Abstract: This thesis presents a practical framework for traders under 5 years in the markets to identify potentially profitable stocks. By combining fundamental and technical analysis, along with tracking the float and daily volume, traders can make informed trading decisions. The analysis focuses on stocks with a minimum daily volume of 2 million and a market capitalization of at least 500 million.
Introduction: Successful trading requires a systematic approach to finding growth stocks. This thesis explores the use of fundamental and technical analysis methods to assess investment potential.
Methodology: The study focuses on stocks with a daily trading volume of 2 million and a market capitalization of at least 500 million. This is done because market caps under 500 million can be easily manipulated. The 2 million in trading volume shows the stock is a mover and interest is in that particular stock. The float is tracked and compared to average volume, along with an assessment of company profitability and cash position.
Results: The methodology generates a list of uptrending and downtrending tickers, representing potential trading opportunities based on the identified criteria. The list is subject to change, and prices may vary depending on execution timing.
Discussion: Considerations when seeking trading plays include premarket volume, volume compared to the previous day, and other factors mentioned in the methodology. Thorough research is necessary before making trading decisions.
Conclusion: By integrating fundamental and technical analysis approaches and considering the float, daily volume, and company financials, traders under 5 years in the markets can enhance their ability to identify profitable trading opportunities. The thesis provides a comprehensive approach to trading decisions, with the understanding that the presented list of tickers may vary, and prices may differ based on execution timing and market conditions.
Uptrending Tickers

• ENVX 5/17/24 9C .24
• BIG 6/21/24 5C .30
• BILI 5/17/24 16C .57
• DNA 5/17/24 1C .05
• PLUG 5/17/24 3C .11
• AKRO 6/21/24 22.5C
• BE 6/21/24 12C .70
• COMP 6/21/24 4C .40
• JBLU 6/21/24 6C. .40
• IONQ 6/21/24 7.5C 1.03
• AVDL. 6/21/24 17.5 C .80
• NVAX 6/21/24 15C. 1.90
• MPW 5/17/24 6C .10
• RXRX 5/17/24 10C .25
• LPSN 6/21/24 1C .05
• WW 6/21/24 2C .35
• HE 6/21/24 12.5C .52
• VFS 6/21/24 4C .51
• RDFN 6/21/24 8C 1.05
• LMND 7/19/24 22C 1.60
• CHPT 7/21/24 1.5C .55
• BEAM 6/21/24 25C 1.55
• QS 6/21/24 7C .33
• CERS 7/21/24 2C .20
• KSS 7/19/24 30C 1.69
• RIVN 6/21/24 12.5C .76
• BBAI 6/21/24 2C .10
• VYTX 6/21/24 2C .10
• AAOI 6/21/24 12.5C .45

Downtrending Tickers

• NTRA 5/17/24 92.5P .50
• DNUT 5/17/24 12.5P .25
• HD 7/19/24 300P 1.61
• EBS. 6/21/24 5P .60
• IRBT 6/21/24 14P 1.55
• UPST 7/19/24 25P 1.87
• RDDT 7/19/24 45P 1.30
• SEDG 6/21/24 45P 1.37

I wanted to give back a bit after receiving some great information from folks on this sub before a (very short notice and sparsely planned) solo trip to Panama in late April/early May of 2024. I'm subtitling this post "I did a lot in Panama so you don't (necessarily) have to". Truth be told, I started the trip with 4 nights and one in-country flight booked and built the rest of my itinerary on the fly. I definitely could have used an extra week or so before the trip to do some itinerary planning, deeper research on where I chose to stay, etc. but I really enjoyed most of the trip and would absolutely recommend Panama as a solo trip destination.
Rough pre-departure itinerary:

• Panama City: Arrive at about 2 PM on a Thursday, stay three nights at Selina Casco Viejo, depart at 8 AM on Sunday via plane to David (Copa Airlines)
• Boquete: Arrive at about noon Sunday (after transit to town from airport), stay two nights at the Bambuda Castle
• Bocas for unknown amount of time/other stuff in the west off the country
• Return to Panama City from David via plane (Copa) Sunday Morning
• Return to USA on a redeye flight Tuesday night

I arrived in Panama City on time and took an Uber straight to Selina (cost $28). The Selina there is in a decent location, kind of on the edge of Casco Viejo but walkable to everything. I checked in and was told there was a welcome happy hour with a free drink and a free walking tour every day at 10. The 6-person dorm had a dedicated bathroom, but wasn't much for the price ($30/night) and I'm just now realizing I booked a 4-person dorm then was put in the wrong lodging... There is a bar and allegedly a pool on the roof of the property, but the pool was not open when I was there. The welcome drink was an underwhelming event, though I did meet a few cool people I ended up doing more with later. There really isn't much in the way of common space at Selina Casco Viejo and I found it to be overpriced, underwhelming, and not a great place to meet people. I ended up booking the canal tour ($60ish) with them (which was via the personal vehicle of the guide, a small sedan cramming 4 of us in plus the driver), but I did a different free walking tour after hearing poor reviews of the one provided by Selina. While Selina felt like a huge waste (would not recommend this location), I really liked Casco Viejo. The food was surprisingly good, especially ceviche at Marea https://maps.app.goo.gl/MdWBJ1uw4mWLB7r2A and a nice stop for middle eastern at Estambul Casco https://maps.app.goo.gl/qFq8wAm5NEzJw84F8 . I also made a quick stop with some people from the hostel at La Fabrica https://maps.app.goo.gl/WdAG1KAhwmkj1TbS8 which had a decent tap list and cool vibe and the Pedro Mandinga Rum bar (highly recommend) for some beers and a rum flight https://maps.app.goo.gl/seXCnetthN18BbUB9 . I also, as a cigar smoker, made a stop at the official La Casa del Habano store https://maps.app.goo.gl/uhswvnFPe1Y1Uzbu9 where the staff was chill and the cigarum selection was good. I finished out my cigar and partook in a bit of happy hour across the street at Finca del Mar which had a decent outdoor area for a drink https://maps.app.goo.gl/kPSiTHdd2mJmtakGA but the food was not recommended so I didn't try it.
I was up early to get to David on Sunday morning, so I figured I'd just grab food and coffee at the airport lounge (mistake). It turns out the Copa flight to David departs from the "domestic" gate, which is a standalone area on the ground floor of the airport. There are no amenities, just a single vending machine, and you get bussed to the plane. Do not go early for a David flight, security was very easy and I ended up waiting in the small seating area for way too long. The flight was fine, but don't expect to access a lounge or coffee shop after security.
I got to David pretty early and hadn't done my research on transit, but knew there was public bus service to Boquete. I was trying to figure out how to get to the bus terminal when a taxi offered to drive me all the way to Boquete for $40 which seemed like a decent deal so I went for it. Boquete is pretty small, a little mountain town with a relaxed vibe. I spent quite a bit of time at the brewery which, if you know craft beer pretty well, wasn't the best on beer quality but had good live music and a fun atmosphere https://maps.app.goo.gl/EJFiRiwQsbJ89UPa9 . I worked from here a little bit too, definitely where I spent the most time. I got a delicious dinner at RetroGusto which was really reasonable https://maps.app.goo.gl/8gcU1GHqXrfbTCoX9 and a good lunch at Donde Giselle which was a little more expensive, but also delicious https://maps.app.goo.gl/uNsz1EqCDfnSpYfk8 . I did a coffee finca tour through Bambuda ($35) at Don Pepe. It was pretty cool, not a lot of walking but the guide was knowledgeable and we got to see the full operation in a small footprint. I bought one bag and was happy I did, they were 3 times the price in the airport on the way home. The Tres Cascadas (three waterfall) trail was a must, it does have a steep section that has ropes affixed to help but was otherwise a pretty straightforward trail. It did cost a few dollars to hike as it's on private property. I took a taxi there ($20) but took the bus back ($2.25). The bus comes by every 30-40 minutes and they generally wait a bit at the entrance to the trail from the road to see if people come down. We did end up picking up a whole bunch of kids leaving school, but it was pretty funny and we managed to fit everyone. I did do the Volcan Baru hike, which cost $18 for a taxi to the trailhead but was otherwise free. It is a grueling hike, it took a little over 5 hours for me to get to the top and I was not having fun. I was very lucky to encounter a couple who was dropped off at the same time at the trailhead and, while we did not hike together, we did take a few breaks together and it was nice to be within sight of their headlamps. It was COLD at the top and I was happy I had a light down jacket and a fleece. I did a good job of timing up my climb with the sunrise, only needing to wait at the top for maybe 30 minutes before the sun came up. You can go up in a jeep, and I was very lucky to beat the offroad vehicles up as they were very loud coming up the mountain. It did get pretty crowded at the top by the time all of the jeeps had emptied out and their clients climbed the last bit to the summit. The view was phenomenal, you can see both the Caribbean and the Pacific on a clear day and the sunrise was beautiful. It was a little annoying that the 6 of us who climbed it had to share with the 25 or so who rode up in cars, but worth it. One spot I wish I had visited, but it just didn't work out, was a wood fire pizza spot that came recommended by our coffee guide and by several travelers https://maps.app.goo.gl/T93KKqHxXoQ7AFhf6 . I got lucky at the Bambuda Castle as I booked a 3 bed room but had it to myself. It had a nice restaurant and common space within the castle itself that was a good working space and had a fantastic view. The food was pretty good, with a few vegetarian options and smoothies. It's a pretty decent walk from the center of town, and about $4-5 taxi ride from the Boquete center. If I went again, I would probably look to stay somewhere in the center of town but I don't regret giving the Castle a shot.
I traveled out of Boquete to Bocas del Toro the same day I did the Baru hike, leaving via shuttle at 1 PM ($37) which I arranged through Bambuda. I ended up using a discount QR code at Bambuda Castle to book their Bocas town Hostel for three nights. The shuttle was fine, but it's a quick trip through winding mountain roads so be prepared if you get carsick. A big bonus, that I would recommend you ask about, was that this shuttle did not go all the way to Almirante, but instead stopped at Chiriqui Grande and proceeded via small boat (lancha) from there. The longer boat trip was fantastic, much better than the long/boring road which runs the rest of the way. I got stopped right off the boat in by several people trying to sell tours and got one person's number for a potential $35 Cayo Zapatilla tour but didn't commit, choosing to get to Bambuda Bocas Town first and settle in before making decisions. While I wish I had spent some more time at either red frog beach or another island, with only 3 nights and having booked late my options were limited. For Bocas Town, Bambuda was great. The front desk folks were pretty helpful and the restaurant was good for breakfast (the vegetarian burrito option is better than the sandwich). The hostel deck goes right out to the lagoon, and it's always busy with people hanging out in the sun or jumping into the lagoon. It was a great spot to do some work over coffee and, frankly, I wish I had spent more time here or at the Bambuda Lodge. I ended up doing the Caya Zapatilla tour (highly recommend, if only for the stop at Caya Zapatilla) for $35 with the operator I met right off the boat. This included pick up and drop off from Bambuda, and they had a cooler that I threw a few Balboas of my own in for the trip. We did stop mid-way for lunch which was not included and was a little expensive. This was the only actual tour I did during my time there, I spent my other full day just kind of hanging out and went to Starfish Beach (not as nice as Caya Zapatilla, but worth an afternoon) with a group from the hostel. I also did salsa night at Selina (fun, but a bad instructor) and karaoke at Aqua Lounge (get there in time to get a round of the happy hour special, the screen is behind the stage so not ideal for karaoke but it's easy to get on the list). I did not do Filthy Friday, I ended up departing Bocas that day but I would have been on the fence about it anyway. I guess it's a "when in Bocas" thing, so I probably would have gone for it. I really wish I had spent another night in Bocas, I regretted not having another day out there as soon as I left. It turned out to be the best place on my trip to meet people, it's definitely a general party vibe, and actually the best place to get work done of the hostels I stayed at. I did dinner at Pier 19 which was pretty nice, if not a little expensive and probably not a good solo traveler vibe https://maps.app.goo.gl/6vJG1rdUPCqEf9W3A . I did brunch one day away from Bambuda at Casa Papaya, their typical Panamanian breakfast and it was a great deal/meal https://maps.app.goo.gl/9CPFCxu6woWwKuwM7 . I did hear from some people that the bird island was a fun tour, and worth the day/cost. I did some bonus late night, unofficial stuff like swimming after midnight at Selina and an impromptu midnight trip out to see the bioluminescence and the stars with a random lancha taxi from the Selina dock. Not sure how I'd direct someone to arrange that, but say yes if it's an option.
I took off from Bocas via shuttle for the Lost and Found Hostel on Friday around noon ($20) which I arranged at the main lancha dock. This shuttle did not include a boat all the way to Chiriqui Grande, it was the short boat with the long road segment. A few people did get car sick during the first leg of the trip, the road is in pretty rough shape so lots of speeding up, slowing down, and swerving potholes. Lost and Found really caught my eye because of how much I enjoyed Secret Garden Cotopaxi in Ecuador. In the end, it didn't live up to that lofty expectation and I should not have squeezed it in. The allure is that it's isolated in the jungle, you have to walk about 15 minutes up the trail from the road to reach the hostel property. There are several buildings, with one primary common area with a few tables and hammocks. A big downside is that everything is outdoors, under cover of roofs but open still, which wasn't ideal in the evening during the season I went where it rained in the afternoons. There is a community kitchen if you bring your own food along, or there is an option to get breakfast/lunch/dinner from the hostel. I had a few meals there: the smoothie bowl was good, the lentil curry was a little on the salty side. The hiking is pretty cool and I ended up going up over the mountain to the big tree, the lookout, and the river. I didn't bring water, but definitely should have brought a liter along. In the end, with only about half a dozen other people staying there and 2/3 of the staff being pretty insular and not really socializing with the guests, it just wasn't a great addition to my trip. It might be a better option for a group or during a different season, but it provided a logistical challenge to make my flight back from David to Panama City and it wasn't really worth the risk of making it work, so I hired a car ($30) to take me to David and just ate the price of my second night at Lost and Found. It was beautiful, but it just wasn't on the same level as Secret Garden Cotopaxi which inspired me to give this a shot. I think, all in, my stop at Lost and Found cost me about $76.
The combination of having scheduled a flight on election day (oops) and the lack of help from lost and found staff meant that my best bet was a night in David. I used Hilton points to book a night at the Hampton and had myself a recovery night. I got a hot and ready pizza from the Little Caesar's next door and two Sam Adam's Boston Lagers from the bar. Fantastic recovery night, vey nice Hampton, and a pretty nice little breakfast. It refreshed me at a point where I was not really enjoying the trip and pushed me to go for one more stop rather than laying low in Panama City.
After my flight back to Panama City, I took the metro all the way to the Avenida Terminal (less than $1 total, it is very easy to purchase a card and load it at the station) to grab the bus to Valle de Anton. It was fairly easy to find the window to buy the bus ticket ($4.25). It's important to buy for El Valle and not just Anton, a town which is not where you want to end up. There was a confusing bit of business related to a transit card (not the same transit card as the metro. I couldn't seem to find a machine to buy one from, and eventually the guy at the turnstile took pity and just used his own to let me in. I paid him back, but it was very confusing that you needed to buy the ticket then a card with which to pay an additional 10 cents to get to the bus at Gate 53. I can't really offer advice other than you should try to figure out how to get this card, or if you can just pay with a dime, right when you buy your ticket. I let the bus (not a very big bus, somewhere between a van and a bus) driver know where I was headed on the way and they dropped me right at Bohdi in Valle de Anton. The whole trip is about 3 hours, with lots of local stops the whole way. Bohdi was a pretty cool spot, with a great yoga space with a guided lesson on a TV every morning. It has a kitchen if you want to cook for yourself and free coffee plus breakfast every day from 7:30-10:00. Both breakfasts were pancakes, but it was free and they were pretty good. There are some cool lounge spots out back, a few cafe tables out front, and a loft space as well. It was a decent, but not perfect spot, to do work if that's what you're looking for. The dorm does have 3 levels of beds, and they aren't all that comfy, but I'd recommend Bohdi. The first night I was in town I went to the Golden Frog Inn on a recommendation and it turned out to be a great spot to watch the sunset and have some pretty good (although a small) vegetarian tacos https://maps.app.goo.gl/pzRuyYuwHZvMVnAo8 . One afternoon I chose to do the India Dormida hike, I left and walked all the way back to Bohdi, it was a few hours total. It's a quick climb up to the top and you can walk the whole ridge that forms the edge of the caldera. It was a beautiful view and you can really see the old crater rim formations from the top. It's clear up there, no trees and wide open, and the breeze was very refreshing. I ended up coming down about halfway across the ridge, starting from the north. I grabbed a vegetarian dinner at El Rincon Colombiano which I'd recommend https://maps.app.goo.gl/tRcAAnAm9fYni7Nv8 and some guacamole and a beer at La Ranita which was pretty good https://maps.app.goo.gl/BcdB8uCqaSRv1RyE8 . Overall, I really liked Valle de Anton and I'm happy I made it happen. It's a little drier and warmer than Boquete, with a lot less coffee influence, but I liked the vibe and wish I had done more hiking around the area.
For my last evening in Panama, I grabbed a room just to have a place to put bags and clean up before my flight at Hotel Caracas, a recommendation from someone I met in my first stop in Casco Viejo. I did not plan to work from here, nor did I spend a night, but for $35 it was a perfect spot to leave things as I went to knock out a few more items before my flight home. I popped into Tantalo for a quick bite to eat https://maps.app.goo.gl/9pA9Dmw8AE9doabT7 which I don't know if I'd recommend for food, but the view was good. I think I meant to go to CasaCasco, which was recommended for ceviche and sushi, but ended up in the wrong spot. I then went over to Element to get some cocktails https://maps.app.goo.gl/mwYt2D7X43ua4jGu6 . Element has an interesting vibe, kind of a steampunk theme to the décor. The two guys behind the bar, who I believe own it, were fantastic. They don't have a set menu but instead try to match a drink to what you're feeling at the time. I had a classic daquiri and an old fashioned, which both came with a little bit of a twist on the classic recipe. They also pulled down a few different spirits which we tasted together, overall I'd highly recommend a stop and it was especially fun as the only patron there. After two cocktails, I cleaned up and called an Uber and headed to the airport. Just a heads up, the Copa Club is pretty nice, has limited food, but tragically closes at 9 PM. I had a flight that left at nearly 11 PM, so this was a little disappointing.
Overall, I loved Panama. The people were friendly, even if the service in many places was pretty lackluster. It's more expensive than Colombia or Ecuador, but several people told me it's slightly cheaper than Costa Rica. It's a good stop if you're not sure about central or south America as it's extremely safe, if you use common sense, and it's not too hard to get around using shuttles/taxis/ubers if you don't want to brave public transit. It offers very good food options in Panama City, and it's easy to find a Hampton Inn/Hooters/McDonald's/Little Caesar's/Wendy's if you need a break from being adventurous. The Spanish isn't difficult, and most people speak at least some English. I would have dropped lost and found hostel from my itinerary if I planned it again, but did not regret any of the other stops. I do kind of wish I had focused on Bocas and Boquete, saving Valle de Anton and maybe San Blas together for a future trip, but I had already painted myself into a bit of a corner with my David-Panama flights by the time I realized this. I hope this helps someone as they plan their Panama trip, or helps them decide Panama is a worthwhile visit! Please do not make as many changes as I did, I absolutely did at least one to many stops and wish I had spent more time in Bocas and probably Valle de Anton. Anyway, feel free to ask questions in the comments and I'll try to address them as they come in!
Final Itinerary:

