Monthly Archives: November 2009

Nov30

Bath Houses: Ancient and Modern

Posted on by
Bath Houses: Ancient and Modern

The history of soaking in warm water has ties to ancient societies.  From Asia to Europe to Rome people have been enjoying the health benefits of taking time away from the world and enjoy relaxation.  Now these soaks are not only considered a leisurely way to spend an afternoon or an evening, but are being used in the medical field to treat certain illnesses and injuries.  The calming effects of the water will relax muscles, and sooth aching joints as well as slowing down the circulation and promoting healing.  At one time, this “bathing” in hot tubs and saunas was a communal event, and in some countries that is still the case.

The wealthy of Ancient Rome, usually did have private baths in their residence, but still preferred to go the bath houses on a regular basis.  This was a way of finding out what was happening in the neighborhood so to speak.  Politics to neighborhood gossip was discussed then, in much the same way that those conversations take place in the spas and the workout rooms today.  In Rome, the daily rituals of the bath was an important aspect of their culture, and considered to be part of the daily city life and urban activity.  In the complexes of those ancient bath houses, there were also libraries and meeting rooms.  This was more than just simply soaking in a hot tub or spa.  It was a culture in and of itself.

It was a bit like the continuation of the work day, for around two or three in the afternoon, everyone headed for that second part of the day in the bath houses.  In some of the houses, the women’s tubs were separate from the men’s', while in others they just had access to the use of the tubs at different times of the day.  It was considered not to be respectable for the two genders to attend at the same time, and was frequently banned by the various emperors throughout the years.  Today however, hot tubs are generally a part of back yard BBQs and parties, and still give people to take a break, and have a chance to socialize and relax together.

Nov26

TransGlobe and Spirit of Community

Posted on by
TransGlobe and Spirit of Community

With all the splendid neighborhoods that Canada has to offer, TransGlobe Property Management is in a spectacular place at a spectacular time.  They have over 15 years of experience here, and those years have been very fruitful as well as educational for the company.  With all of their involvement in community events, as well as participation in charity activities, there’s a real sense of commitment to the places they work and live.  It’s always a good thing when you can have good communication with the company you’re renting from, and they seem to really be there, with fast and efficient service in every step of the process.

Canada has always been a great place for neighborhoods, where you can invent your own life and follow your bliss, with a very high standard of living.  This comes from the hard work of the generations that came before us, who understood that building good neighborhoods begins by being good neighbors ourselves.  It’s a hard act to follow, but there seems to be a wonderful sense of community here, so we must be doing something right.  One of the best ways to make yourself at home is to make your home a beautiful place to live.  With TransGlobe Property Management, they’ve selected some truly gorgeous buildings, and have thousands of properties to choose from, and that saves the renters a step or two.

Being able to choose from places that are already beautiful, and very well-maintained, we can focus our time and attention on the finer details.  This begins when we start looking through their listings for business as well as residential properties.  We can start to imagine re-creating our lives in these new spaces, rearranging furniture in our minds, to consider what it might be like to live here.  Once we move in, it’s even more spectacular, and they’re certainly partners for life.  A good neighborhood is a possibility, and with this spirit of community, it becomes that much more likely.

Nov25

A Stop Over in Barcelona

Posted on by
A Stop Over in Barcelona

Traveling to Europe is pretty cheap, well going to the United Kingdom is not so cheap, but I found a flight that was only $100 round trip! Round Trip! But, here’s the catch: it consists of a 5 hour layover in Barcelona. Yes, I had to go south in order to go north. I’m not complaining in the least, because it only cost me $100!

I took a taxi to Prague airport and the plane left around 4am, I slept most of the way. I arrived in Barcelona around 6am. So, now I can say I’ve been to Barcelona, right? Nope, I needed to see Barcelona, not Barcelona’s airport. I went to the information desk and asked how much would it cost to get to the center of Barcelona. The information desk was really rude, they were refusing to give me the information because they thought I’d miss my flight! This irked me to no end, so I put on my best Spanish and asked people outside the airport.

