Official Tagline: The time for revenge has come.
Un-Official Tagline (Created by me): Don't you wish your dad was like this?
Short Summary:
1st half: Liam Neeson being a sweet, loving dad.
2nd half: Liam Neeson kicking ass and getting away with it.
My Opninion:
This was an extremely mediocre action flick. "Extremely mediocre" here being used in every sense of the phrase. It semi-satisfied the action-loving dude in me.
If you want a movie you don't have to think about, this is it. Although, it does prompt such thoughts as: "Hey! Where'd he get that?" or "Man, if I had access to that database, I would have aced my underwater basket weaving class!"
I don't have that much experience, but I think this movie super-misrepresents world traveling. There ARE good things about meeting new people when you travel... lots of good things. Just don't be stupid. If the "stupid" had been TAKEN out of this movie, it wouldn't have been a movie. So I suppose this film does teach a good lesson: don't be a stupid-American-teenage-girl traveler. All in all though, I think it was a bit excessive. Please don't get kidnapped in France to give your dad a chance to play Liam Neeson dress-up.
My Rating: 6/10
Final Verdict: If it's there, watch it. If it's not, don't waste your money.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
"Thank you for flying Aeromexico and we hope you enjoy your stay in Havana."
AAAAANNNDD now for... The first Cuba post!
So, as it was and is currently still illegal for United States Citizens to go to Cuba without special permission from the government, my Dad, Juana and I had to go the sneaky way.
We actually flew out of the Tijuana Airport on Aeromexico, headed for Havana. Once you're out of the U.S., nobody really questions what you're up to. Cuba even refrains from stamping United States passports because they know that it's illegal for us to be there.
We arrived at Cuba around 4:30 am, Cuban time. It was completely dark out and there were very few cars on the road but quite a few people seemed to be awake. The cab driver who took us to our hotel told us that Cubans started their day around that time so that they can make it to work in the morning. Judging by this, I would not make a good Cuban.
On the way to our hotel, we passed through various districts of Havana. At night, it was hard to tell the difference, but everything looked... old. The buildings were literally half crumbling, the sidewalks cracked and grimy to let little weeds through... But despite the run-d0wn feeling of the city, there's a sense of history. Havana has known so much history and unlike American cities, Havana still reflects that and not just in museums and iron memorials.
Even in the early morning, Havana was HOT... humid hot. The first thing I did when I got to the hotel was take a completely cold shower (around 5:00 am Cuban time). Ten minutes later, I was dripping sweat again.
We stayed in the Hotel Lincoln every night we were in Havana. To give you an idea of this place: It's not even in the tourist books. It's definitely on the lower end of the hotel spectrum, but it felt like real Cuba. If there's one way to experience a culture, it's to live like the locals. The Hotel Lincoln was not pricey, decently comfortable and yet we got a sense of real Cuban culture there.
The first night, I stayed in a room separate from my parents. My room didn't have running hot water, but at 5:00 in the morning, exhausted and sweating, I didn't care. The bed was comfortable and made-up. (I was lucky with pillows that night though. The one I landed was nice and un-knobbly). The room even had a TV with a few channels. I later found out that one of the channels they had decent reception for was CNN.
I stayed up for a little while to write, but running on four hours of sleep the night before we left, I fell asleep almost immediately after jotting down a few observations...
And that was my first night in Havana...Ta-da! More to come... You see! I DID keep my promise. Laterz.
So, as it was and is currently still illegal for United States Citizens to go to Cuba without special permission from the government, my Dad, Juana and I had to go the sneaky way.
We actually flew out of the Tijuana Airport on Aeromexico, headed for Havana. Once you're out of the U.S., nobody really questions what you're up to. Cuba even refrains from stamping United States passports because they know that it's illegal for us to be there.
We arrived at Cuba around 4:30 am, Cuban time. It was completely dark out and there were very few cars on the road but quite a few people seemed to be awake. The cab driver who took us to our hotel told us that Cubans started their day around that time so that they can make it to work in the morning. Judging by this, I would not make a good Cuban.