• 3 nights at Selina Casco Viejo (meh, not recommended)
• 2 nights at Bambuda Castle Boquete
• 3 nights at Bambuda Bocas Town (recommend)
• 1 night at Lost & Found Hostel (not my jam, would not do again)
• 1 night at Hampton Inn David (saved my trip, loved it, would recommend)
• 2 nights at Bohdi Valle de Anton (solid, would recommend)
• 1 kind of night at Hotel Caracas (did exactly what I needed)

#ETHUSD #3h #Crypto───────────
Ensemble model * Overview: The synthetic investment attractiveness indicator equals 31 (out of +/-100). The model ensemble predicts the market is more likely to be bullish in the nearest future.
Optimal past * Optimal past: The optimal lookback period for modelling is currently 203 candles. The market is currently bearish, depreciating by 7.0% during the latest phase.
Elliot Waves * Elliot Waves: The market's trend has changed and currently goes down.

• Elliot Waves Settings: Elliot Waves were updated. The current wavelength is 13.

Price Bound Modelling * HAR model at confidence level 95.0%: the HAR model forecasts volatility of 1.2551% in the next candle, the price will fluctuate around 2883.25 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 2823.7 or above 2942.81.

• BRW VaR at confidence level 95.0%: in the next candle, the price will fluctuate around 2882.88 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 2829.94 or above 2942.07.
  
• Historical simulation at confidence level 95.0%: in the next candle, the price will fluctuate around 2882.98 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 2832.23 or above 2942.46.
  
• Multifractal range at confidence level 95.0%: in the next 256 candles, the price will fluctuate around 3006.18 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 1764.41 or above 3559.96.
  
• Fibonacci with seven retracements: the price is likely to rebound upward from the nearest Fibonacci support of 2803.5 at the level of 0.0%. The nearest Fibonacci resistance is 3106.77 at the level of 23.6%.
  
• Fibonacci with five retracements: the price is likely to rebound upward from the nearest Fibonacci support of 2803.5 at the level of 0.0%. The nearest Fibonacci resistance is 3294.2 at the level of 38.2%.
  
• Fibonacci with four retracements: the price is likely to rebound upward from the nearest Fibonacci support of 2803.5 at the level of 0.0%. The nearest Fibonacci resistance is 3294.2 at the level of 38.2%.
  
• MVaR bounds at confidence level 95.0%: in the next candle, the price will fluctuate around 2890.58 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 2819.06 or above 2922.47.
  

Forecast * MA model at confidence level 95.0%: the MA model forecasts a return of 0.086% in the next candle, the price will fluctuate around 2887.2 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 2802.1 or above 2972.0.

• AR model at confidence level 95.0%: the AR model forecasts a return of 0.086% in the next candle, the price will fluctuate around 2887.2 and with 95.0% probability will not go below 2826.91 or above 2947.2.

Stability Indicators * Generalised extreme value: According to the indicator, the market is stable

• Power law: According to the indicator, the stability of the market is uncertain
  
• Student degrees of freedom: According to the indicator, the stability of the market is uncertain
  
• Tukey lambda: According to the indicator, the stability of the market is uncertain
  

Seasonality test * Seasonality test: According to the generalised seasonality test, there are no seasonal effects on the market.
Distribution analysis * Best-fit distribution: Best-fit distribution has changed, and now it is Power
───────────
Not investment advice.
#ETHUSD #3h #trading #Distribution analysis

Travel Diary: I make $195,000 and spent $2149.75 (+49k points) while on a trip to Amsterdam
Section One: Bio
Age: 40
Occupation: Lawyer
Hometown: DC
Number of PTO days and how you accrue them: I earn 6 hours of annual leave every two weeks (19 days total a year), and used 36 hours for this trip
Section Two: Assets + Debt
Not super comfortable with a very detailed financial picture, but my NW is ~$750k. No SO.
Section Three: Income
Main Job Monthly Take Home: After all deductions and contributions to savings, my monthly take home is ~$6200
Section Four: Travel Expenses/Diary
Trip planning - My (40F) best friend from college (39F) and I decide to go to Amsterdam on a birthday trip. We both turn 40 in 2024, and we decide to go in May because it's in between our birthdays and because it'll be tulip season in Amsterdam! Neither of us have been. We also haven't travelled together before, despite being friends for 20(!) years, so we are a little apprehensive, although we have spent a lot of time together over the past few years. We decide on a 6 day trip. For purposes of this diary I'm going to list my half of the expenses for things we split. Costs are in US dollars, despite paying using Euros. As a side note, I also am a little over one year post-Gastric Bypass, which has a limited effect on my diet (I try to eat low carb, but you'll see that I mostly fail at this on this trip!).
Pre-trip expenses: $1193.15 total
Flight: $255 + 49k points (from Capital One)
Lodging: $1425.91 (split) - $713
Rijksmuseum: $40.28
Anne Frank House: $24.95
Keukenhof Gardens plus bus ticket: $36.20
Red Light District Tour: $50.52
Day trip to windmills tour: $43.20
Snacks: $30ish
Day 1 (Total $21.17)
Our flight is at 5:30pm, so we planned to be at the airport by 3:30pm, which actually turned out to be 4pm. Uber ($21.17). After checking bags (included in flight price) and getting through security we made it to our gate right as boarding was about to start. No time for food or drinks.
On the plane I eat a snack of roasted chickpeas before dinner, which was chicken cacciatore with mashed potatoes, bread, cheesecake, cheese, and a salad. And two glasses of wine. I save the cheesecake and cheese for later.
My friend and I watch a movie (Poor Things) and then try to sleep. I am reading A Fault In Our Stars, because Amsterdam. I try unsuccessfully to sleep for awhile and then go back to reading. At some point i eat the cheese and cheesecake. Breakfast is a cheese roll, which i eat a couple bites of (OMG does all of Amsterdam have this much cheese?? - spoiler alert… yes it does!). I wish I had slept more.
Day 2 - Even though it feels like a continuation of day one. (Total $207.02)
7am - We land at 7 and then grab the bags and go through customs. Easy peasy. We are exhausted so we grab coffee at the airport before figuring out public transit ($5.10). I take out 60 euro for cash in case we need it ($65). We buy a train ticket to the central station ($6.33) and when we get there we buy a four day unlimited public transit pass ($28.44) so that we don’t have to worry about it later.
We get to the hotel at around 9am. They tell us it will cost $50 to check in early, which we opt not to do. Instead we go get breakfast and coffee at a cafe nearby ($21.20). The hotel tells us that our prepaid amount did not include city taxes, which is another $183 (my half $91.88).
11:30am - Back at the room we decide to rest for 90 minutes. Enough to catch up on sleep but not to waste the day and get more jet-lagged. After a rest we decide to walk around and get a feel for the neighborhood and do some shopping. We find a bookstore, and I buy a copy of my favorite book from high school, Tess of the D’Ubervilles with a beautiful cover and gold edges ($21.46). We also buy fries with truffle, mayo, and Parmesan at a fry shop ($3.32) (that’s all they have and they are delicious!). We also stop a grocery store and pick up a few things including yogurt, cheese, salami, apples, and an energy drink ($13.19). We have some early days planned and nothing seems to open early. It’s very cold and rainy and semi unpleasant.
6pm - We drop stuff off, bundle up, and head off to dinner and a tour of the red light district. We try to find a place that serves Snert, a Dutch pea soup, but strike out. We end up at an Asian place instead. I get chicken satay and a beer and my friend gets Indonesian soup and wine ($16.10). Our red light tour is great, but we are exhausted after and head straight home to bed. 22k steps total
Day 3 (Total $87.24)
7:30am - We have an early day planned, and have to be on a bus near the central station by 8am. I eat a yogurt and energy drink (from grocery store) for breakfast and we take public transit (covered on unlimited card) to the station. We find the right bus and head off!
First stop is the windmills, which are beautiful! I am happy we get there early because we basically have the place to ourselves. My friend gets a coffee and we both use the restroom ($1.08!). Then we head to Edam and do a walking tour there. Next stop is a clog/cheese place, which feels very touristy but they do feed us lots of cheese. I buy a cheese slicer as a souvenir ($10.81). Next stop is another small town where we have lunch at a cafe. We basically pick one at random. My friend gets fried fish and I get a ham and cheese panini and a beer ($17.30). Final stop is an artificial island town called Maarken. We do another walking tour.
2:30pm - we arrive back in Amsterdam and get let off north of the water. I grab a coffee ($3.76). We go up to the Adam lookout and take a ride on the swing off the side of the building ($25.95 for swing plus ticket to lookout). We also grab a drink and sit on a pillow watching the city from very high up, which is lovely ($6.63). On the way out I buy a reusable water bottle at the gift shop ($4.87).
After the lookout we take the tram over to a brewery at a windmill that was recommended to us by several people (including here on Reddit!). Cost was covered by the transit pass. We buy bitterballen and a small bottle of Genever (local whiskey) (paid by my friend) and a flight of beer ($16.84). We are a bit tipsy but enjoying the lovely weather.
6:30 - On the way back toward the hotel the weather turns and it starts raining so we dip into a pub for dinner. I have a burger ($16.12). We are there at 8pm, which is momentous because it’s a day of remembrance and the whole bar is silent for two minutes. It was very interesting to be there during this time.
We are exhausted by this point and go home to bed. 19k steps total for the day.
Day 4 (Total $104.33)
7am - Another early day as we have to be on a bus at 7:30 to go to Keukenhof for the tulips! (paid in advance). We wanted to take the first bus out there because we heard the crowds were bad. I eat a yogurt for breakfast and take a 5 hour energy (no cafes open this early!). We try to take public transit to the train station but didn’t realize that the trains do not run that early on a Sunday so we grab an Uber instead ($12.20). We tell the Uber driver we’re trying to catch a bus so he makes sure we find the right place and we pull up just as the bus is loading. Phew!
8:00am - we spend 5 hours in the gardens and take literally hundreds of pictures. We are glad that we get there early as the first few hours are lovely and empty. We get a coffee ($4.60) and lunch later ($25.36). By 1pm it’s getting very crowded so we start heading out. We grab the bus back to the train station.
2:30pm - We decide to go by the Rijksmuseum although not in it because we planning that later. Instead we stop off at the Van Gogh/Rijks gift shop that’s nearby. I get a couple souvenirs, including a foldable bag and a magnet ($20.44). I also get a coffee ($3.64) and my friend gets bubble tea. We sit on the hill on museumplein and people watch. After awhile it starts to get hot (we had dressed for the early morning) so we head back to the hotel to change.
5pm - we decide we are having an evening of drinking. We first grab a drink in the hotel bar because we get free vouchers for each day we choose not to have the room cleaned. Then we have dinner at an udon place, which is delicious. We have tempura, chicken katsu, and dumplings ($15.94). Then because it’s cinco de mayo we decide to have margaritas at the Mexican place near the hotel ($15.15)! Not Dutch but it’s fun. We head down the street to another bar and have a Genever cocktail called an Amsterdam mule ($9.91). I am happy with our choice of hotel because there are so many places in our neighborhood. On the way home we pass a fresh stroopwaffle place and must get in line for one ($5.92).
By then we are exhausted and head to bed. 21k steps total for the day.
Day 5 (Total $80.44)
8am - We have a slightly less early day but have tickets to the Anne Frank house at 9:15. (paid in advance). I eat some yogurt and cheese in the room before we leave. It’s walkable so we decide to head out early and grab coffee on the way. ($3.19). The house is sombering but I’m glad we did it.
11am - After the Anne Frank house we walk to the nearby cheese museum. We sample lots of cheese. I buy one cheese to take home ($15.18). We want to walk to a used bookstore, but decide to have lunch at a cafe on the way. We pick one at random. We split chicken tenders and a goat cheese and apple sandwich and I have a beer. ($15.14). The sandwich is one of the best things we have eaten. We spend about an hour in the bookstore and my friend buys one book.
3pm - We realize we are by the monkey bar (one of the oldest bars in Amsterdam that they told us about on our red light district tour). We stop in for a drink. Ok two drinks. ($12.50). We take the metro back towards the hotel and stop in at a tile store in our neighborhood so I can buy a magnet. I buy magnets from all my trips, but I like non-touristy handmade ones if I can find them, Van Gogh magnet from yesterday aside. I buy one with a windmill on it. ($14). We also stop at the grocery store for more yogurt ($3.05) and for Dutch apple pie at the cafe across the street from the hotel ($4). We get back to the hotel and have another free drink and then rest before dinner.
8pm - We go out to a Dutch restaurant for dinner. I am not super hungry from pie so I just get the snert (pea soup). My friend gets sauerkraut and potatoes. Sorry, but I thought it was pretty bland food in general. ($13.38).
We head home. It’s a lighter day, only 14k steps today.
Day 6 (Total $194.47)
8am - Today is our last full day in Amsterdam. We have planned to spend the day at the Rijksmuseum. We want to get there right when it opens for crowd reasons. We had bought “friend of the museum” passes ahead of time so that we can skip the line. I have a yogurt for breakfast and we walk to a cafe near the museum for coffee and breakfast for my friend ($3.78). The man at the cafe is very nice and we love sitting outside in the sunshine. It’s going to be a warm day!
We spend about 5 hours at the museum. We rush to see the Van goghs and the main gallery where the Rembrandts are, including The Night Watch, which is probably one of the most famous paintings in there. We had downloaded the app so we shared a pair of earbuds and listened to audio notes about many of the works (they have a number you can enter in). We take a break outside for coffee ($7.29 - i pay) and skip the line again. Totally worth it for the more expensive ticket. Around 2 we are hungry and have seen almost everything. We stop in the gift shop and I buy a ring and earring set. ($64.76). I forget to use my 10% discount for being a friend. :( I wanted a necklace too but didn’t like the ones they had there so I’ll try to find a matching piece at home.
2pm - My friend has been trying to get herring for the whole trip so we make it a point to do that. The first place is a bust so we find a little stand that sells it a 15 min walk away. We are determined, so we head there. I don’t eat fish so I get a shawarma on the way, which is terrible (cash). I throw half away. After lunch we get ice cream. I get coffee ice cream, and it makes up for the bad shawarma ($6). We also stop at the peanut butter store, which is allegedly the first in the world, and I pick up 3 small jars for my mom for Mother’s Day ($8.11). We also stop at a thrift store and i buy a dress ($21.59). At some point this day (I think), we also stop at another bookstore, and I buy a few things including a card, a couple gifts, and a book ($39.71).
6pm - After resting a bit, we get two more free drinks at the hotel and then head out to dinner. We pick another Asian place. I get an aperol spritz at dinner and we share appetizers (satay, spring rolls, and bitterballen). We also get coconut ice cream with mango sauce for dessert. All yum! ($33.03).
We get one final drink at a local bar near the hotel ($10.20) and I’m again grateful for our choice of neighborhood. Today has been all walking because our 4-day metro pass ran out yesterday. Total steps 13k.
Day 7 (Total $36.93)
8am - this our last day. The plane was supposed to leave at 1:30pm, but we get a message that it’s delayed an hour. We decide to have a leisurely breakfast. We pick a place that’s at a hotel near our hotel. I get an egg sandwich and my friend gets French toast. We both get coffee. ($15.27)
We decide to leave for the airport around 11. We walk to the central station about 20 min away, and I buy wooden tulips for my mom on the way (cash). We buy train tickets (cash) and get right on a train. We are proud of ourselves for our navigation on this trip.
12pm - we get to the airport and through security. We head to a lounge but there’s a line. We are 40th in line based on our QR code place. We decide not to wait and sit down for lunch at a random bar. I get a sausage and a beer ($20.66). We walk around some and get another message that our flight is delayed more, to 4pm. It’s finally our turn to get into the lounge at 2:30 (2 1/2 hour wait) so we go. I grab some water and a whiskey and coke but we just ate so we are not hungry. Around 3 we head to the gate. Unfortunately when we get there our flight is delayed more and will board at 4. They give us airport vouchers so we buy a book, beer, and some stroopwaffles ($1 after vouchers). We finally board and head off around 5.
On the flight we are served dinner. They have run out of chicken by the time they get to me, but eventually find one and bring it to me later. I have a wine too. I read, watch a movie, and try to sleep a little. We have a whole row of four to ourselves so we can spread out. Dinner is a French bread pizza.
8pm - We land around 7pm (love time zone math!), grab our bags, and get a taxi to my car ($27.09). I drop off my friend and get home at 8:30. I am exhausted but cuddle my cats for about an hour before going to bed. 15k steps today
After trip expenses - $225 cat sitting
Total expenses: $2149.75 (+49k points)
Flight: $255 + 49k points
Lodging: $804.88
Food/drinks: $531.38
Travel: $101.56
Activities: $221.10
Souvenirs/gifts: $ 231.93
Final parting thoughts - I think just over $2k for an almost-week long trip to Europe is a pretty comfortable number for me. I am glad I could use points for most of the flight. We definitely didn't try to cheap out on anything. We spent a lot of money drinking (neither of us drink this much usually). I hope this was helpful to anyone, and I look forward to reactions/comments!