I hoped on a bus for a 30 minute ride into the center of the city. It was around 7:30am and it was still dark here. The sun doesn’t rise until 8am. So, I walked into one of the Barcelona Spain luxury hotels and sat in the lobby until the sun rose.  I figured I had only about an hour to an hour and a half to walk around. As the sun rose, I headed out to the main street. All I saw were early morning runners and business people. But, as the sun fully rose, I was struck with the beauty of the city. I found a coffee shop and ordered a very strong coffee. I hadn’t had any sleep for a day and a half! As I walked about some more, there were more and more people walking around. The weather was crisp, I only had my t-shirt and jeans on. I checked out a few shops and tried not to get lost.

The things I noticed in just an hour or so: tons of mopeds, more so than cars. All the people I conversed with were very friendly and interested that I was a tourist. Barcelona’s a lot bigger than what I thought. I’m definitely going to have to come back here for an actual stay.

When I was waiting for the bus to take me back to the airport, I met this German guy. He was traveling Europe because he just finished with his Masters. He had stayed here in Barcelona for a week, then he’s off to Munich for a month, celebrate Oktoberfest, then back to Barcelona for another week. Then off to the French Alps to get in some skiing and a possible ski job at the resort. What a life! I managed to get to the airport with 5 minutes to spare! Off to Liverpool!

Nov24

Festival First Night in Sydney

Posted on by
Festival First Night in Sydney

On January 9th, Festival First Night kicks off, an annual free event for the Sydney Festival in Australia.  The festival is one of Australia’s biggest arts festivals, which provides theater and dance and art throughout the first month of the year.  Festival First Night began just two years ago, but it’s already considered a tradition, held in Hyde Park, featuring a family-centered host of activities: people are taught to dance and juggle; daredevils perform in an outdoor circus. There’s music throughout the afternoon, and, then, around sunset, lights in the park’s trees come on and over forty Rajasthani musicians provide an advance performance of the scheduled work, The Manganiyar Seduction.

During the festival, there will be a series of plays and concerts, including the following: Hamlet, Six Characters in Search of an Author, Oedipus Rex & Symphony of Psalms, the Maganiyar Seduction, Ruhe, Oedipus Loves You, Happy as Larry, and others; concerts include Al Green, The Maganiyar Seduction, Ruhe, Fractured Again, Isy Suttie, Music Alive: Zeeko, and John Cale as a keynote performer.

The Black Arm Band, an inspirational indigenous group, is scheduled to perform as well, with a show titled Hidden Republic, which includes over 25 musicians and songwriters, backed by a full orchestra.  The musicians include Ruby Hunter, Jimmy Little, Archie Roach and Dan Sultan, after which Al Green, gospel and soul singer, will appear for the first time in Australia.

All these performances will change the winter city into a playground in summer.  Keep on the watch for the unanticipated!

The organizers of the event, suggest people prepare properly for the sun — wear your hats, sunscreen, and drink water, and also to leave behind items that might be troublesome at the park, such as pets and glass, skateboards and rollerblades, and thongs.

They note, too, that food and drink will be available throughout the day, but if you don’t want to have festival food, you might wish to avail yourself of any number of fine restaurants Sydney has to offer.

Nov23

Kinderland Under Melbourne

Posted on by
Kinderland Under Melbourne

Melbourne is a city that’s used to cultural innovations.  There are a stunning number of creative types who live and work here, drawn by its past with fantastic revolutions in visual art, theatre, and music, and attracted to the possibilities of adding something to the mix.  It’s one of the world’s most livable places, offering a quality of life that’s uniquely comfortable, and this makes for a very lively city, with a number of attractive options for entertainment any time of day or night.  For accommodation choices in Melbourne, 5-star hotels offer some stunning lodgings.  The sense of style here is simultaneously homey and cosmopolitan, and it’s a very elegant way to travel.  There is also a great tradition for hospitality here, and something that’s offered easily and everywhere.

With a little bit of planning ahead of time, and some consultation with the concierge, you’ll be able to set up your perfect itinerary for seeing what Melbourne’s got to offer.  Leave plenty of room for spontaneous side trips, because the city holds many surprised, and even the most organized planners find themselves following their noses when they get here.  It’s absolutely worth wasting more than a few afternoons tracing the history of local music here.  Starting in the 70s and looking for the roots of punk will reveal a lot more than is in the official history.  Melbourne’s been at the forefront of music for some time now, and the tradition for breaking tradition continued into the end of the last century with the alt rock of Kinderland.