On the way to our hotel, we passed through various districts of Havana. At night, it was hard to tell the difference, but everything looked... old. The buildings were literally half crumbling, the sidewalks cracked and grimy to let little weeds through... But despite the run-d0wn feeling of the city, there's a sense of history. Havana has known so much history and unlike American cities, Havana still reflects that and not just in museums and iron memorials.
Even in the early morning, Havana was HOT... humid hot. The first thing I did when I got to the hotel was take a completely cold shower (around 5:00 am Cuban time). Ten minutes later, I was dripping sweat again.
We stayed in the Hotel Lincoln every night we were in Havana. To give you an idea of this place: It's not even in the tourist books. It's definitely on the lower end of the hotel spectrum, but it felt like real Cuba. If there's one way to experience a culture, it's to live like the locals. The Hotel Lincoln was not pricey, decently comfortable and yet we got a sense of real Cuban culture there.
The first night, I stayed in a room separate from my parents. My room didn't have running hot water, but at 5:00 in the morning, exhausted and sweating, I didn't care. The bed was comfortable and made-up. (I was lucky with pillows that night though. The one I landed was nice and un-knobbly). The room even had a TV with a few channels. I later found out that one of the channels they had decent reception for was CNN.
I stayed up for a little while to write, but running on four hours of sleep the night before we left, I fell asleep almost immediately after jotting down a few observations...
And that was my first night in Havana...Ta-da! More to come... You see! I DID keep my promise. Laterz.
Stuff to Check Out
This article is extremely amusing: http://www.collegehumor.com/article:1773330
I'm addicted to collegehumor by the way. They have been my life for the past weekend. I would say it's sad, but I'm not sad about it at all... so yeah... not sad. Just... *cough* Anyways! Check them out.
I also just saw Star Trek-- The other half of my life for this weekend. Go see it. Now. No... literally. You're getting up from your computer, taking my advice literally and hopping in your car to catch the next showing of Star Trek at the local theaters...
Still here? Dang. Well. Go see it anyways.
I'm addicted to collegehumor by the way. They have been my life for the past weekend. I would say it's sad, but I'm not sad about it at all... so yeah... not sad. Just... *cough* Anyways! Check them out.
I also just saw Star Trek-- The other half of my life for this weekend. Go see it. Now. No... literally. You're getting up from your computer, taking my advice literally and hopping in your car to catch the next showing of Star Trek at the local theaters...
Still here? Dang. Well. Go see it anyways.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Updates, Disappointments and Promises that I May or May Not Keep
Today is amazing. I actually have nothing to do tonight; it's fantastic. So here is my goal for the next couple days: Actually catch up on the interesting stuff that's happened in my life... I'll start posting stuff about Cuba and LA and other shtuff.
Today, my choir teacher ditched school to go meet Adam Lambert at Mount Carmel High School... He was her former student and she won't shut up about him. I have nothing against him, I've just never really watched American Idol... Anyways, I find it kind of cool and kind of funny. Maybe I'll watch part of the last episodes...
Two days ago, Cassandra and I had tickets to see a pre-screening of Star Trek. We stood in line for two hours and we were literally twenty people from the front of the line when they came out and told us that the seats were full. It was... extremely disappointing, to put it lightly.
Anyways, I was surprised that nobody was really dressed up for the occasion... There was a huge line behind us but they all looked like normal, non-trekkie people. ;)
So I intend on seeing that sometime this weekend...
Well, adios for now, amigos!
Today, my choir teacher ditched school to go meet Adam Lambert at Mount Carmel High School... He was her former student and she won't shut up about him. I have nothing against him, I've just never really watched American Idol... Anyways, I find it kind of cool and kind of funny. Maybe I'll watch part of the last episodes...
Two days ago, Cassandra and I had tickets to see a pre-screening of Star Trek. We stood in line for two hours and we were literally twenty people from the front of the line when they came out and told us that the seats were full. It was... extremely disappointing, to put it lightly.
Anyways, I was surprised that nobody was really dressed up for the occasion... There was a huge line behind us but they all looked like normal, non-trekkie people. ;)
So I intend on seeing that sometime this weekend...
Well, adios for now, amigos!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