[WTS] silver and Gold Coins and bullion for sale 5/14/2024
Ships from NJ
Selling some gold and silver coins and bullion. Make offers if prices off. Credit to all of you who regularly post. Making the ad, the pictures, the description, etc is time consuming.
Proof
https://imgur.com/a/16MpAmh
Gold 1992 Cook Island $50 coin Proof Panda 14k Description: Panda Ruler Name: Elizabeth II Diameter: 25 mm Weight: 0.25 (oz.), fineness 14k $575 Gold plus numismatic value
https://imgur.com/a/da0ep0y
https://imgur.com/a/TtofpBu
https://imgur.com/a/ANFIViv
2000 Jahre Christnetum Austrian Gold Coin 500 Schilling Birth of Christ 10g, .986 fine AU, # 42953 of 50,000 in box w/ COA $750
1904 Russia gold coin 5 Rubles Key date $475 gold plus numismatic
https://imgur.com/a/p9oWKOd
https://imgur.com/a/S9ZaUqw
https://imgur.com/a/lVM62Fu
Gouden Dukaat 1989 proof 3.494g plus numismatic value $275
https://imgur.com/a/xjmfaSX
https://imgur.com/a/SMIHQUg
1909 20F gold coin 6.46g $465 gold plus numismatic https://imgur.com/a/10A2Qb4
Silver
United States 1986 Prestige Set $30
US Silver Corp 1974 world trade 1oz- $32
https://imgur.com/a/WsAGl7t
https://imgur.com/a/Nf1YWWi
Lot of 3 coins-$24 George Washington 1982 half dollar 90% Two 1976 Washington quarter proof 90%
Canada Silver stamp- Nonsuch 1968 Very rare $55
Statue of Liberty Centennial 1986 (Washington crossing the Delaware) Statue Of Liberty Washington Crossing Delaware 28.6 Grams Sterling Silver .925 collector coin $45
One Peso Filipinas 1908S $200obo Rare. Low mintage. Dirty
https://imgur.com/a/6aTy3EA
Astrology bullion Two, 1/2 oz each $32 for the pair
https://imgur.com/a/lffQIrM
1970 Egypt nasser commemorative $32
Andrew Jackson liberty lobby 1991 240 grains silver $17
https://imgur.com/a/4vFj87v
2017 Canada big horn sheep 3/4oz proof69 $40 2018 Canada wolverine 3/4oz proof69 $40
https://imgur.com/a/d2UZJoG
2023 silver Krugerrand MS69 $36
https://imgur.com/a/CuKTEfA
2021S silver eagle $41 emergency production MS69
https://imgur.com/a/vY8caDp
WWII 50th anniversary silver coin D-Day $37 1991-1995 26g .9 highly collectible low mintage https://imgur.com/a/xzkxVPw
Silver round Eisenhower addresses troops at Normandy $31 1oz
https://imgur.com/a/JQUKy3K
https://imgur.com/a/k9YVYMy
Eisenhower Liberia $20 silver coin 20g .999 Low mintage $26 proof
https://imgur.com/a/Jq95ugr
Douglas Arthur Philippines one Peso $115 obo Low mintage, excellent condition On the low end it’s $65 coin, high end $325. What’s fair?
George bush 1oz silver gold plated 24k $32
https://imgur.com/a/DlxvepK
1960 South Africa 5 shillings silver coin very nice condition $30
https://imgur.com/a/twGBcLo
1934 silver coin Peru 5 decimos $22
https://imgur.com/a/NcqP1dk
https://imgur.com/a/avoUGoN
FAO TONGA 1975 2 Pa’anga Food for all coin, copper not silver $15 42.8 grams. Heavy coin.
https://imgur.com/a/10c3N5a
1848 Large Cent $22 (copper)
https://imgur.com/a/Hfj4Pv5
$6 for <6ozs silver or each prestige set $10 >6ozs
Gold coins $10 each or all I can take more pictures just ask More interested in selling but would consider trades.
Shipping is USPS. I will email a picture of the tracking receipt.
Insurance is optional paid by the buyer I accept Venmo, Zelle and PayPal friends and family only. If you want to use goods and services please pay the ~2% extra that they charge me. I used Internet and online auctions to determine prices. Make offer if you think they are unfair. Thank you for looking.

Important Notes:

• I do my best to include every sale, but at the same time I focus sale with a noticeable price drop, meaning sales start with at least 20% and up. I usually skip anything below that unless it's a worth while title.
  
• Click on the price to visit the store page for that game.
  
• The end date of the sale isn't mentioned, you can check the store page to see it.
  
• All of these sales are based on the US store front, so some sales may not be available depending on your country.
  

[~ PSN ~]

(On Mobile please Swipe left to see the prices and tags)

Game	Price/Link	Tags
Persona 4 Golden	$11.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Modern Japan setting/Highschool life simulatoMystery/Monster collectoSocial link system/Great soundtrack
The Persona Collection (P3P/Persona 4/Persona 5)	$49.49 $89.99	Turn-based/Modern Japan setting/Highschool life simulatoMystery/Monster collectoSocial link system/Great soundtrack
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth PS4 & PS5	$48.99 $69.99	Turn-based/Contemporary Hawaii setting/Yakuza life/Open World/Heavy on Drama and Comedy/Heavy on Mini-games/Class Changing Mechanics
Star Ocean The Second Story R	$39.99 $49.99	Action/Sci-fi mixed with Fantasy setting/Choose 1 of 2 main characters/Expansive crafting system/Affection mechanic for Party members/Choices matteRemake of the original PS1 title
Tales of Arise PS4 & PS5	$14.79 $59.99	Action/Fantasy setting/Anime style/Revolution Story/anime trope heavy/Social links mechanic between party members
Valkyria Chronicles 4 Complete Edition	$9.99 $49.99	Tactical Turn-based/World War Militar setting/Tactical mixed with real-time elements/Sketch or "Canvas" art style/Build your Army with character customization/Mission based story progression/Army management
DORAEMON STORY OF SEASONS	$14.99 $49.99	Farming Simulator/Mini-games/Social Links system
Rainbow Moon	$2.99 $14.99	Tactical Turn-based/Character customization/Fantasy setting/Dungeon Crawler
Terra Memoria	$14.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Base Building/Resource gathering & Crafting
Neptunia: Sisters VS Sisters	$19.99 $49.99 [PS4 version]	Turn-based/Female Protagonist/Comedy/fan-service/Parody
Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling	$14.99 $24.99	Turn-based/Paper Mario-like/Comedy/Adventure
Monster Sanctuary	$4.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Monster CollectoMetroidvania/Pixel Graphics
Relayer	$11.99 $59.99	Tactical turn-based/Sci-fi setting/Space travel/Piloted Mecha/Female Protagonist/Anime art style
Death end reQuest	$7.99 $39.99	Turn-based/Female protagonist/Cyber World setting/Psychological HorroNudity
Death end re;Quest 2	$11.99 $49.99	Turn-based/Cyber world setting/Female Protagonist/Dark Fantasy/Gore/Fan-service
Shining Resonance Refrain	$5.99 $29.99	Action/Fantasy setting/Dragon transformation/Musical theme/Anime visual style/Social link mechanic
Mary Skelter Finale	$14.99 $49.99	Turn-based/First-Person View Dungeon CrawleDeep & Full party customization/Female Protagonist/Multiple Endings/HorroFan-service
Born of Bread	$14.99 $29.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Paper Mario-like/Comedy/Timed hits combat
DRAGON BALL Z: KAKAROT	$14.99 $59.99	Action Fantasy/Semi-Open World (zones)/Anime story adaptation/Beautiful animations
South Park™: The Fractured but Whole™	$8.99 $29.99	Tactical Turn-based/Modern Day setting/Comedy/Mature/Dark HumoNudity/Fart Jokes

​

[~ Switch ~]

Game	Price/Link	Tags
Star Ocean The Second Story R	$39.99 $49.99	Action/Sci-fi mixed with Fantasy setting/Choose 1 of 2 main characters/Expansive crafting system/Affection mechanic for Party members/Choices matteRemake of the original PS1 title
Ikenfell	$5.99 $19.99	Tactical Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Female Protagonist/LGBTQ+/Retro
Dodgeball Academia	$9.99 $24.99	Action/School Life Sim/Sports (Dodgeball)/2D Hand-drawn Cartoon Art style
Born of Bread	$14.99 $29.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Paper Mario-like/Comedy/Timed hits combat
Battle Chef Brigade Deluxe	$6.99 $19.99	Action/Fantasy setting/Cooking battles/Female Protagonist/Side ScrolleBeat'em up/Hand-drawn
Fuga: Melodies of Steel	$23.99 $39.99	Tactical Turn-based/Steampunk setting/Anthropomorphic characters/Social Links System/Base upgrading
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2	$23.99 $39.99	Tactical Turn-based/Steampunk setting/Anthropomorphic characters/Social Links System/Base upgrading
Front Mission 1st: Remake	$17.49 $34.99	Tactical turn-based/Sci-fi setting/War & Politics/Mecha/Customization
FRONT MISSION 2: Remake	$27.99 $34.99	Tactical turn-based/Sci-fi setting/War & Politics/Mecha/Customization
Dusk Diver	$8.74 $34.99	Action/Modern Taipei Ximending setting/Female Protagonist/Beat'em up/Anime visual style
Terra Memoria	$14.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Base Building/Resource gathering & Crafting
Infinite Guitars	$11.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Sci-fi setting/Rock Music/Hand-drawn/Robots/Rhythm/Timed button presses
Regalia: Of Men and Monarchs - Royal Edition OST Combo	$7.49 $24.99	Tactical turn-based/Medieval Fantasy setting/Social link system/Politics/Comedy
Potato Flowers in Full Bloom	$13.31 $17.99	Turn-based/Medieval Fantasy setting/First-person Dungeon CrawleCustom Party creation/Class Mechanics
Rainbow Moon + Rainbow Skies Strategy RPG Bundle	$23.99 $29.99	Tactical Turn-based/Character customization/Fantasy setting/Dungeon Crawler

[~ Xbox ~]

Game	Price/Link	Tags
Blue Dragon	$6.59 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Class changing mechanics/great soundtrack
Lost Odyssey	$8.24 $24.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting
Costume Quest 1	$4.49 $14.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Female Protagonist/Choices Matter
Terra Memoria	$14.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Base Building/Resource gathering & Crafting
Dodgeball Academia	$9.99 $24.99	Action/School Life Sim/Sports (Dodgeball)/2D Hand-drawn Cartoon Art style
Ikenfell	$5.99 $19.99	Tactical Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Female Protagonist/LGBTQ+/Retro
Ara Fell: Enhanced Edition	$5.99 $14.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Female Protagonist/Pixel Graphics
Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling	$12.49 $24.99	Turn-based/Paper Mario-like/Comedy/Adventure

~ Steam ~

If you want to check the games yourself:

~ Link to the JRPGs on Sale list ~

Steam Deck Icons (As explained by Steam itself):

🟦 Verified: Means that the game is fully compatible and works with built-in controls and display.
🟧 Playable: Means the game is Functional, but requires extra effort to interact with and configure .
"--" Unknown: Basically unconfirmed or still under-review.

Game	Price/Link	Tags	Steam Deck
Chrono Ark	$18.74 $24.99	Turn-based/Modern day setting/Roguelike DeckbuildeFemale Protagonist/Anime visuals/Card Battler	🟦 Playable
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night	$9.99 $39.99	Action/Medieval Gothic Fantasy setting/Female Protagonist/PlatformeSide ScrolleMetroidvania	🟦 Verified
In Stars And Time	$15.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Monochrome art style/LGBTQ+/Comedy/Time Travel/Hand-drawn Cartoon style	🟦 Verified
Ni no Kuni™ II: Revenant Kingdom PRINCE'S EDITION	$11.99 $79.98	Action/Fantasy setting/Isekai/Base BuildeArmy Battle/Character CollectoBeautiful art style	🟦 Verified
Born of Bread	$12.49 $24.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Paper Mario-like/Comedy/Timed hits combat	🟧Playable
Terra Memoria	$14.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Base Building/Resource gathering & Crafting	🟧Playable
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2	$23.99 $39.99	Tactical Turn-based/Steampunk setting/Anthropomorphic characters/Social Links System/Base upgrading	🟦 Verified
Fae Tactics	$5.99 $19.99	Tactical Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Female Protagonist/Beautiful Pixel Graphics/Unique Battle system/Monster Collector	🟦 Verified
Dodgeball Academia	$9.99 $24.99	Action/School Life Sim/Sports (Dodgeball)/2D Hand-drawn Cartoon Art style	🟧Playable
Sword and Fairy 7	$14.99 29.99	Action/Chinese Martial Arts Fantasy (Xianxia)/Female Protagonist/Great visuals and Music/Rich Story and Lore/Chinese voice acting with English subtitles	🟧Playable
Ikenfell	$5.99 $19.99	Tactical Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Pixel Graphics/Female Protagonist/LGBTQ+/Retro	🟦 Verified
Astria Ascending	$8.74 $39.99	Turn-based/Medieval Fantasy setting/PlatformeFemale Protagonist/Class system	🟦Verified
Haven	$14.99 $24.99	Active time combat/Sci-fi setting/Heavy on Romance/LGBTQ/Local Co-op support/Exploration/Resource Gathering	🟦 Verified
Crimson Tactics: The Rise of The White Banner	$14.99 $29.99	Tactical Turn-based/Medieval Fantasy setting/Class system/War & Politics/Dragons/	--
Jack Move	$9.99 $19.99	Turn-based/Cyberpunk setting/Female Protagonist/Pixel Graphics/Hacking	🟦Verified
Earthlock	$4.49 $29.99	Turn-based/Fantasy setting	🟧Playable
Xuan-Yuan Sword: The Gate of Firmament	$4.49 $14.99	Real Time/Chinese Martial Arts Fantasy (Xianxia)/Rich Story and Lore/Monster collection/Chinese voice acting with English subtitles	🟧Playable
Xuan-Yuan Sword: The Gate of Firmament	$4.49 $14.99	Real Time/Chinese Martial Arts Fantasy (Xianxia)/Rich Story and Lore/Monster collection/Chinese voice acting with English subtitles	🟧Playable
Children of Zodiarcs	$5.39 $17.99	Tactical Turn-based/Fantasy setting/Female Protagonist/Card Based/Deck Building	🟦Verified

​

~ General Recommendations (All Consoles) For Anyone Who Can't Decide ~

First off, I won't recommend big or famous games like Final Fantasy or Persona, this is more for lesser know, hidden gems, or just games where it's hard to find someone talking about them.
​

[Valkyria Chronicles]

[Valkyria Chronicles 4]

This one is really hard to explain through words alone, but just in case, the VC series is a World War 2 military setting story, where you act as the lead of a squad and take mission to drive back the enemy. The story is drama heavy and the gameplay is tactical turn-based, but it's mixed with real-time third person shooter.
You can also make your own army by recruiting different types of solders, training them and upgrading their gear. From rifles to tanks, this is a game you have to experience to understand.

