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Monday, October 29, 2007
Fishing for an Entry
This afternoon I started my regular COMM 0004 course. These students plus those in the weekend class mean I have about fourty new names to connect with faces. I already know the trouble makers!
Needless to say, I don't have very much ... What word was in today's module? Vigor. So as a follow up to yesterday's entry, I'll add the actual photo that was printed on page 16 in the magazine article about Hambantota, Sri Lanka. It was scanned from an old photo from the 1980's.
Needless to say, I don't have very much ... What word was in today's module? Vigor. So as a follow up to yesterday's entry, I'll add the actual photo that was printed on page 16 in the magazine article about Hambantota, Sri Lanka. It was scanned from an old photo from the 1980's.
Labels: world
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Scanning the Subcription
The second day of class went well. I like this group as they seem truly interested and motivated. That, in turn, motivates me. Motivation is important when doing fourteen hours of weekend classes.
I have to admit; it sure seems nice to kick back with my shoes off this evening. I was just looking through an actual paper magazine called travelsrilanka. In fact, I'm featured in this very issue. Well, not me exactly, rather a photograph of mine is featured. It was chosen by the staff as they found it on Flickr. On that site, I do have hundreds of pictures of Sri Lanka as we returned in 2004 and 2006 for month-long visits. Yet, I first went to the island in 1986. Interestingly the picture they chose was an old scan from a cheap camera well before the invention of digital ones.
Things do continue to develop in spite of the war that seemingly has no end in sight. In the glossy pages of the magazine was an advertisement for an whole, enormous apartment complex being built right in Colombo city. Such ambitious plans for the little island amaze me. Click on the image below to visit the web site.
I have to admit; it sure seems nice to kick back with my shoes off this evening. I was just looking through an actual paper magazine called travelsrilanka. In fact, I'm featured in this very issue. Well, not me exactly, rather a photograph of mine is featured. It was chosen by the staff as they found it on Flickr. On that site, I do have hundreds of pictures of Sri Lanka as we returned in 2004 and 2006 for month-long visits. Yet, I first went to the island in 1986. Interestingly the picture they chose was an old scan from a cheap camera well before the invention of digital ones.
Things do continue to develop in spite of the war that seemingly has no end in sight. In the glossy pages of the magazine was an advertisement for an whole, enormous apartment complex being built right in Colombo city. Such ambitious plans for the little island amaze me. Click on the image below to visit the web site.
Labels: Sri Lanka 2004, Sri Lanka 2006, world
Thursday, September 13, 2007
When Friends Met You at the Gate
This afternoon we're off again, this time to Central Europe. I can't think of a better entry than the addition of a cover of an in-flight magazine. After cleaning the closet, I have a box of old paperwork to throw away. I wanted to scan a thing or two before tossing some of it into the recycling. A bit of it has come quite a ways to be here and deserves a little respect before becoming garbage. Although I try to avoid my pack-rat tendencies, too many items stay with me much longer than necessary.
The scan below is a case in point. It shows the cover of the March/April 1991 cover of Serendib. That was the magazine back when Sri Lankan Airlines was called Air Lanka. It is a bit interesting to see how air travel has changed during the last sixteen and a half years.
First, the inside cover relays lots of important information after the Ayubowan. The page tells where the washrooms were in the Tristar aircraft. I also says how smoking was prohibited when the "No Smoking" sign was on. It warns that passengers weren't allowed to operate portable radios or television sets; however, thankfully, calculators and heart pacemakers were permissible. On the other end of the articles, Rocky V, Lethal Weapon II, and Gene Wilder in Funny about Love were among the inflight movies mentioned. (It depended on the whether inbound or outbound as everybody on the flight watched the same one which was projected onto hide-away screens.)
No wonder why I keep such things! After a while, there's fascination in anything.
The scan below is a case in point. It shows the cover of the March/April 1991 cover of Serendib. That was the magazine back when Sri Lankan Airlines was called Air Lanka. It is a bit interesting to see how air travel has changed during the last sixteen and a half years.
First, the inside cover relays lots of important information after the Ayubowan. The page tells where the washrooms were in the Tristar aircraft. I also says how smoking was prohibited when the "No Smoking" sign was on. It warns that passengers weren't allowed to operate portable radios or television sets; however, thankfully, calculators and heart pacemakers were permissible. On the other end of the articles, Rocky V, Lethal Weapon II, and Gene Wilder in Funny about Love were among the inflight movies mentioned. (It depended on the whether inbound or outbound as everybody on the flight watched the same one which was projected onto hide-away screens.)
No wonder why I keep such things! After a while, there's fascination in anything.
Saturday, September 08, 2007
An Old Fellow's Ivory
Being such a global warehouse of images makes Flickr a common resource for those working on projects. All uploads can be restricted in a number of ways, but I choose not to do that. I occasionally get requests for the use of particular pictures. The image of the elephant in this entry was taken during the 2004 trip to Sri Lanka. Just yesterday, I got this nice note asking permission for its use. Of course I am happy when something I've 'captured' is useful to others. Hello Dennis,
My name is Steve Lane. I am Keeper (Curator) of Natural History at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum in Coventry, UK. I am currently working on an exciting and innovative Permanent Exhibition called 'Elements'. The Gallery themed around the four elements. earth, air, fire and water, will run for around ten-fifteen years and it will be a
multi-sensory celebration of natural objects and landscapes. Creative interactive content will feature throughout and the exhibition will be particularly attractive to the main target audience - people with disabilities. Interactives will include experiencing bird songs through sound, vibration and associated visual moving images. Visitors will also be able to create their own sculpture and land art using sea-shore debris and create and record their own landscape music using a range of natural instruments. Fabulous sea shell and mineral collections will also be displayed in the space.
Entrance to the Gallery and to the Museum as a whole will be free. The Museum operates as part of Coventry City Council Local Authority. It is a non-profit making service.
