Roland Garros 2008: Quarterfinal Predictions

Women's Quarterfinals
Defending Champion: Justine Henin

With former champion Serena Williams and sister Venus leaving the tournament early, and title holder and top-ranked Justine Henin surprisingly bidding the game adieu, the women's field is ready to crown a new winner on the terre battue. The game is wide open, and with minimal shockers in the first week, we're all in for a treat once the tournament reaches the final eight.

QF Match: Dinara vs Elena
Back to back all-Russian encounters ate up my evening last night. It was a truly delightful match, though I was expecting to see Maria and Vera here instead. However, I was cheeering for these two; Dinara's steady performance against the top seed was definitely a showcase of maturity - she was never ahead of Sharapova, and was ready to be swept away in straight sets. Still, that patient shot making and clever shot selection of hers pulled through. Dementieva on the other hand, has steadily worked her way into the second week. I'm likely to choose Little Sis on this account, her Tier I win in Berlin included scrapes against Justine, Serena, and yes, even Dementieva in the final. Another entertaining three sets here.

QF Match: Svetlana va Kaia
Since both matches aren't finished yet as of press time, let's keep this short - I just might jinx both of them. I'm looking for Kuzzie to reach the final 2, but another compatriot needs to be taken out before that happens. We'll see.

QF Match: Carla va Jelena
The only seed that Jelena has met was Polish teenager Aggie R, and that turned out to be a rather impressive affair for her. And with all the chips falling her way (facing an unseeded opponent), except for one - injury. Still, it's expected that she wins this match, in straight sets, but not enough to go beyond the semis.



QF Match: Patty vs Ana
Claycourt veteran and lefty Patty might give last year's runner up some trouble, but the blooming Ivanovic has the side of youth and fitness on her side. She may not have the stellar warn-up tournaments results, but her double bagel trumping prior to this round looks very ominous. Straight sets for the ravaging beauty Ivanovic.



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Men's Quarterfinals
Defending Champion: Rafael Nadal

"Oh no!" you say, not another Rafa-frustrating-Federer final! This year, there's a twist, an emerging Djokovic is ready to spoil these plans, and the quartefinal lineup is interesting enough to keep us all glued to our TV sets all week.

QF Match: Federer vs Gonzalez
Not seeing any surprises - it's Federer to show up on the last day of the tournament. Hopefully, he won't be a bridesmaid this time to Nadal's 4th crown.



QF Match: Monfils vs Ferrer
About time that the former French junior #1 perform well in slams - at his home tournament at that. I must admit that I wasn't able to follow his matches, so I can't make a good call on his battle with David Ferrer. I'm going to pick Ferrer, just because he eliminated the possibility of seeing worm-dancing on courts.

QF Match: Gulbis vs Djokovic
If I was to choose an unseeded player, I would've chosen the Latvian in the Fantasy League. In his US Open debut, he made it all the way to the 4th round, and in his 2nd RG, a QF appearance (darn, he crashed out early in Melbourne, would've had a chance to see him in person). Folks, look at a player of the future, just hoping he doesn't turn out to be a total nutcase like my last pick, Andy Murray.

Sorry, back to the game. Though Novak does have a steadier game, and hordes of experience, I wouldn't count Gulbis out - the Latvian plays a patient, composed and well-measure type of tennis, not typical of someone who is just in his 5th Grand Slam event. Him winning might be a long shot, but not impossible. I'm going on a whim here and say he's going to pull through in 4.



QF Match: Almagro vs Nadal
This matchup took forever, but here it is. The King of Clay meets the King of Smaller Claycourt Tournaments. Almagro has been long picked to breakthrough in the big stage, but always comes up short. Here he is to prove his mettle against the game's true heavyweight. Alas, this will be short-lived, 3-time winner has yet to lose a match here and most likely won't lose this one. Straight sets.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Cliches

Me, my couchsurfer, and a friend went off to see Harrison Ford reprise his role as Indiana Jones. I just couldn't resist Cate Blanchett, that's why. However, we were gravely (pun alert!) disappointed with the movie - it was an exercise of cliche counting for me and my friends. Spoilers beware, but here's the list, in random order:

1. Falling off waterfalls
2. Plastic wigs
3. Long lost son
4. Mayans
5. Aliens
6. Roswell
7. Love angles
8. Raving lunatic of an oracle
9. Groundhogs
10. A spiffy outfit (that's never wrinkled)
11. Weddings
12. Distracting accents

We're still figuring out if everything was done tongue-in-cheek but don't think so. If you've got more cliches to add, please do!

