"Wiederholungsübeltäter"

I was looking for the English word for a repetition offender, because I wanted to give this post that as a headline. So again I put in the German word for the same thing, and the lovely translation engine offered me this word you now can see as the headline; "Wiederholungsübeltäter".
Well it isn't directly wrong, it is just like shooting sparrows with canons, and kind of funny that it offers me; "übeltäter" for "offender" and not only "täter", which could be the direct translation for an offender. A "übeltäter" could be translated as an ill, sick or bad offender, and in the context where I wanted to use the word, this is a bit exaggerated. As I tried to fill in the word again, to get the German to English translation, the cute thing offered me; "ill author"???
Wauw, now I am way of the line here, and I've nearly forgot what I wanted to tell.
Oh yes, it was about this "Wiederholungsübeltäter".
Normally we say, that we're not creatures of habits, and always wants to try something new and different. Normally it is true, but then yesterday when we were out to do some different business in the City, we again at the end of the day, ended up in the Ukrainian Restaurant I wrote about a while ago; "Ivan the Kozak".
It is indeed a lovely restaurant and has great food, but the main attraction for us that day in the restaurant was -I guess, as it was quite hot outside; the ice cold Vodka cool room bar.
So here again, the two cold noses warming up their stomach with nice ice cold authentic vodka before the dinner.
And if you do something again and again, you are a "Wiederholungsübeltäter", right?

Do you speak danish?

Rokni Haerizadeh

"Born in nature"
Oil on canvas, 2008
200 X 300 cm
Courtesy of the artist & Gallery 21


"God morgen, snakker i dansk?"
It is a new morning, it is Saturday and we are getting ready for a little run. i'm ready but Catriona is looking for her socks, so I guess I have time for a little post.
The sentence up at the beginning is in Danish and means; "good morning, do you speak Danish?"
I've never postedd something in Danish here yet, but maybe I'm going to in a while. Not always, but just sometimes so I do not forget how it is to speak -and write- in Danish. And I guess I have to pratice somehow in the future, as I'm going to participate in a new blog in a Danish newspaper, where Danish people living abroad writes about their live in the strange and foreign Contries.
When I have my first post I'll let you know where and how to find it.

Dear diary! -How Hong Kong awakes...

...or go to sleep, depends on how you see it.
After getting up yesterday morning (Wednesday the 27th), I didn't go to sleep again before this Thursday (28th) morning. It was not one of these "wauw, I'm so cool, I haven't slept for 36 hours" manifestations, no it was way more serious and caused by an event which on this day may have cast its shadow upon other major events on this Wednesday; the final in the UEFA Champions League.
Set in Rome was this maybe the dream final between the maybe two best Football clubs in Europe at the moment; FC Barcelona and Manchester United. I'm a big Football (soccer) fan, but havn't been able to follow this years Champions League, but I knew that I wanted to see this Final, so I planed to take a day of work today, so I could stay out all night to watch this game kicking of at 2,45 AM, But somehow destany gave me a helping hand, and so this Thursday was a holiday anyway here, so I didn't have to use a holiday. Back in Europe it was somehow easier and more handy as kick of time there is at 8.45 PM, and you can still be in bed by midnight and go to work the next day. Here it is more spectacular. The game is finished by 4.30ish AM. If there is extra time and even penalty shootout, it easily get's to about 6 AM, and then I normally get up, but staying out watching this game, I had to head all the way home over the mountain to our village by the sea as well.
I met up with another foorball crazy colleague, Graham at 1 AM, and then we found a bar to watch. It wasn't that easy. The streets was fuilled with people in ManU or Barca tops, trying to find some empty seats infront of the screens, offering the green images of adoration. We found some seats in a kind of German pob called "Biergarten" but thats was also nearly the only German about it, apart from the beer, I mean.
I'm not going to say much about the game, other than that I'm pleased that Barcelona won it, and that was indeed deserved, as they made Manchester look like a team from a much lower league, and I really enjoyed to be able to sit there to watch, without worrying about work the next day.
The pub was full and crowded from other football fans and night ravens -whoalso had a day of- and after the game when we came out, the other pubs in the neighbourhood was still filled with people and the steets filled with people on their way home, one way or another.
So it was the first time I've seen Hong Kong awakes, or go to bed, if ever!
On street level you can't really realize that dawn breaks, it is still dark down there and dominated by the lights and neon signs from the shops, but if you are able to raise the head and look up, the sky above lights up in a nice lightblue colour.
At 7 AM I was back in our house and could continue my beuaty sleep I started on the minibus back from town, and just interupted by a friendly soul, trelling me that we'd arrived and I should get out.
So that was my 24 hours of bring awake because of a football match.