I am currently sourcing images for the gallery. All photographers whose work is included will be acknowledged and credited within the Gallery space. They will also be invited to the opening of the Gallery.
I am particularly interested in the photograph displayed on the flickr website of the elephant 'Big Tusker'. I would like to make the connection between the tusks in the photo and tusk shells from the indo-pacific oceans. I am therefore enquiring if you would be happy for us to use this image in the Gallery space and if so, how you would like to be acknowledged.
I look forward to hearing from you,
Kind Regards,
Steve Lane (Keeper of Natural History) UK, 02476 785313
Labels: Flickr, flora and fauna, sharing, world
Thursday, September 06, 2007
Communicating
As well as thinking about our travel plans which start a week from today, we've been interested in following others' exploits. Jay has spent a great deal of phone time catching up on the travel of some family members. His sister, sister-in-law, and nieces visited Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore. It was their first time away from Sri Lanka and therefore exciting for them. Jay's brother is working in NYC. His wife and girls have very recently completed a new house near the family's present house. So all the gals went to meet up with a friend of Jay's brother who now lives and works in Malaysia. He travelled with them for much of the time. It is quite a journey between Bangkok and Singapore on buses. They enjoyed the time and chance to see how other people live.
Cell phones and land lines between NY, New Westminster, and those countries were buzzing following and reporting their progress. In contrast, when I first went to Sri Lanka, in the mid-1980's, phone lines hadn't even yet come to their neighbourhood. Things do change.
This picture was taken last year in Sri Lanka and shows Jay with a neighbour boy, his neices, sister-in-law, and younger sister.
On another note, related a bit to communication, I got this email from a student yesterday:
Cell phones and land lines between NY, New Westminster, and those countries were buzzing following and reporting their progress. In contrast, when I first went to Sri Lanka, in the mid-1980's, phone lines hadn't even yet come to their neighbourhood. Things do change.
This picture was taken last year in Sri Lanka and shows Jay with a neighbour boy, his neices, sister-in-law, and younger sister.
On another note, related a bit to communication, I got this email from a student yesterday:
This is Dalyn from one of your previous Comm 0004 courses. I just wanted to thank you for everything, I have been accepted into full time day school for Broadcasting/Televison. I am so exited that I am finally pursuing my dream. The skills I have learned in the two Comm courses have given me great confidence. Keep up the good work, Mr. Hurd!I immediately sent a reply which thanked him for taking the time. A little gesture, such as this, can make it all seem worthwhile!
Dalyn
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
To: World Vision Lanka
Jay and I sponsor a World Vision kid whom we were fortunate enough to visit during our last trip to Sri Lanka. That was exactly a year ago! He's ten years old now. We try to make sure to correspond regularly.
September 5, 2007
Dear Isuru,
We wanted to send another letter to you. Although we are in Canada today, it was exactly one year ago that we visited you. We think you have probably grown bigger in one year!
In a previous letter, we sent you a photo of our visit but cannot remember exactly which one. We’ll put another in with this letter and hope it’s not a duplicate. There are also two other pictures taken here in Canada.One shows Jayantha in a small park with the city of Vancouver in the background. You can see the edge of the water because it is a port city. Lots of big ships carry products to and from different Asian countries. The second picture shows Dennis behind a group of students he taught this summer. In order for these people to study courses well, they need some more practice studying the English language. Most of them have come to live in Canada from many different countries.
This year we will not be travelling to Sri Lanka. Instead, we are going to spend a few weeks visiting some central European countries. In fact, we fly into Germany in only one week. You can check on a world map or globe and find Austria and Hungary as those are some places we’ll visit too.In your last letter you said that you liked all your school subjects. We hope you still do. Is there one that you like the best? What time do you have to arrive and when do you get to leave? Also, how many other students are in your classes? Who are your best friends and what are their names? Maybe you can tell us some of these things in your next letter.
We hope your grandmother and all family members are healthy and fine. Please give all of them our greetings and respect. Be good.
Labels: world, World Vision
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Pamukkale, Turkey
We went to Turkey on several occasions. When living in Bahrain it was a close destination served by both Gulf Air and Turkish Airlines.
My video clip of a family making flat bread is on YouTube. It was taken from the back balcony of a little, family-owned guesthouse in the city of Pamukkale. That is not a place known for it bread-making. Rather, it is famous because of the limestone hot springs. Still being able to witness real people is as much of a reason for travel as the sites one visits, don't you think?
I held off mashing-up my first YouTube clip until earlier this spring, and I'm no less hesitant today. I like the idea of my eJournal and images being able to stand alone. I'm old enough to know that things come and go. Broken links to important material will be the scourge of future historians! Alas, most of the kids actually involved in Web 2.0 are probably young enough to still have that mistaken feeling of invincibility.
My video clip of a family making flat bread is on YouTube. It was taken from the back balcony of a little, family-owned guesthouse in the city of Pamukkale. That is not a place known for it bread-making. Rather, it is famous because of the limestone hot springs. Still being able to witness real people is as much of a reason for travel as the sites one visits, don't you think?
I held off mashing-up my first YouTube clip until earlier this spring, and I'm no less hesitant today. I like the idea of my eJournal and images being able to stand alone. I'm old enough to know that things come and go. Broken links to important material will be the scourge of future historians! Alas, most of the kids actually involved in Web 2.0 are probably young enough to still have that mistaken feeling of invincibility.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Frozen in Time
My online photo collection increases daily. Many are just simple snaps but others are historical. One reason they're there is because it's a very accessible backup method. Another reason for using Flickr involves the ability to share, not only for friends but with random folks as well.
I like seeing how many of the photos are viewed by visitors. For example, I uploaded about 50 old, scans from Kuwait in the early 80's. They've been quite popular with folks who live there now. The little kid above was also in that set. I was just walking about the neighbourhood and snapped this kid who was accompanied by some family members.
