2012 World Series- San Francisco Giants vs Detroit Tigers

The Giants and Tigers head east for game 3 of the series.  Games 1 and 2 as well as 67 are hosted by the national league team at AT&T Park in San Francisco.  Last nights game was won he Gants in a sparring match that took both teams until the 7th inning before we saw anything on the scoreboard aside from zeroes.  In the end, the Giants shutout the other team and scored 2 runs.  San Francisco won the first game in much grander fashion than the second night.  I was fortunate enough to be on hand to see it.

With the first pitch some time away, I felt the need to explore the ballpark.  Out by the right field bleachers, the standing room only section had tickets going for at least $400 on the open market.

The National League trophy was won in stupendous fashion in a thrilling 3-game come from behind victory on Monday in SF.  Luckily, the team could stay put and not have to endure the flight to Detroit for the start of the series 2 days later.

A view from my seat along the first-base line high up in the nosebleed section.  Fans on their feet for the singing of the national anthem and the opening of game 1 and the series

Pablo Sandovals's first at bat.  An electric night saw him hitting 3 homeruns with this one to start it all off.  With support from the others adding another 5 runs to overwhelm the Tigers.  Balls were bouncing in our favor as a ball hit down the third base line struck third and changed its directory enough to get by the the third baseman. 

With the game well in hand by the top of the 6th inning, my wanderlust got me out of my seat to explored the the stadium after sunset.  The birght lights lighting up the fans and the field.  You can just make out the empty seat on the left in the top section where I had vacated it to find some sustanence

A nice brat loaded with saurkraut and grilled onions on a bun helped to take care of the hunger as the winning ways of our team was the best appetite suppresant one would ever want.  A hot cup of coffee, though not my usual accompnayment, was a nice shot of warmth and caffeinne.  Round about $8for the sausage snadwich made for a reasonable price.  Other options abound would make you dizzy from the choices.  Aside from the usual ballpark fare, there is also barbecue, crab sandwiches, garlic fries, etc.

A great way to start the fall classic with a 8-3 dominating win.  Everything went right and all the pieces, (defense, pitching, battting) were in place to make an exciting game for fans of the home team.

Hees to the Giants taking the series.  I predict they will take it before returning home.  But, they will return champions.  Go Giants!

Military Vehicle Technology Foundation

Nestled in the quiet Portola Valley of San Mateo county lies a museum of immense proportions.  Spread over several acres of land, the Military Vehicle Technology Foundation seeks to restore military vehicles from many generations and regions.  Also known as the Tank Farm, their collection, as the name states, consists primarily of tanks but does encompass other vehicles used not only by our military but other forces around the world.

Tours are provided to the public by reservation.  Fees are charged at $20 per adult and reduced fares for children.  Information can be found at their website.  In the main area that we parked at, several vehicles were on display as we waited for our tour to begin.  For safety reasons, you are not able to climb in or operate anything they have except for a few exhibits like an M5 halftrack mounted with 3 M2 .50 caliber machine guns and 2 .30 caliber guns

There were 4 buildings that we toured.  3 were in the parking area and the 4th is a short wak away.  The 3 buildings are interconnect and comprise the bulk of the tour. 

Many of the pieces are in several conditions of being repaired.  A seperate workshop was located in another building that was not open to our tour.  Some have seen better days while others are completely restored and can be driven off the site. 

Rust is evident all over the tip of this barrel.  Things like this will have the rust removed and repainted to its former glory.  It will not be working condition as most of the vehicles are found in a demilitarized condition

Tour guides take you through the buildings and provide information on the work they are doing as well as history on select items in the tour.  The foundation was started by Jacques Littlefield.  The collection grew until his passing in 2009.

This German Leopard tank represents one of the many countries that are represented within the array of vehicles.  There are several variations on the Panzer tanks in the buildings.  However, they were not fortunate to have a Tiger.  The Tiger tank was one of the biggest, heaviest, most armored tank the Germans made during WWII.  Though not as fast as other tanks of its era, it was one of the most feared

While not a whole tank, this M1 Abrams turret is a contemporary display of a component of today's main battle tanks.  Sloping sides and a low profile are the hallmarks of many behemothes that are produced by the world's military.  The turrets are not secured to the motorezed portion.  They are simply held in place by their sheer weight.  If an Abrams was turned upside-down. the turret would just fall off.

