Eid, work, and then some.

Past two days of Eid vacations wasted in fever. Finishing up the work tonight, my first instinct is to sleep or think I can wake up and do this afterwards. But I know for a fact that if I don't do this now, it won't get done, and in the end I'll be in hell. I think, right now, I needed just a little bit of positive something. How much of a difference a kindly voice saying "keep at it, you can do it, you always work hard, you can do this" or something like that can make, I realised that yet again today. I guess, even if you make new friends, the difference of someone who really knows you saying something and of someone who has just gotten to know one side of you, really makes a huge difference.
Back in the gaming days, I still went by that code. The past two years, I couldn't return to it, no matter how much I tried, it was like that part as permanently broken. Today, one more time, I'll be able to try. I'll still somehow pull through. If I survived that time, I can still survive this.

Tatoe donna ni muzukashi koto demo, yatterareru, aa, darekaga miteageru, mitometeageru, atashi no zenryoku wa muda jyanai tte koto wo mata oshietekurete arigatou. Arigatou Lee, kimi no yasashisa ni mata tsukuwareta. Nanka... itsumo osewani natteru yo ne, arigatou, hitori demo, dekiru, tatta hitori demo, atashi no koto shijitekureru hito ga aru nara, yareru.

I get back to work as Suzuki Konomi's Choir Jail pulls at my heart and reminds me that it's my go to song at times like this.

Watashi wo akete, konna kurushisa de nanimo mienai...

#shigoto #hitori #nayami #work #teachersday #teaching #relationships #ひとり #一人 #人間関係 #さびしい #がんばる #ファイト #約束 #じぶん #aloneagain #choirjail #konomisuzuki

Finally the Holidays Start...

After a very hectic, what seemed like a year, finally, the holidays have started. True, they won't last long, it's just one month, that too will be the fasting month so the number of things I can do will be limited. I also decided to keep teaching my ESL classes since I unexpectedly had people showing up at my house asking to be taught during the holidays ._______. I immediately regretted after saying yes since I realised it meant I won't get to slack off and binge watch anime, sleep when I want, wake when I want and in short laze my life away for the month of June. But in a way it's a good thing, now I'll follow a proper time table to an extent. Now the things I need to do during this month...

1. Teach my ESL Class.
2. Make all the lesson plans for the entire year so I don't have to go crazy every month trying to find ways to plan new activities and ways of teaching.
3. I have to make a list of all the anime series I have in a proper alphabetical order in an excel file.
4. Record at least 3-4 song covers.
5. Make a list/index my anime merchandise collection so I know what the heck I even have.
6. Make a few karaoke video (if YouTube fails me) for my anime event.
7. Design at least 10 T-shirts.
8. Design at least 15 Mugs.
9. Make at least 20 Calender.
10. Make a bunch of wallpapers/posters in very high quality so that they can be used for printing.
11. Disinfect my laptop from the virus that has crept in from God knows where.
12. Finish or at least get close to finishing my PennFoster course.
13.  Clean up my room and organise it in such a way that I don't have to stress about cleaning during the year when work starts and I don't have time to even sleep.
14. Make sight words in a decorative and innovative way for my class.
15. List all my anime items on the Facebook Page.
16. Sell all my items from my Jade Dynasty account and hopefully close the account altogether.
17. Update and relist all the items from my account to my blog so people can buy.
18. Perfect my hiragana and get on to katakana.
19. Learn how to do mastering better.

...I pull up this huge list in my half asleep state... I wonder what I'll get if I was actually properly alert and awake -___-;; guess I'm not going to be taking it easy even during the holidays. I WILL, however, complete at least two series and 3 manga which I had been dying to try for a very long time now -.-;;

Time to sleep, to the voice of Susumu Hirasawa telling the story of Byakkoya no Musume.

though the lyrics are ever so slightly off/could be worded better in some parts, I find this video quite breathtaking and matching with the intensity of the song, not to mention of the movie from which the song itself came.

