My snow princess is back on the boat and everything is back to normal.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
The Great Comedy Gig in the Sky
Flying Start is a global charity partnership between British Airways and Comic Relief. Their motto is “Changing Lives: One Child At a Time” and the charity aims to transform the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable children in the UK and around the world. The partnership combines Comic Relief UK’s unique understanding and expertise in tackling the causes of world poverty with British Airways’ longstanding commitment to community investment in the countries in which it operates. To learn more about the work that Comic Relief does in countries such as Uganda, India, South Africa and El Salvador, you can visit the How We Help page on the Comic Relief website.
As you probably know, Red Nose Day is on the 18th March this year and grand plans are underway to kick off the activities that week. On Saturday 12th March, British Airways and Comic Relief will be giving a Flying Start to children all around the world with laughs at 35,000 feet. Together with comedians Dara O'Briain, Jack Whitehall and Jon Richardson, Flying Start is going to attempt to set the Guinness World Record for the 'Highest Stand-Up Comedy Gig in the World'. Long time followers of this blog will know that we love stand-up comedy and have seen some quality gigs since moving to London. Still, I don’t think anything could beat a gig at 35,000 feet above sea level, especially as it is for such a fantastic cause and with such talented comedians, no less!
The good news is that you could win one of 75 pairs of tickets to fly over the UK and enjoy two-and-a-half hours of stand-up comedy for charity. Champagne and refreshments will be served and it looks to be an incredible evening. To be in with a chance to win this prize, simply text 'Fly1' to 70300 or visit the British Airways Facebook page to enter the competition. Full terms and conditions are available from the Facebook page. (Texts carry a £3 donation).
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Teatro Verdi. Stagione di prosa 2010-2011 fino all'8 maggio a Padova. Prossimo spettacolo "Se i no xe mati no li volemo" dal 22 al 27 febbraio
Sarà inaugurata il 2 novembre la nuova Stagione di prosa al Teatro Verdi, sotto la direzione artistica di Alessandro Gasmann. Ad aprire la stagione di entrambi i teatri (Verdi di Padova e Goldoni di Venezia) sarà Immanuel Kant di Thomas Bernhard, diretto dallo stesso Gasmann, con un cast di splendidi attori, fra i quali Manrico Gammarota e Mauro Marino. Le finalità di questa nuova stagione sono quelle di favorire spettacoli di grande qualità, di forte impatto emotivo e valorizzati dalla presenza di grandi interpreti. Attenzione alla cultura del territorio, al teatro d'innovazione e ai giovani sia spettatori che talenti, completano la carta d'identità di un cartellone di grande spessore artistico e culturale.Leggi tutto...
A walk up Monkey Hill
On late Sunday afternoon after a hot day, and a couple of hours working in the garden, I decided that my original plan to drive to Cape Phromthep and hike down the path to the very end of Phuket was not going to happen due to an onset of laziness. Still can't believe I have never done that after 11 years here! So we took a vague drive into Phuket Town with the idea of a little walk somewhere and maybe an early dinner at Dairy Hut (a restaurant near the Bangkok-Phuket International Hospital which normally has live music at the weekend).
We actually thought of heading for a drive around Sirey Island, but it was getting late, and Sirey is on the far east side of town... we instead headed to the north side of town and the hill which most people call Monkey Hill, although it's really called Khao To Sae. We'd not been here for a while.. could have been a couple of years actually. There is a narrow road right to the top where you find many TV aerials. The monkeys are also nearer the top, where we have been before - this photo taken in 2007:
This time we drove as far as the shrine - a very interesting little place which I'd like to know more about. The shrine is called Chao Por To Sae.. I need to ask my wife to research a little with some Thai Google searches. The shrine features tigers and monkeys. It's built into the hillside surrounded by tropical foliage.
Tigers roam outside guarding the shrine. Inside at the very back of the wall are 3 figures which are called To Sae Kao, To Sae Daeng and To Sae Dam. (Kao = White; Daeng = Red; Dam = Black). Although it appears to be a Buddhist or Chinese shrine, the figures all have the Islamic crescent and star on the wall behind them. Interesting place. A girl came to say prayers while we were there.
