hi again, sorry this is just a test.

Final day of 2010 summer holiday.

It sure has been quiet here for a long time. Sorry, but I'm lazy and was uninspired.
Now the summer is over and there could be some stories to tell from our Scandinavian tour, with two visits outside, to Scotland and Germany.
We're are currently at the international Airport of Copenhagen, waiting for boarding to London, so now we just want to use the time to add this little unnecessary -but honest- post.
It has been a good holiday and we bring a lot home from it -memories, like kilo's around the waist- but as we cannot tell the whole story just here and now, we will start with some teasers, in sort of photos from Norway. More will follow.

The best of April 2009!

Without a doubt New Zealand was the best in April one year ago. I went there with two other colleagues - Jason & Lesley- and 35 students from year 9. From Europe New Zealand is far far away, but even from here it is far away; 13 hours flight and then it is only 4 time zones ahead of us here in Hong Kong. I was a bit surprised by that, as i didn't really realize the distance.But we got there and then the fun started, first in Christchurch, later in Queenstown, Te Anau, Milford Sound, Lake Pukaki, Hanmer Springs, Kaikura -the city of the whales and dolphins- and finally before we headed back north; an evening in Auckland and a super 14 Rugby game.
The landscape in New Zealand was fantastic. Majestic and clean. It reminded me a lot of the Scottish highlands and if you look at a globe, it could seem obvious as Scotland and New Zealand seems to be in each others place, just direct opposite on the globe.
When I traveled there, my wife Catriona went to Scotland to visit her family, and we were exactly 12 hours apart.
The thing I remember the most was on the 12th of April 2009 where I was -kind of- forced to do a Bungy Jump to entertain the 35 students. I was terrified and couldn't sleep the evening before, and when I finally fell asleep, I woke up hours before and started to find every possible excuse not to do it. That we arrived 1 hour early at the bridge for the event, didn't help a bit. I could go out on that thing a look the 43 meters down to the rushing river and again my legs started shaking and I couldn't really give in for the optimistic comments from the students. And worst of all; because of the 35 of them, there was NO CHANCE that I could escape and get away without doing it.
So soon I found myself standing on that bridge with that elastic cord tied around my ankles, and a smiling young lady telling me to look up and give a smile to one of the cameras. She could easy do that, she was safe and sound up there and didn't have to throw herself out from there and 43 meters down towards a frenzy river.But then I just did it, and after not even another minute I got pulled up in a boat by two men who untied the cord and brought me to the shore. Suddenly I smelled the fresh air and realized the sun was shining from a clear blue sky, and now it was me who was up on the beat and could respond to all the silly jokes. Do I have to mention that the rest of the trip was just like a walk in the park?As I can remember was his name "Che" and he took me on his back through some of the locations where Peter Jackson filmed some of the scenes for his famous film trilogy about a certain ring.

The evolution of Black Betty!

It was in 1977. I was 15 and went to the disco events in different youth clubs and at school parties, and we all went crazy when the DJ's put on this record; "Black Betty" performed by a band called 'Ram Jam". Here again I enjoy the fantastic 70ties video -or TV- aesthetics with a load of transitions.

As it always is with good songs; they get covered by others and even this first version from 1977 by Ram Jam is a cover from an old recording from 1933 recorded in a Texas prison.

The grand old crooner Mr. Jones also had his hands on this song and has transferred the song into a real groovy dance tune, and as always, his voice does a real good job.

More equal -and hard core rock- to the Ram Jam version from 77, is the cover made by the Australian band "Spiderbait".

Highlights of 2009- March.

"It that really one year ago now?"
Scrolling through the photos from March 2009 I get the feeling that this could have been just recently, but it is not and we just have to get used to it, get used to that the time flies.
March 2009 was a mix of certain highlights. From Japan we got a visitor, whom we had not seen since the Dresden days, More accurate; Catriona had not seen since back then. Kimiko came to stay for a week or so, so that was a good excuse to go out and get some nice food -and take some pictures of it.
March is also the month of one of the biggest and most popular sport events in Hong Kong. Not that the crowd in a completely sold out Hong Kong cares so much about the thing going on, on the pitch, this is more just about being there, be seen and act silly and drink a lot of beer. It is the "Hong Kong Rugby Sevens" and there is truly a fantastic atmosphere in Hong Kong and around the stadium in Causeway Bay and Wan Chai, in the three days this competition takes place, and because we are heading towards it again at the end of the month, here some impressions from 2009.





















