below.

That’s what I though too! But then, we went to Hilo on the Big Island and it was one rainy place!

To give you a quick background, Hawaii is composed of four major islands and a lot of little ones here and there. The four bigger ones are: the Big Island, Oahu, Kauai, and Maui. I’m sure you’re all familiar with Waikiki, Hawaii’s most famous beach strip. Waikiki is located in Honolulu, Oahu, and we’ll be getting there soon. For this post, I’ll be sharing my Big Island experience.

Welcome to Hawaii, USA!!!

Incidentally, this is also my first US trip. I got a 10-year multiple-entry visa and I’m super thrilled!

We flew 18 hours into the past from Manila and landed in Honolulu and then we had to take a domestic flight to Hilo. I didn’t know what to expect. This picture is pretty much a glimpse of what the rest of Hilo looks like… wide open spaces, zero traffic, sky anticipating rain.

We checked in at Hilo Hawaiian Hotel. I loved the sunsets at that place.

Check out the view from my room. Hilo is so green!

We arrived on a Saturday and had the whole Sunday to ourselves. I fancied a walk around the hotel that Sunday morning.

After a 5-minute walk, I found this Japanese-themed garden.

Up ahead, there’s a rainbow. I came to know that there is always a rainbow over Hawaii. That is probably why it is nicknamed the Rainbow State.

On the other side of the hotel is a more tropical view. There’s a paddling area nearby. I’m just content to watch and enjoy being at that place at that time.

When everyone else was up, we proceeded to have breakfast at IHOP in Hilo’s biggest mall.

Dinner at Hilo Bay Cafe. For me, it’s the best restaurant there. A few more dinner suggestions: Cafe Pesto and Ponds.

I managed to get a few shots of what went into my hungry tummy.

A quick tip: never leave Hilo without visiting Mauna Loa - the best macadamia nut brand. They also have coffee, chocolate covered mac nuts, and various souvenir items.

In the wee hours of Tuesday morning, I had to fly back to Honolulu and continue the trip there. I was super excited to visit the famous Waikiki but at the same time, a bit bummed that I wouldn’t be able to go with the others to visit the volcanoes and the other beaches in Hilo.

Anyway, I can’t have both. I’ll see you on my next post!

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Guangzhou 2012: Guangdong Museum

On the same day that we roamed around the landmarks of Guangzhou, we also visited the interestingly-designed Guangdong museum.  Honestly, I am not a museum-going type of person but figuring that China has a very rich culture and history, I might as well immerse myself while I was there.

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Guangzhou 2012: Opera House and Canton Tower

Continuing my Guangzhou experience, I will focus this time on the sights and skyscrapers, which, for me, are the best part. In my previous post, I shared with you that we stayed at Hilton Hotel Tianhe. Though I didn’t get to take a lot of photos of my room, here is my shot of my view of Guangzhou from my floor-to-ceiling windows. I especially love that gold-colored glass building.

It was a bit of a gloomy day that time. At first, I thought it was just the typical smoggy skies of anywhere in China until it drizzled a bit. I didn’t mind. We just took a cab to where Guangzhou’s Opera House was. Thanks to our translator who wrote in advance the address in Chinese characters, we didn’t get lost.

Before we beheld the architectural beauty that was the Opera house, I managed to take a few photos of the surrounding business-gray buildings. They all almost looked the same.

The taxi dropped us off within a few steps from the Opera House. With it’s unique shape amidst the uniform buildings, you couldn’t miss it.

It looks like a space ship, if you ask me.

We weren’t able to go inside as it was closed. We just roamed around its perimeter and I found this artistically-wrought iron sculpture of a mother carrying her child. Also, we can see the Canton Tower in the background. We will be going there next.

Oh, but before the Canton Tower, we also went to the Guangdong Museum, which is very near the Opera House. I’ll be writing separate post for the museum.

Now, we’re on our way to the Canton Tower. It seemed so near but being very tall (2000 ft), it’s actually a cab-ride away.

We just enjoyed strolling around and looking a the directions.

The red brick road, which will hopefully lead us to our destination.

This one, I found unusual. What would be a statue of a peanut be doing around Guangzhou? Up to now, it’s an unsolved mystery.

We arrived at the base of Canton Tower and bought our tickets. There are different prices depending on the height you want to reach and if you want meals included.

The elevator ride was exhilarating (read: scary)! Here’s a view from the top.

… and then some more.

In this glass encasement, you get to have your photo taken by the camera propped overhead, and this photo can be claimed at the lobby.

One more shot of me beneath the Canton Tower!

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