For some reason, I think the one above does deserve to be in the top 200 listing. To me, it looks a bit like something out of a National Geographic magazine.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
World Music
The first time I went to Sri Lanka, I didn't know a thing about its music. When there, I heard a particular type of song called, Baila. I wondered why it sounded a little bit Spanish to me. Now I'm wiser.Wikipedia has an entry briefly describing the emergence of Baila. Many people tend to erroneously believe that cultural exchange is a new phenomenon resulting from immigration. Actually, the whole sweep of civilization is pretty much defined by trade and the influence of human exchange. For example last night, I happened upon a TV program describing the discovery of an ancient crypt of a Roman girl who was buried wearing silk. That proved a rather suprisingly strong connection between the Roman Empire and the Far East.
Regardless, I wanted to let you hear this type of music but have had a little trouble picking one. I decided on a rather over developed recording of Ojayee by the Gypsies. You can also read about the group on Wikipedia.
I've included the song as today's topCast.
There are some references and even words from the aboriginal peoples of Sri Lanka as mentioned in yesterday's podcast and shown here in my eJournal and images in 2004.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Chasing the Big Five in Kenya
Adding labels to my eJournal and images has meant going through nearly four years of daily entries with a fine-toothed comb. I don't mind taking the time as I've got a copious amount in August.
What has bothered me is how unrepresentative this blog is in regards to actually painting a picture of my 48 years on earth. Actually, few would believe that by entering a mere paragraph or two, even 1400 times, one could sum up a life. It's true; however, I have now vowed to chat much less about the weather! (Today is starting off to be fantastic though.)
Also, I run into a problem by spending a near equal amount of time in Flickr. I do my Daily Picture Parade, add lots of what's going on currently, and took to scanning a while back. In my mind these two repositories of Dennis data are intertwined. I have mentioned Flickr a lot but a visitor cannot possibly know what's on the other site when reading here. Even a link doesn't seem as powerful as pasting the image right on this page.
So, as there was only a single entry regarding a trip to Kenya in February 1994, I put this one of Jay standing in the middle of souvenir sellers in Nairobi. I know that was a long time ago, but I need to add to my world label.
What has bothered me is how unrepresentative this blog is in regards to actually painting a picture of my 48 years on earth. Actually, few would believe that by entering a mere paragraph or two, even 1400 times, one could sum up a life. It's true; however, I have now vowed to chat much less about the weather! (Today is starting off to be fantastic though.)
Also, I run into a problem by spending a near equal amount of time in Flickr. I do my Daily Picture Parade, add lots of what's going on currently, and took to scanning a while back. In my mind these two repositories of Dennis data are intertwined. I have mentioned Flickr a lot but a visitor cannot possibly know what's on the other site when reading here. Even a link doesn't seem as powerful as pasting the image right on this page.
So, as there was only a single entry regarding a trip to Kenya in February 1994, I put this one of Jay standing in the middle of souvenir sellers in Nairobi. I know that was a long time ago, but I need to add to my world label.
Labels: blogging, Daily Picture Parade, Flickr, labels, souvenirs, world
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Meet Me in Salzburg
Earlier in the afternoon, I was positive I was going to leave a voice clip as a blog entry today. After all, my evening students do it as a part of class every evening that we meet. I was going to relate how wonderful it was to have a free Thursday.
Being between Intensive classes, I was completely free and it felt wonderful. I went uptown to the library and walked around London Drugs half dreaming about buying a new camera. I escaped without doing so and made it home happily.
Now that I know we're, for sure, going into Munich and Central Europe as a vacation in the autumn, I found and pulled out The Sound of Music from my vast DVD collection. It's funny how I remember most parts of it up to the intermission but the end seemed all new to me. How could I have understood all the historical implications when I was a babe and saw the film before? Even as a young adult I don't think I understood where Austria was. Now I'm assured that as long as we've got the time, we'll have to get to Salzburg, although it's all a tad Hollywood in the movie.
I've simply got to 'do re mi' down the same steps as seen in the film, even if I cannot carry a tune in a bucket. How nice of ancient Ms. Fisher to have told me to stand in the back of the choir and just mouth the words so I wouldn't bother the real singers. That was most probably in sixth grade but, oh, how far we carry the scars of youth!
(I still have a place near my ankle where hair doesn't grow because I tried to stamp out a 'combustion-able' mixture of gas and baking soda which we created for a junior high-school science fair volcano exhibit. Thank you Mitch Latva, my partner. Didn't we also do something on the effects of music on mice? I got stuck playing Hawaiian music to my sleeping white lab mouse whereas your rock'n roll critter kept biting through its wire cage?)
Being between Intensive classes, I was completely free and it felt wonderful. I went uptown to the library and walked around London Drugs half dreaming about buying a new camera. I escaped without doing so and made it home happily.
Now that I know we're, for sure, going into Munich and Central Europe as a vacation in the autumn, I found and pulled out The Sound of Music from my vast DVD collection. It's funny how I remember most parts of it up to the intermission but the end seemed all new to me. How could I have understood all the historical implications when I was a babe and saw the film before? Even as a young adult I don't think I understood where Austria was. Now I'm assured that as long as we've got the time, we'll have to get to Salzburg, although it's all a tad Hollywood in the movie.
I've simply got to 'do re mi' down the same steps as seen in the film, even if I cannot carry a tune in a bucket. How nice of ancient Ms. Fisher to have told me to stand in the back of the choir and just mouth the words so I wouldn't bother the real singers. That was most probably in sixth grade but, oh, how far we carry the scars of youth!
(I still have a place near my ankle where hair doesn't grow because I tried to stamp out a 'combustion-able' mixture of gas and baking soda which we created for a junior high-school science fair volcano exhibit. Thank you Mitch Latva, my partner. Didn't we also do something on the effects of music on mice? I got stuck playing Hawaiian music to my sleeping white lab mouse whereas your rock'n roll critter kept biting through its wire cage?)