The sloped slides of the turret are a design feature to help dissipate the destructive force of incoming rounds.  A machine gun is coaxially mounted alongside the main gun.  The gunner is seated in a little cage below the main gun.  Atop, other variations have mounted additional machine guns or TOW missle launchers

The business end of the 120mm smooth-bore main gun barrel but it started life with a 105mm rifled barrel

Vehicles used to ferry troops in and out of the battlefield can be found on the grounds.  This M90 APC can protect itself with M60 machine gun and a TOW launcher.  Jeeps and other unarmored transports are scattered throughout this culmination of military converances.

A Russian T-54 tank

The rifled main gun barrel.  The rifling helps to spin the projectile to stabilize it while in flight to its target.  Bullets in handguns work on this same principle.  This is what the inside of a handgun barrel would look like but on a much smaller scale.

Other engineering vehicles include this monstrosity which is used to lay a temporary bridge over small rivers or empasses to allow personnel or other transport to cross.  The upper portion opens like a clamshell with the tips being the front and back of the bridge.  The whole assembly pivots forward as it opens.  A modern version of this vehicle has the parts sliding past each other.

For Lunch - Saigon BBQ

While in brisbane I stopped a strip mall that has a number of restaurants with a variety of cuisines and tastes. Sincr the weather was a bit overcast it put me in the mood for some soup and dropped into the vietnamese place. The menu is fairly standard as I scoped out the pho section. Most places have a small med large or xl. At the least 2 sizes. Here there was only 1 size. A decent portion for the price. Not cheap but by no means expensive. I ordered the number 3 with eye round and brisket. Upon first taste of the soup it was bland. There was not much beef flavor nor was there much msg. On the plus side it was not very oily. A full squeeze of lime didn't really inspire the flavors. The rice noodles had a good amount of chew and the portions of beef were good. After finishing most of the solid matter I began into the soup once more. By now the ingredients would have imparted their flavors into the broth. At this time I like to eat the softened slices of onion that have becomer sweeter while in the soup. Again I felt the same dissappointment that I felt during my first go around with this dish

For Lunch - Volcano Curry

Sqeeuzed in between a bank and a burrito place on Geary Blvd is Volcano Curry.  This place serves up Japanese style curry and rice, curry rice.  This dish can be spicey and can be made with various add-ons or toppings.  I partake of this quite often when in Tokyo.  I stop into Coco Ichiban and usually order a side salad with fried shrimp and take time out to decide what suits my fancy at the time. 

Though the offerings are not as expansive, as the japanese chain restaurant mentioned before, their is still good variety to suit most needs/tastes

On this particular go around, I went a bit healthy and had the vegetable curry.  The carrots and potatoes were pretty standard.  I really enjoyed the fried eggplant.  Varying levels of heat can be opted for.  I like heat at times but prefer to enjoy the flavor of my meal rather than swelter in the buring of my mouth and tongue.  Some of the variations that they offer are beef and chicken as well as pork or chicken katsu(deep fried meat patty).  They offer other toppings which may seem strange but are often seen in Japan.  Cheese, various vegetables, sausages, and croquettes are available

For Lunch - Santa Ramen

It has been years since my first visit to this ramen shop.  The first visit occured at their previous location on B street in San Mateo.  They have since moved to this location near El Camino Real just off Hwy 92.  Ive heard the old place has been taken over by another ramen joint, Ramen Dojo.  I have not tried it that yet.  Its still eary yet and the place has not opened yet.

Minutes before opening, there are people lined up at the entrance.  One of the workers comes out to begin taking orders before the the doors to let in the hungry patrons.  The interior is fairly standard but thats not what gets the people coming into the place.  It may look empty now but it does not stay that way for long.  As I was eating alone, I was done fairly quickly and the restaurant was overflowing with patrons inside and out.

