Kow wrote:

Haven't seen it for over 20 years. Is Ken Barlow still in it?

He is.

Why does your head look like a mask on a stick?

Flesh-withering sessions on the can ruled out so it must just be that.

Mask of the Mod

Regens ire

flying to Trieste tomorrow then driving over to Istria in Croatia for the weekend. Looking forwards to it, i've heard good things about the place. Its apparently swealtering though which i dont really appreciate being so white/prone to burning.

Just back from a week of arsing about in Spain. Been to a few beautiful places Valencia, Guadalest, Altea and Alicante, read books and drank lots of rum. Also found an arcade with Out Run 2 and got a massive tub of delicious honey for ten Euros direct from a bee keeper in Guadalest.

Capsule for 2.

Hopefully cashing in soon, so fancy Tokyo next year too.

Me and the missus went to Japan last year, absolutely loved it and can't wait to go again.  You might think about getting some lessons, I did about 9 months of weekly lessons and it really helped get more from the trip.

I would not spend too much time in Tokyo, perhaps just go for the Ghibli museum, Akihabara and Harajuku.  Shinjuku is a good base for Tokyo.  I enjoyed Kyoto and other places more.

If you are up for seeing other places get a JR pass, it'll make travelling much easier.

Check http://www.hyperdia.com/en/ to see what trains go where, and if you can use them with a JR Pass (some of the fastest Shinkansen are restricted).

If you want to do classy shopping try staying at http://www.hotelmonterey.co.jp/en/index.html that was nice and very reasonable.  Personally I thought Ginza was boring BUT this hotel is within walking distance of the famous Tsukiji fish market so if you like Sushi then there is an abundance of places to eat serving the best fucking sushi I've ever had.

Be a bit more fun to stay somewhere like hotel sunroute plaza Shinjuku, great location for all sorts of stuff.

Here is an excellent Sushi bar in Shinjuku (although not quite as good as the one near the fish market, they don't speak English or have English menus but they are really nice) -


Got more recommendations to post later when I get back from the shops.

if you are going with a lady friend then definitely take a walk down Takeshita Street and Cat Street in Harajuku, it is the centre of the world for kawaii girls who want to shop or hang out.  http://www.harajuku.jp/dhw/eng/map.html

In Akihabara there are shops selling vintage games freaking everywhere. There's about 5 Sofmaps, they're good for new stuff with a bit of old, although not all of them stock 2nd hand stuff.  I got Segagaga from one of the Sofmaps in Akihabara.

Supa Potato is without doubt the most famous game shop in Tokyo (and the world?), the selection is truly out of this world, and the prices are not as bad as I had read.  Bit hard to find, I accidently went into a porn shop to ask directions, the bloke was very helpful -

Supa potato -


Thing about Tokyo is how vertical a lot of the shops are, that's why Supa Potato is a bit hard to spot.  You can find a shop selling dvds on the ground floor, 1st floor might be karaoke, 2nd floor games, 3rd floor sushi, 4th floor an arcade, all owned by different people.

Anyway, I found the prices better around the corner at one of the Trader stores, and the selection was top notch too.  I spent hundreds of pounds on games at this shop, all in mint quality and less than ebay prices.

Trader in Akihabara -


There are several Liberty stores around Akihabara that are also worth a look.  The best bargains are to be had from Hard Off and Book Off stores, these are great big warehouse type places that have a lot of games stuff in respectable condition near the front, AND THEN a load of stuff in blue boxes they call junk towards the back.  But a lot of what they call junk is actually not bad, depends on the store.  Not many Hard Offs or Book Offs in Tokyo, and they are shit in the city, you have to go more rural to find the good ones.  But they are where a lot of ebay sellers go to get their stock.

if you are serious about buying games I would take a spare hard suitcase and ALOT of cash, do your research on prices on ebay first (make a list) so you know if you are getting a good deal.  I gave myself 2 days for games shopping in Akihabara, it was great.

Currently trying to find somewhere nice to take the family next year.

This year we went to Butlins, and it was great, but I want something abroad, and hot. Well, the wife does actually.

We are stuck to school holidays, and just want a nice, reasonable family holiday, beach, apartment block, maybe a pool. You know the sort of thing.

So far, the most reasonable I can find is about £2 and a half grand. 2 adults, 2 kids. Unbelievable. How can anyone afford to go on holiday?

So now it looks like we're going with the inlaws and getting a villa.

@Workid - Greece.

Turkey was lovely. Depends whereabouts you go I guess. Being out of the Euro meant the money went quite a long way. Not as far as it did in Belgrade but I wouldn't really recommend taking your family there.

Today we booked our flights to Jamaica.

2 weeks in November. Anyone been and got any advice and recommendations?

Yep, I used to go camping with the family in Europe when I was a kid. Much cheaper way of holidaying. Find a nice campsite and I prefer it to staying in hotels anyway.

Lauterbrunnen was particulary awesome.