Labels: camera, Eurotrip 2007, musical, travel planning, world
Sunday, April 29, 2007
1993: Static or Moving
Although this top photo is fourteen years old, it has existed in scanned form for a year and a half. It has been quietly sitting on Flickr. In the photo Jay is talking with a monk when we climbed Swayambhu.
We only spent a short, winter vacation in Nepal; however, this blog already boasts a fair number of references to the trip. We, of course, flew into Kathmandu. After spending some time there we took an express bus about 200 kilometers to the city Pokhara. After that, we visited the birthplace of the Buddha near Bhairahawa.
This media content comes right from the Kathmandu valley though. Initially, I was determined not to get carried away inserting YouTube clips here. Yet, as I've been converting old 8mm camcorder video, I keep wanting to reference some of the recently uploaded clips. This reminds me of the days I first became enamoured with Flickr's photo-sharing site. I'm a little late to the YouTube party, but at least they let me in!
I think a little background is needed for this photo and clip. It comes from www.multinepal.com, a site which mentions the whole valley is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
"Swayambhunath, one of the most important cultural and historical place of Kingdom of Nepal and listed as one of the World Heritage Sites from 1978, is located about 2 km. to the West of Kathmandu. The vehicular access is available up to the saddle between Swayambhu and Manjushri hills. Stone steps lead to Swayambhu and Manjushri hill tops. the Swayambhu hill top is known for massive Buddhist stupa, Haratimata temple and a number of other temples and monastries. The Manjushri hill contains well known Manjushri Gumba and the image of Saraswati goddess. A peripheral road exists at the base of the hill."
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Freeing Other Media
There can be a blush of excitement after scanning an old photo. One realizes that the actual paper artifact has been granted an entirely new digital life. It cannot fade further. Multiple copies can exist. It can even be easily passed around via email or a web page. I most recently added a blog entry along these lines a month ago.Similarly, after languishing on 8mm video tape in a drawer for sixteen years, I helped this video capture from Thailand make its escape. That country was a common vacation destination for colleagues in the Gulf. In fact, we went up to visit another teacher, Mr. Don Richardson. This particular clip was made in old Chaing Mai. We were on break when living in Bahrain. Later that summer, I finished my work there and took up teaching duties in Dubai.
This grainy, 2 1/2-minute clip does not accurately show the environment. It does, however, show personal events that until recently were difficult to access and impossible to share.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Video Evidence from the Taj
There are some places on earth that are considered a must for seasoned travellers. There simply have to be the obligatory photos taken while standing and smiling in front of some important sites. For example, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the harbour in Hong Kong, and the Acropolis in Greece probably make the list.After a quick blog search, I discovered I have only once mentioned staring at India's Taj Mahal, and even that reference in October of 2003 was a fair time ago. So, I just cut this one minute and twenty second clip to post here. The quality might not be stunning from a 1994 Sony camcorder, but it does show we were there.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
How Far Back is 6,000 Years?
I now find myself interested in the topic I mentioned yesterday. Studying the ebb and flow of civilizations does not really make much sense as a youngster. For one thing, the geography involved is pretty meaningless until one has done a lot of traveling. I suppose this means that regardless of age, homebodies may never be able to fathom the concepts even with an expensive globe at hand. Secondly, there is an enormous problem with the whole idea of time.
This quote was pulled from the 11/16/05 entry of this blog:
Jay and I visited Nalanda near Patna, India. It is considered one
of the world's first universities. That was only 1,000 to 1,500
years ago which is a far cry from the earliest writings from the
area. We were there in 1994.
I wish I could find a comparison chart showing major differences between the four cultures I've mentioned. The criteria could include various aspects of human endeavor. For example, mathematics would be one category. Did you know that we get our sixty minute hour and 360 degree circle from ancient Mesopotamians!
This quote was pulled from the 11/16/05 entry of this blog:
"Initially, children do not have any real concept of history. They cannot distinguish between yesterday and eons ago. Everything that isn't right now becomes compartmentalized as past. At this stage, last evening's dinner occupies the same cognitive niche as last summer's time at the beach.Rather recently I'm interested in studying the four ancient river civilizations that invented forms of writing. As well as the two societies mentioned yesterday, there were the Indus Valley in the Indian Subcontinent and Yellow River valley in China.
Later, as kids learn about things that may have happened before their own birth, there's not much separation between those things that happened last year and those which occurred during the last millennium. Supposedly, we get a handle on these time things as adults."
Jay and I visited Nalanda near Patna, India. It is considered one
of the world's first universities. That was only 1,000 to 1,500
years ago which is a far cry from the earliest writings from the
area. We were there in 1994.
I wish I could find a comparison chart showing major differences between the four cultures I've mentioned. The criteria could include various aspects of human endeavor. For example, mathematics would be one category. Did you know that we get our sixty minute hour and 360 degree circle from ancient Mesopotamians!
Sunday, October 29, 2006
New and Improved
I first got the idea of moving my resume off a single piece of paper and onto a web server years ago. At that time, I knew more about ANSI formatting than HTML. It simply seemed that one day everybody would have online access.One week ago, I stated how we seldom really have a chance to start many things from scratch. Generally, our time is spent modifying and hopefully improving. This theory holds especially true with technological advances. Even bold new products live within a framework of past decisions.
As additional proof, I really needed to update the travel section of main website. The only reason this section exists is due to the fact my current pages were first created when the Internet was young. Prior to sophisticated searches, people would collect favourite URL addresses. I wanted to showcase the official tourism sites which were just coming online in the 1995.
I've found that it's just as easy to ignore the need to modify electronic files as paper ones. Somehow, I had to add this month's stay in Hong Kong to this listing of my international travel but simply continuing the alphabetical organization seemed unwieldy. So, I have tried to group by region. Does Turkey belong under Europe or the Middle East?