Some songs just never fades.

And some even comes up with surprising combinations. This one is absolute great, but; is it better than the real thing?

If I had a top 100.

This on would also be on it.

Once upon a time on the South Island!

Not so long time ago I read a little notice somewhere in a Newspaper, it said that the two main Islands in New Zealand, still didn't have a real name, and they were still just called the North- and South Island.
That was in fact it.
Oh no, I forgot; they were now trying to find some names, and for that purpose they were looking into the Māori language.
When I was there on the South Island in April we stayed one night in a Māori community, and there we were told that the Māori word for the South Island was "the big Canoe", but of corse I've forgot that word and if it was just one and not a sentence.
But this has nothing to do with what I wanted to post today, it just came into my mind when I started thinking about this post and looking through all my Photos.
What I wanted to tell -or show- was the day I went horse riding with 9 of the students, and we all got dressed up in this kind of cowboy dress. The young people all lined up for a Photo, and that is why I called this post; "Once upon a time ...", and who doesn't imagine to hear the harmonica and think of Charles Bronson?

Cover songs in my Itunes; "Hurt"

Post industrial ballad; Nine Inch Nails.

Great song, so here straight away the same song by the man in black; Jonny Cash.

My brother was number 1788 by this years Copenhagen marathon...

...and Lone, my sister in law, was number 5741.
I just checked the results online on politiken.dk. Henrik ran in 3 hours 31 minutes and 15 seconds and got number 86 in his class. Lone ran in 4.11.49 and was number 101 in her class.
Congratulation to the two of them, well done -even that I'm sure that they are not really satisfied.
This photo is not from any of their previous marathon events, but from a party in Denmark last summer. They've done the Berlin marathon twice, where I've been to support them and maybe I could do that again one time, if they decide to run the Hong Kong marathon, or even better; the great wall of China marathon.

Another Boeing 747

And now it is also number 748, visitor.
I just found another interisting clip from the good old Kai Tak days, and again it is a 747 coming in to land.

Here it is also very clear tht the runway is built out into the water, and the high rises on Hong Kong is a nice backdrop for the planes.

Visitor no 6.747

I just saw this number when I logged in to figure out what to write about today, and now I got something at least for a start.
747 is the interesting about this number as this lead me to think about planes, and one certain type of plane; the Boeing 747 also called the Jumbo Jet, and until recently regarded as the biggest commercial airplane in the world.
In 1997 the old and famous Kai Tak airport here in Hong Kong shut down, and gave room for the new and highly modern Chek Lap Kok airport, but before Kai Tak was famous for the very demanding manoeuvrings pilots had to do to land on the narrow runway built in Victoria harbour, and also for the view of the planes coming in over the roofs of Kowloon city.

So much for 747!

Reptilicus -great danish horror movie!

A couple of weeks ago I remember telling something about the Danish horror trash film Reptilicus from 1961, and I promised to try and find a clip from that movie.
Well nowadays with youtube it isn't too difficult to finf stuff like that, and it is nearly like everything what has ever been made on film or TV, now is accessible on there.
Well enjoy the monster and the stunning effects!