It is, of course, the ramen that brings the masses in.  On a previous visit, I dont remember what I had but I know what I ordered.  On that fateful visit, we were not the early birds so we missed out on the stewed pork ramen.  I settled on something else but my memory eludes me.   Santa offers their ramen in 3 flavors, salt(shio), soy sauce(shoyu), and miso.  My preference is usually miso unless Ive had bowls of it and it has made me sick.  I have the stewed pork miso ramen, non-spicey.  I didnt whimp out this time but wanted a taste of their stuff unadultered before I start throwing in the kitchen sink.  I plow through my least favorite bits, the bean sprouts and greens before getting to the meat of the matter.  The stewed pork, in the middle, is very sweet and tender.  The fatty parts liquify in your mouth and the meat fibers pull away from each other as you begin to chew on it.  There are also 2 very thin slices of chasiu.  I wish these were thicker slices.  I could almost look through them and thus does not provide that satisfying mouthful of meat that I enjoy.  The hard boiled egg is standart and the corn is sweet and crunchy. 

The soup and noodles are the heart of the dish.  The noodles are fairly straight and yellow with some chew to them.  The soup was good but not as bold as I would like in a miso broth.  The miso itself is fairly evident in the little clouds that floated around the bowl.  However, I got the feeling there was not enough soup.  The portions of all the other ingredients seemed fine but I was hoping for more soup.  Hours later with literally another bowl of ramen under my belt, I thought to myself that I would have to give it another try.  the selection is small enough to be able to try everything.  Aside from this and their standard ramen, they have a deluxe ramen with the same things as what I ordered.  The only difference is stewed pork cheek instead of the belly piece

Travelogue-Incheon Day 1, Chinatown

So, after a much unanticipated walk, I reached Incheon Station. As with many Chinatowns, there are gates to mark the entrances.  In the city there is a small one on Grant.  But other places Ive been to usually have one or more larger gats such as this.  Yokohama, Philly, Chicago, etc

The firs thing is a hill.  Oh joy, wanted I wanted after having already walked all the way here.  A bfief respite before tackling the hill. 

At the top of the hill and around the corner is another hill but with steps.  At the top is another gate.  It was blue.  Restaurants line both sides of the stairs.  As with much of the streets, there are abundant places to eat with a few other retail shops scattered about. 

I only climbed the stairs because I thought there would be a nice view from up here

Speaking of restaurants, it was getting close to 2pm and I was hbungry.  One favorite chinese dish of koreans is black bean suace noodles, jajangmyun.  I stopped into a restaurant at randome and ordered a dish.  You have to mix the sauce and noodles.  Often I find it hard to eat the vegetables in the suace and noodles at the same time with chopsticks.  Before Im done, Im left with a bowl of black sauce with chunky bits which are sstill hard to eat with chopsticks

In addition, I ordered some fired dumplings, mandu.  After lunch, there werent a whole lot of other things that kept my attention in Chinatown.  There was a mural of the Three Kingdoms.  I saw it from afar but it did not inspire me to take a closer look. 

Thats it for this trip.  As with most trips, time flies once you approach the end of it.  It wasnt too long ago that I flew oujt and now Im flaying back very soon.  Even though there have been a few frustating moments, its a part of the experience and sometimes a learning moment for the next time

Travelogue-Incheon Day 1, Wolmi

This morning, I woke up and looked out the windows. I knew I was close because it did not take the taxi driver long. There were several turns that threw me off

I opted to take the ferry as my preferred way of getting to the mainland.  Not knowing the bus route, I knew to get the bus back at the airport.  As it turns out Bus 202 had a stop around the curner from the hotel.  Along the way, I noticed the bus driver had a certain disregard for the red lights.  Most drivers in Incheon, it seems, treat red lights like flashing reds if they stopped at all.  Anyway, it took about 30 min to get to the ferry terminal.  It accommodates a number of cars but none were presnt on this ride which also took another 30 min

Off in the distance is Incheon Bridge.  There is another one that connec Yeonjong to the mainland.  There are several ships anchored and chugging about in the harbor

We are about to make land and the crew ready the platform for disembarkment at Wolmi.

Womi is a little seaside resort like Santa Cruz, CA or Seqside Heights, NJ.  There are rides and aracades and such.  The most prevalent businesses were the sseafood restaurants.  Many offered sliced raw fish and others had seafood stews including ingredients of all types.  Like many places that I have gone to on this trip, the crowds are sparse to none.  Granted, it still feels like winter and that tends to keep alot of prospective visitors away.