Found an epic Kaito/Kagamine Rin version as well

As a last thought that I got while looking up the videos to add to the post, I so despise when people say "You only like Japanese music because you understand what it's saying, we cannot like it when it's not in our language and we have no idea what it means". SO.NOT.TRUE! I used to have the Flame of Recca and Ninku opening and ending memorised when I didn't even know a word of Japanese. You needn't have a perfect fluency in Japanese to appreciate good music, there are things called subtitles, there are people who're willing to upload subtitled videos to help people who like music and want to understand what is it that's being said in the songs. Japanese music is beautiful, like a multifold story unfolding with each note, like a folklore full of mystery and wonder just waiting to be discovered by someone who'd be as excited listening to it as the one who made it was when he/she made it.

Be a little more open-minded, it's a huge wonderful word outside that you're missing out cause you're not willing to leave your norm and your comfortable, familiar zone.

Starting at a New Class and Finishing leftover Studies ~ Random Talk

So I finally finished the math test and miraculously got a 100. Shocked, cause when it comes to math I'm wonderful at getting lost and confused.

But luckily it's done and over and I don't have to deal with Math again for a while. Thanks, Will, your supportive talk motivated me to actually give it another try ^^

Moving on, I've been reading up on my Kanji and other Japanese studies. Hopefully, by July I'll be able to clear the JLPT N5 and N4 and probably get a decent job in Japan *-*

I'll be going for the Vocal Training class in a little bit, I want to try and see how much I can learn by the end of that course. That being said, I just realised, I've been skipping and hopping around way too many professions and things... I hope eventually one of them leads me to be able to work in Japan @_@...

debating if I should take an hour nap before the class... but what if I can't wake up >w<...

This Month's Selected Anime ~ Natsume Yuujinchou + First EP Review.

After almost 8 years of following this series, and after finally getting the long awaited fifth season, I'm going to be dedicating the rest of this month to all things Natsume Yuujincou, otherwise known as Natsume's Book of Friends.

Even though, it seems like your typical orphan boy who got some special power/powerful friends who help him, type of story, when you actually start watching, you end up realizing just how beautiful the series really is.

The story revolves around Takashi Natsume, an orphan boy who has the ability to see that which others cannot, namely, Ayakashi, otherwise known as Spirits or monsters. As a child he was passed around between his relatives and treated quite horribly because the people who couldn't see anything always thought he was making things up for attention

. Natsume now lives at the house of Shigeru and Touko Fujiwara, the kind. distant relative couple that have finally adopted him. He lives in the same town where his grandmother once used to live. Natsume Reiko, who was also able to see Ayakashi and was isolated because of that.

In the first episode, Natsume finds, when being chased by an Ayakashi,

a cat youkai who had been sealed.

 He accidentally breaks the seal and finds out the cat ayakashi once knew his grandmother. He tells Natsume about Reiko and asks him about the Yuujincou (Book of Friends).

Natsume goes home and finds it in Reiko's old stuff that had been passed down to him. The cat youkai chases him home and demands he hand over the book. More Youkai come chasing after him for the book

but the cat youkai, who asks Natsume to call him Nyanko Sensei,

helps him and teaches him how to return the yokai's name to them. In the end Natsume returns the name of the youkai

and in doing so, sees a vision of Reiko with the youkai.

In the end Nyanko Sensei and Natsume come to the conclusion that Natsume will return the names of the youkai that are written in the book and if he dies while doing so, Nyanko sensei will inherit the remaining book.

The story itself might feel quite plain in the beginning, but, once you start watching, the background music, the simple art style, the soft more on the pastel side colours and most of all, the heartwarming depth of the story really gets to you. I love how they selected the voice cast, none of them are loud or annoying sounding. The opening and ending songs

match beautifully with the theme of the series. You get to see the main close people to Natsume, and the youkai that will be appearing all through the season

. The subtle light hearted humor, the just right slice of life feel and the perfectly paced episodes leave you wanting more. You don't feel rushed and you don't feel like the episode is dragging on, everything perfectly connects. Be prepared with a box of tissues, this series have a tendency of tugging at your heartstrings when you least expect it. I've had people walk in on me when I'm watching and sobbing non stop, and then giving me weird looks for it ._.

