Post 82 Hang loose
Each time I was in Honolulu I bought myself a T-shirt with the shaka sign. Altogether I have collected five of them. The shaka sign is a popular greeting gesture often associated with Hawaii. It consists of extending the thumb and smallest finger while keeping the three middle fingers curled. The shaka also means "hang loose", conveying the harmonious “Aloha Spirit” of the multi-ethnic cultures in Hawaii. It can also mean “keep cool”, “hello”, “goodbye” “all right” or “take care”.
First time tourists to Honolulu will very soon be familiar with the ABC Stores started by the Japanese in Waikiki in 1964. It has changed its name to ABC in 2009. The chain of ABC convenience stores is found mainly along the one-mile radius of Waikiki. As I walked along the Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki, I would go into ABC to purchase boxes of my favourite Macadamia nuts, for my relatives and friends back home as well.
When I watched the surfers displaying their skills at Waikiki beach, they reminded me of the” Hawaii Five-O” TV-series. The beach at Waikiki is known for its long rolling break, making it ideal for boarding and surfing.
It is in Hawaii that one experiences the essence of the Aloha Spirit.
15 February 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Fantasy Island
Post 81 Kauai Island
After my Maui’s experience, I was in for another pleasant surprise when my flight from Maui touched down at the international airport in Kauai Island.
The island of Kauai, Hawaii was one of the filming locations of the highly-rated made-for-television film Fantasy Island aired from 1978 to 1984. The enchanting island coastline of the opening scenes of my favourite TV-series almost 30 years ago was none other than that of Kauai, also known as the Garden of Isle. While feasting my eyes with the pristine and idyllic Kauai beaches and the dramatic natural beauty of the island, I thought I could hear Tattoo, played by Herve Villechaize, ringing the bell from the main bell tower, shouting," The plane! The plane!" with each arrival of new guests.
Besides letting my eyes not having enough of seeing, Kauai attractions also let my ears not having enough of hearing. The unique hula or luau is representative of the Hawaiian traditional music and dance, a creation by the Polynesians who first settled there.
You may want to try “Hangi” food which is cooked underground. It is a traditional meal of the island nations of New Zealand and the South Pacific.
8 February 2011
After my Maui’s experience, I was in for another pleasant surprise when my flight from Maui touched down at the international airport in Kauai Island.
The island of Kauai, Hawaii was one of the filming locations of the highly-rated made-for-television film Fantasy Island aired from 1978 to 1984. The enchanting island coastline of the opening scenes of my favourite TV-series almost 30 years ago was none other than that of Kauai, also known as the Garden of Isle. While feasting my eyes with the pristine and idyllic Kauai beaches and the dramatic natural beauty of the island, I thought I could hear Tattoo, played by Herve Villechaize, ringing the bell from the main bell tower, shouting," The plane! The plane!" with each arrival of new guests.
Besides letting my eyes not having enough of seeing, Kauai attractions also let my ears not having enough of hearing. The unique hula or luau is representative of the Hawaiian traditional music and dance, a creation by the Polynesians who first settled there.
You may want to try “Hangi” food which is cooked underground. It is a traditional meal of the island nations of New Zealand and the South Pacific.
8 February 2011
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Millions of stars
Post 80 Maui’s experience
In 1986 I boarded the Aloha aircraft and took a 25-minute flight from Honolulu to the island of Maui where Polynesians were the original peoples to populate it. Maui is a part of the state of Hawaii. While looking out of the room window from a friend’s house at night, I was pleasantly surprised at the sight of millions of stars in the clear sky. It was surreal; resembling a dream. Industrialisation has deprived city dwellers of their pleasure in gazing at stars twinkling.
I had hardly slept for a few hours when my friend woke me up at 4.00am to travel by car to the top of Haleakala National Park. Watching the sun rise there, and seeing the orange-red craters and purple valleys were an awe-inspiring experience. One does not always have the privilege of seeing the clear night sky and stars being overtaken by the sun that lights up the sky and earth.
On our way back from the Haleakala a 10,000 foot volcano, there was a group of bicycle riders who were ready to coast downhill on the same winding road as the cars and vans. I thought biking down the volcano was a dangerous activity. However, there are always enthusiasts who would brave the odds as challenges and for excitement.
When I see stars, I think of my Maui’s experience.
1 February 2011
In 1986 I boarded the Aloha aircraft and took a 25-minute flight from Honolulu to the island of Maui where Polynesians were the original peoples to populate it. Maui is a part of the state of Hawaii. While looking out of the room window from a friend’s house at night, I was pleasantly surprised at the sight of millions of stars in the clear sky. It was surreal; resembling a dream. Industrialisation has deprived city dwellers of their pleasure in gazing at stars twinkling.