I think Hong Kong stadium is turned into the worlds biggest pub for that event, and if anyone doesn't know what "Rugby Sevens" mean, I can tell you that it is rugby teams consisting of 7 players each, playing each other for 7 minutes each half, and then it is a tournament running over 3 days, with the most popular and interesting games happening on the Sunday with all the deciding games and the Final.
This year we will get another visitor at the time of the "Sevens". Mr. Stiffanelli -alias our best man - will finally come to visit from Toulouse, where he is living now. We are really looking forward to see him again as it has been over 3 years now, but I'm sure you will see more from this when he arrives.
The ice cold Vodka bar at "Ivan the Kozak". It was also in March 2009 that we discovered this little friendly and good Russian Restaurant somewhere in the mid levels in Central district, and coming in to this little cozy location from the severe Urban environment of Central, was -or is- like stepping on to a farmers house some where in the Russian country side, and what can be better than finishing a good meal with an ice cold quality Vodka from Russia.

Saturday music.

Bands starting with a "E" is at the moment at the top of my Itunes most played list. You've had some "Eels" songs here recently, today it is "Elbow" and their "Grounds for divorce" live on the Jonathan Ross show on the 22nd of February 2008.

And also a live acoustic version from somewhere in Manchester.

If someone should have any interest in seeing a fantastic live performance by Elbow in the legendary Abby Road Studios in London, then here is a chance. There is more great songs from this venue on youtube, and a link to where you can download some mp3's. Great isn't it?

Is there anything out there, else then humidity?

The weather. Everybody talks about it but can't change anything. After the cold weather a bit over a week ago, it is now again warm, but humid. Back then in the cold we didn't enjoy our view as it was too damn cold out there to even try. Now it is fine and we can go out direct from bed in a t-shirt and scratch the tommy and stretch in the morning, but still can't see anything out there. A thick gray haze has been covering the bay of Sai Kung for over a week, like the clouds just lie on the surface. Once we couldn't even see the road down there, just about 100 meters away.
In the house the dehumidifier is running 24 hours a day and every 4 to 5 hours we pour 20 liters of water out out in the sink, without that machine the 20 liters would have been in our books, clothes, CD's and furniture. After 3 years in one place it starts to be a circuit and you adapt to it. funny how we humans get used to things like this, as if it has always just been like that.
We can await a couple of weeks with fine clear warm weather in March before the rain starts pouring; the wet season with rain almost daily until the end of July, followed by -what i use to call the European summer- the amazing and fantastic dry season from mid August to about Christmas time.
The circuit is here: 10 months -or so- in shorts, t-shirt and flip flops, 1month in jackets and boots and one month in coats, fleeces, sweaters and hats.

Spoilers and Call Mr. Lee

We all know teasers and trailers don't we? That is those short film made for advertising new and coming films to get everybody interested in seeing them. Even posters can be sort of teasers if they create a kind of desire to se a certain film.
So can you tell what a spoiler is?
Here you have a couple of them, and sorry if I really put somebody of these two great films by doing this.

The music for this last Friday in February 2010 is by Television and Tom Verlaine, and maybe it is because I live in a city with loads of Mr. Lee's, that the name is quite normal for me. I love this song and have di=one so since I heard it the first time in the mid nineties. Especially I like the explosive guitar solo at the end, which develops into kind of disturbing white noise.

Enjoy or not!

The Hump-day tune!

Wednesday is also called hump day as it is the middle of the week and now there is only two days left to the weekend. People tend to react happier on Thursdays as on Mondays.
Some music also can make you react happy and positive and one of my favorite songs -from one time back in the early 90ties- gets here in this video yet another positive effect attach to it; the voice of the grand old man: Mr Tom Jones.
EMF featuring Tom Jones on "Unbelievable".



Yet another good mood song including Mr. Jones and the band "Art of noise"


Happy hump-day!

Natural born grillers!