Coming from the creator of Hotarobi no Mori e/Into the Forest of the Fireflies, if you guys have watched that, you'd understand what I mean when I say Natsume Yuujinchou is a lot more deeper and full of feels than that.

On a scale of 1-10 this is one series I'd give a 10/10 every single time. To me, this anime is something everyone should watch at least once in your life. It shows what true strength, true kindness is like.



Bonus : Here's the Opening video~

Site Update: Layout and Design Change~

Since I was stuck in bed with a stupid viral fever and pretty much sleeping or watching anime for the most part, I decided that I won't get this much free time anytime soon, and changed the long since overdue site style.
I changed pretty much everything to do with the layout and how the site theme/colour was. In honor of the winter finally starting, I'm going with a winter stormy night sort of theme. The moon picture is my own, that I took during the super moon, everything else as well, apart from the Fushigi Yuugi part of the image that I put on the banner. I was going to use this banner at first :

then I remembered my loyalty to Tamahome and went with that instead.

I changed the favicon as well to a blue butterfly and my TnM instead of the brown butterfly one. This was a complete overhaul indeed @__@...

The other thing I'll be changing soon on this site is that I won't keep a blogroll. It's better off not having inactive bloggers linked to me who never updated in several years. Instead, I'd like to stick with like minded bloggers.

I also decided to do my posts in a theme order. The theme order isn't 100% decided yet so I can't really put all details here. I will however, make weekly anime graphics. Wallpapers, Icons, FB Covers, YouTube Covers and the like. They're free to use as long as you're linking back to me.

I'll also, be doing Seiyuu Sunday. Every Sunday (I will skip if I'm sick or too busy so sorry in advance for that!) I'll do a Seiyuu profile, bringing together all the different sort of roles, and if they acted in my fave anime series or which roles were the best in my opinion etc. Hoping to spread a bit more awareness for how vast the voice acting world is.

I'll be doing my own personal sort of posts as well since, this 'is' my blog which I started to just ramble about different things. But I'll put them under a different label and that won't get between the anime aspect of the site.

All in all, with all the teaching and everything else going, I've been too busy to actually sit back and enjoy anime like I used to, so this fever was a welcome change after all.

For now, I'll go look up more material!

Please comment below if you think the text is too hard to read or the image above would look better in the banner than the one I have up right now. All comments welcome :)

My Attempt at Super Moon Pics

Special Thanks to my sister for going on the roof at the dead hour of the night :x...

What happens when I try to take pics with a cam I hardly used since I bought it? This:

Taken with Panasonic Lumix DMC - LZ20

Then I tried with my better Cam, my Galaxy S4 Zoom (thanks Jose I love it and you're awesome for giving me such a great gift :P )

Then since I wasn't satisfied with just the pics from yesterday so I went up again today and took this one again with the Galaxy S4 Zoom:

I'm so in love with how the craters are showing ❤

Day before Exam ~Personal Rambling~

---DO NOT READ IF YOU HATE RANDOM TALK!---

SO my exam is finally tomorrow, and I'm in bed with severe muscle injury or ligament injury to put it in a more fancy way :x I've been wrecking my brain trying to read all the books while the pain keeps me from focusing, on top of it the noisy atmosphere I'm in makes it worse. 

I needed to sort out the jumbled mess in my head so decided to just write it all out instead of getting distracted.

I know there's a new chapter of Akatsuki no Yona out that I'm dying to read ._.  I also am itching to watch the new Makoto Shinkai movie I downloaded.

I have to clear up my room, and sort the things I need to give out x.x...

I want to find Shuja bhai and sensei's contact adress again ._. 

The flashcards I got I still haven't been able to use properly.

I need to take more time out to spend with family.

I want to get a part time job at the recording studio I found here as well x.x... But I also have to get my lesson plans ready for the people I'll be teaching starting September.

