Houston: Street Art, Part 3

I used to have negative feelings about street art and the people who made it. I considered ALL street art bad. However, my attitudes have changed. There are some very talented artist living and working in Houston. They are turning some of our city's decaying buildings into works of art. I hope my sharing of these examples of street art will open some other people's minds.

Most of these examples of street art came from the Downtown area, Montrose, and Midtown. There are great areas to see paintings like these all over town. It is true that some of these areas can be a little less than safe, but with awareness you can get out and see what some of Houston's creative souls have created.

Houston: Street Art, Part 2

I used to have negative feelings about street art and the people who made it. I considered ALL street art bad. However, my attitudes have changed. There are some very talented artist living and working in Houston. They are turning some of our city's decaying buildings into works of art. I hope my sharing of these examples of street art will open some other people's minds.

Most of these examples of street art came from the Downtown area, Montrose, and Midtown. There are great areas to see paintings like these all over town. It is true that some of these areas can be a little less than safe, but with awareness you can get out and see what some of Houston's creative souls have created.

Houston: Street Art Part 1

I used to have negative feelings about street art and the people who made it. I considered ALL street art bad. However, my attitudes have changed. There are some very talented artist living and working in Houston. They are turning some of our city's decaying buildings into works of art. I hope my sharing of these examples of street art will open some other people's minds.

Most of these examples of street art came from the Downtown area, Montrose, and Midtown. There are great areas to see paintings like these all over town. It is true that some of these areas can be a little less than safe, but with awareness you can get out and see what some of Houston's creative souls have created.

My Trip To Japan: Wifi

I read on the internet that it could be difficult to find free wifi in Japan. That is the exact opposite of South Korea. My experience while in Japan is that there is free wifi, but most of the time you have to sign up for some type of service. Also, there are a lot of time limits. Maybe others have had a different experience, I'm not sure.

I decided to rent a wifi hotspot and I am glad that I did. I had wifi with me at all times. I used it exclusively, even in my hotel room. It worked great in Tokyo as well as on my travels to other cities in Japan. When I go back to Japan in another year and a half, I will rent one again.

I rented my wifi hotspot from Global Advanced Communications. They seemed to be the most highly rated and their prices were about the same as their competitors. I rented the device for 12450 yen, which was slightly over $100 US at the time. The rental was for 17 days. Dependable, fast, and secure wifi for only $6 per day is a great deal. I ordered the 75 MBPS unlimited model. This was plenty fast to watch Youtube videos without any buffering.

The hotspot has a password, just like your home wifi. You simply look up the device name in the available wifi spots on your device. Then you just type in the password and you are ready to go. You can run 10 devices at the same time on this hotspot. This works well if you are a family and plan to stay near each other most of the time. I used this hotspot with the Kakaotalk app. I was able to use it to make wifi phone calls overseas. It worked as well as my phone does in the US.

I had the wifi hotspot delivered to my hotel. This service was included in the price. I picked it upon check in and dropped it off in its return envelope at the front hotel desk when I was leaving Tokyo. I definitely recommend shipping it to your hotel room instead of having it shipped to your home.

The hotspot is a little smaller than a cell phone. It fits in a pants pocket with ease. I usually carried it in my shoulder bag but did put it in my pocket when I just left the hotel to go out and get something to eat. You do have to charge it every night. I used it all day with my cell phone and Ipad every day. I never had the battery run down more than 50%. I used GPS and watched lots of videos. They do rent out a spare battery but I don't think it is necessary.

The wifi hotspot is just to the right of my cell phone. My cell phone is a Samsung S6 Edge, a standard size phone.

Kakao Talk App: How I Communicated With Family And Friends While In Japan

I have used the Kakao Talk app for at least 5 years. It is an app developed in South Korea and can be used to text, send photos, send voice recordings, for phone calls over wifi, and video calls. It is the main way that I communicate with my Korean wife and our Korean friends. It is the main way that my Korean friends in America communicate with their friends and family back in South Korea. It has been downloaded over 100,000,000 times. It would not be that popular if it did not work!

I called my wife every day that I was in Japan last year with the Kakao Talk app. All that you need is a wifi connection. I rented a portable wifi device and so I could make and receive a call at all times. It is no different from renting a phone or sim card, except it is much cheaper. The quality of the calls is almost as good as I get from using my cell phone in America. You can download the app to your computer, tablet, or cell phone. Unfortunately, you can only have it operating on one device at a time. However, it is easy to switch from one device to another.

In addition to the phone calls I used the app to do some "live" shopping while in Tokyo. While I was in some of the stores, I would text pictures and my wife would text me back what items she wanted me to buy. I could have done it with the video chat but I didn't want to be talking while shopping in the stores. I think this app is a must for overseas travel.

To load the app on your phone or other device you need to go to Itunes or the Google play store. Then, you can download the app. The app is free and there are no in-app purchases with the except of some emojis for texting. After the app is downloaded, you will need to add a phone number to Kakao Talk. The app will then text you a code number to start up the app. If you are using a tablet or computer, then you will have to add your cell phone number. Then, put in the code that is texted to your phone in the app on your other device.

You can only communicat with other people who have the Kakao Talk app on their device. You simply add their phone number to your Kakao Talk app and it will send a friend request, like Facebook. If they accept, you can start communicating. It is MUCH EASIER than my explanation. It should only take you a few minutes to get set up.

My Trip To Japan: Starbucks At Shibuya Crossing

Starbucks seems to be a big deal no matter what country you travel to. They were popular in South Korea and they are popular in Japan. Personally, I've only had 2 or 3 drinks from Starbucks, so I'm no expert. The Starbucks at Shibuya Crossing is famous for its view. You can sip your cappuccino and watch the crowds ebb and flow across the intersection.

I've read that the staff at Starbucks discouraged photo taking from the windows facing the crossing. I don't know anything about that, but every time I looked up at the window I could see people taking photos with cell phones and their regular cameras. So, I do know it is possible.

The Starbucks at Shibuya Crossing is just across the intersection from Shibuya Station. I seem to remember that they open up a little late. I think it is around 10:00 am.

My Trip To Japan: Shibuya Crossing

Shibuya Crossing is one of the most visited attractions in Tokyo. It is basically just an intersection with some crosswalks for pedestrians. The intersection is a little different than any that I have seen in America. All of the traffic lights will turn red at the same time. Then, all of the crosswalk lights will turn green. Then, dozens to thousands of people will move across Shibuya Crossing in every direction imaginable. It is crazy, but a good crazy. Every tourist will be walking across the intersection with a Gopro, unless they are standing still in the middle of the intersection taking a selfie! It has to be a little frustrating to be a local person who just wants to go to work or out to eat.

The intersection is a photographer's dream. All sorts of characters are in the area, especially on weekends and in the afternoons. One of my favorite times to take photos was in the early mornings when the drunks were stumbling back to the first train of the day. If you really want to experience Shibuya Crossing at its best, then you must go there during Halloween. I was there in 2015 and it was truly an experience of a lifetime. My plan is to go back to Japan in 2017. I am planning my vacation around the Halloween holiday!

This is a photo from the walkway between Shibuya Station and Tokyu department store. It is an easy place to find and a great place to get an overview of the crossing. This photo was taken very early in the morning.

At the lower right of the photo you can see one of the exits of Shibuya Station. In the middle of the photo is the glass walkway where I took the above photo. The building with the red and blue square is Tokyu department store. It has great shopping and a really big basement food court.

Just to the left of Tokyu department store is Hachiko exit. The Shibuya tourist information booth is under the red square and Hachiko statue is located under the blue square on the building.