JamieJakov Blog

It’s more fun in the Philippines – 2020

March 14th, 2020

Another year, another family holiday. This time, amid the spreading health epidemic, we ended up traveling to the beautiful tropical islands of the Philippines. Like always the Brodsky family focused on 2 things, learning about the land and its the people, and relaxing on beautiful beaches of paradise. However, there was one thing that was very different from all of our past trips. A certain Japanese girl joined us on this trip! Thats right, my beautiful girlfriend Kotone came along for two weeks of fun in the Philippines.

While swimming in pools and the sea was a great way to spend the days, those the were not the only activities we took part in during our holiday. Kotone and I went snorkelling, and I also was able to fly my drone all over the place. The views of islands and the seas were absolutely breathtaking, and the fish in the sea we quite cute too. The people are kind, and the food was delicious. However it seems like the country is very divided between the rich and the poor, we saw brand new modern buildings being constructed next to slums and rubbish. The gab in wealth is very noticeable, so much so, that we occasionally refrained from venturing outside of our hotel, as we were worried about the area surrounding it.

Overall the Philippines was a great experience, and being together with my beloved made it ever more memorable. I hope the situation around the world improves, and we will be able to go to many more together.

As always, photos on my Flickr and Instagram stories

Japan 2019

November 19th, 2019

This trip was the most spontaneous thing trip I’ve ever planned, but it was definitely a very pleasant and memorable experience. I recently started dating a Japanese girl named Kotone, and this November was her brothers wedding party. She was planning on heading to Japan for a couple of days to attend the wedding party, and I decided to tag along. Her parents invited me to the party as well as an honorary guest, and even let me stay at their house for a few nights.

Our trip began by arriving to Central Japan International Airport (near Nagoya) and renting a car. Thats right, no bullet trains this time, just a car. We drove up to the town of Takayama, visited the old town, and bought some sake. Then we reached our first stop of the trip: Hirayuonsen hot-spring town. For 2 nights we stayed in the Sanganoyu Ryokan, where we got to experience the various onsens, and even rent a private one for a period of time. There isn’t much around the area aside from pristine forests and mountains, so it was the perfect place to relax and enjoy everything that mother nature has to show.

The second leg of our journey was spent in the big cities like Osaka and Nagoya. We went to Universal Studios Japan, the first “real” theme park I went to out of my own desire. I even challenged myself to ride one of the more thrilling rides in the park, and while it was terrifying, I can report that I am still alive and well.

Afterwards we headed to back to home base – Nagoya, more specifically Oguchi. Meeting the family was terrifying at first, but after the first dinner, it got a lot more comfortable. The Kamino family were very kind to me and treated me as if I was their own son. It was a pleasant experience, especially when my own home is 15,000km away. At the wedding party I was seated with the groom’s high school friends, so we had a lot of laughs and plenty to drink. The highlight of the wedding for me, aside from the obviously different wedding style in Japan (even though it was somewhat a western style wedding), was that the bride gave the bouquet of flowers to my girlfriend Kotone. Is this is a sign for the future? Who knows, but it was definitely a happy moment for both of us. On the last few days we visited Nagoya Castle, Legoland, and the Nagoya Train museum.

While this was a short trip, it was very eventful, and at the end of it neither of us wanted to head back to Sydney. But we have and now we need to build our future together!

A small number of photos available on my Flickr, the rest are hidden away on my iPhone.

Eurotrip 2019

September 10th, 2019

This year the Brodsky family decided to drive around Europe and visit 2 new countries: Belgium and Luxembourg. Being part of the family means, that I got to experience this as well and thus raised my country count to 56!

We started our journey in Germany, where after landing from 24 hours of flying, I met up with my parents, who spent the last few days driving / on a ferry. While I have previously been to Germany multiple times, this was my first time driving through the country. That was probably the highlight of the trip overall, the German Autobahns. I got to experience driving at speeds that could not imagine. But of course I made sure to stay safe and drive responsibly.

Next on our list was Belgium, and you know what belgium is famous for? Beer! Thats right, Belgium has hundreds, even thousands of different types of beer. So of course I had to try at least some. Every day for lunch and dinner (when not driving, of course), I tried a different type of Belgian beer. One special type of beer that my mom and I got really fond of is called Kriek, which means cherry. Cherry flavoured beers. Quite sweet, a bit sour, but not bitter. After trying one, we couldn’t resist to buy at least 18 more. The cities of Brugge, Ghent and Dinant were beautiful examples of old Europe. To be honest every city we visited during the whole trip was beautiful, that’s why the majority of the photos are of buildings and not landscapes this time around.