A Floating Market

One of Bangkok's touristy spots that I've never experienced yet is a visit to the floating markets. We made good on that this trip, thanks to our new super best best friend Mary. That leaves a trip to Ko Kret and Lopburi for the next Bangkok expedition.



So anyway, it was another overpriced market (save all your shopping for Chatuchak, always has been my guideline). It was a good thing that we came to the floating markets quite early, when the sun provided gentle lighting, and there weren't too many tourists running around and getting on/off the boats. It was nice to join a group tour, where you don't have to worry about connections etc. However, it gets a bit annoying if you keep going to places you don't want to go. I remember going to The Greatest Show On Earth - a cobra show. Yaiks. No, I didn't go in, I hate snakes and I loved the last remaining 200 baht in my wallet.

Back In Bangkok

While I was happily hopping around Australia last January, my best buddies bought me a ticket to Bangkok. So, for our traditional summer outing (so far we've had Baguio, EK, Anilao, Galera, Nasugbu/Iloilo-Guimaras), our 7th Annual Summer Let's-Play-Cards-Somewhere-Else Bonding event, we went international.

The Land of Smiles was, well, less smiling when we got there, but hey, with a more humid, more dank, weather, who can blame them. Oh, the traffic (as viewed from their BTS) looked more pitiful than ours.

Since it was my 3rd visit already in 4 years, I made the itinerary, and became tour guide (I was handsomely rewarded with elephant allusions and unflattering photos), we just did the touristy bit. Grand Palace! Reclining Buddha! Wat Arun!



7 out of 10 people who had cameras were using DSLR camera. Wow, they made DSLR cameras look "normal". Oh well. Everybody wants to have good photos, and with a backdrop as stunning as Bangkok, who can blame them? *raises guilty hand*



All these photos were taken from The Grand Palace++ Complex, and I was careful not to repeat a photo I took a couple of years ago. Anyway, I love the Angkor Wat replica, and having seen the real deal myself, I couldn't help but smile, and stand in awe. Here's a nice tunnel shot from that replica.



All right, that was Day One of the trip - by the end of our day, our pants were sweaty as hell that flies won't even come near.

Happy Summer!

It took a month coupled with a week-long bout with a bacterial infection for me to conjure this blog entry. Oh well. Thanks to Benj, his diagnosis was close. I'm feeling a bit better, and should be in full recovery by the weekend.

I have news -blockbuster movie season, my published book, my latest trip, a book blowout, and this summer's music mix. Lots, I know, and I promise to blog more often. But hold your horses, not just now.

Playing on my W910i: Wow by Kylie Minogue. Nice to see Kylie back in the dancefloor. This song has summer written all over it, less of the sultry stuff, more of the bobbing-your-head, and tapping-your-feet sunshine feel.

Happy Summer everyone!

An Emo Shirt

Funny I saw a shirt that featured "Emo Pickup Lines." One totally floored me. It says, "Do you blog here often?"



Well, I'm on the hunt for a Psych shirt. Paging Joey.

Hugs and Crashes

Last March 8, I went on a free hugs day together with my friends from CouchSurfing. Despite the valiant efforts of Mall Of Asia's security to shoo us away from the bayside area, we still managed to spread the love. People of all ages, shapes, gender and even nationalities volunteered to be hugged, and well so did we. The smiles on their faces were truly genuine - it's this random kindness from strangers that lifts up your spirits, when you're facing the doldrums. Free Hugs is a campaign to hug people, after all, like the Beatles said, all you need is love.



We came, we hugged and we spread the spirit. Now, can anybody suggest a nice place to spread the love next time around?



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Remember the Great Hard Drive Crash of December 2007? Not to be confused with the Crashes of January, July and August (that's how unreliable my laptop is), I had bought a backup hard drive, but it is only now I have gone to re-archive my CDs. I'm currently at 96% archived, with about some 30 more CDs to copy. I also have to recopy the audio files I burned into audio CDs back into mp3 (thank goodness I did that). I remember blogging about it some years ago (was it last year?), well, another Holy Week has arrived, and I'm doing the same thing.

I Want To Live Here

Before I move on with the rest of my life, I must blog about the wonderful experience I had in Melbourne. Contrary to the rest of the famous world cities, Melbs is not an ostentatious, in-your-face, glamorous city. But one word that I have never used to the places I've been to - it's very liveable.

It was summer, and the going was definitely easy, save for the face-painted, Aussie flag-wearing tennis hooligans that squeezed in tram ride. That's a testament to the sport-crazy home of Grand Slam tennis, F1, cricket, footy, and other sports-what-have you in the land Down Under.

I went biking, and a city that you can bike in, much less walk around with no fear of death, of rotting your lungs away sounds like a good idea to me.



