Can I have this dance?

I remember, back when Sarah and I were planning out big Round the World Trip, seeing a video which featured a guy doing a simple, yet affecting dance in various places around the globe. It was a pretty simple concept, but one that completely captivated me when I saw it, and helped fuel my already overactive imagination about the adventures Sarah and I would soon be having ourselves.

Well, today, for whatever reason, I decided to look it up again. I'd found myself suddenly curious to see how many of the places featured on the video I'd now been in my own life and travels. So, I track it down...



(I'm sure most of you have seen it, since I know if became quite the Internet sensation.)

Happily, I can announce that I've actually been to probably 2/3rds of the places on that video including Hanoi, Delhi, Bangkok, Agra, Prague, Angkor Wat, Kenya, Seattle and New York's Times Square. It's interesting watching it again now, after having been on my own trip. While before most of the places seemed distant and exotic, now there is a level of familiarity. It's still an amazingly diverse selections of locations, but rather than inspiring me to want to go there, it almost brings forth bittersweet feeling of nostalgia.

It's hard to describe the sensation.

But, not one to rest of his laurels, the guy who did the original video, Matt, this year released a new video which is, frankly, epic:



According to his website, Where the Hell is Matt?, this time out he had a little more sponsorship. But, it still is a pretty amazing little video.

Now I've got a whole new list of places I want to see.

Feeling City

So, Sarah and I are going to Austin next week. Since Sarah went to college there, it will be a bit of a homecoming for her; but it will be my first time there. Thinking about that has got me reflecting on all the cities I've visited in my lifetime, and that -in turn- has led to lists.

So, instead of rambling about Lost and X-men like I had originally intended, I've decided to present my Top 10 Cities List! So, without further ado...

10. Hobart, Tasmania - While I enjoyed both Tasmania and New Zealand immensely, I have to admit that their main appeal lies with their spectacular scenery, wonderous terrain and great wines. That said, Hobart managed to win me over with its quaint old-world charm. Even if the hotel we stayed at was.... well... a complete dump, the rest of the city was filled with cute cafes, shops, inviting bars, weekly markets and great walkable streets. It amazing that, while Hobart was possibly the farthest I'd been away from home geographically speaking, it could feel so much like home.

Sarah at the market in Hobart

9. Portland, Oregon - The secret to Portland's charm lies with the fact that it is basically Seattle, without all the development, but with a better public transportation system. Even though Portland is only several hours south of Seattle, I've actually only been there a handful of times. But, each time I've been there it's impressed me in some new way. In fact, on our last visit, Sarah and I agreed that if we ever needed to move to another city, Portland would be on the top of our list.

8. Bangkok, Thailand - Most people seem to hate Bangkok. It's crowded, dirty, noise and imfamous for its horrific traffic. But, I think that might actually be part of the appeal to me. It also probably holds a special place in my heart since it was the first foreign city I ever visited. But, beyond that there is still some appeal to a sprawling chaotic megaopolis like Bangkok. It might be overwelming, but it's unmatched energy and great food also make it entrancing.

7. Cape Town, South Africa - Possibly the most stunning city view I've ever experienced is when Sarah and I took the gondola to the top of Table Mountain and stood looking down at Cape Town spreading out around the bay below us. I always find myself wanting to compare it to San Fransisco, but honestly the similarities are superficial and tangental. But, while South Africa and Cape Town are still struggling with their fair share of problems (racism, violence), there is no denying that Cape Town is one of the most scenic cities in the world.

A panoramo Sarah's brother stitched together of several photos we took on Table Mountain.

6. McLeod Ganj, India - McLeod Ganj was a place that I had to warm to a bit. When we first arrived there, its cramped streets filled with tourists and hippies was a bit of a turn off. But, in the end the city has a way of sneaking up on you. With its quiet moments and misty vistas of guesthouse perched atop of steep green hills, and its forgiving Buddhist backbone, McLeod Ganj ended up being the perfect place for Sarah and I to rest and reorient ourselves in the otherwise overwelming country of India.

...and there's Sarah in McLeod Ganj!

5. Prague, Czech Republic - Prague was the first city in Europe I ever visited, and it still represents Europe to me more than any other city I've visited. With its countless church spires and narrow cobblestoned steets, Prague hits all the perfect notes for just wandering around and enjoying the afternoon. With both cafes and Communist history, and a network of both streetcars and subways, Prague always seemed to have something interesting to do, and a good way to get there.