3 men in complete Harmonie! A 7 nations barbecue. Australia, South Africa, Germany, Scotland, England, Indonesia & Denmark. If this wasn't an idea in which politicians could solve the global problem of keeping peace in the world; Invite different nationalities to a barbecue.
We were 7 nationalities to a barbecue in another little village and the only minor argument occurred because the people from the southern hemisphere (Australia & South Africa) wanted to burn every piece of meat until it went absolutely black. On the other hand they (from the south) left the salad for everybody else.English Trevor in yet another attempt to convince the Australian Mike, that the sausages is well done, even it isn't black!

Film Noir never dies, it just get's animated.

Nuit Blanche from Spy Films on Vimeo.

“Nuit Blanche ,” a short film directed by Spy Films‘ Arev Manoukian. Set in a film noir Paris, the film captures a surprisingly violent moment of connection between two strangers attracted to each other with such magnetism that neither panes of glass nor speeding vehicles can keep them apart.

But how is this film done? Take a look here.

Making Of Nuit Blanche from Spy Films on Vimeo.

Movies I haven't seen -yet!

Christmasday on the country side!

We meet Mr. Bun Leung short after our arrival in Kampot on Christmas evening's day. Quite soon after the first time in the city, it was obvious that there wasn't as much hassling as it had been in Phnom Pehn, where it was difficult to move much more than a few blocks before you had turn down the next offer of a cyclo, a Tuk Tuk or whatever the friendly people wanted to sell to us, they must have been very concerned that we did not know how to spend our money.
In Kampot we could in fact walk along the street without being offered anything, even the Tuk Tuk drivers were laying half a sleep in their tuk tuk's. It seemed thet they understood, that if one wanted transportation, you would go and ask for it yourself, and not just you were offered it on every single corner.
We had some lunch at the riverfront in Kampot at a cafe restaurant called "the Rusty Keyhole", and were then on the way to explore the city further.
Soon after leaving the restaurant a man came towards us from his little shop called "Key Man Tours". He asked how long time we'd been in Kampot and as our answer was; "a couple of hours" his face lit up and he began to ask what we wanted to see and where to go and that he was a travel agent and could arrange everything we wanted.We wanted to see some of the destinations in the country side, but having just arrived it was a bit hard to decide right here and now, so like so many times before when the "busines men" gets to persistant, I just say that we will just explore and then decide. In Cambodia it is not good to say "later" as they will then just come again to you if they see you again, and say that you promised to go on one of the tours "later". In Cambodia a promise is a promise.We got rid of the "Key Man tour" guy but not long time after a smiling man came across the road from a Tuk Tuk on the other side. Again the same pattern; how long we'd been in Kampot and what we wanted to see?
Also he had the same offers and destinations like the "key man" had presented just minutes ago.
We wanted to go to see these places for sure, just in our tempo. But there was something very nice about this man in front of us, so we had a closer look at his program.He would take us out early in the morning in his Tuk Tuk and take us to some salt fields outside the city, to a famous cave with a little temple inside, to a pepper plantation and finally to a little beach City called Kep about 2 kilometers away. And all this for 25 US Dollars.
I thought that I didn't hear it right and had to ask again.
"Yes Sir, that is right. Both of you one day in Tuk Tuk, 25 USD".
Why not/ We wanted to go anyway so we said fine.
"You promise?"
He looked at me with serious eyes, and I understood that if I said yes, then he will also keep his peart of the deal.When I said; "Yes I promise" I could see a big relief on his face and he smiled with the typical Cambodian big white smile from ear to ear, and we shaked hand.
"I pick you up out side guest house tomorrow morning".At 8 Am the next morning he was outside and we entered his Tuk Tuk and on it went on the day of adventure in the Cambodian country side. After 5 days in Phnom Penh, it was nice to see something else than a city and to see how people lived in the provinces, and that in a Tuk Tuk, probably one of the best transport forms for doing that, as is is open and slow so you can really see the area you cross through.Salt fields, over bumpy dust roads throug rual villages to the cave with the temple and over more remote and dusty roads through stunning landscapes to the pepper plantation -where we offcorse could buy quality black Kampot pepper from the farmers- and down to Kep at the sea and the Bay of Thailand, with is amazing -and quite empty- beaches. I bet that this place will develop into a big tourist destiation in the coming years, it is stunning beuatyful and could be a good alternative a holiday in Thailand, and it is still way cheaper to live and getting around in Cambodia.