I had hardly slept for a few hours when my friend woke me up at 4.00am to travel by car to the top of Haleakala National Park. Watching the sun rise there, and seeing the orange-red craters and purple valleys were an awe-inspiring experience. One does not always have the privilege of seeing the clear night sky and stars being overtaken by the sun that lights up the sky and earth.
On our way back from the Haleakala a 10,000 foot volcano, there was a group of bicycle riders who were ready to coast downhill on the same winding road as the cars and vans. I thought biking down the volcano was a dangerous activity. However, there are always enthusiasts who would brave the odds as challenges and for excitement.
When I see stars, I think of my Maui’s experience.
1 February 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Don't cry for me Argentina!
Post 79 Let’s Tango!
Back in 1996 I attended a conference in Buenos Aires and stayed in the Capital of Argentina for ten days. It took me more than 24 hours to reach there from Kuala Lumpur, with a stopover at Johannesburg, South Africa.
I was crossing the street one day when I realized that it took me a long time to cover half the street. I turned back to count the number of lanes on the road in curiosity. After counting twice, I was amazed that there were ten lanes on half the street. I counted the other half of the street and found that I had to cross another ten lanes to reach the other side. One really needs to be fit to cross the 20 lanes of traffic on foot safely. I vividly remember that it is Avenida 9 de Julio, the widest street in the world.
Most visitors to Argentina never miss going for the Tango Shows. I went to watch the show on two occasions paying USD50 for each show cum dinner. The elegant tango dancers could really perform tango in its essence accompanied by the great tango orchestra in a beautiful and romantic theater room.
To watch the best-known song from the musical Evita, "Don't Cry for Me Argentina", being sung and acted as the show’s grand finale in Buenos Aires was the highlight of a memorable evening for me.
25 January 2011
Back in 1996 I attended a conference in Buenos Aires and stayed in the Capital of Argentina for ten days. It took me more than 24 hours to reach there from Kuala Lumpur, with a stopover at Johannesburg, South Africa.
I was crossing the street one day when I realized that it took me a long time to cover half the street. I turned back to count the number of lanes on the road in curiosity. After counting twice, I was amazed that there were ten lanes on half the street. I counted the other half of the street and found that I had to cross another ten lanes to reach the other side. One really needs to be fit to cross the 20 lanes of traffic on foot safely. I vividly remember that it is Avenida 9 de Julio, the widest street in the world.
Most visitors to Argentina never miss going for the Tango Shows. I went to watch the show on two occasions paying USD50 for each show cum dinner. The elegant tango dancers could really perform tango in its essence accompanied by the great tango orchestra in a beautiful and romantic theater room.
To watch the best-known song from the musical Evita, "Don't Cry for Me Argentina", being sung and acted as the show’s grand finale in Buenos Aires was the highlight of a memorable evening for me.
25 January 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Vivir para comer or comer para vivir?
Post 78 Live to eat or eat to live?
When I first visited Barcelona in 1996, I was told by my Spanish friend to ‘vivir para comer’ or live to eat; and not to ‘comer para vivir’ or eat to live. He said that Spanish cuisine comprises a variety of seafood easily available from the coastlines and countless unique cuisines served with one’s health in mind. The Spanish are adventurous with new recipes.
The Chinese cuisines are also well-known and highly popular in many parts of the world. The Chinese can cook any dish tailored to one’s wildest imagination. In the early 1990s, I was at the same table with a group of Americans at a dinner hosted by our mutual host in Lanzhou which is a prefecture-level city and capital of Gansu province in northwestern China. The menu then included camel paws and other dishes which were too daunting for us to try. We became vegetarians for the evening.
Socrates, the Greek philosopher more than 2,000 years ago, however, believed
that "Thou shouldst eat to live; not live to eat." His advice implies that one should eat healthily to live and not just eat for the sake of eating.
Do you vivir para comer or comer para vivir?
18 January 2011
When I first visited Barcelona in 1996, I was told by my Spanish friend to ‘vivir para comer’ or live to eat; and not to ‘comer para vivir’ or eat to live. He said that Spanish cuisine comprises a variety of seafood easily available from the coastlines and countless unique cuisines served with one’s health in mind. The Spanish are adventurous with new recipes.
The Chinese cuisines are also well-known and highly popular in many parts of the world. The Chinese can cook any dish tailored to one’s wildest imagination. In the early 1990s, I was at the same table with a group of Americans at a dinner hosted by our mutual host in Lanzhou which is a prefecture-level city and capital of Gansu province in northwestern China. The menu then included camel paws and other dishes which were too daunting for us to try. We became vegetarians for the evening.