Art fo art sake #4

Sara Rahbar
"God bless America flag#34"
textiles/ mixed media
119,38 X 180,34 cm
2008

Maybe this piece of art fit's perfect to the previous posts and to some of the issues of world politic today.
It is a bit obvious and maybe pathetic, but as I saw this at the art fair, I just had to smile a bit.
In fact after being able to let some of the impressions settle in my soul, I kind of realize that the smile was one thing I did do more often at this exhibition than normally when I watch an art show, a gallery or visit a museum. I think the artist from Asia did a very go0od job in making me feel that way, as their approach to the fine art was kind of filled with humor and self irony, and that is what I really miss in my own (western) culture, the ability to laugh about our own life and culture.

How to make plans, make it happen and be a President!

Just to follow up on yesterdays post, here is one from a man who certainly knew what he was doing.

White Stripes -doing commercials!

The author is not responsible for the content and message of the following video. It's just a beautiful video and a good song, and it kind of fit to the previous post.



Good night. see you in the morning.

Obama in Dresden!

I've just heard from one of my friends back in Dresden, that Mr. Obama himself will visit the city in the beginning of June, apparently he wants to visit one of the considerations camps close by, where some of his relatives were imprisoned during the war. When I think of that scenario, Dresden and the president of the United States, I can just see a lot of Police men and security forces blocking the city completely, and every citezent will have to go on leave and leave for a week. A worse case scenario would have been if it was the old President who wanted to visit, and I just can't imagine in my wildest fantasy how that would have developed.
But let's see, Obama is another person than the old one and maybe he has some surprises hidden in his sleve, and maybe my friends will be able to drink a beer with him in Schnurz or Trotzdem, and maybe he'll even kick the ball with them in Alaunpark on a Sunday afternoon.
I hope they will have a traktor-trotzdem shirt ready for him, just in case!

Xue Song
"Spring Blossom"
Mixed media on canvas
180 x 150
2008

Damned good coffee!

Oh yeah, good old agent Cooper and his damned good coffee. It is amazing what is hidden on youTube and all the other video sites. Just about one year ago I thought that there was mostly crappy home made videos on there, but as you see; you can learn new things all your life.

More of that please!

Here is something for the Iphone generation!

More about film: Great directors, according to me.

David Lynch, imagine that he shot a Goofy movie, then it would be like this.

Film post -not from- but about Cannes.

He has done it again the danish film maker; Lars Von Trier, who quite often before has made some kind of scandal or minor riots at the Cannes film festival. This time again because of the new film of his; "Anti Christ" with Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsborough in the two leading -and only- role's.
Again he has made a controversial movie and usually these divides the audience and the critics in two major groups, either you love his work or you hate it, there is no in between. And like so often before, his press conferences at Cannes are as obscene and controversial as his films, as all the haters want's to ask why on earth he is doing films like that, and he is not to bothered, and ofcorse he claims to be the best director in the world, like you can see in this clip from the press conference from Politiken TV.
Lars von Trier. Photo: CHRISTIAN GEISNÆS

Art fo art sake #3

Tang Zhigang.
"Childrens meeting"
Oil on canvas,
131 x 162 cm,
2001.

Photo of the day! A little bite of fish for dinner?

At one of the street fish mongers on Cheung Chau is a huge fish being killed and cleaned in public.
When fish at this size is being cleaned there is normally lots of audience who follows the last desperate attempt from the fish to keep alive, but is is always an uneven battle, and soon pieces of this fish finds it way to the plates of the guests at the nearby seafood restaurant.

Dear diary - it's getting busy behind the red door.

At the beginning when something is new, people has to get use to it. The same with our Red Door team and studio at RCHK. At the beginning I was going around with the video camera doing small documentaries about the daily life.
Then some students got interested and also some teachers started to consult the Red Door team when they wanted to try something new and use cameras and editing equipment.







In the last weeks this has just been an ongoing spiral upwards of students visiting and using the technology we can offer. From year 5 to year 12 students, all seems to feel welcome and inspired to take advantage of this -for the school- new initiative.
And for me it is great, as now my visions and intentions with the studio, starts to pay of, and students really benefits from the 3 of us working at the studio and they for sure benefits of the technology invested.

Top 100!

If I had a top 100 of music, this one would probably be in there!