4. Buenos Aires, Argentina - It's like Paris... but in South America. Yeah, that's sort of a trite observation, and one that also misses some of Buenos Aires unique charm, but I still can't help but make it. Thick with cafe culture and late night parties, Buenos Aires has a charm that manages to be distinctly its own, while also drawing comparisons to a number of cities in Europe. Good wine, great neighborhoods and tons of meat for dinner... just thinking about it makes me want to go back!

3. Leh, India - Leh barely counts as a "city." It's more of a "village," a Buddhist encampment nestled in the Himalayas. A small swath of green surrounded by miles of magnificant brown mountains, and decorated with prayer flags. I don't think a single place we visited on our 7 month journey brings on such quick and fierce reverse-home-sickness as Leh. Its the type of place that just challenges you to wander around, do nothing all day, and be content just contemplating life.

...and Sarah, AGAIN, in Leh!

2. Istanbul, Turkey - At the point that Sarah and I reached Istanbul, we were both feeling burnt out by travelling. We had sort of reached the point were we were tired with the challenges present by changing locations on a day-to-day basis and relearning the basics of life each time. But, Istanbul still managed to win us over. There's something stirring and symbolic about the cities location straddling the Bosphorus, literally with one foot in the west and one in the east, that compels the visitors mind to take romantic flights of fancy (and type sentences like this). Aya Sofya, the Blue Mosque, the Grand Bazaar and the ancient Cisterns, cute cafes, great restaurants and countless otherthings add up to make Istanbul one of the best cities I've ever been fortunate enough to visit.

Istanbul... but no Sarah!

1. Seattle, Washington - I know, it's probably a little cliched to pick my hometown as my favorite city... but it's true. If travelling has taunt me anything, its that while I enjoy seeing wonderous, far-flung locations, I also enjoy coming home at the end to Seattle. Great bars, great restaurants, great coffee shops, stunning views of the Sound, the Cascades, the Olympics and Mt. Rainier, good shops and music scene. Heck, I'd say Seattle was made for me, except its probably more of a matter that I was made for Seattle.

Well, that's my list. Actually, having just finished it, I'm already regretting making it. I mean, just think of all the great places I've visited, but left off of it: Hoi An, Pushkar, Queenstown, Cairo, Veliko Tarnovo, Budapest, Barcelona, Port Antonio, Miami, San Fransisco.

Heck, thinking about it more, I'm sure that Valparaiso definitely should have been on that list.

Drat.

I've been brainwashed by travel...

I've been brainwashed by travel. I mean, that's only explanation as why I'd sit and listen to Rick Steve's give an hour long speech on NPR, and find myself saying: "Yeah! Tell it like it is, Rick!"

I mean, this is Rick Steves we’re talking about! I used to make fun of this guy! You watch him on his PBS show and presume he's the type of guy who travels around Europe in a manner suitable for a soccer mom who didn't get a chance to do a foreign exchange program in High School. He wears sensible travel clothes like you'd find at REI - with elastic waists and quick-drying fabric!

Yet, there I was eating dinner last night, slowly realizing that he's become someone I respect. I'm not sure if it’s because I'm getting old myself, or because the recent political climate has forced Rick to embrace his inner radical. Maybe a combination of the two. But, whatever the reason, I have to agree with a lot of what he has to say.

Or, at least, I really respect a lot of what he had to say on KUOW's "Speakers Forum" last night.

The speech I was listening to was actually a talk he gave at Seattle's Townhall on September 13th entitled: Travel as a Political Act. In it, he goes into detail about the positive political side effects of travel and -specifically- how his personal and political views have been shaped by travel. And, honestly, I agreed with pretty much everything he had to say. If nothing else, he’d probably make a better foreign representative than most of the people holding similar positions in our current administration.

Plus, he was pissed. Now, granted, a pissed off Rick Steve's is probably about as threatening as an irate hamster. But still, it was a refreshing and interesting change the "this is rreeeeaaaallllyyy special" type comments you usually hear him make on his show.

Rather than go into detail myself about the speech, I'd just suggest you give it a listen yourself. You can listen to it over RealPlayer or Windows Media Player through the link here. Even if you don't agree with all his politics, it’s an interesting talk. And, you can probably all agree that travel does change a person.