Meanwhile my son was more interested in posing with the many tiger images outside the shrine. The whole shrine is full of tigers, this one being the scariest:
We had no plan to walk to the very top of the hill, that would be foolhardy! We just walked up until we found a view. A little exercise before dinner. Many local people come here to walk, ride bikes or run. The road is quite steep, so even a gentle walk is enough to burn a few calories. These guys were being more energetic, and with all their huffing and puffing still managed a smile :)
Some way below the "monkey line" we stopped where a gap in the trees allowed views to the east and south. A good place to stop and pose for photos. A number of other people had the same idea. One man was taking photos of his dog. One tree covered hillside looked almost autumnal...
And the same photo with some messing around on Photoshop:
Good for the kids to get some exercise too. Kids these days are easily distracted by their Nintendo games or watching movies or (God forbid!) reading books... we try to keep our kids active physically and mentally. Not too much.. keep it enjoyable. Now follows one of my favourite photos ever. Our kids. You want to know about my life in Phuket - this is it.
And another favourite. Earlier the same day, my daughter and I had been having a longdiscussion argument about the value of reading books. Not cartoon books, but real books with words. I think that this day was important in my daughter's life. In the last few days since this walk she has read Alice in Wonderland which starts rather wonderfully with Alice stating that she does not like books without pictures. I called my daughter "Alice" for a couple of days. Anyway, here she is with her mum, enjoying each others company, walking back down Monkey Hill.
I remember when we last came, a restaurant was being built just below the shrine, not so far up the hill but still quite a good viewpoint. The restaurant is now open, it's called "Green Forest" and we will go back sometime - just stopped for a drink this time. The menu was full of local food - a lot of salads and seafood. Looks good.
The view above looking to the southeast across Phuket Town from the restaurant. You can see the Royal Phuket City Hotel and the Thavorn Grand Plaza Hotel and behind that is Khao Khad hill and view point. Although I live here, sometimes the time is limited for exploring (yeh, I have a job working 6 days a week). Nice to revisit a place and find that there might be a good meal waiting in the future! We do try to get out and explore on days off but some days we have work to do around the house, feel lazy and just head somewhere local. Phuket has enough little places of interest that we can keep going back and there's always something new to see.
We actually thought of heading for a drive around Sirey Island, but it was getting late, and Sirey is on the far east side of town... we instead headed to the north side of town and the hill which most people call Monkey Hill, although it's really called Khao To Sae. We'd not been here for a while.. could have been a couple of years actually. There is a narrow road right to the top where you find many TV aerials. The monkeys are also nearer the top, where we have been before - this photo taken in 2007:
This time we drove as far as the shrine - a very interesting little place which I'd like to know more about. The shrine is called Chao Por To Sae.. I need to ask my wife to research a little with some Thai Google searches. The shrine features tigers and monkeys. It's built into the hillside surrounded by tropical foliage.
Tigers roam outside guarding the shrine. Inside at the very back of the wall are 3 figures which are called To Sae Kao, To Sae Daeng and To Sae Dam. (Kao = White; Daeng = Red; Dam = Black). Although it appears to be a Buddhist or Chinese shrine, the figures all have the Islamic crescent and star on the wall behind them. Interesting place. A girl came to say prayers while we were there.
Meanwhile my son was more interested in posing with the many tiger images outside the shrine. The whole shrine is full of tigers, this one being the scariest:
We had no plan to walk to the very top of the hill, that would be foolhardy! We just walked up until we found a view. A little exercise before dinner. Many local people come here to walk, ride bikes or run. The road is quite steep, so even a gentle walk is enough to burn a few calories. These guys were being more energetic, and with all their huffing and puffing still managed a smile :)
Some way below the "monkey line" we stopped where a gap in the trees allowed views to the east and south. A good place to stop and pose for photos. A number of other people had the same idea. One man was taking photos of his dog. One tree covered hillside looked almost autumnal...