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Final Day's Hike
We had a perfect end to our stay in Hong Kong today. We ventured away from the city. As it was Saturday, we took a ferry to Lamma Island. It's the third largest island of Hong Kong and took just a half hour from the city.There were basically just two towns. Our ferry went to Yung Shue Wan. It was a small town and picturesque. We then proceeded on hiking trails to Sok Kwu Wan. The trails were actually concrete walkways several metres wide. We passed by beaches and up small mountains.
After an hour and a half we ended in Sok Kwu Wan. Rather than the regular bars and restaurants of the previous town, it had mostly waterfront, open-air seafood restaurants. We had nice plates including fresh shrimp and clams for about $US 30. It was very relaxing. We took a ferry from this side back to town.
We spent our last evening in HK at the Galaxy at Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. What a lot of people!
Friday, October 06, 2006
Meeting Former Colleagues
We spent the morning out and about. We spent most of it on the Hong Kong Island side and I snapped a few photos. We took the tram to Kennedy Town and back. It only costs $HK 2. It's slow but affords a nice view of the street scene.
We got back early to the hotel room so as to have an hour-long nap. We had set up our second appointment to meet with the Ryans. During the second night in the city we followed the directions to their apartment. We had a dinner with the family.
The idea tonight was to let us take them out to dinner. We'd chosen Friday as we wanted to spend time with them and the kids too. They chose to take us to their 'boat club'.
We got to the club as it was getting dark. It was superb sitting at the water's front where we could see the famous floating Jumbo Restaurant. It felt so very expat. The kids swam and played foozball. I had a few beers. There was a great selection of food and I had an Indian Madras chicken curry. Jay ate Indonesian Nasi Goreng. Yet here's proof that Anna had noodles!
We got back early to the hotel room so as to have an hour-long nap. We had set up our second appointment to meet with the Ryans. During the second night in the city we followed the directions to their apartment. We had a dinner with the family.
The idea tonight was to let us take them out to dinner. We'd chosen Friday as we wanted to spend time with them and the kids too. They chose to take us to their 'boat club'.
We got to the club as it was getting dark. It was superb sitting at the water's front where we could see the famous floating Jumbo Restaurant. It felt so very expat. The kids swam and played foozball. I had a few beers. There was a great selection of food and I had an Indian Madras chicken curry. Jay ate Indonesian Nasi Goreng. Yet here's proof that Anna had noodles!
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Not Taking a Gamble
The trip was well worth the cost. High-speed hydrofoils ply the 65-kilometer distance. From terminal to terminal it took just an hour.
We successfully dodged the tour guides after getting through the immigration procedures. We simply walked from the terminal towards the higher buildings of downtown. Oh, and we had picked up a map.
Although, we missed the picture taking potential of the ruins of Saint Augustine's Church, we enjoyed the four or five hour stay. We didn't see much of the Portuguese influence in the lunch we ate, but that wasn't a must either. The city was slower paced than Kowloon.
There is massive construction going on. I guess the mainland has embraced the concept of casinos for this special administrative area. The Wynn group has bet heavily on the boom there. I'm not gambler though. Neither of us put any shiny coin in a slot machine today.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Riding High
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Peak-a-Boo
Went by MTR to the Star Ferry Terminal. Crossed. Walked up to the Peak Tram. Went up. Eventually, came down by tram too. Took 15C back to Star Ferry. Walked along Queen’s Street to the Evelvator. Elevated all the way to the top and walked all the way down. Got on a Causeway Tram to Times Square. MTR’d back Admirality and them Mong Kok. Walked around and ate lunch. Got back to hotel at after 4:00. Washed. Napped. Flickred.
At a bit after 7:00 we again headed to the bay for the laser show. After we looked around and by 9:30 bought some things to eat at a bakery and ate them in the hotel room.
Monday, October 02, 2006
Out & About
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Writing Near Nathan Road
We're in HK. Our airplane got in at five past noon. It was a breeze getting to the Booth Lodge. Just as the email reservations said, we took the A21 bus practically to the doorstep.We walked about quite a bit. We headed down Nathan Road towards the harbour. I've never been asked if I wanted customized tailoring as often as I was today. Strangely although the tailors are still Chinese, the guys asking (who own the shops) all seem to be Indian.
It's more humid here than in Sri Lanka. We were told to leave the a/c running in the room all the time.
More later ....
Friday, July 14, 2006
Snazzy Quilted Shorts
My Flickr photos have been viewed over 15,000 times. At first it sounds like a lot but really isn't. After all, as of this morning there are 2,090 of them online. Remember, one is added every day so that's added a sizable portion. There are many more from recent trips. As well, more than 10% of the collection are simply old scanned snapshots.
I am a collector and sorter by heart. Last month I added a fairly large collection of photos taken in 1982 Kuwait. Yet, when I searched my tags for Indonesia I came up with only seven photos and two wall-batik images. We were there for a whole summer so, I figured I might scan another for the online collection. I chose this one:
I am a collector and sorter by heart. Last month I added a fairly large collection of photos taken in 1982 Kuwait. Yet, when I searched my tags for Indonesia I came up with only seven photos and two wall-batik images. We were there for a whole summer so, I figured I might scan another for the online collection. I chose this one:
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
From Where I'm Sitting ...
I've always been good at knowing directions. I mean from any location I frequent, I have an innate skill at knowing the compass directions. Consequently, I can point to the direction of another known point. I'm sitting at my living room computer right now. So, the Burnaby Campus of BCIT, for example, is about eight miles beyond my bathroom. New York City is about 5,000 kilometers directly behind my left shoulder.
So maybe the following thought is more applicable to me than for others. I cannot help but believe that truth with a capital T is elusive. For example, my perception of downtown Vancouver is based on my geographic location. I tend to think of the city in terms of my approach from the east. I also most always take the SkyTrain, so I also tend to define the city from those stations. My Vancouver, as it exists in my thoughts, is probably entirely different than those who reside on the North Shore. We're contemplating the same physical reality. Yet, we can only filter reality through our experiences.