Todays dose of Eels.

This band keep amazing me more and more since discovering them for real just after Christmas.
Today you have to listen to the same song twice. One time only performed by the singer and songwriter Mr. E, or Mark Oliver Everett, on his guitar and then once again together with the band live at a TV show.
Why? Because I believe that a real good song should work both as solo with one man (woman) and (kind of) an acoustic guitar as well as with the full orchestra.

In this version you will get a snap of another song as well; "My beloved monster and me", which cannot be that bad. Enjoy the Eels

Year of the Tiger, week one#1.

How was your week?
I guess it was never meant to be any different. If, then we would have done something against it, like booked some flights to wherever, just to do the same thing; laze around.
We just didn't bother the trouble finding any deals, so we let the holiday week be a nice rest in our own house. In fact there is still a lot more to do here, so why not stay and the real China, the mainland is only a 40 minutes train ride from here and holding multiply entry visas to that mainland, why not go up and in there, everything is possible. At the beginning on a week like that, you just think: "Wauw, one week off, and all the things you could do!"
Now the week has gone and the only thing left back in the mind is the question what we could have done.The most of our plans, intensions and ideas didn't happen at all as we fall in to one of those laziness attacks caused by exact the fact that you have so much time to do nothing. So this New Year Week was complete misused and lazyed away in the very best meaning called "chilling out" and "relaxsation".Catriona maneged to tidy up some of her drawers and get to read one or two books.
I managed to get halfway through one, to watch some anoying films on our tellie and to listen to some good music, while trying to get my self together and finally get some more stuff from Cambodia sorted, which I then didn't do becsause we decided to have some friends to dinner one evening. Then I spend one day and a half in various positions on the couch, reading 2 gigantic Culinaria cookery books -from Spain and Italy- trying to plan the menu and the shopping list for that event.
It is the Chinese New Year week so everyday there has been some kind of loud and noisy celebrations going on on the streets. We have seen Lions and Dragons dance in the streets to a bombic drumbeat and hammering on big bells.Suddenly you get caught in the middle of a twelve meter dancing golden Dragon, swinging from side to side up and down the streets. When they as suddenly as they came, again disapears you can be certain that you will see them again somewhere else during the day, even if that means seeing them resting somewhere in the sun.Another thing that have had a very big influence on the state of our activity, coiuld have been the for Hong Kong sake, very cold weather. I know that everybody in the old countries in europe will laugh loudly andmaybe think that we have developed to a couple of weakies, because we have had crazy 7 degrees, and that we were frozen out of our skin. Jusrt in a mattr of days the temperature dropped about 10 degrees. then all week cold and around 7 to 9 degrees, and then today back to about 13 and increasing the next days with an expected temperature at 25 in the midweek, just before it is going to be another weekend.

Live from a playlist!

Live isn't the real word in this case, but anyway it is some of the music I recently discovered; "The Eels".
This video reminds me in some ways of the content in some of the students videos made at the University of Århus when I was instruction the students back in the early 90ties, just a bit more professional in the outcome, this one is, but the plot and storyline is much similar.
The music is great and The Eels seems to have the same playful relationship with their music like Beck and White Stripes.

Goodbye to the OX!

And halloo to the Tiger. Finally work is over and it is time to go home on a well deserved Chinese New years Holiday.
I feel a bit sorry for all you guy's who have to work the next week, not only because you have to work, but also because how many has the possibility to have two new years celebrations in less than two months, and that without becoming much older than one month and 12 days.

Actually it isn't really the new year yet, I mean today, it is tomorrow and then on Sunday it is the first oficial tiger day. Then the city will be filled with loud noises from drums and fireworks, there will be parades and all kinds of interruptions in the dayly life.
We will stay put here in Hong Kong, part because to travel during this holiday in Asia is expencive and crowded, part because the city is nice quiet and empty as everyone is away and finally because one week is to little to do a journey to Europe or anywhere else where you have to fly more than ten hours, and being here that means nearly every destination outside Asia.