And the same photo with some messing around on Photoshop:
Good for the kids to get some exercise too. Kids these days are easily distracted by their Nintendo games or watching movies or (God forbid!) reading books... we try to keep our kids active physically and mentally. Not too much.. keep it enjoyable. Now follows one of my favourite photos ever. Our kids. You want to know about my life in Phuket - this is it.
And another favourite. Earlier the same day, my daughter and I had been having a long
I remember when we last came, a restaurant was being built just below the shrine, not so far up the hill but still quite a good viewpoint. The restaurant is now open, it's called "Green Forest" and we will go back sometime - just stopped for a drink this time. The menu was full of local food - a lot of salads and seafood. Looks good.
The view above looking to the southeast across Phuket Town from the restaurant. You can see the Royal Phuket City Hotel and the Thavorn Grand Plaza Hotel and behind that is Khao Khad hill and view point. Although I live here, sometimes the time is limited for exploring (yeh, I have a job working 6 days a week). Nice to revisit a place and find that there might be a good meal waiting in the future! We do try to get out and explore on days off but some days we have work to do around the house, feel lazy and just head somewhere local. Phuket has enough little places of interest that we can keep going back and there's always something new to see.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Flashdance: il Musical dal 23 al 27 febbraio 2011 a Padova. Da più di 25 anni Flashdance fa ballare tutto il mondo
Per la prima volta arriva in Italia, Flashdance, il musical tratto dal celebre film della Paramount Picture che negli anni ’80 ha fatto sognare un'intera generazione.Lo spettacolo, realizzato grazie ad una collaborazione tra Italia e Stati Uniti, sarà al Gran Teatro Geox dal 23 al 27 febbraio e sarà uno degli appuntamenti più importanti del calendario 2011.
Leggi tutto...
Winter in Helsinki
Not much sailing on these waters right now, though it is perfect for a promenade or skiing and the water will probably be covered with 20-50 cm of ice for a couple of more weeks.
Boats on the hard.
Uspensky orthodox cathedral, one of the most important symbols showcasing the Russian impact on Finnish history.
Homemade berry pie.
Photography in my veins.
The ferry I've taken about a million times in my childhood/youth. This one goes be
tween Helsinki, Finland-Stockholm, Sweden. I lived the first eight years of my life in Finland, the following sixteen in Sweden and the rest a little bit everywhere in the world as you already might know.
Finnish coast guard.
Everything is still covered with snow.
My best friends café? Fanny när kommer du och hälsar på oss?? Saknar dig!
Tram in the city.
Typical townhouse 1.
Typical townhouse 2.
Beautiful wooden boat and the electricity center in the background (or whatever it is called in English?) power plant in the background.
One of many of Alvar Aaltos works. Finland's most famous architect. He once said: "We should work for simple, good, undecorated things" "but things which are in harmony with the human being and organically suited for the little man on the street."
A given stop on every Helsinki visit. Finnish chocolate at its best, from Fazer.
Another must-stop after cold winter promenades, the bar at Hotel Kämp.
With one of my sisters. I have five sisters/half sisters/step sisters FYI. This is the only one with the same mother. (What happened to my hair on this pic? Jesus Christ.)
Homemade dinner.
With one of my other lovely sisters.
Yes it was cold. Terribly inhumanly cold but as I came here for bad news which turned out to transform into very good news, I am extremely happy anyway and it was definitely worth all those minus-degrees to fly over and spend some days with my two (of three) families. Although I prefer to live in the sun and as far away from coldness like this as possible, Finland will always have a special place in my heart. Hoping to be able to show the Finnish summer to you all one day as well. Cause as beautiful it might be in the winter, it is even more dreamlike when in bloom. Will bring Alex with me next time for sure.
Now: Flying to Paris to spend a night with one of my good friends due to 12 hours waiting in between flights and then finally finally home to my baby again. /Taru
Sunday, February 20, 2011
На здоpовье!
When my father goes to bed, his beautiful Russian wife digs up the 20 year old Russian vodka bottles from the lockers. Just my kind of woman. The drinks goes down well with Jimi Hendrix softly playing in the background. I definitely understand and support the Finnish and Russian alcohol culture, how otherwise could you keep yourself warm in cold winters like this. Cheers.
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