[Fuga: Melodies of Steel 1 & 2]

Great game, great art style, and really well made and balanced turn-based combat. That alone is enough to get the game. Then you add the time-management part of the game, where you spend time upgrading the different tank rooms, cooking, exploring ruins, spending time to bond with other characters, and so on. It's also great if you want a game that you can play for an hour or 2 and then put down for later. As the game is played through stages, and once you're done with a stage, you get an intermission to do what you want and come back to it later.
It's not a long game (compared to the usual JRPG), as you mentioned, it's about 20 hours. Story-wise I think it was a bit too short. Gameplay wise it was great fit, because it didn't outstay it's welcome, and it ends when you feel you have mastered the gameplay and want to face the final challenge.
The story is good, but isn't the focus. Gameplay is the main focus. In fact you'll feel that a lot of context isn't told in the story, but instead left for you to either read about in the in-game wiki or just figure out through obvious clues in the story.
There is a big mechanic that this meant to put a lot of pressure on your playthrough (don't worry about it being spoiled because it's literally explained in the first hour of the game). The thing is though, if you have experience in JRPGs or just play in a really well thought out and relaxed manner, then that mechanic might not be as big a deal as they make it seem to be. Yet it's still fun nonetheless.
Fuga 2 is even better. It fixes a lot of the minor issues the first game had, and what's really great, is it improved the "big pressure" mechanic I talked about, and now it actually is a big deal. Then add to that so much little new mechanics added that just makes for a much more fun and challenging game. The 2nd game also continues the same story.

[Ni no Kuni] Series

If you're looking for that great Isekai fantasy adventure feel, then these two games are where it's at. Fantastic visuals and great music, coupled with a great art style, a combo that is perfect for a chill and relaxed gaming experience. Especially when talking about the first game, with the help ofStudio Ghibli, they managed to make a truly whimsical world with that Studio Ghibli classic touch.

- Important Note: The games aren't connected story-wise, so you can start with any of them -

[Wrath of the White Witch]

For a the best fantasy adventure feel, while the combat is a hit or miss depending on your taste, don't let that stop you from actually diving into a true fairy tale world, this is the one with the better story in my opinion, so if you want more story than game, this is for you. Still it has a good share of gameplay, from raising and collecting Pokemon-like monsters, to learning and using different spells, not just in combat but for the overworld too.

[Ni no Kuni™ II: Revenant Kingdom]

This one focuses more on gameplay, with a Kingdom builder, Army battles, Heavy loot focus, and even character collector, this is the one to go with if you want more game than story. Still has the great music and he fantastical art style and setting. Add to that a lot of side activities like beating rare monsters, collecting cute creatures to help you in battle, and even going around the world to gather people to help you build your kingdom. You'll never be short on things to do.
Finally, both of them have beautifully draw world that is just a pleasure to walkthrough, made even better with the amazing orchestral soundtrack.

[Star Ocean The Second Story R]

The original PS1 game was already an amazing JRPG and a classic. But this remake takes it to go even further beyond SSJ3. It should be the standard on how to make a faithful remake on of a classic title.
I don't want to overhype it more than I already did. So to keep this short, this remake does so much:

• All major story events are now fully voice acted. This includes a lot of the private actions too.
  
• Fully redone and better translation of the game.
  
• New Character to recruit to the party.
  
• New Private Actions and 13 new Endings.
  
• New character portraits, not just for the main cast, but also for many other characters.
  
• A complete rework for the battle system to be up to modern standards.
  
• So many QoL features:
  
  • Auto-saving
  • Fast-forward cut-scenes or skip them.
  • Text log
  • All difficulties can be accessed from the start
  • Fast travel
  • 3 different voice dubbing options to choose from (New English, Original Japanese, New Japanese)
  • Your choice of different art styles
  • Choose between original OST and new rearranged OST.
  • No random battles anymore, as enemies can be seen and avoided

And believe me when I say I still haven't touched half of the amazing work that has gone into this remake.

[Sword and Fairy 7: Together Forever]

They did a great job with the presentation of the game. Great voice acting (Chinese), great graphics, amazing music, and an impressive attention to details of the world and it's lore, especially the engineering of the buildings and their decor. Then you have the really beautiful design of each piece of gear, and even just normal attire of each NPC and the disciples of each sect or soldiers of each of the different of each plane (gods, humans, demons).
Then we go to how great looking the monsters and local flora and fauna of each realm. You can feel the intense work that has gone into making and animating each of them. It really is a joy to watch them, as much as it is to watch each environment you see them in. There really isn't enough time to talk about how good the presentation is.
As for the story. First off, I am not an expert in Chinese novels mythology, but I am a big fan of Xianxia and Wuxia novels. So when I say that the story is...good but nothing great, I am saying this as more than just a JRPG fan, but also someone who is very into this type of world and Chinese martial arts fantasy setting. it's nothing that will stick in your mind, apart from the events that take place in some of the beautiful set pieces in the game, or the cut-scenes with beautiful action cheoragphy.
The gameplay is also about average. The side-quests are fun and are worth doing if nothing more than for learning more about the lore and the world. But the actual battles and action gameplay isn't as good as the best ones out there, but it's not bad. I have ran into some bugs, some small, some big, but that was when the game just came out, and it did receive a lot of patches since then. You can tell that they aimed to make a huge triple A production, but didn't have the time or manpower to test a game of this size. It's still fun to play and experience, but the level of gameplay is nowhere near the level of the presentation that the game gives the impression of having just from watching the gameplay or trailers.
If you enjoy walking through magical and fantastic looking JRPG worlds, or if you enjoy Xianxia/Wuxia fiction, then this is an easy choice. Hell even if you don't, it's still worth a go at this price.

[Blue Dragon] & [Lost Odyssey]

These two are classic titles that will probably won't be ported to or remade to modern consoles. That's why this might be the last way you'll ever get to experience 2 classic titles of the genre. Lost Odyssey has great story writing and unique character settings, and Blue Dragon has great exploration and a really fun character class customization system, and one hell of a boss theme.

[Monster Sanctuary]

This is a solid game, everything in is polished and balanced to make sure you are having fun collecting new monsters and customizing your team through evolution/skill trees/gear and making the best in-sync party you can. I only wish it was longer, it's not short by any means, but it's not long either. I would say depending on if you're trying to "catch them all" and explore everything and fight all bosses, this could easily be a 30+ hours game, but if you focus on the story, then it's about 20 to 30 hours. Now even longer with the 2 new free DLC expansion added.
Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining that it's short, but that I was having so much fun, that I wish it didn't end.

As always, please do add your own recommendations, and let me know if there is mistake or if something was missing, and have a nice day.

Okay, so I know a lot of what I'm about to say is all circumstantial and based on needs and wants but just a general feel may help.
Myself and my partner agreed a price on a house we want to purchase start of Feb this year, love it, looked at thousands of listings and none really made us want to move except this. Agreed a sale at £220,000 for our current property about a week after listing. We had it valued for help to buy repayment purposes at £225,000, and two identical properties on our street sold for £228,000 and £220,000 in the last 6 months. I say identical, but they have smaller gardens, our is south facing with decking fitted and extra patio space, just identical in that they are 5 year old 'new builds' of the same style.
Now the problems, one month later buyer pulls out. Re-list, sold a week later again at £217,000, collapses again this time due to overseas deposit issues/proof of funds. Interest has died a little but we had an offer on the table best and final of £208,000. This just about gives us the funds required to complete our purchase, but in light of valuation and recent sales seems way undervalued?
I was slightly leaning to still accept given my chain is at risk of collapsing (House we're trying to buy has been re-listed by EA), but my partner less so and we decided to reject.
I have read quite a few threads about no such thing as the correct value and I agree, but in my shoes would you accept £208k? Or is it a silly financial decision given very recent sales, and I'm only considering it because of the chain pressure giving me a very short time to sell?
Thanks!

https://imgur.com/a/upEaGLF
I prefer Zelle or CashApp but can accept Venmo or PayPal FF (no notes please).
Please add $5 for shipping unless otherwise noted.
At time of post MELT per gram is approximately: - $0.85 for sterling silver - $42 for 14k gold
Feel free to reach out for more images/details.
Pricing:
Sterling Bracelets:

1. $25
2. $15
3. $30
4. $15
5. $24
6. $12
7. $30
8. $20
9. $12
10. $12
11. $7

14k White Gold Necklaces:

1. $235
2. $125

🐋🐳 Take all the jewelry with shipping on me for $535 (added total individual items is 562)