They've got a shopping district that closes at 5pm. And yes, we will mock their "unsophisticated" (unlike here, it's rampant!) shopping schedules. Hahaha.



Here's the state library of Victoria. They've got a replica outside half-sunk onto the city streets.



And...the only World Heritage Site in Australia that is man-made, The Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens.




ps. I stand corrected - Sydney Opera House was added just last year.

An Easy Solution To Boredom and Brokedom

Don't judge me, but I incorrectly entered the PIN to my ATM card. No money, well, no nothing. So, it was time to catch up on the DVDs I wanted to watch. Academy Award winners, almost-rans, weepers, creepers and whatnot filled me over the weekend.

1. Atonement



It took me three days to watch the movie, dozing off every 15 minutes, but by Day Three, I was fully captivated by the arresting scenery and deviously tangled story of Joe Wright's movie. A much deserved Oscar win for Best Original Score, but what stands out is the chemistry of the leads. There is something that will draw you to a half-lusty, half-yearning Kiera Knightley when she breathes "Come back to me", and a shaken-from-rage James McAvoy bellowing "Honestly. I'm torn between throwing you down the stairs or breaking your neck." Not really a fan of the romance, nor war movies, nor period pieces, but this one stands out as a beautiful exception.


2. The Lookout



Equal parts heist movie and recovery-from-trauma tearball, indie favorite JGL turns in another great performance as a partially disabled janitor caught in a nasty friendship. Shades of Memento, anyone?

3. Once



Well deserved for this year's Best Song written for a Motion Picture (both Oscars and Grammys). The awesome singing-writing-acting duo not only amazed us on their singing skills, but also on the earnestness that they showed in the film.

4. The Last King Of Scotland



I am now officially a fan of Forest Whitaker and James McAvoy. Whitaker scores a homerun with a terrifying, yet magnetic portrayal of the Ugandan dictator Idi Amin. He starts genial, warm, yet comes out childish, then into an absolute terror. It's really an eye opener to see how leaders in Africa started out.

5. Hallam Foe



With Jamie Bell rescuing the acting disaster that was Jumper, I decided to catch up on his other films - have seen Billy Elliot before and it was a laudable movie, story- and performance-wise. Similar with this one, except that the story was a bit too muddy for me, and it felt that it meandered uselessly elsewhere. Anyway, the soundtrack is a treat too, so do check it out.

6. The Kite Runner



Is Kabul really that beautiful? It's just sad that whenever one mentions Afghanistan now, a different picture is painted. Well done movie, and while the whole ensemble is a triumph, the real tragedy is seeing a wonderful desert flower like Kabul being ransacked into a ghost town.

Interruption!

I currently interrupt my Aussie blog-a-thon to say two things. One - I can now update my blog via mobile, and two - I finally get to go to Boracay! Yipee!

When In Brisbane, Don't Take The Bus....

Definitely the best thing about Brisbane is using the ferry to get around town. It may not be as extensive as the trains of Sydney, or the trams of Melbourne, but standing at the front of a boat coasting through the Brisbane River with a breeze on your face (just hold that Titanic impersonation) is the sweetest way to travel. If you're lucky, get the City Cat that offers your second-floor rides.

I've already mentioned the standard sights of the city, now cross to the other bank and find out the region's cultural core. Apart from having no less than three major universities along the river, there stands an exhibition area, swimming pools, botanical gardens, a theater, the state library, the state museum and a museum of modern art. Timing was impeccable, as I chanced upon an Andy Warhol exihibit in the Gallery of Modern Art, and one of their features included a photo booth that will send you a Warholized photo of yourself. Here's mine:








I'm glad that I really went to Brisbane. The Couchsurfers I met were amazing, the city itself was endearing, and I could really see myself mooching about the city some more.

Couchsurfing The Forest

Initial impressions. Done. Time to get my things settled in, drop off my stuff, and meet my host in Brisbane. Much thanks yet again to CouchSurfing, I found a willing host to lend me sleeping space for my 4 day stay. All I know is that the house was in the university district, so I board a bus headed that way. I meet the first and only jerk throughout my journey, and he gave me attitude for not knowing where the place was. Duh, it's my first day here, and he's the one driving around the area!

Anyway, I ask the local petrol shop for directions (you know which one), and since there weren't any buses headed that-a-way, decided to walk it. It turned out to be a 30 minute walk, not so bad, until I get to the house. The house looked like Macaulay Culkin ran through it in Home Alone. All the doors were open, there were sheets and mattresses on the floor, there was a couch on the tree in front of the house, and a fridge on the lawn! So I tried contacting my host, until I eventually gave and, and fell asleep on the couch. Thirty minutes later, someone wakes me up and asks me what was I doing at their door and my lovely host comes to the rescue! I dump my things, have a quick chat, then return to the city.