My friend will shoot me soon if I don't make a proper resume for myself.

I have to make the cover for Sangatsu Kokonoka and Yayashisa no Riyuu as well.

Plan the anime meet again.

konna aimai na jinsei de ii no kana atashi x.x...

Servamp Manga Chapter 10 - 35 ~Thoughts and Reflections~

Updated last night at 2:22 AM my time, I saw it early in the morning, and it's already over... While I was reading the last chapter I had this sickening feeling that I'm gonna have to wait and it was true T__T... since they JUST did a huge update, there's no way they'll update it again so soon T__T...

Servamp so far is going beautifully. I think people should really read this manga. I once again am presented with the many options, to do or not to do. in the end, life is just made out of the choices we make, good or bad, which leads us to where we are in time right here right now. The choices we make for us, the choices someone else's hand forces on us, when I think about it, they're still the choices that we could have chosen not to make.

I wonder, is a child to be blamed for the choice an elder person decides for him? Set up in an atmosphere where saying no is an instant road to endless suffering, physically or mentally, what does a child choose? Don't all choices depend on the people making them? presenting the same choices to two different type of people who grew up in different type of atmosphere, do they still bear the same results? Some choose to run away, some look away, and some follow through, but is it really a choice we make ourselves? How do we know, which choice was the one we truly made, which was the one that we were lead to believe that we're making and wasn't really ours? But then, the person who said "I'll do it" the person who said "I won't" would at the end of the day, still be you. So then who actually made the choice?

My choice of staying home today and finishing reading Servamp instead of attempting to go to gym even though I'm still weak from the week long fever, what exactly would have changed if I had chosen to go? would I have I had a life changing encounter? would I have met people or seen things that would change the way I see things? Or would I have just another day of workout and coming back home to my everyday life? I chose to stay here and read because I strongly felt that this manga has something in it that moves me... People have to live with their choices. I want to live with mine, not the choices I have to make because others want me to to make it, but the ones I make for myself, good or bad, if it's something I chose, then I have to live with it or fix it by myself.

Just because you're grown up doesn't necessarily mean you're wise or mature, I think, growing up means accepting yourself for who you are and moving on.

Few days ago, one of my friends got picked on and badmouthed a lot over the internet just cause he was selected for a big competition and won, where others who were trying to manipulate the people running the contest, didn't.  I thought about it for a long time while he was in the argument with the person, I could't see what they were talking about since it was a private chat, but I thought for a long time, Why? Why does he have to suffer just because he was good enough and worked hard to achieve something a lot of people were working towards. That doesn't really mean the others were bad, it's just he was better than the rest simply put. Does that mean you have to hate him for that? does that make you look better when you try to make him look bad? Don't people see how ugly they appear to the other person when they talk ill about someone just out of spite without putting in the extra effort that someone else did? So what if someone else won? Next time work more, work harder, put in your best effort, and work towards fixing what you lack. I don't think hating someone or trying to degrade someone just because they did better than you, helps you improve anything. People need to move on and realize that only by working on something just as hard, or even harder than the person they envy, can they actually get somewhere.

I wish people would actually try to understand themselves first before trying to lash out at others ._. ...

Servamp Manga - Chapter 1-9 - Thoughts and Reflections ~

since I usually just watch the first episodes of onging series to get the feel of the voices and etc, I did the same with this one. After watching the first episode I switched to the manga, took a while to read just 9 chapters cause there was a lot going on and I didn't really have the chance to read, however, I'm glad I did. I'm really hoping that the anime picks up where the manga stopped. I think this series is somewhat similar to Natsume Yujinchou, heavily focused on the feels. I love how it steadily introduced characters and the backstories, and how you can relate to them cause of the super deep detailing, I haven't had this much feels since Natsume Yujinchou and Fruits Basket. They really need to update the manga and I really need to be able to read Japanese soon -.-;...