Link to AO3
chapters 1&2
chapter 3
chapter 4
chapter 5
chapter 6
chapter 7
chapter 8
chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
The Academy looked normal enough from the distance but blew Gentry’s mind when she finally entered it. First of all, the way in lay through a massive winter garden full of the most luxurious botanical collection she’s ever seen. Not only that, but it seemed to be arranged in a way that offered spaces for hanging out as well as paths in and out. Here and there, G noticed little nooks with people’s voices coming from them and small murmuring streams gleamed in the sun that blazed through the transparent walls and roof. This place looked magical and invited to stay, enjoy the refreshing coolness and peace of mind. But Gentry had a good enough rest in her communal room the night before and was eager to start working on her first assignment that the System had spat out with a congratulating letter. Figuring out the controls of her new wristcomm was simple enough.
DEAR GENTRY!
WE ARE DELIGHTED TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU ARE THE FIRST CONTESTANT TO CLEAR ALL CHALLENGES AND OBTAIN THE STATUS OF AN ASHTAPADAN NEWCOMER! YOUR MEDICAL DATA HAS BEEN ANALYSED AND FOUND ACCEPTABLE.
IN THE ATTACHMENT TO THIS LETTER YOU WILL FIND A LIST OF RULES, RECOMMENDATIONS AND IDEAS THAT WILL DEFINITELY HELP YOU IN THE FIRST WEEKS IN OUR BEAUTIFUL CITY BUT WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND FINDING A BUDDY THAT WOULD BE YOUR MAIN GUIDE AND POTENTIALLY A NEW GREAT FRIEND! IT CAN BE ANY CITIZEN OR A MORE EXPERIENCED NEWCOMER.
YOUR CURRENT POINTS: 0
WHY NOT START EARNING SOME WITH YOUR FIRST ASSIGNMENT?
START ANY BEGINNER COURSE AT THE ACADEMY AND KEEP YOUR ATTENDANCE RATE OVER 80% — WORTH 50 POINTS
(OPTIONAL) FIND SOMEBODY WHO IS WILLING TO BECOME YOUR BUDDY — WORTH 20 POINTS
Without stopping to check if the vending machines offered anything good, G made her way through the dreamy garden and entered the inner yard that looked just like everything here: nothing too eye-catching at first glance but secrets hidden everywhere.
One thing she had already noticed was that most of the people had another piece of technology on their bodies besides the comm on their wrists: a sort of extendable visor that some of them kept engaged at all times. Those who were focused on the screen had a comical look on their faces, a thousand-mile stare, eyes wide even as they were talking to each other or going about their business. It was unclear yet why they would engage the screen for so long though. No one needed this much time to read a notification or check a map.
Take a group of young students by the fountain, for example. They seemed deep in conversation with each other yet their pupils didn’t focus on the person in front, but on the translucent screen over the top part of their faces. Was it some kind of virtual reality helmet?
If so, G needed one, too.
Perhaps she’d be able to make new friends this way.
There was something else that caught Gentry’s eye. Despite her initial disappointment about the severe lack of male hotness in the streets, people of both sexes seemed to really care about their appearance. Even those who probably weren’t naturally stunning were very interesting to look at not least because of the crazy fashion sense everyone here had. Never before had G seen so much variety in what everyone wore: countless variations on different national garments, some looking very traditional, like something one could see in a theatre, some — futuristic uniforms straight out of a sci-fi movie. It didn’t seem like anyone was concerned with gender norms here, too. At least in when it came to the outfits.
G hoped she didn’t look like a creepy stalker when her gaze lingered on a pair of very nicely shaped legs stretching from underneath a plaid skirt that belonged to a young man in the group sat by the edge of the water. A pair of snow-white knee-highs, flat loafers and neat raven hair with some blue streaks completed the image. His clothes fit him very well and weren’t inappropriate in the least: something an old money university student would wear.
A female student that is.
And he wasn’t alone. Here and there, among more conventionally dressed people, there were people wearing all sorts of things: a crazy mix of goth-like apparel but barefoot, men and women with heads covered with scarves, people in strange jewelery that looked like it weighed a ton and so on. Most importantly, no one seemed to care what the others looked like.
Was it paradise? Looks like the demo didn’t lie: it was heaven on earth.
The young man in the middle of the student gaggle caught her staring after all. With a dazzling smile, he waved in her direction as if they were great friends, and G waved back, face heating, hoping there wasn’t anyone behind her this tease was actually waving at. Thank god his shoes weren’t heeled, otherwise she would definitely have a heart attack right here, in the middle of the common area, on her first day.
Did he notice her ogling his legs? Judging by the giggles of his friend's entourage, they all did. The young flirt covered his mouth, eyes wide in mock indignation and pulled his knees in, as if hiding them from the improper attention, getting even more laughter from the rest of the company. G averted her eyes and tried to calm her breathing as she was on her way through the yard again, but before they all disappeared from her field of view, she noticed the coquette stretch his legs again and fall back on a friend of his, embracing the lucky man’s neck in an affectionate gesture, already forgetting G existed.
There was no way she wasn’t going to make some pretty boy do the same for her. Forget the assignment, put that in the list of her top priorities!
At first, Gentry was lost when she failed to find any kind of class schedule and there was no one to ask at the reception desk.
Why have a reception desk if nobody’s on duty?
Soon, however, it occurred to her that there was no schedule: each room within the wide marble corridors had a small display with a handwritten message scribbled on it.
Bachata for beginners
Product engineering (Tuesday class cancelled)
Colloidal chemistry (revision today)
None of these were the Communications course that Jey was talking about, but the variety definitely made G’s eyebrows go up.
Was she just supposed to barge into any class and sign up? Did she have to sign up later if she liked the subject? Was it ok to choose any?
After some wandering around, too scared to just walk in uninvited or ask others for directions, she finally stumbled across the door saying:
Communication & decision making course (Newcomers welcome)
With the desks arranged in a horseshoe and the people of various ages that were also apparently Newcomers, it all seemed comfortably casual. Everyone was chatting as she walked in, paying G no mind so she busied herself with the wristcomm that dinged at exactly the right time to save her the embarrassment of looking for a desk.
Would you like to enroll in this course? Scroll down to read the description.
Was this damn thing a spying device? Did it just know which room she was in? Jey didn’t joke when she said the little thing was going to be her primary aid!
“Are you looking for somewhere to sit?” called a young red-haired woman at one of the paired desks. “Here, this one is free.” She had the auglasses on, like everyone else, but they were off, showing her lively face and a pair of sharp green eyes.
“Thanks,” G said, gratefully taking the offer. “I’m new here, don’t know how things work yet.”
“It’s alright, the course is very engaging, you’ll love it.” — the woman held out a hand — “I’m Sereen, what’s your name?”
G shook the warm palm. “It’s Gentry. And by new I mean I’m new to Ashtapada, not just the course. Literally arrived yesterday.”
“Really?” — S looked surprised — “Everything must be very confusing!”
“You have no idea,” G smiled. “I’m glad someone understands. Everyone’s friendly but acts as if giant mechanical dogs in the streets and a moss garden in the lobby are the most normal things ever.”
“Don’t worry, I was just like you when I first arrived, you’ll get the hang of it soon.”
“Hope so! Is that the lecturer?”
“Shhh...”
Just like everything else in Ashtapada, the lecture started out normal enough only to unfold into something completely alien to how things were normally done.
Apparently, the Communications course involved learning rationality, debating, logic, etiquette and god knew what else. It was supposed to give the future citizens tools to, well, communicate. G was given a booklet with some ground rules for beginners that included entries that sounded like something Sun Tzu would say if he studied debating instead of warcraft.
“The purpose of any argument is not to win it and not to change the other disputant’s mind. It’s to find the truth.”
“Always argue in good faith.”
“Don’t attack your opponent.”
“If attacked, dismiss the attack as if it didn’t happen.”
Well, hopefully, it only meant verbal attacks! G knew too well that when it came to physical violence, it was hard to ignore it.
Most of the rules looked straightforward enough, some were confusing.
“Seek challenge to your convictions. Avoid echo chambers.”
“Don’t seek being right.”
“Be mindful of your audience including yourself.”
“Avoid “Empty arguments” that don’t bring everyone closer to the goal of finding the truth.”
The lecturer, a willowy man of about sixty that drowned in his tweed jacket, started the class with a bit of small talk with the regulars after distributing the booklets to all first-timers. He made sure to give it to G face down so that his photo under the “About the author” title didn’t go unnoticed. He also made most of the “talk” part himself.
“I never took part in a debate,” G told Sereen, who was patiently waiting for the class to begin. “And never seen anything like these rules. Is it actually useful?”
“Oh, believe me, professor Poe will be ecstatic to talk to you about them. He can’t not start discussing his subject at the slightest provocation. Look.” — she raised her hand — “Professor, how was your weekend?”
The man wearily smiled. “That might seem like a meaningless question, Sereen, but it’s actually very much related to the topic we are going to cover today.”
“See?” — S raised her eyebrows with a suppressed smile. G giggled. This promised to be interesting.
“Our friend Sereen is a very polite person, isn’t she?” — Poe smiled at the class but his eyes glided over everyone’s faces, gaze turned inwards like he was reading an invisible text written on the walls. “But as kind as she is, I don’t think she’s actually interested in how my weekend went. Small talk is just a social custom we engage in to strengthen our social relations. Why don’t we just start a day by saying “Hi! I value our relationship and would like to fulfill my societal role!” to everyone we know? I would definitely prefer THAT over the small talk! He-he!”
The audience laughed politely. The guy seemed alright.
“However, just as we use different tools to fulfill this role in different contexts, so can the context of a logical problem steer our thinking towards a rational, that is, right, and an irrational, that is, wrong, answer.”
“Well, that’s not a given,” Gentry mumbled under her breath but it went unnoticed by S, who was already immersed in the lecture.
“Consider the famous René Descartes’s quote "Cogito, ergo sum". Who can translate it from Latin?” — the board behind the thin, almost transparent man glowed, displaying the words.
“Is it really a Beginner’s course?” G asked Sereen in a low voice but her companion was already raising her hand, together with a dozen other students.
“I think, therefore I am,” she said after a curt nod of the lecturer’s permission.
“Very good,” he continued, pleased. “I taught you well. Those of you who attend my lectures regularly are familiar with the notion of solipsism, which states that the only thing we can be sure about is our own thoughts.”
Gentry looked at S with raised eyebrows.
If this is an introductory course, what was the advanced like?
Sereen didn’t seem to perplexed. She was fully following the thread.
“However,” professor Poe said. “I am going to challenge that notion by demonstrating that we can’t trust our own mind when it comes to perceiving reality.”
He looked at the audience with a quizzical eye, and pointed at Gentry with a long bony finger “You, new girl. I want you to close your eyes.”
Why her?
Gentry was only happy to hide behind her eyelids. No doubt the whole room was now staring at her.
Through the blood rushing in her ears, she heard the old man’s voice, “Who was sitting beside you before you closed your eyes?”
“My new friend Sereen,” G answered and heard a little gasp of appreciation from the woman.
“So you know she existed as long as you two were whispering behind my back. However, now that you can’t see or hear her. How do you know she exists?”
“Well, I can reach with my hand and touch her,” Gentry said, demonstrating.
“Yes, this is what most people answer,” Poe said. “You can open your eyes now. But let me ask you this: how would you know it was her, an not some other person that took her place?”
Gentry’s intuition was right: everyone was staring, as if waiting for her answer.
“Well, I suppose— ”
“Hush, it was a rhetorical question,” the professor cut her off. “The correct answer is that you can’t know that. We think we can trust our senses or at least our thoughts, but this is also false. Everyone, look out of the window.”
Everyone did.
The day was as fine as Gentry was annoyed.
What did this pops think of himself?
“I’d ask what you see, but I already know the answer,” he went on. “All of you would say “the sky”. And all of you would be wrong, because sky doesn’t exist. We only see the endless emptiness of the outer space, but perceive it as a blue dome. It’s an illusion, a phantom, born out of our collective unconscious.”
Sereen whispered, lost in the lecture, “Ah, yes, Carl Jung.”
What?
Was it supposed to be obvious?
“But listen to this,” he continued, voice booming like a demiurge’s in the completely silent room. “Listen to this. How many words is it? Listentothis. Our common sense says it’s three words while in reality it’s just a string of sounds I an producing with my mouth. I am literally making you hallucinate the spaces between the words I’m saying. With knowing that our perception is so flawed, how can we know that we even know how to think?”
“I’m sorry, professor, I disagr...” G started but got struck down by his serrated gaze.
“I’ll invite questions at the end, young miss,” he chopped out.
Sereen’s eyes were sympathetic. It looked like most if not all of professor Poe’s students had learned not to interrupt him.
He went on, “Anyway, the fact that you even understand what I am saying is in itself incredible and shouldn’t be possible.”
“But it IS possible, right?” G whispered to Sereen. “I mean, aren’t we understanding this as he speaks?”
“PLEASE refrain from talking unless asked!” professor Poe roared.
Impressive lung capacity for such a frail human being!
G begrudgingly did as she was told. The guy seemed to be enjoying this power trip a bit too much to her taste.
“Now, since most of you,” he put some emphasis on the word to shut up another pair of whispering students. “Most of you think you comprehend my words, you must know that there is a way to tell that something is real, even though we can’t rely on our senses for perception. I’m giving you a minute to discuss with your partners what it might be.”
G considered it. She and Sereen exchanged equally confused glances.
Like a dutiful student, S started summarising Poe’s arguments but Gentry listened with only half an ear. She felt that behind all this over-thinking was a clear and simple answer.
She watched the professor walk along the aisles, tuning into one or another conversation before leaving each with a smug head shake of disapproval.
What was there to think about? Even if they didn’t see the world precisely as it was, something was definitely real, right? The chair she felt under her buttocks, the air around, the low murmur of the students. The annoying professor that… looked a little too translucent.
Gentry waited for the man to approach their desks and tune into Sereen’s musings. As he came so near they could reach out and touch him, Gentry did just that.
To her utter shock, her hand went through the old jacket and sent a wave of static over the professor’s figure, his whole form glitching and flickering.
Professor Poe was a hologram!
Unable to help herself, Gentry said, “No wonder you don’t think anything is real, Professor, you are hardly real yourself!”
The whole roomful of people stared, transfixed, at the surreal scene of a student’s arm disappearing into the teacher’s abdomen.
Gentry looked back at Sereen in search of support.
Was it laughter in her eyes?
Poe’s blood drained from his face, the mouth slacked open, twitching as if trying to form some words, but none came out.
Sereen chimed in, “You never told us you were a simulation, Professor.”
“Out!” Poe gritted lowly so that no one really heard him.
“I’m sorry?” G asked, innocently.
“Out of my class!” he exploded, jumping out of Gentry’s reach with an enraged grimace. “I am as real as you are!”
G stood up and looked at her hand then back at Professor Poe.
How much rage could storm in those watery eyes?
Then, she winked at her new friend.
“Let’s go then, shall we?” she said.
Sereen looked lost for a second, her eyes darting pack and forth between Gentry and Poe. Then, her gaze seemed to cloud a little, as if she retreated into her own head, but when she resurfaced, she nodded with a mischievous smile.
Both young women left the room, the classmates’ sympathetic silence and Poe’s angry seething seeing them off.
***
“What a way to start my first day,” Gentry said. “My hands are still trembling a bit.”
She and S were calming their nerves in the green winter garden, the soothing sound of the little running streamlet at their feet a welcome distraction.
“Believe it or not, his course is actually quite useful,” Sereen laughed. “Who would have thought the old Poe is actually not human? I guess we never thought of poking him in the stomach before. This is going to be the talk of the Academy for the next month or so!”
“Is it? I feel bad now. I guess I’m not getting any points for attending this lecture, right?” — Gentry checked her wristcomm — “It says “zero progress” and something else… ad.. Honi… adhonim…”
Sereen laughed, “Yeah, you adhominem’ed good old Poe, no wonder you got zero credit!”
“What does it mean?”
“You’ve seen the rules of learning and discourse, right?” S said. “There are no-nos, things that aren’t allowed, especially when it comes to Rationality classes and the like. Ad Hominem means an attack on the speaker, not their argument. It isn’t exactly what you did, but I guess it’s the closest thing!”
“Ad Hominem, huh,” G said. “Well, I guess I deserve it then. Thanks for standing by me.”
If it wasn’t for Sereen, G wasn’t sure she would be going to return to the Academy any time soon!
“You just chose a wrong course as your first class, G,” — no doubt about that! — “But another lecturer who works here is much more open-minded and he also teaches Rationality. I think you’ll enjoy him more than our old Poe. His next class is in a couple of days. Wanna come?”
***
DEAR GENTRY!
CONGRATULATIONS ON COMPLETING AN OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT! 20 POINTS HAVE BEEN ADDED TO YOUR STATUS COUNTER.