Later that evening I meet all 6 housemates, and their current couchsurfer, Graham. While drinking goon (translation: cheap wine in a box), I am informed that there will be two more lads coming in, and there is a couch on the roof. Awesome, awesome, awesome! The wine, and the fantastic views of Brisbane, and great company are definitely the highlights of my Brisbane trip.



Eventually, there would be 13 people staying at that house (the facial expression on the guests' faces, including mine, were priceless!), with the last guy in getting to sleep sitting down on the couch. I'll forever remember the roof-couch, great goon, and trivial pursuit. Definitely one of the most memorable CouchSurfing experience I've had.

Brisbane, A City For The Future

Whoops, my days seem to be fully loaded with activities that I forgot to mention that yesterday was my last day in Siddies. Early in the morning, I need to head off to Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. I initially wanted to go, but decided against it to spend more time in Sydney, then changed my mind again (fickle, I know) in order to meet more CouchSurfers and spread the good word about the Philippines. At least it sounded like a mission.

Upon arrival in Brisbane, I was definitely grateful that I made the right choice. The weather felt like Tagaytay, a bit less humid, but you can definitely feel the tropicality of the region. Getting to the city was a breeze, as there is a dedicated rail line from the airport to Central Station (I just love DIY airport transfers). Their transport system is being upgraded right now, to handle Airbus 380s, more international arrivals, larger vehicular traffic, and extensions of the existing rail lines.

You can definitely tell that Brisbane is a city on the rise. Whilst their CBD features old colonial style buildings similar to Sydney, a majority of the buildings are new, and construction is prevalent. My favorite? Brisbane Square, which houses the gigantic metal soccer balls, the city library (whose Tagalog section has nothing but romance novellas with titles such as Hindi Mo Sarili Ang Kasalanan and May Utang Kang Pag Ibig), all built on top of a motorway underpass. Check out the slanted window slivers on the library wall.





There was enough sights to see, their city hall boasts that Savage Garden has the keys to the city, Saint Stephen's Cathedral was a good place to take pictures around (apparently, I enjoyed it a bit too much), and a concise shopping district. I totally regret not shopping in Brisbane - Australia may seem a bit disorienting to the regular Pinoy mall shopper, but the Brisbane Queen Street Mall will quickly get you back on your feet.

Man, it's a pretty long post already, and it's just the morning I got to Brisbane, or as they would call it, Brisvegas. I guess it just shows how much I loved it there. More next time.

Heading Off To Homebush Bay

Similar to yesterday's zoo, today I saw caged animals being ogled at and photographed. Replacing cages with tennis courts, and animals with gorgeous female tennis players, it turned out to be the Sydney Open at Homebush Olympic Park. I've been to a tennis tournament before, but they were for men; and half the crowd then is now suspended for doping ... talk about drat rotten luck.

Anyway, the moment I step inside, I see Ana Ivanovic practicing to my left. I quickly change lenses, a zoom here and there, and voila. I had something to keep myself busy for the next 30 minutes.



Today was worse than yesterday's experience at the zoo. I'm wearing my jacket full-on, even though it's shining outside. Note to self, remember the song that goes: Wear Sunscreen. If I could offer you one piece of advise....I digress.

Luckily, it's the first day of the tournament, and there were plenty of seats in the shade. So I find a really comfy seat, but not before taking this photograph. Daniela! Woot, she (eventually) finally made it to a Grand Slam semifinal.



There was one match left, but I figured that it would take forever to finish it, and there was much to pack. So I took a quick night shot of their lovely tennis stadium and called it a day. Just in case you're wondering who these players were, it's Igor Andreev and Richard Gasquet.

Wallabies! Koalas! Kangaroos! Too Much Sunshine!

Still nursing a sunburn that managed to sneak through yesterday's rain, I meet up a CouchSurfer and we proceed to the zoo. One of the few zoos where you have to cross a magnificent harbor just to get to. The sun was really shining hard, but the breeze kind of made up for it ... a little. Definitely on our checklist was the authentic and indigenous critters from Down Under, including the ubiquitous koalas and kangaroos. There were other never-heard-of animals in the zoo, including quolls, hydromys, and dunnarts.

I think this is a post I'd rather fill up with photos.







Footnote, never saw the Tasmanian devil. He was too busy burrowing under wood shavings. I'll just have to trust photographs for that one.