During our travels, we love ticking off new countries of our list, and so we just couldn’t resist not stopping in Luxembourg for an afternoon. The country itself is tiny, and the old city was just like the others, it was still an interesting place to visit for a day.

And then last, but not least, was France. France was a bit harder to travel through than I originally expected, but thanks to Google Translate and its live camera translation features, we managed to overcome all the struggles in restaurants and shops. We had plenty of whine and Champagne in France, and I even got to try the famous french snails – Escargots (they were really good). We stopped by the city of Djon, yes the one with all the mustard, and we bought some mustard there. Finally at the end of our trip, we went to this small town of Requewhir, which looks just like it came out of a fairy tale. The buildings are all colourful and the structures themselves are from medieval times. They looked absolutely stunning from the ground (unfortunately not as well from drone height).

The last stop on our trip was the town of Baden-Baden in Germany, where we visited the famous hot spring baths, and had some great German food at a beer garden.

All the photos from both my camera and drone can be found on my Flickr.

WiseCamping

May 7th, 2019

What better way to spend a weekend in May, than to go camping with your favourite coworkers! So we gathered Axle, Justin, Jordan, Josh, Cody, Mark, Tim, Kal, Steven, Sandra and myself together and set out to a campsite around Ulladulla.

We had 3 groups leave at different times, due to work commitments. Car 1 with Axle, Justin and Jordan left at midday and their job was to setup all the tents before nightfall. Little did we realise at the time, that none of them had much experience with setting up tents and that we would arrive to a disaster. Car 2 with myself, Cody, Kal, and Sandra departed at 4pm and we were carrying the food for the evening, the curry that Sandra and I cooked for everyone the night before. And Car 3 with Jordan, Josh, and Steven came last, as they got stuck buying stuff for the campfire.

We got there, re-setup the tents, had a camp fire, fought a possum, drank a lot, and then slept in the cold tents. Some people really struggled with the cold, but still managed to survive somehow. The next day we spent at the beach, in Ulladulla itself and just more drinking and partying.

I took some time to take some beautiful shots of the night sky, the milky way, and some light painting.

Overall everyone had a great time and I hope we can do this again soon!

Photos are on my Flickr.

Skiing in Seefeld

January 5th, 2019

This Christmas & New Years I thought of giving my parents the best gift I could – myself. I hatched a plan, to buy tickets home and surprise them. However I needed to make sure that they wouldn’t be traveling somewhere, otherwise it would be a rather awkward situation. So I ended up collaborating with my dad to make sure that this plan would work and we would surprise mom.

So dad booked us a trip to Seefeld so we can all enjoy the Alps together and learn to ski, one catch: he didn’t tell mom about me coming. For about 5 months we managed to keep her in the dark, but then we ended up cracking. In November, about 4 weeks before my flights, we told mom about our secret plan. She was shocked that we would keep this from here, and that she never noticed the hints that we let slip.

Even though mom wasn’t too pleased with us keeping such a big secret from her, she was overjoyed to see me back home for the holidays and for us all to spend time together in the Alps.

This was the first real time I got to properly ski, and I think I did pretty ok. While I wasn’t brave enough to hit the slopes, I still managed to learn to cross country ski with a decent speed just after a few days of failing and falling. Surprisingly cross country skiing is a lot like ice skating, so I managed to pick it up quite quickly.

The whole time the weather was great, the food was amazing, and of course seeing my parents was a pleasure. After our mini holiday in Seefeld, we spent New Years at home in Riga eating traditional foods, watching our president(s) wish us a great new year and just have a good time together.

You can check out my adventures on my instagam: @jamiejakov (don’t forget to look at my stories).

Otherwise my DSLR photos are available on my Flickr

Portugal 2018

May 10th, 2018

Its been a while since I’ve been in Europe, but here I am flying to Portugal (Country #54) in a Singapore Airlines A380 Business Class seat. Thats right, this time around we fly with the big boys.

Portugal is one of the few European countries that I haven’t visited during my teen years, but I am glad I got to go there now. Why? Because of the most delicious drink you can have – Sangria. Thats right, this drink is what my parents and I drank pretty much every day for lunch or dinner, alongside some garlic bread and a seafood dish. Coming back to Sydney, I’ve realised how much I miss Sangria.