LONG POST WARNING
Hello everyone,
My partner (24F) and I (25M) returned home from our 3-week Japan trip last week and due to us using this sub a lot during our planning I thought it would be helpful for other current planners to upload a trip report.
Our main interests are Japanese traditions and history, street style/culture, and food so keep reading if these interests are mutual. Read to the bottom to see how much we spent plus some tips and disappointments.
Prelude
We were caught up in the madness at Dubai airport during our layover. Long story short; Airport (and the rest of Dubai) flooded and caused all the flights to be cancelled. What was meant to be a 5-hour layover turned into a torturous 36 hour wait. No staff to be seen, crowds of people arguing, fighting, and crying. We queued for 12 hours to get a new boarding pass for the next flight to Japan. We were meant to fly to Haneda but settled for Narita as we needed to get out of that place as soon as possible but still ended up missing our first day in Tokyo (should have had 5 days). We can’t complain too much as some of the people I spoke to on emirates were in the airport for up to 5 days before getting a flight back to their departure destination. Oh, and our baggage was missing with us only receiving our checked in bags on day 19. Cheers Emirates.
Day 1
Arrived in Shinjuku around midnight. We went straight to Don Quiojte to buy some replacement cosmetics and clothes. The combination of no good-quality sleep for 48 hours and the stimulating nature of the store was very intense! We then started to walk back towards the hostel and passed a Ichiran, so dropped in for some 2am ramen. Not the best ramen I’ve ever had but was still very good for the price.
Steps: 21,643 (includes some airport steps)
Day 2
Woke up and ate the free breakfast at the hostel (this turned out to be a really good money saver for the whole trip as we are not huge eaters in the morning anyway, but it was good to get something light in us before a long day walking). We then walked through the Shinjuku Gyoen Garden – saw some late blooming cheery blossoms and overall, it was a really beautiful botanical garden.
The next stop was Meji Shrine and a walk through Yoyogi park. The shrine was cool to see, especially as it was our first one in Japan. Saw a middle-aged man wearing denim hotpants so short that his balls were hanging out?!?!
Walked to Shibuya to see the scramble. This was cool but also felt it was a bit underwhelming at ground level but the view from Shibuya station walkway was wicked. Lunch was at a conveyor belt sushi place on the top floor of this department store right next to the scramble. This would be higher than average quality sushi in Europe, so it blew our minds that it was available on the top floor of a department store and for so cheap.
Shimokitazawa – We picked up some bargains at 2^nd street and I treated myself some Japanese jeans from a small Demin shop called Bears. The guy in the shop was super helpful and friendly and even tailored the trousers to exactly my size.
In the evening, we first had a poke around Golden Gai and then headed towards Shibuya and stopped in a cool bar where the owner was mixing vinyl while he mixed your drinks (think it was called Q Bar).
We had previously bought tickets to a gig at Circus for one of my fav rappers who I’d been wanting to see for a while. Also really enjoyed seeing the local Japanese warm up acts. Stayed until 5am and then go the train straight to the Tsukiji outer fish market. Was there way too early and had to wait roughly an hour for thing to open. Went to chill by a bench for a bit and by the time we went back to the market it was rammed! Went to bed around 8:30am.
Steps: 32,159
Day 3
We woke up at 2:30pm, got ready, and headed to the Bunkyo civic centre for the free observation deck. We heard it wasn’t meant to be the best Tokyo skyline view but for a free attraction we thought it was very good! Jimbocho book town was also very cool to see. We had a peak into a couple adult movie/magazine stores where I don’t think the owner appreciated our presence as western tourists.
In the evening, we first went for Ramen at Motenashi Kuraki in Asakusa Bashi. Honestly probably the best Ramen I’ve had to date. I ordered the Black Pepper Shio special, and it blew my mind. Even though the staff didn’t speak English they were very accommodating for my partner who doesn’t eat meat (pescetarian but will brave a meaty broth).
We then had a stroll around Akihabara and played some dance mat games in the arcades before heading back for an earlyish night.
Steps: 28,680
Day 4
I couldn’t sleep so got up around 3am and did some admin stuff to try and get our bags back to us ASAP. Chatted to people in the hostel for a few hours.
We arrived at Senso-ji for around 8am. Wasn’t too busy at this time and the temple was impressive. Went for a coffee down the road and had a chill for about an hour before heading into Asakusa. Got admission to the Drum museum which was wicked. Only 400 yen each and had the whole place to ourselves to smack some big fucking drums and make as much noise as we wanted.
We then started to head towards Ueno but made a slight detour to Kappabashi Dougu street to peruse the Japanese chef knives and other cookware. Grabbed lunch from a 7/11 and went and sat in Ueno park which was super busy. There was some food market event on which loads of food stalls had set up. There was also a stage with some J-pop performers and people dressed as ninjas dancing in the crowd. Weird to say the least. By mid-afternoon we were pretty tired so headed back to the hostel for a nap.
In the evening, we headed down to Harajuku and stopped by Big Love records. My partner is really into vinyl, so this was definitely a highlight for her. She picked up Wu Tang 36 chambers in case you were wondering. We then went for food at Afuri as my partner wanted to try the Vegan ramen to which she said it was ok but nothing special. My cold dipping noodle dish was very tasty, however. We then stumbled across this vinyl listening bar called Bar Music on the 5^th floor of this pokey building on the outskirts of Shibuya for a few drinks before bed. There was such a good vibe in there and the cocktails were super good for the price. If you’re looking for a romantic spot, then this is the place to go.
Steps: 31,818
Day 5
Today we headed to Kyoto on the shinkansen around midday after a slow morning chilling in and around the hostel and catching up on some sleep. Checked in to the hostel and had a walk around downtown Kyoto, stopping at 2^nd Street to buy some more clothes.
In the evening, we headed to Kodai-Ji to see the shrine lit up at night. We couldn’t believe how few people were there as it was stunning and truly magical place to be at night. It also has a bamboo grove (much better than Arashiyama, see below). The bar for Kyoto shrines/temples had been set very high.
Walked down Pontocho alley and stopped at a yakitori restaurant which was just ok. We knew it was going to be average when we looked around the restaurant and it was just western tourists dining.
Steps: 25,255
Day 6
First thing in the morning we rented bikes and cycled across the city to Arashiyama. Parked the bikes at the train station and walked up through Arashiyama. We were expecting it to be busy but there were so many people it was almost impossible to move. Had a look around the bamboo grove and was slightly underwhelmed after our visit to Kodai-Ji so we took the tram and then bus up to Kosan-Ji. This was very much worth the 45-minute journey as there was only one other group there and the temple nestled between the trees overlooking the river was breath-taking. On the whole, Arashiyama was way too packed during peak times to enjoy and with everything else Kyoto has to offer we wouldn’t say it was a must see.
We then picked up the bikes from the train station and cycled back across Kyoto taking the long route to explore and get lost. Once we dropped off the bikes, we went for another explore and this time went into WeGo for more clothes shopping. At this point we’d pretty much matched the amount of clothing that we had packed in our checked-in luggage that was still stuck in Dubai.
After a nap we walked towards the metro and stopped at a Katsu restaurant as we wanted to try something different, and it was pretty good. For the price of 1300 yen each we got so much food/sake and left stuffed.
Fushimi Inari in the evening. Like Kodai-Ji, we would recommend visiting Fushimi Inari at night. Firstly, to help avoid the crowds (we got there around 9pm and there was hardly anybody there) and secondly as seeing it lit up at night is a nice change. It was however slightly creepy at night, especially as it was lightly raining. My partner started to get a bit scared once we saw the signs to be careful of the wild boar and monkeys haha. We didn’t make it to the top of Mt Inari as the rain started to get heavy but still very much enjoyed walking through the hundreds of tori gates, stopping off at the shrines and soaking up the history.
Steps: 23,686
Day 7
Today was a late start as even after 8 hours sleep the 25k plus steps a day was starting to catch up with us.
We took the metro to Shimogamo Shrine in north Kyoto. It was very peaceful and quiet however temple fatigue had definitely set in at this point. We then walked through Kyoto to the beginning of Philosophers path. We had seen on this sub that people recommend skipping it unless its Sakura season however we disagree. The path along the river is so pretty and atmospheric, along with the fish gently swimming along in the river.
Kyoto Hand Crafts Centre – if you have the money then this is a great place to pick up souvenirs.
Pre-booked Sushi Iwa for a 15 course Omakase. The food was amazing, but it came to an eye watering 28k yen each. The difference for our western palettes between mid-range sushi and exceptional sushi is negligible. Nonetheless it was a good experience and I’m glad that we did it.
Steps: 23,751
Day 8
Today was an empty day in terms of things we wanted to do, so used it to walk the city and explore.
We checked out the Nishiki market and ate various fried foods on sticks which were all pretty tasty. We then walked northwards, stopping for coffee before reaching the imperial palace. By this point we were very much bored of temples and structures of similar architecture, but we actually ended up enjoying walking the palace grounds and seeing the buildings more than we thought and would recommend it to those who find themselves in north Kyoto.
A leisurely walk back down towards downtown Kyoto, stopping off at a wicked standing soba joint. Forgotten the name but their curry soba was delicious.
Chao Chao gyozas (only veggie gyoza place we could find) for our evening meal before a night cap at the bar across the road before bed.
Steps: 23,304
Day 9
Shinkansen to Hiroshima arriving around 11am.
Checked into hostel and then went straight to the A-dome, peace memorial and museum. We thought the museum was very moving and captured the horror of the events that unfolded very well. A must see for sure.
Okonomiyaki at Okonomimura and then some vintage clothes shopping in Hondori.
Went back out for food in the evening and ended up getting Okonomiyaki again. This time it we enjoyed it a lot more than we did at lunch (probably because we got it covered in cheese). There are a few streets by Hiroshima station with lots of bars and restaurants on top of each other, much like Golden Gai in Shinjuku, however they are not super touristy and has a more laid-back feel to them.
We then went to some bars in the city centre. The best one we stumbled across was called Tropical Bar Revolucion. It was on the 8^th floor and the smoking balcony overlooked the city. Plus, the beers in there tasted so good and I’m not sure why.
Steps: 23,299
Day 10
A hungover morning. Headed to the Hiroshima National Gardens. Going to some gardens is my go-to hangover activity as its low effort, relaxing, and feels productive. These gardens in particular were great and we really appreciated the signs explaining the history behind the space. Overall, we enjoyed this more than the national gardens in Shinjuku.
Public baths near Dobashi in the afternoon. If you’re feeling brave enough to get your kit off in front of 10s of strangers, then this is a good experience. Male and female baths are separate. Can’t go wrong for 400 yen.
Went for a drink at Bar Pretty and then realised the effect of golden week on trying to get a table walking into a restaurant. Walked around for about an hour with no success so settled for food from a department store food court. Sounds miserable but the food was pretty good for the price, and it was busy in there, so it still had an atmosphere.
Steps: 29,487
Day 11
Miyajima Day. Took the ferry to the island arriving at 10:30am. The Ryokan staff met us at the port and collected our bags to take back to the hotel.
Had a mooch around the port area before doing the hike up Mt Misen. The climb to the top on a hot day is not to be underestimated. Sweating buckets, but the route and the view from the top was amazing and one of the standout highlights of the whole trip.
After descending Mt Misen, we bought some beers, oysters and, ice cream and sat along the beach wall and chilled in the sun for a couple hours. The hotel staff then picked us up from the ferry terminal, we checked in and went straight to the Onsen for a couple hours before dinner. Dinner was a traditional kaiseki meal (with more courses than I can remember) served in the banquet hall with the other guests.
While the staff converted our retro ryokan room and set up the futons we had a few more beers before bed.
Steps: 20,803
Day 12
Today we had a chilled morning on the island, having a stroll and stopping for some coffees. We then took the ferry back to Hiroshima, stopping for Okonomiyaki one more time, before taking the shinkansen to Osaka.
Checked into our hostel near Namba and went out for a walk around 8pm. When looking for somewhere to eat we walked past a sign for a vegetarian Indian restaurant called Shama. After nearly two weeks of pure Japanese food we were craving some variety so decided to head in. Located on the basement floor of a particularly run down looking building the restaurant was not the most glamorous. Barely enough space for 10 people, it was hot in there. A constant stream of people was coming in and out of the restaurant and we were lucky enough to walk in when there were two spaces available. From sitting down at the table to receiving our food we waited just under an hour. This would be enough to put most people off but fuck me the food was good when it did finally arrive. We got a selection of 4 different curries, naan breads and samosa. We left stuffed. If you’re in the area this is definitely a place worth checking out.
Steps: 25,502
Day 13
Our first stop of the day was the Umeda Sky Building. Not suitable if you are scared of heights as the glass elevator made our stomachs drop slightly. The views were impressive but we thought the price was a bit steep at 1500 yen each.
We then spent the afternoon wondering about near Namba and Shinsujibashi dropping into shops and picking up some food.
For dinner we made a reservation for a Mexican restaurant near Dotonbori. Massive margheritas, nachos and enchiladas. The food was great, and it shows by how busy the place was still at 10pm. It had been open since the late 70’s with the décor to match and it had a great atmosphere.
Steps: 27,290
Day 14
Checked out Tsuruhashi and Korea Town. Loved the market – dimly lit maze of numerous food and clothing vendors. Stopped to have some Korean stew and pancakes and it was delicious. One of the best meals of the trip.
Shinsekai in the evening. What I can describe as the armpit of Osaka. We loved it. Dirty? Yes. Rowdy? Yes. Rough around the edges with a red light district to top it all off. We had Kushikatsu to finish the evening off. Fried stuff on a stick – of course it going to be tasty but it wasn’t exactly flavour town.
Steps: 23,777
Day 15
Took the train to Minoh and hiked up the trail to see the waterfall. Hike was easy in comparison to Mt Misen and the waterfall was very cool to see. Had a wonder around Minoh stopping for some lunch at a Ramen bar.
We went to the Team lab botanical gardens in the evening. It was very awe inspiring seeing all the installations lit up.
After sampling Japanese McDonalds (I had a burger where the buns were made out of rice) we went for some drinks at Zerro. We liked this bar a lot, the guys working there were very friendly and it had a good vibe.
We then sat and watched the skaters at triangle park with some beers from the konbini before going to see Dj Masda at Circus until around 4am. This area of Osaka was such a vibe and came back here a few times over our 6 days here. Overall, a very fun evening.
Steps: 26,130
Day 16
Woke up chronically hungover but powered on and went to see a baseball game. You’re allowed to bring food and drink into the stadium (as long as alcohol is in plastic/paper cups) so we grabbed some beers and snacks from family mart. We had no idea what was happening but the atmosphere was electric and we enjoyed getting pissed and cheering.
Had a nap and then went to Hafez for middle eastern food. The food was good but not amazing, nothing in comparison to my local middle eastern restaurant back home. Chilled around the Namba park/Big step area. Loved this area so much, we are big into street fashion and culture so this place really ticked some boxes. Lots of skaters and street wear stores concentrated around here. Got an early night watching Battle Royale back at the hostel.
Steps: 22,065
Day 17
Today we went to the Umeda area. Popped into some shopping centres and had Omurice for lunch. It was tasty but not something I will crave when back home. Good experience trying it though. We then walked through Yodoyobashi along the rivers and got gelato and sat in the rose garden. The sun was beating down and we enjoyed just chilling in the sun eating our ice cream.
Compufunk Records were holding a party in their store. Decent gaff with some very welcoming and kind people to party with until the early hours.
Steps: 21,267
Day 18
We reluctantly left Osaka for Hakone today. Very sad to go but onwards to the next adventure. Took the shinkansen to Odawara and then the Hakone Tozan Train to Gora. Checked into our Ryokan and relaxed in the Onsen for a few hours.
Went for a walk around Gora and had dinner at the Ryokan before watching Predator in bed.
Steps: 16,926
Day 19
Today we did the Hakone Loop, starting early in Gora.
Started with the Open-air museum and it was great. We loved the installation and ended up spending 3 hours slowly making our way round. Got some cool photos as well for the gram.
Ropeway to Lake Ashi. This was absolutely terrifying. You have to swap cable cars 3 times on the way over and the warnings of the service being suspended due to the wind was announced at each stop. I’m not going to ruin the surprise, but one section made me literally freeze in terror due to the winds outside so try to do it on a calm weather day.
We then took the pirate boat (bit underwhelming) across the Lake and stopped for some soba noodles and a wander around. Unfortunately it was way too cloudy to even get a chance at seeing Mt Fuji.
Train to Kamakura and checked into our super cute traditional hostel near the beach.
Dinner at an Izakaya from the hostel owners recommendation. Food great and beers slipped down a treat. First time I tried Yuzu Kosho as well – I’m now addicted to the stuff and literally cover all my food with it.
Steps: 19,512
Day 20
A slow start to the morning. Weather was pretty bad but we still managed to hit all the main sights in Kamakura. Big Buddha was a refreshing sight from the temples. Did some shopping up Komachi Dori. Highlight of the day was Hukokaji temple. It was so peaceful and zen in the rain with its very own matcha tea ceremony backdropped by bamboo forest. This turned out to be our second favourite temple/shrine we visited, just being beaten by Kodaji.
In the evening we went for Sushi at a conveyor belt place. Figured this would probably be my last Japanese sushi of the trip so devoured 7000 yen worth of sushi and beer. Went back to the hostel and invited some of the other guests to drink with us. The owner of the hostel had some bayberry homebrew, so we got stuck into that.
Steps: 20,494
Day 21
Enoshima Island is just a 25 min train from Kamakura. Started off the day by walking to the top of the island to get French toast and a beer with a lovely view across the bay. We then headed up the Sea candle to check out the observation deck, still the illusive Mt Fuji hides behind the clouds.
We then bought admission to the caves beneath the island which was pretty cool. I won’t ruin the surprise but there’s something waiting for you at the end of one of the caves.
Had an explore around the rockpools near the caves and took some cool photos. We then had a pizza with fish on which was pretty crazy. Walked around the island a little bit more and I picked up some more Japanese denim which wasn’t the cheapest but the quality of the trousers are great and will last me a lifetime.
Back to Tokyo in the evening.
Went for Izakaya around Asakusa and popped into a couple bars. One was called Not Suspicious and the whole bar was covered in handwritten notes by patrons. Very touristy but quite cool at the same time. Our favourite was a drawing of Mario saying It’s a Me Muthafucka.
Steps: 25,903
Day 22
First stop was Don Quiojte to pick up some Yuzu Kosho (if you know you know) and weird flavoured KitKats.
Kappabashi Dougu street to purchase a fine Japanese carbon stell Santoku. Honestly in love with this knife so much. The people at the store were very happy to hear exactly what I was looking for and even let me try before you buy on some daikon radish.
While in Asakusa I had to return to the place where I put the best thing in my mouth in Japan. Motenashi Kuroki. Switched it up this time and had their classic Shio ramen plus the duck rice as a side. Honestly this place is amazing, and you have to go there if you have time. They aren’t veggie/pescy friendly so my partner went for one last round of sushi round the corner. We met up at a massage chair parlour and spent 30 mins relaxing in the chairs.
We had a bright idea to watch the sunset one last time so headed over to the rooftop park on a department store in Shibuya. Sipping on an ice cold Kirin, the sun slowly dropped behind the distant mountains and we knew our trip had come to an end. How symbolic.
Flight at 11pm from Haneda.
Steps: 23,187
On reflection:
I honestly think this trip was almost perfect in terms of hitting our interests and travel style. There was a good balance of doing the typical first time visit to Japan sights and activities while still exploring and seeing what we came across in the moment.
It hard to pinpoint exact highlights of the trip as everywhere we visited had so much going for it in different ways. We loved the rugged and trendy vibe to Osaka, and I think this would be the city I would most want to live in for a considerable amount of time (If I had to choose). Miyajima was also stunning and a great overnight trip with the Ryokan experience. We also underestimated how much we would enjoy Kamakura with its laid-back surfer vibe and access to Enoshima Island.
One random memorable moment that has stuck with me was when we landed at Narita airport, we took the limo bus to Shinjuku. As the driver pulled away, all the staff at the station turned and bowed in unison. It felt so special to first observe a culture totally opposite to the one I grew up with and was at this point I knew I had embarked on the trip of a lifetime.
If I could go back and change something I would probably miss out Hakone and do an extra day in one of the major cities. This isn’t because we didn’t enjoy Hakone, but we feel like it’s a place that needs more time to soak in what’s going on around you (plus the weather was bad when we were there). This being said the Open-Air Museum was amazing and we enjoyed it more than the Teamlab botanical gardens so the trip up the mountains was worth it just for that.
So, how much did we spend per person (not inc flights)?
Accommodation - £765pp
Given that we spent a couple nights in Ryokans raising the average price slightly, we were pretty happy with the accommodation costs. We stayed in a mix of private room and shared dorm hostels and pretty much all of them were spot on. Travelling as a couple meant that anywhere with a private room split the price between 2. The only hostel we didn’t like was the one in Hiroshima, there wasn’t anything in particularly wrong with it, there was just a really bad vibe from the owner and other guests.
Transport - £344pp
This includes shinkansen to and from all the major cities as well as our suica top ups for metros and buses. Unless your itinerary is something like 3 days Tokyo, 2 days Osaka 2 days Kyoto then there really isn’t any point getting the JR pass now that the price has increased.
Activities – £280pp
It is hard to give an exact amount for activities and food as 1) I didn’t track what we spent our cash on and 2) my partner and I would take in turns paying for things like temple admission. That being said I’ve allocated 25% of the cash we spent to activities such as temple admission. Activities includes our baseball tickets plus club entries as well as temple and museum admissions etc.
Food – £962pp
As above, its hard to give an exact amount for food. On the whole we tried to eat cheap with possible, especially at the start of our trip. There were a few expensive meals peppered in plus we ate out twice a day towards the end of our trip as we realised we were under budget.
The total is a bit skewed as this includes all the alcohol we bought in bars as well as the konbini trips for beers and cigarettes. I estimate that booze accounts for around a third of the total per person. If you would like to do Japan on a budget, reducing the booze will make a big difference.
Shopping/Souvenirs/Gifts – £607 (just me)
We went hard with the shopping. We didn’t actually receive our checked in luggage until day 19 so we had to buy all new clothes and cosmetics. If this wasn’t the case, then I don’t think I would have spent so much (airline is comping us for the additional clothing bought anyway). I also bought a fairly expensive chef knife and Japanese denim pieces, plus lots of gifts for friends and family. Obviously, this number could theoretically 0 if you are on a serious budget and did no shopping but I really underestimated Japanese shopping, especially thrifting. Also, given our cheap choices when it came to accommodation we could afford to splurge. However just to note my partner spent less than half than I did on shopping.
Total: £2958 (582,628 yen at time of writing)
I kept within my budget of £3000. I definitely got a bit frivolous with the cash in the last few days or so, if being as careful as I was towards the start of the trip, I think the total would be closer to £2500.
Disappointments
Takoyaki. We thought it was going to be all about the octopus but were disappointed with our balls of sloppy goo surrounding tiny chewy pieces of octopus. We tried it twice and couldn’t get behind it. Sorry Takoyaki fans.
Arashiyama. Way too busy, especially around the main station and bamboo grove. If it’s the bamboo you are going to see, then Kodaji is a much better spot.
Dotonburi. Albeit we were there in golden week, and it was pretty busy. However, I get the feeling this area has fallen to the past its golden days title and has become a bit of a cash cow for places selling spiralised potatoes on a stick. The area around Namba park was a better option for us.
Tips
Konbini. Absolute life saver for snacks and drinks on the go. The food quality for a convenience store is higher than most other countries so we had no problem with grabbing a meal from one to help keep within our budget.
Don’t over pack – even though we didn’t get our checked in bags, I still packed light so had plenty of space to bring stuff back. Emirates give you your allowance by weight rather than number of baggage so we could check in additional bags on the way back.
Don’t be scared of hostels. If you don’t want to brave the shared dorms, then most hostels offer private rooms with just the shower and toilet shared. Obviously, it’s cheaper if there are two people sharing a room.
Don’t stress about cash. Most places take debit/credit card and if they don’t, you’re never more than 5 minutes from a konbini ATM.
For us, golden week didn’t seem that big of an issue. No problems booking shinkansen around GW. We spent most of GW in Osaka, as such it was going to be busy anyway so maybe we didn’t see much of a difference from normal numbers in the spring.