It didnt really take much time to look around.  Their "Culture Street" was a joke and not what it was hyped up to be.  Plus, in the previous picture, you can see the rail of a mnorail.  I was planning on going to the Chinatown near Incheon Station.  The monorails's terminus was nearby so it was the clear option since I didnt know the routes of the local buses.  Well, as luck would have it, it was either not running or has not started service at all.  The only thing the rail was good for was to guide me out of Wolmi.  It was a long walk to my next destination.  It was one that I did not expect, enjoy, or welcomed.

Travelogue-Some numbers for you to chew on

So, I noticed this over the last few days.  I arrive in Incheon the first time on the 10th.  When I arrived in Narita, I reserved a seat on the 3:10pm train heading to Shinagawa.  I was assigned seat 10D.  The Toyoko Inn gave me room 1010.  Here at the Best Western, I got room 1011.  Curious how 10 keeps popping up.  and, these are just the ones that I noticed.

Travelogue-Tokyo Departure/Incheon arrival

Todaym I only have a few hours before my flight to Incheon.  It started noff very bright today.  I guess my timing is off when it comes to the weather.  The only place that I haven't gone back to is Shibuya.  I got there around 10 in the morning on a Monday.  Everything was surprisingly quiet.  I expected more people from past experiences

I went by a conveyor belt, kaitne, sushi placde that was recommended on the first trip.  In the last 11 years, the price has only gone up 10yen.  I just wish the exchange could have been just as good.  On that first trip, the exchange was around 130yen to the dollar.  This time, it was at 80yen to the dollar

There were the usual people there.  Deliverymen, officeworkers, and some students milling about but not in the quantity nor energy that I have become accustomed to.  I stopped into a few arcades to see if there were any prizes worth trying for in the UFO cdatcher machines.  There were none

As mentioned in a previous post, there was this restaurant.  This ,location boasts 3 floors and its open 24 hours a day.  I dont know if these places just started popping up or I just have not noticed them before.  I noticed that there were 4 branches within a 2 block area

The flight took off as scheduled and I landed after 9:30 in the evening.  By the time I got through customs and luggag3e pick-up it was already 10:30pm.  I booked a room at the Best Wesgern Premire Incheon Airport.  Unfortunately, their shuttle stops serv ice at 9:30pm.  Their location is close enough that it was only a 3000won taxi fare.  At that time of night, I did not want to be walking around trying to find transport.  The lady at the information desk suggested taking a shuttle to the Hyatt which was close to the BW, but I would have to walk maybe half a mile in the dark?!?!?

Travelogue-Tokyo Day 3, Kin No Kura Jr

I came back to review this izakaya place that had been seen on a japanese television show.  I found a previous location in Akihabara but noticed that they were also in this building near the UDX.  I went up to the 6th floor and asked for a table.  I  could easily see there was a table near the entrance that could accomodate one.  For some reason I was told 2 hours.  I dont know if it meant the wait or I could only stay that long  Either way, I went to the first location

It wasnt full and I was seated promptly.  This place has tablets on the table where yo9u can order your drinks and food.  Most items are 720yen while a few are 384yen.  There is also an option for ordering in english.  The menu is small for both drinks and food

Available drinks include beers, wine cocktails, and soft drinks.  I opted for the pineapple sour with fruit.  The juice tastede artificial but was served very quickly  the edamame were complimentary

My first order was what I was hoping would be gyoza.  Not quite but in the same fane and fried.  It was decent enough, nothing special

As I mentioned, the drinks come out quick while the food is another matter.  While waiting for my second order, I requested a peach sour with fruit.  They have some sours with just juice or Calpis

The takoyaki was not very good.  I would have preffered the frozen ones that I microwave myself.  As I said, the menu is a bit more limited than I expected and was hoping to order other things

I did order one thing of their premium menu,  the one where items are 384yen.  This is beef rib meat on shave onions and topped with green onions on a sizzling plate.  It was average once again.  The meat was a bit on the chewy side and the sauce a bit sweet

Lastly, I thought I ordered spicey wings.  I got wings but they were just fried and not spicey.  All in all, the food is average and the place is not really worth seeking out for.  I dont know if 270yen for a beer is a good price. nIf so, it has that going for them