They’ve only recorded one album, You Show Me Mine, and who knows if there’s anything coming down the road, but there’s no doubt they’ve left marks in the dirt where they’ve stood.  It would be welcome to hear what they’ve been working on for the past 10 years, but the band is so alternative that they were reluctant to even refer to themselves as a band when they were playing together.  It’s soft and mellow music when played in the background, but as others have also noticed, this Kinderland has an edge that’s only discernible on the third listen, and suddenly their brilliance becomes radiantly apparent.  This is one of the underground artistic mines that you can find in Melbourne.

Nov20

Singapore Tat2

Posted on by
Singapore Tat2

There’s a lot to see and do in Singapore.  It’s a wonderful place to visit, and even on those trips where the schedule is packed every day, there’s still plenty of opportunities to soak in the local culture, even when it’s just by osmosis.  It’s one of the more cosmopolitan places in the world, with a sensibility that is global and local, and offers plenty of those things that satisfy the wanderlust of even the most traveled guests.  It’s had an amazing history, and there is a spectacular blend of cultures here.  It’s a very lively mix, and there’s a tremendous rhythm to the place that is contagious.  It reflects a movement of creative energy that is in constant evolution, and it’s a pleasure to be part of the heartbeat.

There are few places in the world that have such a refined sensibility, and that’s what makes it spectacularly equipped to offer such a sense of luxury.  Singapore business hotels have this down to an art form, offering lodgings that are the height of culture, and are designed to keep your mind and body refreshed so you can do the work with energy and focus.   If the relaxation gets to be too much for you, however, and you decide you want to see Singapore with a little bit of edge in it, you’ll be pleased to discover that there is a large body art culture here.  For some people, the appeal of getting a tattoo in a new place doesn’t need any more justification that it’s a new place.

Like anywhere else, if you do decide to get some new ink, make sure to look into the parlor’s adherence to safety standards, and any artist who is offended by questions about hygiene is not trustworthy.  Beyond that, the sky’s the limit here.  There is even a convention that the subculture turns out for, in droves.  The Singapore Tat2 Show comes around every couple of years, with some exciting international guests, art competitions, and tattoo artists from all over the world.  There’s a lot to see and do here.

Nov19

Agatha Christie’s Mousetrap in London’s West End

Posted on by
Agatha Christie’s Mousetrap in London’s West End

London’s West End is well known across the world for its great theatre scene. The area is equivalent to the New York Broadway theatre scene in the United States and the productions are some of the best in England. One of the plays, The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie, is not only extremely popular, it is also the longest running production of the modern era. It first opened in October of 1952 and a month later in that November it moved to the West End where it has been running continually since. It is performed at the St. Martin’s Theatre, where it has been running for over forty five years. Its original West End theatre was the Ambassador’s Theatre where it ran until March of 1974. In its transition to St. Martin’s the show did not skip a single day of performance enabling it to continue its long run streak. In recent decades one of the strongest driving forces in keeping it running is the London tourist scene. Many guests staying in a London hotel include attendance at one of the performances of Mouse Trap an essential aspect of their trip.

The play is comedy that involves a murder mystery. Intrigue and suspense guide the plot through to its surprise twist ending, which is one of the elements the show is most famous for. It was considered to be such an important secret surprise that after each performance the audience is asked not to reveal the ending to anyone. This has become something of a tradition, though especially after a film version became accessible, it is likely that most audiences today are well aware of the play’s outcome before they arrive at the theatre. Agatha Christie is well known for her suspenseful writing talent and includes twists and surprises in much of her work. She is most known as a novelist and has written numerous works.

Nov18

Fitting in with Singapore

Posted on by
Fitting in with Singapore

I was up by 7am and went for a swim at the hotels pool for a workout, which didn’t last very long, it was too cold! Burr! I ended up in the Jacuzzi instead, just in enough time to catch the Kuala Lumpur sunrise. I dried off and grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotels breakfast buffet, totally ruined any workout I just did in the pool. I’m really glad my stay at hotel the wasn’t long, or otherwise I’d put on the pounds.

I managed to walk some of my breakfast binge off as I made my way to the bus station. It was about 9:30am, my bus wouldn’t arrive until 10am, but they told me to check-in about a half-an-hour early. The bus came right on time, which impressed me. The seats were reclining leather chairs and wider than airline seats. Tons of leg room. There were even individual T.V. screens and I could pick my own movie or games. Nice coach service. Very nice. When the coach set out for our destination, Singapore, and shortly after, an attendant came around offering coffee and breakfast boxes. I saved my box for lunch.