Art for Art sake #2

I didn't make it through all exhibitions at the Art Fair on Thursday, so I went again yesterday (Saturday 16th of May), and spent another 3 hours cruising around the crowd and the huge number of contemporary Artwork from nearly all the world.
It was a quite impressive mix of well known and famous Artist as well as for me unknown but very interesting artists from the Asian region. In the next couple of day's I'll present some of my favorites works from this Art Fair.


Kim. Nam Pyo, South Korea,"Instant Landscape 61", scratching on artificial fur and charcoal on canvas, 130 x 162 cm, 2008.

Trailer for Blade Runner!

Just if you can't remember the feeling and atmosphere from Blade Runner, here is the trailer for the Director's Cut version.

Great film.

Awsome digital carousel!

In the 80ties the movie Blade Runner came up with some stunning and quite fantastic visions about the future. Especially there is this scene in the movie where Harrison Ford ,as Dectective Rivk Deckard, finds a photo and then via some amazing digital effects can zoom in on a special detail in that photo, even that this detail is behind something in the foreground, but anyway, he can zoom in to this small detail so close that he can see and read some small numbers which then turn out to be an important clue. At that time I remember thinking; "Well great, but that isn't possible".
Then now 20 something years later, take a look at this little film directed by Adam Berg.

I found this clip on a blog I visit and read quite often from a swedish artist called Mia Makila, and a link to her blog you can find here.

Art for art sake!

Two and a half hour we lasted at the Art fair yesterday afternoon. Then we were filled up with impressions and couldn't cope with more from the contemporary art scene for the moment, and we only managed to have a look at maybe a fifth of the galleries.
More than a hundred international Art galleries from all over the world, is represented at the art fair and under the motto:"See Art, love Art, Buy Art" they invite you through a tour de force in what they regard as the most important Art right now.
Mainly it is a sales show, but if you like art and like the surprises of what the unexpected and unknown can give you, it is quite fun to walk around and let all the Art work work through your senses, and nobody really tries to get you to buy anything, and like it often is by art shows like this, not only the art is worth watching, the place is also excellent for people watching.
My camera ran out of power after a short while, and I hated that, but I
ll go once again on Saturday to see the last and missing bits, and then I'll make sure the battery in my camera is fully charged, and because I know what to expect, I'll not get too overwhelmed. by the Art

Hong Kong International Art Fair

Yesterday it started, the Hong Kong International Art Fair in the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.
My colleague Mr. Dufty was there last night and had a little look deep into the free bottles served at the Vernissage, so today he was as big headed as always, just with a little sent of spirits.
To night we will go and have a look, but aswe haven't got the arty farty VIP access card, we will not look as deep into the bottles, or we have to pay for it yourselfes, and then it isn't that cool, just look at the stories with the british MP's and their expences.
What we can await on an Art Fair like this?
Great international art and a lot of snobbing I guess. But I'll tell more about that tomorrow when I in fact know what I'm talking about.

Photo of the day!

Landscape from New Zealand, where the sheep's are growing.

Jo san, lei ho? Yat Cafe Latte 'ngoi!

It's around 8 in the morning. Everybody is heading from the car park or the gate entrance in the same direction; Towards the Cafe 1668 in the middle of the school yard.
In the morning you can meet nearly every body here, so if there is somebody you urgently need to speak to, but have tried to reach pr. e-mail without result, just go to the Cafe 1668 in the morning before classes starts, and you will for sure have a chance to grab this person.
I always have a Cafe Latte as the first thing in the morning, and then normally catch up with Graham, Craig and John about the latest football results -from the middle of night before-, before heading to the Red door office to answer e-mails for about an hour. Coffee helps through that early phase of the day.
Well on the photo the Cafe doesn't seem that busy, but I guess this photo is taken just shortly past 8 AM and everybody is at their computer reading the daily bulletin.

Who's that guy to the right?