I see a lot of people say things like living world used to be free and now it’s expensive cause it’s bundled with the expansion and is small. Or various other arguments about the cost and quality of SotO vs other expansions, HoT & PoF in particular. I thought it would be interesting to go back and look at the numbers. Sometimes I participate in arguments to and I really should be saying accurate things myself.
When living world first came out, the base game was buy to play @ $60. And you had to own the game to access it. LWS1 never cost anything but each release was somewhere between as small as pressing f on some signs for refugees or as big as the Tower of Nightmares and then literally disappeared from the game 3 weeks later. An attempt to get us to log in from extreme FOMO.
LWS2 consists of 8 content drops that cost 200 gems, 160 gems each if bought bundled for $16. Required owning the base game. ANet made a decision at the time that IF you login during the correct time period per episode that you can have it for free in the hopes they’d make up for the difference in gem sales but 200 gems has always been the “box price” for these episodes.
HoT cost $50 at release and consisted of the expansion drop plus 6 content drops (LWS3, which cost 160 gems each if you buy it all as a bundle. So LWS3 cost $12.
PoF cost $30 at release and consisted of the expansion drop plus 6 content drops (LWS4, which again cost $12 unless you met the same criteria that was supposed to get you to spend more in the gem store.
IBS, an attempt to quit having to make expansions, was 6 content drops for $12 or free if you again met the free-ness criteria that was meant to get you to drop money in the gem store. It still requires you to own PoF though so in order to play it you had to buy PoF.
EoD cost $30 and consisted of the expansion drop andof 2 small content drops (Gyala Delves) or 7 if you consider the LWS1 re-release to be content which many in the community don’t, but at best it’s double dipping.
SotO costs $25 and consists of the expansion drop plus 3 small content drops which you receive as part of the expansion regardless of when you buy it or whether you log in during a certain period of time.
I see the old model as a business putting a sign on the door saying “free stuff” to get you in the door to buy other more expensive things and then leaving the “free stuff” sign up in the door forever after and saying “whoops forgot to take the sign down that’ll be $5 please”. Whereas the “free stuff” being advertised now is worth less and everything else has gone up in price but at least the sign isn’t a lie later on.
This is how businesses like ANet and NCSoft view things.
GW2 base game in the LWS1 era, $60 with FOMO dialed up to 11 to try to push gem sales.
GW2 base game in the LWS2 era, $76 with LWS2, discounted to $60 if you participate in the FOMO to push gem sales.
HoT, $62 with LWS2, discounted to $50 if you participate in the FOMO to push gem sales.
PoF, $54 with LWS4 & IBS, discounted to $30 if you participated in 3 years of FOMO to push gem sales.
EoD, $30 as is, no living world FOMO cause we have to panic and re-release LWS1 so the Steam release doesn’t flop and the player base will revolt if we attach gems to it. And we threw Gyala Delves in there to wrap up EoD in a bow so we can move to the new model.
Soto, $25 as is, with Wizard Vault seasons, constant in game bonus events, and 3 content patches included in the box price to create a constant low level FOMO to drive gem sales.
Additional sales as needed get new people to buy old “free” content and skins.
Personally, I think the cost of the content is the most honest it’s ever been.
I’m fine with being cynical here, and have been cynical to ANets reason for previous and current business models here. SotO is definitely designed to create more consistent profit for the company while managing a smaller workforce.
If we spread the cost of content out over time, the game cost $170 if you participated in 100 percent of the FOMO so $15.50 per year (including some extreme content droughts.) Compared to $25 per year that certainly can seem like a 61% cost increase for what has certainly been a mediocre story in Inner Nayos so far.
Even jf you didn’t participate in the FOMO it cost $222 over the years, so $20.20 per year, less if you caught sales or buy the complete collection today. So a 24% cost increase.
If we compare per expansion though, SotO is less than half the bundled price of the core, HoT, or PoF eras individually and around 15% cheaper than EoD.
For people who primarily care about story and new maps, I get it. For story and map content alone, if this is going to be the quality going forward over multiple annual expansions it’s a disappointment that costs more over time.
I would argue that the increased game balance frequency, consistent bonus events, numerous QoL improvements, increased attention to WvW and PvP (something is more than nothing), increased communication, actual bug fixes for old content, and improved frequency of new open world and instanced content (hopefully consistency of quality improves there too) is worth the dollars, despite the story.
I’d really like a better story. ANet please learn things from Inner Nayos and Gyala Delves in particular. Those adorable Kryptis Quaggans should probably be trying to eat my face, not apples, and a battle to fight through Eparch’s queens forces should make me break a sweat. If neither Peitha or Isgarren betray me next week I’ll probably quit the game for a month.

Hi everyone! All of the costs you see listed below include fees, what you see is what you pay. My timezone is GMT+12 in case you’re wondering why I may be taking a while to reply to you, however rest assured I will when I’m awake!
 
If you’re new to trading on reddit, read this guide on how to link your RSI account to your Reddit account and then just reply below with … well anything really so I can see your RSI account in the flair then drop me a PM with what you’re after.
 
If there is something you want but don’t see listed such as a specific LTI CCU’d ship or if you have any questions on trading or CCUing then please feel free to drop me a DM. Note: I will not trade using chat’s and any chat requests will be directed to use DM’s. This is because chat’s can be deleted but DM’s cannot so it is safer for us both to use DM’s.
 

Referrals 🎖️

If you haven’t yet created your account, please read this guide on the referral system and consider using my referral code which is STAR-LN2R-X9QF. If you would like me to add a referral to your account it will be $25.
 

Subscriber Store

I can get you anything listed here on the subscriber store at cost + PayPal fees, please feel free to send me a message and I’ll let you know what the total cost will be.
   

Ships 🚀

   

Stand Alone Ship
Ship	Insurance	Status	Melt	Price
600i Explorer Best In Show 2953	10Y	Flyable	475	575
Corsair Best In Show Edition 2953	10Y	Flyable	250	305
Redeemer Best In Show Edition 2953	10Y	Flyable	330	400
Vulture Best In Show Edition 2953	10Y	Flyable	175	215
Zeus MkII MR with Solstice Paint	LTI	Concept	170	210​

 

LTI CCU'd ships	Insurance	Melt	Price
400i	LTI	245	205
Corsair	LTI	245	205
Eclipse	LTI	295	255
Hurricane	LTI	190	165
Reclaimer	LTI	395	340
Redeemer	LTI	325	270
SRV	LTI	145	135
Vanguard Sentinel	LTI	270	235​

   

CCU’s ➡️

Standard CCU's from buyback
From	To	Melt	Price
Freelancer	350r	15	19
Constellation Andromeda	400i	10	12.5
Prowler	600i explorer	35	42.5
C2	600i touring	35	42.5
Prospector	A1	45	54
Sabre	A1	30	36.5
Carrack	A2	150	180
Hammerhead	A2	25	31
Constellation Andromeda	Apollo Medivac	35	42.5
Constellation Andromeda	Apollo Triage	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Ares Ion	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Ares Inferno	10	12.5
Hull D	Arrastra	25	31
M2	Arrastra	55	67
325A	Avenger Titan Renegade	5	7
Nomad	Avenger Warlock	5	7
Cutlass Black	Buccaneer	10	12.5
Mole	C2	85	102
Redeemer	C2	75	90
Valkyrie	C2	25	31
300i	C8R Pisces Rescue	5	7
600i Explorer	Carrack	125	150
M2	Carrack	80	96
Constellation Aquila	Caterpillar	15	19
Eclipse	Caterpillar	30	36.5
Mole	Caterpillar	15	19
Cutlass Black	Centurion	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Corsair	10	12.5
Mole	Crucible	35	42.5
Starfarer Gemini	Crucible	10	12.5
Prospector	Cutlass Blue	20	25
STV	Cutlass Red	95	115
Dragonfly Black	Cutter	5	7
Mustang Beta	Cutter	5	7
STV	Cutter	5	7
Roc DS	Cyclone AA	5	7
325a	Cyclone MT	5	7
125a	Cyclone RC	5	7
125a	Cyclone RN	5	7
125a	Cyclone TR	5	7
Constellation Taurus	Banu Defender	20	25
Blade	Eclipse	25	30
Constellation Andromeda	Eclipse	60	73
Prospector	F7C Hornet Wildfire	20	25
Prospector	F7C-M Super Hornet	30	36.5
Vulture	F7C-M Super Hornet Heartseeker	25	30
Prospector	Freelancer MIS	20	25
125A	G12A	5	7
Prospector	Gladiator	10	12.5
Nomad	Gladius	10	12.5
Carrack	Hammerhead	125	150
Odyssey	Hammerhead	25	31
Nomad	Herald	5	7
Herald	Hull A	5	7
Nomad	Hull A	10	12.5
Prospector	Khartu-Al	15	19
Centurion	Legionnaire	10	12.5
Freelancer	Legionnaire	10	12.5
M2	Liberator	55	66.5
600i	M2	45	54
Prowler	M2	80	96
Gladius	M50	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Mercury	20	25
400i	Mercury	10	12.5
Carrack	Nautilus	125	150
Freelancer	Nova	10	12.5
MPUV-C	Nox	10	12.5
STV	Nox	5	7
C2	Prowler	40	48
Valkyrie	Prowler	65	78
Constellation Taurus	Railen	25	31
Terrapin	Railen	5	7
Defender	Railen	5	7
Cutlass Black	Raft	15	19
Ballista	Razor	5	7
Freelancer Max	Razor EX	5	7
Mantis	Razor EX	5	7
Ballista	Razor LX	10	12.5
Mole	Reclaimer	85	102
Valkyrie	Reclaimer	25	31
Constellation Aquila	Redeemer	15	19
Mole	Redeemer	15	19
325a	Reliant Tana	5	7
Ballista	Retaliator	15	19
Vanguard Warden	Retaliator Bomber	15	19
Prospector	Sabre	15	19
Prospector	Sabre Comet	30	36.5
Constellation Taurus	San'tok.yāi	40	49
Terrapin	Scorpius	20	25
Constellation Taurus	Scorpius Antares	30	36.5
Prospector	SRV	10	12.5
Mole	Starfarer Gemini	25	31
Centurion	Talon	5	7
Freelancer	Talon	5	7
Centurion	Talon Shrike	5	7
Freelancer	Talon Shrike	5	7
Constellation Taurus	Terrapin	20	25
Caterpillar	Valkyrie	45	54
Mole	Valkyrie	60	72
Redeemer	Valkyrie	50	60
Blade	Vanguard Harbinger	15	19
Vanguard Sentinel	Vanguard Harbinger	15	19
Terrapin	Vanguard Hoplite	15	19
Constellation Andromeda	Vanguard Sentinel	35	42.5
Vanguard Warden	Vanguard Sentinel	15	19
Mercury	Vanguard Sentinel	15	19
Ares Ion	Vanguard Warden	10	12.5
Corsair	Vanguard Warden	10	12.5
Ballista	Zeus Mk II CL	10	12.5
Ballista	Zeus Mk II ES	10	12.5
Vulture	Zeus Mk II MR	15	19​

   

Paints 💥

Time limited paints
Paint	Price
7 Pack Ghoulish Green (Mule, Herald, Vulture, Caterpillar, Buccaneer, Dragonfly, Cutlass)	59
2951 Auspicious Red pack (Nomad & Freelancer)	20
2952 Auspicious Red pack (Sabre and Constellation)	20.5
2952 Fortuna pack (400i & 600i)	28
2953 Auspicious Red pack (Carrack and C8 Pisces)	28
2953 Fortuna pack (Hammerhead, Redeemer, Vanguard)	52
100i - Auspicious Red Dog	7
100i - Auspicious Red Dragon	7
400i - Auspicious Red Dog	14
400i - Auspicious Red Dragon	14
400i - Fortuna	14
600i - Auspicious Red Dog	17
600i - Fortuna	20
Ares - Lovestruck	14
Ares - Meridian	14
Arrow - Lovestruck	7
Avenger - Invictus Blue and Gold	7
Avenger - Solar Winds	7
Buccaneer - Ghoulish Green	9
C8 Pisces - 2953 Auspicious Red	7
Carrack - 2953 Auspicious Red	23.5
Caterpillar - Ghoulish Green	14
Constellation - 2952 Auspicious Red	14
Corsair - Ghoulish Green	13
Cutlass Black - Skull and Crossbones	13
Cutter - Ghoulish Green	7
Cyclone - Lovestruck	7
Defender - Harmony	14
Defender - Ocellus	14
Defender - Wanderer	14
Dragonfly - Ghoulish Green	6.5
Drake Cutlass - Ghoulish Green	6.5
Drake Ultimate Ghoulunatics	78.5
Eclipse Meridian	14
F7 Hornet Mk II - Ironscale Paint	11.5
F7 Hornet Mk II - Paint Pack (Ironscale & Icebound)	16
Freelancer - 2951 Auspicious Red	11.5
Fury - Fortuna	6.5
Gladius - Invictus Blue and Gold	9
Gladius - Solar Winds	9
Hammerhead - Fortuna	23.5
Herald - Ghoulish Green	9
Hercules - Fortuna	16
Hercules - Invictus Blue and Gold	20
Hercules - Meridian	16.5
Hoverquad - Lovestruck	7
Khartu-Al - Harmony	11.5
Khartu-Al - Ocellus	11.5
Lovestruck paint 6 pack (Arrow, Scorpius, Cyclone, Hoverquad, Nomad, Ares)	53.5
Mercury Star Runner - Fortuna	14
Mercury Star Runner - Meridian	14
Meridian 4 Pack - Ares, Eclipse, Hercules, Mercury	56
Mule - Ghoulish Green	6.5
Nomad - 2951 Auspicious Red	9
Nomad - Lovestruck	9
Nox - Harmony	5.5
Nox - Ocellus	5.5
Nox - Wanderer	5.5
Prowler - Harmony	20
Redeemer - Fortuna	16.5
Razor - Fortuna	11.5
Reliant - Invictus Blue and Gold	7
Retaliator - Invictus Blue and Gold	14
Sabre - 2952 Auspicious Red	11.5
Scorpius - Lovestruck	14
Solar Winds 3 Pack - Avenger, Gladius, Vanguard	28
Talon - Harmony	9
Talon - Ocellus	9
Talon - Wanderer	9
Vanguard - Invictus Blue and Gold	14
Vanguard - Fortuna	14
Vanguard - Solar Winds	14
Vulture - Ghoulish Green	11.5
X1- Auspicious Red Dog Paint	7
X1- Auspicious Red Dragon Paint	7​

 

Concierge Paint
Paint	Price
Arrastra - Nocturne Paint	17.5
C8 Pisces Code Blue	7
C8 Pisces 5 Pack	20
Centurion - Beachhead	10
Centurion - 3 paint pack	24
Cutter - Cliffhanger	4
Cutter - Groundswell	7
Cutter - Nightfall	4
Fury - Black Star	7
Fury - Leatherback	7
Galaxy - Protector	19.5
Lynx - Moonrise	7
Mule - 3 paint pack	10.5
Mule - Smokestack	5
Pulse - 5 paint pack
Pulse - Dominion	7
San'Tok.Yai - Tuiping	9
Scorpius - Tiburon	14
Spirit - 3 paint pack 2952	33
Spirit - Crimson	12
Spirit - Intrepid	12
Storm - Summit	9
STV - Blue Steel	4
Zeus - Solstice	11.5​

 

Gear
Name	Melt	Price
Invictus 2953 Navy Blue gear pack	3.5	5
Invictus 2953 Military Grey gear pack	3.5	5​