I watched an Adam Sandler movie and played a few games and snoozed a bit. When I awoke, we had to get off the bus for an immigration and customs check, it was painless. I found going by coach to be so comfortable and it was only a two hour trip and it was less expensive. When we got to Singapore, I headed to one of the 5 star Singapore hotels and this gave me time to sort out what stuff I was going to send back home via parcel, that way I lighten my load tremendously. The post office was very helpful and the employees made sending off my packages a breeze.

I took a walk around the area and went to a few bars to check out the amazing nightlife. At one bar, I read a sign that said ‘staff wanted’, as I read on, they gave a list of qualities, but they listed the qualities they aren’t looking for, like bad breath, no sense of humour, bad body odor, then they added if you have any of these qualities, don’t bother or inquire within! This gave me a great insight to the life of a Singaporean, they like to enjoy life and they like to laugh. I think I’ll fit right in.

Nov16

Proper Oil Levels for a Vehicle’s Optimal Performance

Posted on by
Proper Oil Levels for a Vehicle’s Optimal Performance

When I checked my Ford Explorer repair manual for manufacturers recommendations I found that it was just fine to wait for the my oil gauge to register that it was time to add new oil.  However, I always wondered if I should fill it regularly to keep at the maximum level.  Since my college days a Mustang engine burning up on the freeway, and of always having a case of oil in my Volkswagen bus, oil levels are something I pay attention to with diligence.  The engine parts are lubricated and cooled as oil circulates through, and with a lifetime spent driving older cars with high mileage, I have come to realize just how incredibly important this is.

Add to that I live in an unbearable hot city during the summer, Phoenix, Arizona.  And the environmental heat combined with the heat of the engine makes this one car maintenance routing that is necessary to keep an eye on.  If the levels reach one quart under, this can serve to cause engine wear and tear and put you at risk of burning out that engine.  Never should oil be over filled.  This is a case of too much of a good thing, being a bad thing.  The crankcase will become too full and as it spins it will splatter oil into a foam.  It may also result in leakage as the gaskets and the seals will become overwhelmed.

When it becomes time to do an oil change, and you decide that you want to do this yourself, never do it when the engine is hot.  Hot oil creates horrible burns.  It is always recommended that you find a safe place to do that oil change, such as on level and solid ground.  This way your car will be safely jacked up, because you will need to get a bit dirty, and you will need to be under your car to change out the oil.  Make sure that all the tools you will be needing are close at hand, and then you are ready to go.  Changing your own oil and doing your own automotive repair is one way to save a bit of money.  Plus, by working on your own car you will become familiar with all the quirks and the next necessary fix-its that are required.

Nov12

New York Production of Billy Elliot Inspires Musician

Posted on by
New York Production of Billy Elliot Inspires Musician

Michael has had two passions in his life for as long as he can remember. He loves musical theatre and astronomy. This somewhat odd combination of interests has caused him some confusion as to which of them he should pursue as a career. When he was in high school he had the lead role in the school’s production of The Music Man and was also the president of the astronomy club. Ultimately when he headed off for college Michael chose to study astronomy because he was much better at focusing on math and the stars all day than on musical theatre. He decided he would perform in local productions and enjoy the major touring shows.

This decision worked out well for Michael for about ten years, until he went to New York for a major astronomy conference. While he was in the lobby of one of the boutique hotels New York he overheard a couple of men from the conference talking about seeing a performance of Billy Elliot while they were in the city. Michael was certain he wanted to see it too and asked to join them. He was absolutely amazed by the production and performances in a way that he had never been before. He thought the music was fabulous and for that moment he didn’t understand how he had let musical theatre slip out of his life.

That night when Michael returned to his hotel he didn’t go to his room and read the blogs about that day’s presentation. Instead he went back to the hotel lobby and sat down at the piano. He began to pluck out what he could remember of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. When he returned home he almost instinctively began working out the music for Mercury and Venus. He also began jotting down a story outline for the Greek mythological archetypes that are associated with the planets, such as Hermes and Aphrodite and began retelling some of the ancient stories through the planets. About a year later Michael felt his musical was ready to be played and sung by others. He had finally figured out how to combine his two life’s passions, and while he maintained his position at the observatory, he continued to write music for the cosmos.