The way it was for Sakuya and Mahiru, I wonder if in real life friends actually think like that about each other? People usually change after a small conflict, for the sake of greed, for their own benefit, and for many different reasons. As I read the last two chapters, I kept thinking back on how many, many friends from the Maple Story times till now, I've believed in who have let me down... I wonder if it's really that easy for people. I wonder why I was never able to do that myself, so many times when I was told that the person I was going around doing so much for, is laughing at me behind my back, or is just using me, why did I keep on believing in them only to get back-stabbed later on. I still don't know why people change, it's already been 10 years +, I'm older but none the wiser. Even now, the people I called friends, I believed in them and truly thought of them as such, and 10 years later, it still hasn't changed. People still use me and I still get shocked when I learn how they felt about the relationship was never the same as me. Even now, I still end up getting attached, getting close, and getting hurt, but I still feel, it's better to be able to believe in people than doubting them from the start. Maybe my thinking style is really silly for this sort of world that I live in where people see each other as something to use or a stepping stone, but I think, I believe, that even if 99 out of 100 people that I believed in, change on me and betray me, even if I find one person, the one and only person would be worth going through all that suffering cause that one person would be the person who'd actually see me and feel for me as I do for them. My roommate in Kerala used to say something around the lines of "people are only together to take advantage of each other and to use each other, no need to get attached and no need to get close, once you're done with what you're there for, each will go their own way". But see, true as that might be, maybe someone doesn't feel like that, maybe someone out there would actually want someone they could depend on and open up to, who'd do the same for them, I don't think everyone in the world is that selfish and that disbelieving, I don't think there's no hope for this world, and I don't think people are stepping stones. 

I'm thankful to have friends who've helped keep my faith strong, Maddy, Rell, thank you.

ここから さき え。。。From here on, what should I do?

I got my CertTESOL certificate today. I did good considering I had no practical teaching experience so I'm happy with my grade. I was expecting much worse ^^:

Then, my favorite Youtube Idol JefferzKM tweeted a song from a new anime that I think hasn't even started airing yet, and I'm yet again, all confused. I realize again and again, that is where my passion truly lies. I direct my attention towards different things, more practical things, but I'm pulled by even the smallest thing from this side... hon'nosukoshi demo, miraretara kokoro ga yurete, hikareteshimau... what should I do to be practical while being true to myself?

I get the, 'act your age' line all the time but, how do you behave like a grown up? My roommate in Kerala also said similar things, but I wonder, what does it mean to be a grown up? otona tte nan deshou? just because you're older, do you have to rip apart yourself and pretend to be something you're not? I get that once you're older, have responsibilities and things to consider before doing things, and there are certain priorities in life. But, why can't we be ourselves while doing that? I get shunned a lot for my passion for anime and the much I'm into Japanese language and culture. Just because I'm not a usual Indian person, how does it make me any less grown up?

I like making anime style graphics.
I like singing Japanese songs.
I like watching anime and reading manga.
I like Vocaloids.
I like reading about Japanese culture and history.
I like experimenting with cooking instead of making traditional food all the time.
I like the rain and the sky and night time view of places.
I like listening to youtube covers of anime song and different Japanese songs.
I like finding new creative things.
I like photoshop and paint-sai.
I like traveling and checking out new places.
I like adventures.
I like discovering new things and exploring.
I like finding talented people and feeling happy that people can be so creative.
I like the smell of the earth after rain and the smell of the air before it rains.
I like books.
I like music, especially Japanese music.

I don't like clothes shopping that takes forever.
I don't like having a whole army of bags to match every outfit, two three that go good with different occasions are enough.
I don't like backstabbing girl talk.
I don't like praising people without meaning it.
I don't like talking to people who have a closed mindset about things.
I don't like people who don't open up and expect me to.
I don't like dull, non creative things.
I don't like muddy roads.
I don't like people who question everything just to annoy people.
I don't like people who criticize others or judge others without knowing their circumstances.
I don't like the fact that I can't go on the roof at night anymore.
I don't like the tall buildings and city lights that make it hard to see the stars at night.
I don't like being a stick in the mud and following exactly what everyone else is doing.
I don't like being unable to choose how my life turns out, but then again, who can...