In the same vein, I am amazed how persistent our perspectives can be. For example, we've been scouring airline fares for an overseas vacation in September. It has dawned on me that my view of the world is still based on my childhood perceptions. I grew up in the north-east of this continent. To me Asia is still on the other side of Europe. Actually, Asia it directly behind this monitor ... just on the other side of the Pacific!
So maybe the following thought is more applicable to me than for others. I cannot help but believe that truth with a capital T is elusive. For example, my perception of downtown Vancouver is based on my geographic location. I tend to think of the city in terms of my approach from the east. I also most always take the SkyTrain, so I also tend to define the city from those stations. My Vancouver, as it exists in my thoughts, is probably entirely different than those who reside on the North Shore. We're contemplating the same physical reality. Yet, we can only filter reality through our experiences.
In the same vein, I am amazed how persistent our perspectives can be. For example, we've been scouring airline fares for an overseas vacation in September. It has dawned on me that my view of the world is still based on my childhood perceptions. I grew up in the north-east of this continent. To me Asia is still on the other side of Europe. Actually, Asia it directly behind this monitor ... just on the other side of the Pacific!
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Being Creative or a Historian?
As a follow up to yesterday's entry, I rolled another three tapes through an old 8mm analog camcorder and onto my hard disk via a capture card. I selected a trio of tapes from 1991. It was a spring vacation from Bahrain. We first flew into Sri Lanka and spent a few days with the family; subsequently, we went on to Thailand. We, of course, landed in Bangkok. Next, we made our way up to Changmai. We met colleague Don Richardson there. We also made it south to see both Pattaya and Phuket.It was interesting pulling up these images on my computer and television screens. Although a far cry from HDTV, they are more than sufficient to bring back forgotten memories. Movement and sound add a lot. Why doesn't my present digital camcorder ever leave the drawer, I wonder? I couldn't help but notice how much thinner I was fifteen years ago. Jay's the same size, he just had a lot of hair then. Small conversations were interesting. For example, I mentioned to a tourist that we were beginning to notice the black clouds from the Kuwaiti oil fires, down on our little island of residence. Those were the days of Gulf War I.
Getting this information burnt to DVDs is a long and boring process. It becomes so much more accessible when it is the new format though. I didn't even want to cut out the long sequences we shot when we were new to shooting video. With the remote that comes with the DVD player, it is very easy to rush through boring patches at 16X or greater.
The creative side of me thought about using editing software to remove mistakes and add music and transitions. Yet the archivist in me contends that capturing exactly what was on the tapes is a purer rendition of history.
Monday, January 16, 2006
Thinking Inside the Box
A bit to my right, there's a whole shelf of souvenirs that we've collected during world travels. I thought it'd be clever to begin to document them here. We've known friends who've lost items to fire or theft. Even if something were to damage these items, we'd be able to see the photo and remember the situation by which they came to be with us.
This 9 x 6 1/2 x 3 mm box is made from marble. The stone inside of the box has been hollowed out by hand. The inlay design of this particular box is rather simple but was made using the same techniques as during the construction of the Taj Mahal. This item successfully made a number of moves but one corner of the cover was damaged during shipping to Canada.
We picked this up on an independent, summer tour of India during 1994. We chose fairly small souvenirs because we always travel lightly.
This 9 x 6 1/2 x 3 mm box is made from marble. The stone inside of the box has been hollowed out by hand. The inlay design of this particular box is rather simple but was made using the same techniques as during the construction of the Taj Mahal. This item successfully made a number of moves but one corner of the cover was damaged during shipping to Canada.
We picked this up on an independent, summer tour of India during 1994. We chose fairly small souvenirs because we always travel lightly.
Saturday, November 05, 2005
It's Like a Contest
MOST 'FAVORITED' - Members on Flickr can mark photos they've come across as favorites. This give easy access to them again which could be tricky considering there are millions of photos online. Each member can also see which of their shots has been most 'favorited' by others. These, of course, change over time. My picture of an Amsterdam canal has gathered the most votes on my list so far. (Click this photo to see it on Flickr.)
MOST VIEWED - Strangely, the list above doesn't seem to correlate to pictures most viewed by others. At present, my photos have been viewed over 2,500 times because I've got over 1000 pictures online. The images aren't equally viewed though. The hamster crowd has ensured that this one ranks as most viewed right now. This is probably because I dropped it into a Flickr group for hamster lovers. Groups can increase the number of views an image receives. (Just as above, you may see how this creature looks on the Flickr site by clicking the small image.)
Thursday, November 03, 2005
The Apple Tea Craze
At some point, I know I'll get off this current Flickr kick. I can run through hobbies quickly. For example, I once went on and on for days about GPSing when I first got one of the little gadgets. I don't think I've switched mine on for months now!
Still, I find the combination of a scanner and Flickr very seductive. I realize that I'm building a database of personal pictures. The order of uploading doesn't matter because the beauty is all in the tags. I'll fly off into a tangent about how tags differ from a hierarchical system in some future blog.
In the evening yesterday, I reached into the photo suitcase for just three photos. I figure if I can manage a few per day, then over time, it will all add up. That is the type of thing that financial experts try to impress upon us. You know, if you didn't buy that Starbuck's Mocha Double Double and banked the money, over the course of fifteen years you would have saved enough for your child's Harvard education. Or something like that.
When I was working in Bahrain, I once travelled to the U.S. on Turkish Air. Jay travelled with me as far as Turkey. When I changed planes he stayed there and discovered Istanbul for the first time. When flying back, I stopped too. We spent a week in Istanbul and Ankara before going back to the tiny island in the Gulf.