***DISCLAIMER**\*
Large and heavy packages can be quite expensive to ship. Potential buyers should keep this in mind when inquiring about a game.
Cost for packing and shipping of most of these items will fall between $20-$100 depending on size and weight with exceptionally large/heavy or small/light orders likely falling outside this range.
No international shipping.
***DISCLAIMER END**\*
Below are the games I have for sale. The number in brackets refers to the condition of the item based on the 5 point grading system used in this subreddit (check the post formatting guide for details). All games will be shipped through UPS and buyer pays packing and shipping.
Procedure and Payment:
Games will be brought to UPS store to determine the packing and shipping price and then packed and shipped from there. Some games may already be packed if new. I will request a phone number to be able to text the buyer pictures, information, and updates on when I'm going to UPS and when to deliver payment.
Payment accepted through Paypal Goods and Services. Payment will be accepted after final shipping cost is calculated and before the shipment is sent off. Buyer will then receive a picture of the receipt with tracking number and the expected delivery date.
Buyers who wish to use their own labels can potentially create them and email me the file to print. I can do this if the items to be shipped are not exceptionally large or numerous as I would have to bring them to UPS to be weighed and measured for boxing. Alternatively, if the game is new and still in shipping box, I can take the measurements myself and the weight is usually listed on the shipping box.
Crossed out items have already sold.
Bonus Games:
In addition, I'm offering a free bonus game for the first $30 spent and every $200 spent total (not counting shipping). So a bonus game at $30, $200, $400, $600, etc. Bonus games will come from the freebie list below (oldecheap used games I've set aside as rewards). You will get to choose from the available rewards on a first come first serve basis while supplies last or you can forgo the free games to potentially save on shipping.
Games for Sale:
Godtear KS gameplay all in [5] - $200
Hellboy 1st KS gameplay all in + 3D Doors & Scenery [5] - $200
Cthulhu Wars KS Onslaught 2 gameplay all in [3] and Onslaught 3 gameplay all in [5] - $700
Glorantha: The God's War 1st KS all in [5] - $400
Black Rose Wars 1st KS gameplay all in + sleeves [5] - $200
Masmorra: Dungeons of Arcadia KS gameplay all in + treasure chests [3] - $100
Xenoshyft: Dreadmire KS gameplay all in (original and dreadmire content) [3] - $100
Mythic Battles: Pantheon KS 1 [4] & KS 2 [5] gameplay all in - $400
Arcadia Quest 1st KS gameplay mostly all in (missing few KS excl. heros) + sculpted tokens [3] & 2nd KS gameplay all in + sculpted tokens [4] - $300
Mechs vs Minions Wave 1 [4] - $70
LOAD: League of Ancient Defenders KS gameplay all in + all epic heroes & tower minis [4] - $60
Aeon's End KS [3], War Eternal KS [3], & Legacy KS + 1 reset pack [5] gameplay all in - $100
I Am the Fourth Wall [4] - $15
Ravage: Dungeons of Plunder KS [3] - $15
Sword & Sorcery KS 1 gameplay all in [3] - $100
Deep Madness KS 1 and KS 2 gameplay all in + plastic tokens, devour bag, and storage box [4] - $350
Folklore: The Affliction KS 1 & KS 2 gameplay all in + neoprene mats & terrain pack & extra dark oak [3] - $100
Human Interface: Be a Better Human KS gameplay mostly all in PVC/Metal preassembled models [5] - $25
Castle Panic + Wizard's Tower Exp. + The Dark Titan Exp. [3] - $15
The Undercity [3] - $15
Arkham Horror Card Game: Machinations Through Time Scenario Pack [5] - $12
Limbo: Eternal War 1.0 KS gameplay all in [5] - $100
Sine Tempore KS gameplay all in [5] - $200
Level 7 Omega Protocol 2nd Edition KS all in [4] - $70
Freebie List:
Posthumous Z [3]
Earth Reborn [3]
Pandemic + On the Brink Exp. [3]
Tomb Cryptmaster [3]
Banner Saga Warbands KS [4]
Shadowrun Crossfire + High Caliber Ops Exp. [3]
Hostage Negotiator [4]
Warrior Knights [3]
Let's Kill Card Game + Exps. [3]
Anima Card Game + Exp. [3]
Zombie State [3]
Cutthroat Caverns + 2 Exps. [3]
Quarriors [3]
Mansions of Madness 2nd edition [3]

Hey guys, I’m looking to finally pull the trigger and start riding on two wheels! My experience is limited to illegally riding 250cc 4 stroke dirtbikes on the street through my teens but that was about 4 years ago now.
I’m looking at a couple bikes as my first. I live in Texas and my daily commute will be about 35-40min of mostly highway, I’m also 5’7 175lb.
I’m looking at a few bikes: The Duke 390, Z400 & Mt/Fz07.
Mostly leaning towards the MT/FZ07 but wanted some outside opinions!

I'm primarily looking to get more shelf space, but I'll take a look at trade lists. Happy to do local pick-up in NJ near 07070. I will ship within the U.S. and buyer pays shipping. I use PirateShip to find the lowest price. Leave a comment on this post before messaging, otherwise I will not respond.
Have:

• 7 Wonders Duel. Includes: 7 Wonders Duel: Pantheon, The Messe Essen Promo, & Statue of Liberty Promo [3] $25
• Above and Below [4] $25
• Barcelona [5] $40
• Codenames [5] $5
• Elysium [4] $25
• High Treason: The Trial of Louis Riel [4] $15
• Iki [4] $40
• Lisboa All cards are sleeved. Includes Lisboa: Heavy Cardboard Promo, Lisboa: Metal Coins, and Lisboa: Queen Variant [4] $120
• The Crew: The Search for Planet Nine [3] $5
• Tides of Time [4] $5 or free with any purchase
• The Ming Voyages (1 token has a blemish on it, no effect on gameplay) [4] $15
• Tiny Epic Quest [4] $10
• Watergate (White box cover) Includes Change in History Promo [4] $15
• I also have PS2, PS3, PS4, & Nintendo Switch games available

Want:

• PayPal
• Cash/Venmo if in-person
• Trade lists

Date: 05/14/2024

Reading time: 10 minutes, 2146 words

🪖 Military

Armenian army holding strategic command, staff drills

Live firing will be carried out using automatic control systems and modern equipment.

PanArmenian

Armenian Armed Forces conduct strategic exercises

The exercises aim to test the practical implementation of plans for the deployment and use of the Armed Forces of Armenia. They also aim to study the possibilities of various uses of forces and means of reinforcement.

Armenpress

UN Committee against Torture points out killings, torture against Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians committed by Azerbaijan

The UN Committee against Torture pointed out extra-judicial killings and ill-treatment of ethnic Armenians committed by Azerbaijan during an armed conflict and “anti-terrorism operations” in Nagorno-Karabakh in its report published on 10 May. The Committee also expressed concerns over the continued detention of 23 people for alleged terrorism and related offences.

ArkaAm

Arkady Ghukasyan's detention period has been extended by another 5 months

Arkady Ghukasyan was arrested in September 2023, after a one-day war against Artsakh. The Azerbaijani authorities accuse him of financing terrorism, financing terrorism. 22 more Armenian servicemen and civilians are in Azerbaijan.

CivilNet, Court in Azerbaijan extends former Karabakh leader’s arrest by 5 months

🏛️ Politics & Government

More than 9,900 forcibly displaced people from Artsakh have left Armenia

As of May 1, 16,585 forcibly displaced persons left Armenia by air and land, and 6 returned. PM Nikol Pashinyan denied this number, adding that as in the case of RA citizens, Artsakh residents are also leaving.

CivilNet

Dozens detained as antigovernment protest continue in Armenia

At least 63 people demanding Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s resignation were detained on May 14 as they blocked streets in Yerevan.

PanArmenian

Some Russian border guards to stay in Armenia — Bortnikov

Russia will continue to deploy some of its border guards in Armenia, says Alexander Bortnikov. Russian border guards will protect Armenia's border with Turkey and Iran, he said. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan agreed to end the presence of Russian guards in some regions of Armenia.

Armenpress, Russian border guards to continue service on Armenia’s borders with Turkey and Iran

Border issues should be resolved so that they do not become a casus belli for Azerbaijan to attack Armenia - Swiss MP

Stefan Müller-Altermatt: Armenia-Azerbaijani border issues must be resolved at some point. The terrible legacy of Stalin must be overcome, he says, because otherwise they are always a possible casus belli that Azerbaijan can use to attack Armenia. The meeting of Armenia-EU-US in Brussels on April 5 was of enormous importance.

Armenpress

Disobedience actions resumed in the center of Yerevan from early morning, 38 participants were detained

Activists of the "Tavush for the Motherland movement and their supporting citizens block the streets and intersections as part of the awareness campaign. The opposition movement opposes the policy of the authorities regarding border demarcation with Azerbaijan.

ArkaAm

Armenian PM, Danish Parliament Speaker discuss cooperation across various fields

The parties discussed issues pertaining to cooperation between the parliaments of Armenia and Denmark, as well as cooperation across various fields. The parties expressed hope that the visit of the Prime Minister of Armenia to Denmark will give a new impetus to the development of multi-sectoral relations between the two countries.

Armenpress, Nikol Pashinyan stresses the importance of continuing democratic reforms to eliminate corruption in Armenia, Armenian premier hopes for steadfastness in border delimitation process between Armenia, Azerbaijan, The Prime Minister expressed his wish for Armenia's EU Membership in 2024, Armenia has made enormous progress in strengthening democratic institutions - Pashinyan, Pashinyan, Rasmussen discuss regional security, Armenian PM invites Danish counterpart to pay official visit to Yerevan, Pashinyan discussed RA-EU cooperation with the Prime Minister of Denmark, Democracy a strategy for Armenia։ PM Pashinyan participates in Copenhagen Democracy Summit, Pashinyan, Rasmussen discuss Armenia’s “Crossroads of Peace” project, Danish Prime Minister accepts invitation to visit Armenia

We look forward to the EU's decision to include Armenia in the European Peace Fund - Pashinyan

Prime Minister Pashinyan says Yerevan is now looking forward to EU's decision to include Armenia in the European Peace Fund. He also expressed hope that negotiations with the EU on visa liberalization will begin. Armenia is now developing defense cooperation with India, France and other countries.

Armenpress, The Prime Minister expressed his wish for Armenia's EU Membership in 2024, Pashinyan makes wish: to see Armenia joining EU

The war in our region was a preface to further developments - Nikol Pashinyan

Nikol Pashinyan says the war in the South Caucasus was a preface to further developments, and world order is collapsing now, PM says. The Prime Minister emphasized that democracy did not emerge in Armenia simply due to circumstances. He said the security situation was complicated and is even more complicated now.

Armenpress

A meeting is scheduled between Alen Simonyan and Sahiba Gafarova in Geneva

A delegation led by the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, Alen Simonyan, will be in Geneva on a working visit from May 15th to 18th. A meeting between the President of the Milli Mejlis of Azerbaijan Sahiba Gafarova is planned as part of the visit on May 16.

Armenpress, Alen Simonyan will meet with the head of the Parliament of Azerbaijan on May 16, President of Armenia’s National Assembly to meet Azerbaijani counterpart in Geneva, The meeting between the Speaker of the RA National Assembly and the Speaker of the Milli Mejlis of Azerbaijan will take place in Geneva, Armenian, Azerbaijani Parliament Speakers to meet in Geneva

OSCE Chair-in-Office considers border demarcation agreement between Yerevan and Baku a “step in the right direction"

Ian Borg, OSCE Chair-in-Office, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade of Malta, met Azerbaijan’s president Ilham Aliyev in Baku. The recent agreement on border demarcation between Armenia and Azerbaijan is a “step in the right direction”

Armenpress, We are ready to support Armenia and Azerbaijan in achieving peace. OSCE Chairman-in-Office

Belgium welcomes negotiations between Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Almaty

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium welcomed the recent negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The negotiations took place between Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.

Armenpress, Belgium welcomes new round of Armenian-Azerbaijani talks in Almaty

US continues to believe that peace in Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict is possible - Vedant Patel

The parties agreed to continue negotiations on the establishment of peace and interstate relations. The ministers met both in a trilateral format with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan.

Armenpress, State Department says it believes in achieving peace in Nagorno-Karabakh region, U.S. still believes “peace is possible” between Armenia, Azerbaijan

Armenia is waiting for the decision to join the European Peace Foundation. Pashinyan

Pashinyan: We are waiting for the decision to include Armenia in the European Peace Fund. The fund was established in 2021 to promote world peace, prevent conflicts and supply non-lethal weapons to countries in need. In mid-April, the media wrote that a preliminary agreement was reached in Brussels to provide 10 million euros to Armenia from this fund, but Hungary blocked the decision.

CivilNet

EBRD provides Armenia with 12 million euros for construction of customs and logistics center in Syunik

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is lending €10 million to Armenia to finance the construction of a customs and logistics centre in the Syunik region. The project is part of the EBRD’s Refugee Crisis Response and includes an integration programme for refugees.

ArkaAm, EBRD, EU partner with Acba bank for Armenian firms, EBRD funds customs and logistics centre in Syunik, Armenia

Armenia's membership in CSTO is an issue for further discussion

Armenia's continued membership in the CSTO is an issue for further discussion, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said. He noted that Armenia is formally a member of the organization, but its participation in the organization is frozen. Armenia recorded that the “red line” was passed during the Azerbaijani invasion in May 2021.

ArkaAm

The United States is bringing Ukraine closer to NATO - Blinken

The United States is bringing Ukraine closer to NATO and will later introduce it to the Alliance. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced this in Kyiv. According to him, Western allies should take another important step – force Russia to pay for the restoration and reconstruction of Ukraine.

Armenpress, Blinken arrives in Kyiv to reassure Ukraine of US support

Independent audit finds more irregularities in Armenian ruling party’s finances

Independent audit into the financial reporting practices of Armenia's ruling political party finds more irregularities. CivilNet and Infocom, another local news site, raised concerns over how it sources campaign donations. The audit found Civil Contract accepted a number of donations that were made anonymously or were above the maximum campaign contribution amount allowed for individuals.

CivilNet

It is time to dissolve the Minsk Group. Aliev

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said it is time to dissolve the OSCE Minsk Group and its related institutions. He said there is no reason for the Armenian side not to agree to it.

CivilNet

Georgia passes controversial ‘foreign agents’ bill despite widespread opposition

Georgia's parliament passes controversial 'foreign agents' bill. Lawmakers vote 84-30 in favor of the bill, which will require organizations to register as "agents of foreign influence" President Salome Zourabichvili has vowed to veto it.

ArmRadio

Family of Ilham Aliyev’s security chief owns vast property in UK

As head of security for Azerbaijan’s president, Eyyubov is closely trusted by one of the world’s most authoritarian leaders.

PanArmenian

💵 Economy

EDB noted the key factors of deflation in Armenia

Consumer prices in Armenia decreased by 0.7% year-on-year in April, after decreasing by 1.2% last month. The deflation is concentrated in the food segment, in April food prices decreased by 4.5%. In the 2024 state budget, inflation was fixed at 4% (±1.5%)

ArkaAm

Grigori Zakaryan: “Capital markets have crucial importance for economic development.”

A panel discussion titled: ‘Capital Markets, Challenges and Development Prospects’ will be held as part of EBRD’s annual meeting. The capital market in Armenia is a newly emerging and developing institution with unique opportunities and challenges for development. Capital markets are influenced not only by the course of large economies central banks’ monetary policies but also by important geopolitical events.

ArkaAm

⚽ Sport

"The Armenian Prime Minister's Cup" to be held for the third time

The third edition of "The Armenian Prime Minister's Cup" team steeplechase tournament for schoolchildren will take place on May 17-18. The event will be hosted in the vicinity of Dilijan's Parz Lake. A total of 11 teams, each comprising 7 students (5 boys and 2 girls), will compete in the tournament.

Armenpress

Donations to Armenia:

Himnadram
ServicemenFund
Armenian Wounded Heroes
ArmeniaFund

Hey, I’ve posted in a few other subreddits and built what I hope is my last version of the PC I hope to buy soon. Any last pieces of advice or changes you think are necessary would be great.
Budget is $1300
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor	$204.99 @ Amazon
CPU Cooler
Deepcool AK500 ZERO DARK 68.99 CFM CPU Cooler	$45.98 @ Newegg
Motherboard
MSI PRO B650-S WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard	$139.99 @ MSI
Memory
Kingston FURY Beast RGB 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR5-6000 CL40 Memory	$81.99 @ Amazon
Storage
TEAMGROUP MP44L 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$64.98 @ Amazon
Video Card
XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 16 GB Video Card	$359.99 @ Amazon
Case
NZXT H7 Flow ATX Mid Tower Case	$89.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply
MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$89.99 @ Newegg
Monitor
LG 32GN600-B 31.5" 2560 x 1440 165 Hz Monitor	$209.00 @ Walmart
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total

$1286.90

Meme stocks soared again on Tuesday, as US equities more broadly stayed muted amid a mixed inflation reading, as investors counted down to Wednesday's more heavily anticipated look into consumer prices.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) hovered around the flatline in afternoon trading while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) inched about 0.2% higher.
New data on Tuesday showed wholesale prices increased 0.5% month over month in April, above the 0.3% consensus expected. That was according to the latest release of the Producer Price Index, which measures prices producers receive for goods produced. But the release also showed March's monthly price increase was revised lower to a decrease of 0.1% from an initial reading of a 0.2% increase.
The mixed bag helped Wall Street largely shrug off the report. The more crucial reading of inflation is expected on Wednesday with the release of the Consumer Price Index.