Inside my head, everything is a jumbled mess.

I don't want to stay in my hometown but I don't have a choice otherwise. I want to go teach and live in Japan or South Korea... this isn't my place to be, this isn't the life I want to choose, and yet...

I have a new teaching job, probably starting in August here in my own city. I don't particularly want to do it. It's not a bad job, but it's not what I want to do.
If only I had more time, if only I could change something about my life, if only life was not so unfair.
I want to continue my cover singing on Youtube. I don't care if I'm an insignificant nobody compared to the other amazing singers, it is what makes me happy. I love doing that. I want to translate more songs. Write more. Get the time and atmosphere so I can read more of Min's poetry. I want to make more beautiful pictures in photoshop. I still have to learn katakana and kanji. Why is there so much that I want to do and yet barely any chance or time to be able to do it... jinsei tte..fukoheina mono desu ne...

AHHHHHHHHHH whatever =.= ... I'll just go make some graphics that always helps -.-;

Back Home

I missed out on the fifth week post because of exam and running all over the place buying gifts for people, truly a hectic week.
Now I'm back home. Managed to get here before Ramadan ended and will be able to help with Eid preparation. In a way it was good that my Bangalore trip got cancelled I guess. I was much more needed here.

The question remains however, now what?  I should focus on finishing my arena course and my Penn foster one. I haven't been on Jade Dynasty in forever.  Need to set up a website to sell all the items I have there as well. I wonder if I should quit now. None of the old people seem to be coming back... I cannot reach jsrf anymore which is yet another stressful thing for me, though I try not to think about it. Stressing isn't going to help, better to just try to find a distraction or solution for the time being.  I think a lot changed in me after this trip. I have so much that I need to think about that it frightens me.

I started Usagi Drop that Min recommend long ago on the bus journey from Ernakulam to Angamaly before. I finished it last night when I was awake in pain. It had me thinking about so many things again.  I wonder if I should just try living alone for now... how will I manage such a small child... but I think I can if I try. First to get a job and pass my exams.  I need to increase the qualifications that I hold right now... there's just so much for me to do it's scary...

Nande hitori ni shita no..?  Sabishi deshou, kowakute mo naite ii toko wa mo inakunatta. Kaeru basho wa mou inai. Semete renraku gurai shite yo... atashi anna ni tsuyoku nai mon... shitteru deshou... nanoni nande? Ikusaki wa...makkura da yo... anata wa doko...?

Kerala Fourth Week -Thoughts and Reflections-

As the time to leave draws closer, I keep thinking back to what I felt when I first came here. I'm thankful to Shattik for making me experience this. Truly, I have ways to go before I can really learn to be like everyone else. The majority of the students, if not all, are here with the mindset that once the course is over they don't really have to talk to each other or put up with each other... I wonder if I'm the only naive one that thought that this would be a great chance to get to know people from different places and different backgrounds?

I had fever since yesterday, right now I'm sitting at home working on my Learner's Profile and after that my Material Assignment and the lesson for Monday. There's a dead silence in my apartment. To the suffocating point. I wonder why people cannot look at each other as just people instead of labeling them as so or so. Maybe, if they accepted people for who they are, maybe, just maybe, things would go better for everyone. If there's an argument, isn't it better to just let go of the things and move on instead of holding a grudge and thinking that things can't get better? I wonder if I'm too naive still. Even so, I want to get along with everyone, if you could sacrifice some bit of your ego and just smile at the other person, things should be able to work out. But then, there's the part of the other person that doesn't want to give in... I still don't know how to change that. Mom used to say "you can only control yourself, you cannot control how others think or behave", I see how it works out in the real world. Even though, I've gone through this same experience during my gaming years, still, I still want to believe that if someone is sincere the feelings do get through. Maybe not all the way, maybe not at once, but it does, in time it does. The people I want to reach to, I don't know what sort of hardships they had to go through since they usually don't want to talk about it, but I know that I want to understand them and get to know them better. I still don't know how to reach out to someone who's closed themselves, but maybe if I keep working on it, little by little, maybe we can come to an understanding or maybe they'll learn that not everyone is out there to take advantage of you.

