BYJ Classics/The Scenes

Hehe, I'm sure you've read this from bb and other sites already. But you know the 'one beat slower than normal' me, couldn't figure out for a few days what this BYJ Classics CDs and concerts are different from the last one?? So I sat down and re-read it again yesterday and after clarification from cloudnine, now I think I cracked the mystery.

This collection of music is actually classical pieces that BYJ loves selected from movies and dramas. The collection is divided into 4 themes (provided by dear cloudnine) :

'Love Story' contains 6 pieces including Dvorak's 'New world', Puccini's 'Turandot, Nessun Dorma',and Beethoven's 'Piano concerto No.5, Emperor'.

'Dramatic' contains another 6 pieces including Mozart's 'Symphony No. 25, first movement', Mascagni's 'Cavalleria Rusticana', and Tchaikovsky's 'Overture 1812'.

'Art' contains 6 pieces including Mahler's 'Symphony No.5', Bach's 'Air on G string',andBeethoven's 'Symphony No.9'.

'Spectacle' has 7 pieces including Wagner's 'Ride of the Valkyries', J. Straus's 'The Blue Danube', andHolst's 'Jupiter from the Planets'.

Like the last BYJ Classics/Hero CD set, our Yong Joon's original essays about his thoughts on the music will be included. There will also be 'never released' pictures of him by the talented Leslie Kee. Just to show you a few to wet your appetite .....



The CD collection will be available for ordering on the Brokore site starting March 31. If you want to fully immersed in his music and mood, there will also be 4 individual concerts held based on each theme. 'Love Story' and 'Dramatic' on April 3, 'Art' and 'Spectacle' on April 8. The concerts are held by the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by the renowned conductor Maestro Kim Seikyo and MC by Ms Kim Tei. I tell you, with the rate these products are rolling out, I think I have to seriously consider robbing a bank :) Sorry, BAD idea! I'll be more realistic, I'll work 3 jobs, ok?



original post from cafe.daum.net/byjgallery
repost from baidu/wlbyj

Gosireh III

Hehe, I’d better finish the final part of my Gosireh lunch before I totally forget all the details (which is happening more and more now at my age). Remember I last left off at where we finished our delicious lunch and was about to proceed to the main dining room for games and stuffs. Ha, my problem is I got distracted again, and this one is on my must-see list in Gosireh – no no no, not the kitchen.

Bingo! Ladies, I present you this ……

Yes, the washroom! Well, to be specific, the gentlemen/ladies washroom. Now, before you proclaim me a pervert, think about it sis, he was in that VIP room sampling food the whole day last year. He’s got to go, right? Gosireh knows its customers very well, they have ladies room and then gentlemen/ladies room, but no ‘gentlemen’s only’ room. Hehe, so HRH has no choice but to patronize this one!


Hehe, I took so long inside the washroom checking out this and that, I hope the waitress didn’t think I had a major catastrophe in there :) While kiyomi was playing BYJ Q&A games with the sisters in the main hall, I took the opportunity to snap up a few more pictures.


I loe love love this staircase! Imagine one in your own house? :)

I think this is the utensils he used last time he ate in Gosireh. And no, I did not attempt to taste the spoon.

And the big black plate he signed after his 'Tae Wang Sang' meeting in Seoul earlier :

Good times passed so fast and our lunch had come to an end. Before we left, I had another brief moment to talk to the kind and sweet moichan. I look forward to spring when she can come out more often to meet us. She almost moved me to tears when she gave this cute Mickey chocolates to my son for Valentines. The seaweed is from the thoughtful tamatama, I will cook it, promise.


Cloudnine kindly brought over a few sisters, who visited this blog, to introduce to me. This very elegant and beautiful sister who dressed in formal kimono smiled at me, then gently retrieved the fan from her obi belt and handed to me. I thought she wanted me to look at her fan, so I opened it up, a faint fragrance came up to me. The floral design is soft and subdued, I complimented her on it, thanked and handed it back to her. Then she gently pressed the fan on my hands meaning it’s actually a gift for me. I was a bit embarrassed as I didn’t want to take it away from her formal ensemble, later on I found out from cloudnine that this beautiful sister is a kimono teacher. Thank you, thank you, I will treasure it.


Finally, this is the souvenirs from the 'April Snow & Now' circle, thank you for organizing such an enjoyable and meaningful luncheon in the name of our King :)

Let's make '-zushi'

OK dear sisters, are you ready for your next cooking lesson from chef Jaime? After our stress-releasing mochi pounding lesson, this time we are going to do some zushi massaging, ok? What massaging, you say, "You can't even spell? It's sushi, silly!" Hehe, that's what I thought too. Sushi is actually a general term, each specific type of sushi is called xxxx-zushi.


We all share our love for sushi not only for its freshness in taste, but also for its nutritional value and beautiful presentation. The origin of sushi can be traced back to the 4th century in Southeast Asia and China. Raw fish was preserved in layers of salt and rice weighed by a stone, and was named nare-zushi. Hehe, remind me of those Chinese salty fish I ate when I was a young girl.

Sushi had gradually evolved to its present form in the 18th century and developed into 2 styles : Osaka style from Kansai (west) and Edo style in Kanto (Tokyo). The most popular sushi that we eat nowadays is the Edo style called nigiri-zushi. I attended a nigiri-zushi class recently, and dear cloudnine is nice enough to join me (since I am sure she's a very accomplished cook already).