Socrates, the Greek philosopher more than 2,000 years ago, however, believed
that "Thou shouldst eat to live; not live to eat." His advice implies that one should eat healthily to live and not just eat for the sake of eating.
Do you vivir para comer or comer para vivir?
18 January 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Weigh one's words
Post 77 To strike the right note
I attended a wedding dinner recently when the lady master of ceremony failed to strike the right note. Instead she sounded a false note that caused a great dent to her seemingly well-cultured character and an embarrassment to the discerning guests. Apparently she was not experienced enough to know that there are certain words of insinuation which should never be uttered, let alone at such a joyous grand occasion of which she anchored.
When one weighs one's words, one is careful with the choice of words in speaking or writing. A word well spoken at the right occasion and at the right time is ‘like apples of gold in settings of silver’. The linguistic skill of being able to use words appropriately, effectively, and imaginatively comes with reading widely and writing extensively.
When I was a little boy, I used to hear adults saying, “Children must be seen and not heard”! This is true if it helps to prevent children who do not weigh their words from innocently divulging a family secret in front of visiting guests and relatives.
11 January 2011
I attended a wedding dinner recently when the lady master of ceremony failed to strike the right note. Instead she sounded a false note that caused a great dent to her seemingly well-cultured character and an embarrassment to the discerning guests. Apparently she was not experienced enough to know that there are certain words of insinuation which should never be uttered, let alone at such a joyous grand occasion of which she anchored.
When one weighs one's words, one is careful with the choice of words in speaking or writing. A word well spoken at the right occasion and at the right time is ‘like apples of gold in settings of silver’. The linguistic skill of being able to use words appropriately, effectively, and imaginatively comes with reading widely and writing extensively.
When I was a little boy, I used to hear adults saying, “Children must be seen and not heard”! This is true if it helps to prevent children who do not weigh their words from innocently divulging a family secret in front of visiting guests and relatives.
11 January 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Gossip
Post 76 Grapevine
Grapevine is used to denote information or gossip, passed unofficially from person to person, that is difficult to trace. It starts and climbs in all directions like a grapevine. For example one may hear about the promotion of one’s colleague through the grapevine.
There is a Chinese idiom on roadside gossip. (dao ting tu shuo道听途说)
Two men, Ai Zi and Mao Kong, were gossiping. Mao told Ai, “There is a duck which has laid a hundred eggs in a day.” Ai did not believe and Mao said, “There could be two ducks.” When Ai still had doubt, Mao quickly added, “The eggs could possibly be laid by three ducks.” Mao topped up the number of ducks to ten but Ai still would not believe him.
Some time later, Mao told Ai, “A big slab of meat was dropped from the sky last month. It was 300 feet long and 200 feet wide.” Ai cast doubt on Mao who then said, “It was 200 feet long.” Again Ai did not believe him. When Mao said, “May be it was a hundred feet long”, Ai asked him, “Whose duck is it that laid the eggs?” Where did the meat fall?” Mao told Ai, “I heard them on the road from others.” Ai then told his accompanying students not to be like Mao who passed on roadside gossips.
The Chinese saying of “Rumours would stop at the wise” teaches us not to gossip.
4 January 2011
Grapevine is used to denote information or gossip, passed unofficially from person to person, that is difficult to trace. It starts and climbs in all directions like a grapevine. For example one may hear about the promotion of one’s colleague through the grapevine.
There is a Chinese idiom on roadside gossip. (dao ting tu shuo道听途说)
Two men, Ai Zi and Mao Kong, were gossiping. Mao told Ai, “There is a duck which has laid a hundred eggs in a day.” Ai did not believe and Mao said, “There could be two ducks.” When Ai still had doubt, Mao quickly added, “The eggs could possibly be laid by three ducks.” Mao topped up the number of ducks to ten but Ai still would not believe him.
Some time later, Mao told Ai, “A big slab of meat was dropped from the sky last month. It was 300 feet long and 200 feet wide.” Ai cast doubt on Mao who then said, “It was 200 feet long.” Again Ai did not believe him. When Mao said, “May be it was a hundred feet long”, Ai asked him, “Whose duck is it that laid the eggs?” Where did the meat fall?” Mao told Ai, “I heard them on the road from others.” Ai then told his accompanying students not to be like Mao who passed on roadside gossips.
The Chinese saying of “Rumours would stop at the wise” teaches us not to gossip.
4 January 2011
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