The first few days in Lisbon touring the city centre and eating delicious foods. Then we flew to the island of Madeira, which is famous for its wine, levada irrigation systems, poncho alcohol and Cristiano Ronaldo.

We spent all our days there exploring the island via various tours. May I say its amazing how many different and exciting things a small island like that had.

The main reason why we gathered in Portugal in May is because it was my mom’s 60th Birthday. And what could be a better present than a family reunion, and having great food and delicious drinks together.

And as always you can see the photos from our trip on my Flickr.

Japan 2017 – 2018

January 9th, 2018

Its been over 2 years since I was last in Japan, and I find myself there yet again. This time I went Kyoto, Kanazawa, Shirakawago, Mt Fuji and Tokyo. The majority of the trip was to meet up with friends and to take photos of Shirakawago and Mt Fuji. But of course being the otaku that I am, comiket was also on the list.

Day 1 – 24th – Kyoto + Osaka

The first few days I spent in Kyoto and Osaka. I met up with my old friend Kosuke, who took me around famous anime locations in Kyoto. These included and were not limited to: KyoAni shop, Shimogamo Shrine, Kamogawa river delta and Demachi shopping arcade. In the evening of the same day, I went to Osaka to have dinner with Tsujikawa-sensei, my teacher from Arc Academy, which I went to in 2010. We have a pleasant catch up and chat in a local izakaya (bar) on Christmas eve.

Day 2 – 25th – Kyoto: Arashiyama & Gion

Next morning Amy and I set out to the shopping areas around Gion and Nishiki markets. Then we went to Arashiyama, the famous bamboo forest and the surrounding temples. After lunch we headed back to Gion to visit the Gesha district. That was a very beautiful location and I managed to take a lot of great photos there.

Day 3 – 26th – Kanazawa + Shirakawago

On the next day, at 6:50am we set out to Kanazawa. There we visited the old chaya (tea houses) and walked around their fish markets. In comparison to Kyoto the weather in Kanazawa was worse. It started hailing at one point. But nevertheless, we broke through the winds and hail and got back to the station to catch our bus to Shirakawago. I was praying that there would be snow when we got there, but I wasn’t ready for what we saw. We drove right into a snow storm. There was a good half a meter of snow at Shirakawago, and it just kept falling. Thankfully there was no wind, so it was very pleasant. Unfortunately due to the snow, I wasn’t able to get any good shots of the area, as it was just too snowy. Another great thing about Shirakawago was the onsen. Onsen are my favourite thing about Japan, and I am so glad I got to bathe in them again. Since we were staying in a ryokan (japanese style inn), we got treated to delicious food and drinks for both dinner and breakfast.

Day 4 – 27th – Shirakawago → Tokyo

The next morning, after another hot bath in the onsen, we set out on a long trip to Mt Fuji. 1hr bus ride to Kanazawa, 2hr shinkansen to Tokyo, 2.5hr express train to Mt Fuji. When we finally reached the town, it was already sunset and very very cold. If in Shirakawago it was snowing and about -2°, in Mt Fuji it was really windy and -7°.

Day 5 – 28th -Mt Fuji + Tokyo

In the morning I set out for the first proper sunrise photo shoot during this whole trip. It was gorgeous. Mt Fuji lit up in red and then yellow. Even though there was no sun, it wasn’t too cold as I had 4 layers of clothes on; just like during my photography trip to New Zealand. Once the sun rose, and the transport started running again, we took a cable car up atop a nearby mountain to get some shots of Mt Fuji and the town from up top. Then we went to one of the most famous locations in all of japan the Chureito Pagoda. Because it was so beautiful up there, we staying a bit too long and almost missed our train to Tokyo. In the evening Amy and I went to a butler cafe in Ikebukuro called Swallowtail.

Day 6 – 29th – Comiket

Early morning, lots of lines… Thats what comiket is all about, right? Being back in the otaku scene was great, but unfortunately it has changed quite a bit since I last came. There is a lot more focus on gaming these days and less on anime. I did buy some goods, but not many. At the end of the day, I got sick and could barely move. But first I had to go to meet up with my friends from Kagoshima, who are all working in Tokyo right now. It was a great night, but would’ve been a lot better if I wasn’t sick.