Nobody Throws A Party Like Sydney

Yes, I missed the fireworks to usher in 2008, but since the party hat is always on this side of Down Under, it didn't take me long to see the whole city have a major throwdown. Sydney Festival was just around the block, choosing select CBD streets and pubs, but I decided to have one on Saint Martin Place. And since an SLR camera won't fit any of my pockets, here's the only pic I got.



Earlier was a day for the beach. Bondi beach was the obvious choice, and being a bit too headstrong in searching for the beach, I ended up in a retirement home district, where the mean age was 40 years above mine. Yes, give me a pat on the back. Apart from that, I earned a mildly bad sunburn walking from Bronte Beach to Bondi. Mildy, because it was stormy - where else will you find beaches closed due to bad weather (rain and waves), yet still manage to toast your skin with overcast skies?





No worries, maybe it was the little pockets of sunshine that crisped me. Soundtrack alert: Hands Clean by Alanis Morissette.

Sydney Sights

My second day in Sydney included long, long walks in the city. Indeed. summer is different in a tropical country. Their summer had blistering sunshine, but "cold" winds. As a matter of perspective, this "cold" is anything below 26 degrees celsius. This weather, me likey!

So, just the usual city walk, from markets to parks to your usual meeting places. In order to get your bearings correct, a lengthy walk around city center is much recommended. Flashforward, all the Australian streets are either George, Albert, Mary, Ann, and their brethren of monarchial names. However, I found no Henry street -it's nothing against the house of Tudors (I hope), Elizabeth Street was very common.

After much walking, and doing the Sydney sight checklist, I realised that the city was a brick forest. In contrast to our beloved Manila's rich cement and wood plank history, theirs is a milieu of brick in an assortment of earthen hues.



Apart from that, Sydney boasts its harbours. No great civilisation has really flourished in the absence of water, and this city simply revels in it. Tada, Harbour Bridge! A Sydney icon. Whoops, they haven't taken down the New Years hourglass (to further spite me for missing the festivities).



This one here is a traditional bridgehouse, dressed in the well-loved yellow and green, and marks one of the first bridges when Sydney was first inhabited. Or that's the story I think I remember reading from a pamphlet nearby.



And as a parting shot, you all know the Sydney Opera House.

A Long Flight and An Amazing Skyline

Finally, I got some time to sneak out and write in my blog. Everyone at home and at work was asking, and perhaps you my dear readers, all two of you, how my trip went. In a word, it was SUPER.



So I land in Sydney - it was the longest flight I've ever taken, and halfway through the 8-hour flight, I went claustrophobic. My seatmate was probably drowsy from all-night partying prior to the flight, so he slept like a baby; I on the other hand, was suffering from boredom, and disbelief that they'd be showing a B-Movie in a long-haul flight. So, the best way is to chat up the flight attendants (definitely out of my age group, so stop snickering), and mooch for a free drink. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough, so I just tried to sit still in my seat like a kindergarten student on detention.

Then the Sydney skyline came along. No pictures, drat, but you'd have to marvel on how they developed a portwith a craggy coastline and numerous bays, into a dazzling metropolis. The lights were all aglow, and that sight was surely worth the 8-hour trip.



That's it for now. We'll talk about walking around Sydney next time.

ps. I sneak away for a week and all I manage to come up with is a shabby excuse for a blog entry. Worry not, I'll be back with a more respectable outing.

G'day Everyone! Pictures First

Not enough time to write a post, but more than happy to share photos. Enjoyed the last couple of days at the zoo and the Olympic Park.

How you guys doing, mate?

Sssh, I'm currently feeling like toast, as I was burnt to a crisp yesterday at Bondi beach. Will be heading off to Brisbane to have a quiet time in a few days, and I promise to upload photos by then.

If Machines Could Sing...

They'd sound (well, look) like this:





Between a frenetic chorus of distorted/synthesized vocals and flashing fireworks, nothing comes close to the spectacle that Daft Punk dished out the past year. I am still snapping my fingers, that they did not come to a reasonable SEA location, moreover, I missed their performance in Australia by 2 weeks. Draaaaat!

Still the CD makes up for it, partially, as it's a mashup of their biggest hits from the past decade. It's such a treat that they included Music Sounds Better With You,such an underrated hit from 1998. The spacesuits are still making us move, and I hope, that I get to see them, one more time.

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And to think that I bought it for 50 pesos, LCD Soundsystem's second album, Sound Of Silver actually strikes gold. What's really amazing from both artists is that the vocals take a step back as the showpiece of the song, but it's actually the accompaniments and instrumentation.




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All righty folks, I'm off to see the Australian Open, and will be updating from there. Happy New Year, and show off your robot rock moves this 2008!