When I leave here, I want to be able to be friends with everyone, be in contact even after we go our own ways, of course it won't be like it is now, but still, maybe something will remain. Not everything is dark and black, maybe somewhere, if you try to search for it long enough, there's still light, there's still hope... sekai wa, tsuteta mon jya nai kara, doryoku sureba, nanikaga kawareru hazu. For sure, if you work hard enough, something could change. For now, I don't want to change my way of thinking, I might be naive and I might be silly for thinking this way, but I still want to believe in the better part of people. One day for sure, people will be able to believe in each other.

Kerala Third Week

Well, I thought I would write daily but in the end the week flew by and I was way too busy to sit down and write. Ramadan started. Between fasting and studying it was hectic to say the least.

I made new friends! Mark, Justin and Chun. They're all from Australia and are really nice people. I hope I get to make more good friends here.

Right now I'm on my way to Guruvayoora via bus. My first time actually taking a bus from a bus stop. Going to a friend's house for iftaar, might stay the night.

The day has been so full of mini personal adventures! I woke up got ready and took a Uber cab to Fort Kochi. Could have been cheaper. Next time I'll try by bus. 

When I got to Fort Kochi I was so happy that I had actually packed my slippers. The pretty sketchers would have been ruined in the mud and sand. While I was sitting on a bench taking in the view, someone came and said "Assalam Alykum". Was pretty surprising for me, then he asked if I was Arabic. Apparently someone who owned a shop and was thinking I was a rich Arab lady cause of abaya. *Shakes my head* in any case he did tell me all about the places I could see. I took an auto rickshaw and went exploring all over Fort Kochi. That was really fun, the driver was trying to get me into shops that are tourist exclusive *=rip off shops*. Apparently he gets a cut every time he brings a tourist to those shops.

After the visit to the Chinese fishing nets, it started raining heavily. I took refuge in a hotel my friend told me about before. It was the most sensational view! From the second floor room, you could see the whole sea out there. The boats and ferries and even the huge cruise like ships. Had to wait there for a long time so I made sure that I got lots of pictures and videos. When I was making video, there was a time when lighting struck somewhere. I saw the flash and heard the sound. It was really frightening. The ground underneath me practically shook when it rumbled. 

I left the hotel when the rain let up, mobile all charged and phone batteries changed. Then I went to the Dutch Palace, historical pictures and artifacts. Somehow I had a deja vu feeling, like back when we first came to Kerala maybe I came here. It all seemed so familiar. They didn't allow picture taking, made me remember the picture my sister Nelly took of the no pictures sign long ago. When coming out I saw a family going in, when I came to the cab driver he and another cab driver were talking about the family saying how shameful, they are from Arab and not fasting and shamelessly eating in public. One driver was Hindu and one was Muslim. They praised me over fasting even when I was travelling. Made me so grateful to my parents for teaching me how to preserve and how to fast even when it's hard to, especially my mom. The very reason I don't skip fast even though when I'm studying and in the afternoon it gets difficult because of the lack of sleep. My body craves caffeine. It takes every ounce of my will power to continue doing it everyday. Today when I was waiting at the hotel for the rain to end, it was so tempting to see the food being made and the drinks being served. The waiter gave me a huge menu, and the items listed there looked so tempting. But I'm glad I preserved. The remark from that auto driver, made me feel so happy and so light. I'm glad I preserved. I'm glad I didn't stop fasting.

I came out of there and went to a close by shop that had many artifacts and ancient items. Next was the police museum, interesting place and I was able to take pictures as well. Again the deja vu feeling was there. I wanted to go to another shop as well but the time for ferry was getting close. Dad's student invited me to iftaar at his place when I was at the hotel. Had to hurry.
The ferry was late but it was amazing. I made a video and took pictures. That was truly a fun ride. I got a window seat and was able to look at the beautiful scenery outside.