Manila international airport on Saturday morning. Just arrived and confused. Where to get our luggage and wonder where to find Simon, who was going to pick us up. All these questions in a strange airport when visiting the first time.
In front of us a huge crowd slowly build up and surrounding one guy. Suddenly everybody started to get their photo taken with this guy, who seemed to enjoy the fame a bit. Bob and I looked at each other; "her must be famous".
"Is that a famous guy?" I asked a lady in the crowd.
Unable to speak because some kind of numbness had hit her as she couldn't believe her luck that morning, she just nodded.
"He's famous" - so we got in line for a photo with this -for us- unknown star.
"Where do you come from?" He asked Bob.
"I'm from Canada".
"Oh," the star said; "I'm going there on tour soon".
"Great."
And then it was my turn.
"Where do you come from?" Star asked ritually.
Please don't say that you're going there as well I thought to myself.
"Denmark"
"Oh, I going there soon, we're on a tour." Star said.
Right and my name is Jackson and I used to be white.
"Your kidding me, what a coincidence, but thank you for the photo!"
We got out of there and met Simon. He was kind of strange and he kept looking in a certain direction. I followed his eyes and saw that he also looked at the "Star" we've just met, as he was outside now as well.
Simon tried to get a picture of him with his mobile phone from the distance.
"Hi Simon do you want a Photo together with that guy, we've just done it, and then you should say that you come from Poland, and I bet you he'll say that he will go there soon on tour."
I was sure he was a fake and just said that to be friendly, or to seem more famous.
"But he is quite famous, he is the new lead singer from the American band Journey, and he is one of the biggest stars in the Philippines."


I've been looking on youTube to find out something about the Band Journey and then this guy, and look at this.

Yes, that's him, and how he became the lead singer for Journey, a young guy from the Philippines?
They saw him on youTube singing cover versions of their songs and hired him. More here!

Manila in two days!

No, you can't really do that, so my impressions from the visit is very limited. I admit not to know a lot about the Philippines and how life is there. After being in Manila for two days I know a bit more, and then not really anyway, because what we got to see isn't Manila or the Philippines. We saw the rich part -or one of them- somewhere in this mega million city.
The real thing, where the ordinary Philippine people live, we didn't see or experience. We got driven around by a driver and taken to the places where we could go without any danger, but into the streets of the neighborhoods for the ordinary people we never came, and I'm not sure that I would dare it anyway.
















We got a ride on a ferry on the Pasig river through a part of the city, and the most of the city we saw on that ride was slum and very poor settlements. The water was brown and filled with rubbish and plastic bottles, and once in a while a dead animal -dogs, pigs and what ever- was floating not far away from bathing children.
One thing I liked was the so called "Jeepneys", a fancy decorated vehicle used for public transport. These was old American army jeeps -or the leftovers from these- and then rebuild to a sort of mini bus, by it's owner, who then was the driver and serving one special route through the city. There was thousands of them always on the go and with people hopping on and of where it suited them the best. These trucks was a colourful part of the street life, even they couldn't live up to any of the new standarts of co 2 emission regulations.













Here is just two of the "Jeepneys", quite similar and yet so different. I spend some time just watching these auto mobiles pass on the street.

Radiohead; Street Spirits(fade out)

An absolute impressing video from an absolute impressing Band.
I used to used this video to explain the students was was meant with associative film making.

I was also once so lucky to experience Radiohead live, and that was in the late 90ies at the Roskilde Festival in Denmark. At that time they just released their ; "Ok Computer album".
Great concert as I remember it.

Dear diary -Halloo from Manila

I'm sitting somewhere in Manila at a Seattle Best coffee shop and we're having breakfast. It is really hot outside, like 30 something, and we're going on a boat trip on the river here before flying back to Hong Kong at 6 PM.
It was a short visit and of corse we had not enough time at all to see and get a real impression of how it is really like to live here in the Philippines.
We got told though, to come back and do some traveling in the country side and visit some of all the small islands. So that is something we will consider.
I'll upload some pictures later when back in Hongkers.
Enjoy your day.

Dear diary! -Manila FC.

