Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all others because you were born in it.

~George Bernard Shaw

I wasn't actually born in this city and I have never set foot here until I was 4, but I love this city more than I can possibly love any other place in this country. I love this city more than I love my country.

Anyway, cutting to the crap. I'm not going to write about myself for now, I'm just going to write about how happy I am that we decided to go to the government center.

The government center is usually where my parents and I go jogging in the morning. We were actually planning to jog there tonight, but they were exhausted by the time they arrived home. We went there anyway, and I never regretted it.

I figured that the building at night would be a great place for polishing my virtually nonexistent photography skills because it was really just so pretty. Turns out there was more in store for my camera than just the building.

I wanted to take an HDR-esque picture like the one my friend took some time ago, tinkering with the shutter speed and stuff. I guess I failed, but it's not a bad shot, right?

Also, the faint squiggly lines you see beside the tall jet of water are actually people walking in front of my camera.

Here's a closer, less yellow shot from a different vantage point. I set the shutter speed to 3 seconds, which is why the pool looks like it's made of ice. I'd be dreaming if it were.

The place doubles as a picnic spot for most people living in and visiting the city. It's turning into our pride and joy of some sort and I hope it stays that way for a long, long time.

Going to school in a different, more metropolitan city gives me the privilege to compare their people and cultures. Personally I think my city had more refined people than the other, more metropolitan city. I suppose it still comes from the time this city was chock full of big shots back when the sugar industry was booming.

Those are people having their picture taken, by the way.

This guy was playing his keyboard outside. At first I thought it was canned music, but then I saw him. It was wonderful. The music can be heard all over the place. It was like being in a ball or something, when you close your eyes.

Just kidding. But really, it did feel like there was a dinner.

I was mildly surprised when I saw these people. I was also a bit happy that they went around like it was normal. It really ought to be normal, in my opinion. Remember that time when I wrote about my classmates backhandedly ostracizing me for wearing boots? I'll be perfectly at home with these guys, and they're perfectly at home here, so I guess I'll be perfectly at home here.

They were nice, too:

They let me take their picture.

And I had my picture taken with their duck, too.

I'm wearing a Sesame Street tee, checked shorts and Dr. Martens mary janes. I wish I dressed up for this.

This is my failed attempt at bokeh photography. It doesn't work from afar.

It's such a pity that I didn't get to spend much of my teenage life in this awesome city. I hope it stays awesome for a very long time.