I reached Ernakulam and then some nice person helped me get on the bus to Guruvayoor. 

I'll write part two after I'm back home

Part 2:

So it's Sunday, I'm back home. I had the most wonderful weekend.

I stayed the night at my Dad's student's place. We had a wonderful dinner then in the morning a really great sehri, the best I had since I got to Kerala, partly cause I didn't have much time to prepare food for that early, partly cause I would just fall asleep -.-;

In the morning we went to the beach and then the Elephant park, which however, I hated due to the fact that it felt like animal cruelty to me. I know they have their reasons but it still looked painful.

I requested to go to the beach again, and then I was able to actually have fun and enjoy playing in the water. Best.Day.Yet.

I hope next week I'm able to finish all my lessons and projects on time, and then I can go away on Saturday at least. Going out is much like a breather. I feel like I can work hard and focus more on things when I get some space to breathe.

I'll write more again. No time to add pictures right now, I'll do it when I get home and get everything organized.

Creative Mela(Festival) and my Anime Corner

The Creative Mela we held at Arena Animation successfully finished and I was able to find a lot of anime lovers in my city thank to it ^^ Here's a pic by pic of everything that happened in the 2 Day at my Anime Corner~

Abhilasha Di and Vidhi standing near my Posters and Photographs

Garima at My Anime Corner

Vidhi and Garima helped a lot managing my Anime corner and the visitor's Register ^^ Thanks both of you!

The Bouquet Jose sent a day before the event stayed at my corner for the entire event ^^ Thanks Jose that really cheered me up! 

Pretty flowers with beautiful Yuuko and IA in background

The Mugs I got done for the event! Let's see how many people recognize what anime/what chars!

First Look at my Anime Items for the Event:

I didn't realize I had so much stuff stacked up o.o... forgot to take picture of the Card Captor Sakura File Folders and the Gaara Gourd Watch T~T...

First Day look at the Anime Corner:

 

Vikas Eyeing my Itachi Mug O.O

Finally Met Zarrin!

Zarrin, My First buyer and a really cool person! 

Zarrin's Shoes, she should go into business with this :x such awesome Art work!

Seriously some people have SO much talent!

Next Day :

T Shirts finally got printed ! 

My precious color books that I made for this event! And my Fushigi Yuugi Laptop cover xD

Vikas gave a glass of Sprite, the bubbles looked so pretty going up in the lights all around! I tried to take a pic but couldn't get a good one from where I was sitting at, in the end Vidhi took this pic, pretty cool with Kakashi in the background xD (That hand right there with the awesome Mentor tag is mine huhuhuhu)

Swaleh wrote the text for the title of my photographs section "The World Around Me"
Such awesome work! Thanks Swaleh!

My Anime Corner the next day with the now finally finished Shirts! Looks so much better with the Anime Corner that Swaleh wrote in his awesome writing! I painted it in different colors.

My Manga Collection

Mug matched the Itachi T shirt so decided to put both in same area.

Me Vikas and Ashar, poor T Shirts finally sliding off x.x... people cannot keep their hands off!

Over all it was a great event, I met a lot of awesome anime loving people. Special Thanks to Garima and Vidhi for helping me manage my corner and the Guest Register, honestly it would have been hard dealing with so many people on my own.

Also Thanks to Swaleh for Writing the Anime Corner and The World Around Me in his awesome writing. 

Thanks to David, Ashutosh, Qadir and Vibhor for helping with the decorations! Especially Ashutosh and David, who had exam next day and stayed late to help out with printing/decorations/star sticking/and tape providing.

BIG Thanks to my sister Nelly and Ashutosh for helping me put up my posters and Photographs, alone I would have gone have crazy doing all that myself.

Thanks so much Lokesh Sir for getting the Shirts printed before the event was over.

And thank you so much Jose for sending the beautiful flowers that kept my corner bright ^^

I really hope that we get to do this event again and this time I find more anime lovers and make more good friends ^-^