I love old photos. This picture is of two guys who ran the guest house we stayed at near the St. Sophia. We were drinking apple-flavoured tea. Jay will remember who they were as he remembers everything! I'll have to ask him what their names were.
Still, I find the combination of a scanner and Flickr very seductive. I realize that I'm building a database of personal pictures. The order of uploading doesn't matter because the beauty is all in the tags. I'll fly off into a tangent about how tags differ from a hierarchical system in some future blog.
In the evening yesterday, I reached into the photo suitcase for just three photos. I figure if I can manage a few per day, then over time, it will all add up. That is the type of thing that financial experts try to impress upon us. You know, if you didn't buy that Starbuck's Mocha Double Double and banked the money, over the course of fifteen years you would have saved enough for your child's Harvard education. Or something like that.
When I was working in Bahrain, I once travelled to the U.S. on Turkish Air. Jay travelled with me as far as Turkey. When I changed planes he stayed there and discovered Istanbul for the first time. When flying back, I stopped too. We spent a week in Istanbul and Ankara before going back to the tiny island in the Gulf.
I love old photos. This picture is of two guys who ran the guest house we stayed at near the St. Sophia. We were drinking apple-flavoured tea. Jay will remember who they were as he remembers everything! I'll have to ask him what their names were.
Saturday, October 22, 2005
About a Year Late
I recently put a 135-picture set from September's Eurotrip on the Flickr website. It is really a wonderful way to share photos. In fact, I decided to go back a bit. Yesterday, I also completed putting up selected pictures from our Sri Lankan trip in 2004. It ended at nearly this exact time a year ago.
Click this picture of a Buddhist temple which is near Jay's house in Minuwangoda. You will directly taken to 300 photos on Flickr. (If you are designated as 'friend' on my account, then you'll be able to see an additional 20 photos that include more of Jay's family members and relatives.)
Click this picture of a Buddhist temple which is near Jay's house in Minuwangoda. You will directly taken to 300 photos on Flickr. (If you are designated as 'friend' on my account, then you'll be able to see an additional 20 photos that include more of Jay's family members and relatives.)
Saturday, August 27, 2005
What Can I Show You? Katmandu?
It's Saturday already. I've spent the entire week on a single topic. From tomorrow, I'll move away from talk on imaging. I've been spending a bit too much trying to fill up flickr. After all this work, I'm still only at 4% of my upload limit. I guess I'm going to call a truce.
I do like having a repertoire of pictures online. Imagine, from any location, I can call up a photo of my grandmother. I am now able to show people a panorama view from our balcony. I can even let people see a morning view of Katmandu in 1993.
I do like having a repertoire of pictures online. Imagine, from any location, I can call up a photo of my grandmother. I am now able to show people a panorama view from our balcony. I can even let people see a morning view of Katmandu in 1993.
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
The Contemporary Channel
There's probably not a place on the planet you've visited which isn't included in someone's personal photos on Webshots. Click on community and enter a search term. (Are there really only 263,663 current photos of Las Vegas?)
Likewise, there's music in few languages
which is not presently available in a webcast.
Likewise, there's music in few languages
which is not presently available in a webcast.
Labels: Flickr, Mediaplayer, world
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Surrealistic
I don't know why this winter in BC's Lower Mainland is so different. Some of the snow that fell on January 6th is still on the ground and the temperature's been hovering around the freezing mark for DAYS!
Yesterday, the sky was blue and the sun was reflecting on the white stuff. I neglected to bring my camera to class and missed some great potential photos on the way home. Therefore, for this entry, I thought it was time to raid my picture suitcase for something to scan. Staying on topic, I found this snap taken at Goreme National Park in Turkey.
We went to Turkey on three separate vacations as it was a quick trip from the Middle East and cheap too. I believe this picture was taken during travels in January 1995.
Yesterday, the sky was blue and the sun was reflecting on the white stuff. I neglected to bring my camera to class and missed some great potential photos on the way home. Therefore, for this entry, I thought it was time to raid my picture suitcase for something to scan. Staying on topic, I found this snap taken at Goreme National Park in Turkey.
We went to Turkey on three separate vacations as it was a quick trip from the Middle East and cheap too. I believe this picture was taken during travels in January 1995.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Gone
The scene below, which I photographed on October 10th, no longer exists. Sri Lanka's Arugam Bay was smashed by the massive, Asian tidal-wave that occurred on Christmas day (local time). As the news stories are released, the reported number of victims increases. We don't fear for Jay's relatives, but are unable to make a successful phone connection to the island.
The story seems more tragic to us as we'd also taken vacations in some of the other affected areas too. We've vacationed in the Maldives and visited Madras, India during a summer tour of that country. We also spent one summer travelling around Indonesia. On another occasion, we stayed in Phuket, Thailand. It seems to be taking a long time to collect information on the damage across south Asia.
The story seems more tragic to us as we'd also taken vacations in some of the other affected areas too. We've vacationed in the Maldives and visited Madras, India during a summer tour of that country. We also spent one summer travelling around Indonesia. On another occasion, we stayed in Phuket, Thailand. It seems to be taking a long time to collect information on the damage across south Asia.
Friday, October 29, 2004
Singapore: Day 4
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Singapore: Day 3
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
Singapore: Day 2
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
Singapore: Day 1
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Singapore Sling(shot)
Although we left YVR (Vancouver) at the scheduled time last Monday, the distance and dateline means that this is the first entry. We had no Tuesday. Last night (local time) we arrived in Singapore. The airline efficiently and effectively shuttled us to a free room for the night. At around 9:00 am we were up and walked around Arab Street first as The Golden Landmark is right there. We also walked over to Little India and had a lunch in a Sri Lankan restaurant. We had to get to shuttle back to the airport at approximately 7:00 pm to get on our flight. This was a very nice way of ensuring we'll not arrive in Colombo totally exhausted. The flight will get in after midnight but at least it's only 3.5 hours from here!