Day 7 – 30th – Sick day

Tried to go to Tsukiji markets to buy knives in the morning. Bought some, but then realised how sick I felt and went back to the apartment. Then just spent the whole day sick in bed with a 38° fever 🙁

Day 8 – 31st – Shopping & NYE

Fever gone, time to go shopping. Literally spent the whole day running between Tsukiji, Ginza, Tokyo, Ikebukuro, Tokyo, Akihabara and back to Kinshichou, where we were staying. Had steak in Akiba for dinner and celebrated the Sydney New Year there as well. Then went back home for the Japanese New Year and took a hot bath. So now I am hoping that I will spend all of 2018 in hot baths (in Russian we have a saying: how you meet the new year, thats how you will spend it).

Day 9 – 1st – Hatsumode and Akiba

By Japanese tradition, on the first day of the year you must visit a shrine and pray to the gods there for luck, fortune, happiness, whatever. So we did that just that. Went to a small shrine in Ueno, threw some yen and prayed. After Amy left for her flight, I went to Akihabara to play games, shop for some cheap anime goods and just enjoy my last few hours in Japan.

Thats all folks. I don’t know when the next time I visit Japan will be and where in Japan I will go, but I must definitely go back at some point, I cant stay away from the land of the rising sun.

Photos here:

Sri Lanka 2017

October 31st, 2017

Another year, another country ticked off the list. #53 – Sri Lanka. Its been over a year since I’ve seen my parents, so this reunion was well overdue.

We arrived in the capital – Colombo and were welcomed by rain and clouds. The forecast never stopped showing rain, but the weather had other plans for us. It got really hot and humid really quickly.

Our itinerary this time around was to travel around the country for a week, then rest on the beach for a week. So in this first block, we spend the majority of our time in the car – traveling from temple to ruins to museums to factories.

Every time we left the car, it felt like we are in a different climate zone. On the third day it was particularly weird: we started of at a temple – it was cloudy but hot; then we got to an elephant shelter, where it was supper sunny, hot and humid; then we went up into the mountains, where it was sunny yet cool; and the by the end of the day we are at the top of one of the highest peaks of Sri Lanka – a hotel that used to be a tea factory near the plantations, where it was 14°, windy and cold (we had to turn on the heater at night!).

On the second last day, we went on a safari, but once again all the elephants (but one) were nowhere to be found. I still managed to get some really nice shots of the nature of the area and the wildlife (like the bird you see on the top of this post).

Afterwards we just relaxed on the beach, ate a lot of fish, and celebrated my dad’s 60th Birthday!

Photos available on my

NZ Photography Trip – Day 9

April 24th, 2017

Well, looks like this is the end, its time to go home. My flight back to Sydney was at midday, so you know what that means? I can go for another sunrise!

I don’t even know where we went this time, we just drove alongside the coast of the lake for about 20 minutes and then reached this lookout point. From there we had a great view of the lake, and the valley. Today was actually the first time when we had proper clouds during a sunrise. Both Anton and I were really happy that we managed to get some bright red colours on the clouds and mountains. Even if it only lasted a few minutes.

That’s all folks. I am now heading back to Sydney and getting back into my old routine of work, club, and chilling with friends. Time to edit all the photos I took. (Edit: ended up with exactly 100 photos from this trip, down from 1.2k)

Look at how much I walked during the past week! I think I beat all my records.

NZ Photography Trip – Day 8

April 23rd, 2017

After that really long hike up and down Mt. John, Anton and I were definitely not up for another hike, especially at 6am in the morning. So we went around the lake, looking for some decent photo spots. Took a few shots here and there, went back to the tree…

Not much to say about that morning, aside for the fact that we had to frantically pack up as we had a long trip to Queenstown next!

On the way to Queenstown, we stopped in the Arrowtown. Its a small old style town by the side of the mountains and near a river. I really liked the architecture and the autumn colours, and I wish I took some photos, but it was very crowded. It was right in the middle of their autumn festival, so there were tons of people – both tourists and locals from around the area. We had some delicious lamb steaks and then continued our journey to Queenstown.

Even though Queenstown sounds like a small city, it was the biggest one we visited while on our trip (excluding Christchurch). The original plan was to camp about 10km out of town, however after a week of sleeping in a tent in the cold I had enough. I booked us a twin bed room in a backpackers and I don’t regret it one bit. We could finally take a warm shower, lie in a soft bed and I can pack up for my return flight!

But before that, there is one more sunset (and sunrise). This time up Queenstown Hill we go. Not a big hike, and with decent views of the city and the lake.