Our classroom took place in this bright and airy lounge

with a spacious and efficient kitchen to match

Now, the very first and most important thing in sushi making (or in any cooking) is : clean hands. Japanese are the cleanest people around and I love that :) We were first asked to wash our hands, then sterilized right before we touched any food, moreover there were anti-bacterial wetnaps and clean towels placed all over the table. I figured out I must have shed off at least a layer of skin that morning :)

Our sushi sensai showed us how to cool off the hot sushi rice in a cutting motion inside that big wooden trough.

Then we began to press and squeeze those rice into a small lump. Sorry sisters, no picture on that cause my fingers were all stuck with rice :( So I took a picture of the instruction sheet instead. Hehe on a tired day, don't you wish you're that sushi to be massaged like this? :)

Now, the practice is over and the real test begins ....

It is actually not as easy as it looks. Our sensei said it takes 10 years to perfect the skills of sushi making! I thought to myself : I have an easier way, take 1 bite of raw fish, 1 bite of rice, mix it all up inside the tummy, called it minced-zushi :)

Roll the drum please ..... Ta Ta, this is my first production! You all know the familiar hand roll is called temaki-zushi, the battleship-shaped sushi is called gunkan-zushi.

The nice surprise is we could stay and enjoy our finished product in this beautiful lounge

Cloudnine and I picked our private upper floor lounge :

complete with a stunning view of Tokyo

The homemade miso soup is cooked by the staff, oishii desu yo! I so wish hubby could see and taste my first sushi. So here, Bon Appetit!

Hehe chinggu, I know you are going to 'press and squeeze' me like a sushi as I am stepping into your territory of expertise. You think HRH is into sushi? I know MinHyung is :)

Handsome Revisited

Are you all missing him already? As the Korean sisters have been posting HRH's gorgeous old pictures to quench our thirst. I'll choose the ones that I love and repost them here. Please get your drooling bucket ready :)

Best Original Score

It just came out from the 4th Annual International Film Music Critics Association that Joe Hisaishi's "Tae Wang Sa Shin Gi" has won in the 'Best Original Score for Television' category.

The nominees for that category are :
- BATTLESTAR GALACTICA [SEASON 3], music by Bear McCreary
- DOCTOR WHO [SEASON 3], music by Murray Gold
- LOST [SEASON 3], music by Michael Giacchino
- TAE WANG SA SHIN GI (THE STORY OF THE GREAT KING AND THE FOUR GODS), music by Joe Hisaishi
- TIN MAN, music by Simon Boswell

source - http://www.filmmusiccritics.org
The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) is an association of online, print and radio journalists who specialize in writing about original film and television music. The IFMCA Awards are the only awards given to composers by film music journalists.

The IFMCA strongly feels that a film score’s strength lies in the combined impact of two important elements: the effectiveness, appropriateness and emotional impact of the score in the context of the film for which it was written; and the technical and intellectual merit of the composition when heard as a standalone listening experience. As such, the membership votes for the best scores of each year with these two criteria in mind, and strives to recognize scores which excel in both these areas.


I guess music is truly an international language. Even though the music in TWSSG has a strong Asian historical essence that fits the drama perfectly, it is equally pleasurable to enjoy it as standalone pieces. Congratulations, TWSSG and Joe Hisaishi!

Better not stand next to him

I think our princess is really not feeling well today as she is normally so fast in posting HRH's news. As I read some news tidbits about HRH today, maybe I'll just translate the meaning and share it here. Hope you will get better, princess.

translated from Japanese to Korean by miemi (cafe.daum.net/byjgallery)
translated from Korean to Chinese by wonchun (baidu byj thread)

Yong Joon's left knee is recovering well, it's estimated that he will begin his therapy treatment after Mid-March. BYJ is receiving detailed examination on a weekly basis in order to track his recovery.

Even though the Japanese fans are eagerly waiting for BYJ to go there to promote TWSSG. In Korea, the topic has already shifted to his next project. A BOF spokesperson replied in an interview with a Korean magazine, "We still have not decided on his next project. If there happens to be a good story, BYJ wants to star in a movie."


I actually read this yesterday but not sure about the reliability, so I went to Ryu Si Won and Kwon Sang Woo's site to verify it.

Source : SPN E-Daily 2008-02-18 in soompi's KSW thread
Ryu Si Won, Kwon Sang Woo and other celebrities will be attending the 17th Presidential Inauguration Ceremony on February 25 which will be broadcasted through KBS.

Actually BYJ was also on the invitation list since he is the top Hallyu star, but our Yong Joon has already replied that he will not attend due to prior engagement. You have to admire this man. You would think that since he owns an entertainment enterprise which involves dealings with the government, he would at least try to rub shoulders with these 'hot shots' officials. But our Yong Joon still sticks to his beliefs and principles that quality and excellence speaks for itself, he doesn't need to get to the top through smooching or gimmicky marketing. Love a man with principles!

Remember this Dong Gam DVD, wlbyj posted some if its 'making' pictures in baidu. Some sisters commented - "no matter how handsome other stars are. You'd better not stand next to Yong Joon when you have your picture taken" :) Hehe, if you don't know what they mean, just take a look yourself ....



Hehe sorry, I can't help it that I am this super gorgeous :)