It is finally Friday again and a long week has gone to an end. It has been a week with a lot of football going on in Europe; the Champions League.
When I lived back in Europe I was always very excited on those nights, and I nearly could not wait to the evening when I could watch those games with my friends. And to be honest, I saw nearly all matches that was broadcasted in TV.
Living here in Hong Kong I've seen none -because when they are on it is in the middle of the night- except last years final between Man. Utd and -Hmmm, Chelsea. But that was only because I wasn't working at that time, and they showed in our local pub because the owner is a Man U supporter, but normally he closes down at 2 PM. But to be honest again; I really miss those evenings. So thank god for the Internet, then at least I can see the results in the morning when I get up, and the games has just finished. Well I could talk a lot about this subject, but I wont. I will only say that I'm quite pleased that this years final isn't going to be between the same two teams as last year, and this year I will support FC. Barcelona.
Reflecting on other differences from our time in Europe. Well some times we drove for 4 hours to visit a friends birthday party in Meiningen or took a trip for two hours to Berlin or Prague. Now we fly for 1 hour and a half to visit a friends birthday party in Manila, Philippines. Tomorrow morning at 6 AM we're of for the airport and at 10 AM we arrive in Manila. So the next post could be another premiere; Traktor in Manila. I wonder if they have a good football team there, so I can buy myself a football shirt from Manila FC.

Last but not least; yesterday was the first performance night in the "new Sai Kung bamboo opera", and we went for a little quick look. And again I must say that I'm really impressed how they in one week can build a thing like that, mainly out of bamboo and rope.
The performances is for western people quite strange, and I guess I have to do a lot of research to try to understand what it is about. But it is colourful and I guess quite funny, because every five minutes the audience -could be a thousand- breaks out in laughter, and big discussions starts to run through the row's. It is very calm and not pretentious at all. People come and go as they are pleased and a good thing; it is for free, so you see families with children and gran ma and gran dad on a nice night out.

More music from my youth!

This is the German singer Nina Hagen and the song is from her debut album "Nina Hagen Band" from 1978.

She was in her own way part of the punk wave which took over the youth in the late 70ties. She was born in the DDR, but was allowed to leave the state and emigrate to West Germany in 1976, because she threatened to become the second Wolf Biermann in the DDR, if she wasn't allowed to visit her father in the west. Read more detailed about this here.

And here she is -some years older, but still a stunning voice- together with the Finish cello heavy band Apocalyptica, performing Rammsteins;"Seemann"

Dear diary! -Speechless in Sai Kung.

What a lovely long weekend it has been. The weather absolute fabulous, the only minus for this mini holiday has been that Catriona has been unable to talk as a result of a cold. In fact she hasn't been able to speak for a couple of days as she completely lost her voice, So we couldn't really go anywhere -traveling, I mean- , but what, when the weather is like this, Sai Kung is a nice place. Catriona stayed at the house and did some school work and I took my bike and went riding around Sai Kung and the country park to explore some of the parts i didn't know yet, and I went to see how the workers got along building the bamboo opera house in town.



























The floor of the opera house is finished and ready and the workers can have a little rest before the truck with all the chairs arrives, and they have to get up and mount all of them. Oh, there it is, poor guys, it wasn't a long rest, and where is the people who should put up those red lamps?

Leningrad Cowboys once again.

The Total Balalaika Show, performed by the Finnish rock band Leningrad Cowboys and the full 160-member Alexandrov Ensemble took place on 12 June 1993 on Senate Square in Helsinki, Finland.

Sai Kung gets an opera house -for a while.

Last year in May I wrote about this the first time. In one weeks time a group of workers build a complete opera house just out of bamboo.
The building covers half the basket court, blocks a street and a half parking lot.
It is for the"Queen of heaven" Chinese opera, and should ask the gods to give the right weather for the coming harvest; not too much rain and not too much sun.
Soon the performances will start and every night for about a week there will be a show. It is free and around the opera house there will be a load of small stalls, offering various things to eat. It is like a little festival.
The actors is very friendly and they allow you to go back stage and see them doing their make up in the dressing rooms, so for a lot of people this is a good photo opportunity.