Friday, August 20, 2004
What's the Number for Jenny Craig?
I got out old video tapes in order to convert them to digital format. Next month, I want to bring along video taken in Sri Lanka in 1991. Jay's family will enjoy seeing how we all used to look. It is rather interesting to see motion and sound personally captured years ago. I swear that first camcorder must've weighed in at about 8 lbs. And speaking of weight ...
In order to blog something from that era, I scanned this photo
to include. Yikes ... that shirt wouldn't make it half way around
me now! Perhaps I've been a bit in error in my aversion to all
things Aktins!
In order to blog something from that era, I scanned this photo
to include. Yikes ... that shirt wouldn't make it half way around
me now! Perhaps I've been a bit in error in my aversion to all
things Aktins!
Labels: weight loss, world
Sunday, July 11, 2004
Tropical Islands
The other day at work, Christine, our administrative assistant, asked whether I'd be contracting a course in the fall. I mentioned that I was planning to go to Sri Lanka and that if fact we already had our tickets. She seemed really interested about the Maldives. The islands are relative close to Sri Lanka and, as mentioned last Wednesday, we travelled there in April of 1988.
The country is made up of 26 atolls with nearly 1200 islands! (Fewer than 200 of them are inhabited though.) As the airport is even a separate island, one needs a water taxi just to get to the capital city. We spent time on both Helengeli and the capital city of Male'.
The country is made up of 26 atolls with nearly 1200 islands! (Fewer than 200 of them are inhabited though.) As the airport is even a separate island, one needs a water taxi just to get to the capital city. We spent time on both Helengeli and the capital city of Male'.
Labels: world
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
Super Carrier Pigeon
Visitors to Sri Lanka can get an automatic, 30-day visa upon arrival at the Colombo airport. We're planning to tour there in September and October, so we applied for two-month visas in Canada. We figured that would be easier as it would prevent us from having to renew in Colombo during the middle of our trip.
I sent off our applications, passports, photos, and ticket copies last Friday. It was regular Express Post and arrived in Ottawa on Monday morning! The Sri Lankan High Commission issued them very quickly and the postman knocked and delivered them at the door yesterday morning. Now that's service!
I first visited Sri Lanka in 1986 when we rented a car for two weeks and
I quickly learned to drive on 'wrong' side of the road. After finishing
a job in Saudi, I stayed there during August and September of 1987.
Then in 1988, we travelled in Lanka and the Maldives. Finally in 1991,
I spent a few days there on the way to Thailand. It's been a long time
since my last visit. Surely, things have changed a lot; I have.
I sent off our applications, passports, photos, and ticket copies last Friday. It was regular Express Post and arrived in Ottawa on Monday morning! The Sri Lankan High Commission issued them very quickly and the postman knocked and delivered them at the door yesterday morning. Now that's service!
I first visited Sri Lanka in 1986 when we rented a car for two weeks and
I quickly learned to drive on 'wrong' side of the road. After finishing
a job in Saudi, I stayed there during August and September of 1987.
Then in 1988, we travelled in Lanka and the Maldives. Finally in 1991,
I spent a few days there on the way to Thailand. It's been a long time
since my last visit. Surely, things have changed a lot; I have.
Labels: passport, Sri Lanka 2004, travel planning, world
Thursday, April 29, 2004
Wadi Rum
I feel a bit lazy today, so I thought I'd just look for a photo to include with a short explanation. On my hard disk, I found this scanned image of an actual policeman.
This picture was taken on a trip that I once mentioned in this blog. During a journey from Kuwait to Syria and Jordan by SUV, four of us drove into the desert here. This was taken at an entrance to Wadi Rum in southern Jordan. This is one of the filming locations for the movie, Lawrence of Arabia.
At the time of this photo, the epic movie would have been 21 years old, but now we'll have to add another 21 years to that!
This picture was taken on a trip that I once mentioned in this blog. During a journey from Kuwait to Syria and Jordan by SUV, four of us drove into the desert here. This was taken at an entrance to Wadi Rum in southern Jordan. This is one of the filming locations for the movie, Lawrence of Arabia.
At the time of this photo, the epic movie would have been 21 years old, but now we'll have to add another 21 years to that!
Friday, March 26, 2004
Borobodur
On Wednesday, I was talking about the discomfort in lugging around a heavy camcorder. However, I don't look too upset in this picture taken in Java, Indonesia. We spent a summer travelling from Jakarta down to Bali and back. The Borobodur Temple is an amazing ancient Buddhist site.
Friday, February 20, 2004
They Know How to Relax
I wasn't intending to scan an image for today's entry; however, I accidently opened a word processing document in one folder. The file is called myhistory.doc. It consists of pages I've added over many years and it simply highlights an event for each month since my graduation from college. Some sections are not complete but I did notice that I'd written something for February 1994.
Ten years! Hey, it was a long time ago that we visited Kenya but I can easily recall the few weeks spent there. We stayed in Nairobi, in a safari camp, and at a seaside resort in Mombasa.
From the confines of a tourist van, we chased around these guys and Africa's
'Big 5' animals of the Savannah.
Ten years! Hey, it was a long time ago that we visited Kenya but I can easily recall the few weeks spent there. We stayed in Nairobi, in a safari camp, and at a seaside resort in Mombasa.
From the confines of a tourist van, we chased around these guys and Africa's
'Big 5' animals of the Savannah.
Monday, January 19, 2004
More Nepal: Lumbini
It seems quite easy just to slip in another scanned image as long as we're on a roll. Last Friday's picture was taken in Pashupatinath. It is primarily a destination for Hindu pilgrims.
However, the picture below shows Jay when we were in Lumbini in south, central Nepal. This is a holy place for Buddhists as it was the Buddha was born.
However, the picture below shows Jay when we were in Lumbini in south, central Nepal. This is a holy place for Buddhists as it was the Buddha was born.