As evidenced by the fact that I'm now recommending things from Rick Steves.

Why Awarapan is Awarsome

...er... I mean, "awesome."

When my wife and I were in Delhi, we had a chance to go see the movie Awarapan. Since it was a Bollywood flick showing in India, it was in Hindi without English subtitles. As a result, we had to basically try to figure out what was going on based on the action on screen. Luckily, it was an action film, so the action was easy to follow.

And, it was awarsome.

To understand why Awarapan is awarsome, I have to give you a summary of the plotline. It goes without saying that this summary will have spoilers... so if you don't want the "twists" in Awarapan "ruined" then don't read on. If you wish to understand awarsomeness, then do:

Awarapan: the summary
...or, at least what I think happens since I couldn't understand the dialogue.

(Oh yeah, and I'm just telling it in chronological order, since the movie is, like, 99.9% flashback.)

The movie starts, and introduces us to the main character. The main character, although Indian, lives in Hong Kong and works for a mob boss. In addition, as near as I could tell, the main character is also Colin Farrell from Miami Vice, see:

Through flashbacks (wait! What happened to chronological order?), we see a young Colin Farrell in Rajasthan who -along with his best friend- are just starting on their life of crime. On the run from cops, Colin ducks into a market where he runs into a beautiful young lady who he falls for and begins dating in secret.

The young woman introduces Colin to her hobby of buying caged birds and setting them free (not the most subtle of symbolism, but -hey- it films well), and to her Muslim faith. Colin, seems to be able to appreciate bird thing, but just mocks her spiritualism.

Later, the woman's father discovers the romance, gathers a mob and goes to pick a fight with Colin. Confronted by her father, Colin dares the man to shoot him. But, when her father pulls the trigger, Colin has second thoughts and steps aside. Unfortunately ...are you ready for this?... the woman was standing behind Colin, and gets shot and killed!

Fast forward to present day.

Colin's mob boss in Hong Kong is headed out of town. In his absence, the mob boss asks Colin to watch after his wife (an arrangement that generally works out well for everyone). Colin takes his boss's job seriously and proceeds to follow her around town like a stalker while her and her friends engage in the films one true song and dance number. Let's watch:



Not surprisingly, he falls for her. Both because she reminds him of the girl from Rajasthan (so much so, I presumed they were the same character, until Sarah set me straight) and because she's a Muslim (cue more flashbacks). Unfortunately, as he gets to know her more, he discovers that she doesn't love the mob boss. In fact, she's more his slave than wife. In addition, it turns out that her and her preppy friend (see clip above) are planning on escaping. The mob boss, learning this, tells Colin to kill her. This leads to Colin's big moral crisis: Does he gun down her and her country club frequenting pal? Or, does he help her escape?

He decides to do the former. But, tell's his boss he's done the later.

Unfortunately, Colin's best friend turns on him ...which you pretty much knew was going to happen since he smoked and looked a little shifty. The mob boss finds out what's going on, and has Colin captured and beaten extensively. After getting a Hulk-like second wind, Colin escapes; but is found nearly dead, lying next to a Buddhist monestary. One of the monks just happens to be a chubby man that Colin had let live earlier in the film, and -thankful for not being killed by Colin early- takes him in to be healed. It's never exactly explained how the chubby monk-man gets from the deserts of Rajasthan, where Colin had ditched him, to Hong Kong though. Or, perhaps it was; but it was explained with... y'know... dialogue. So I missed it.

Anyhow, that leads to this sequence, which is probably my favorite part of the whole movie:



Yep. Brought back to health at the monestary, Colin discovers Buddhism. Buddhism then gives him the power to go kick some serious ass! The rest of the movie is one prolonged gun battle. Made even more prolonged by the fact that most of it is in slow-motion. Colin kills the mob bosses coke-addled son. There's a huge shoot out in a nightclub. Colin's best friend becomes a good guy again. Then dies. Colin kills the mob boss. Then gets killed himself.

But, he helps the main girl and her sweater-wearing man-child get away in a speedboat.

Awarsome!

OK, so maybe I forgot a scene or two. And maybe I've got the entire plot wrong. Still, any movie who's leason is "Buddhism allows you to kick ass with a cool soundtrack" is awarsome in my book. I really hope they release it on DVD in the States. Though, if they do, I might leave the subtitles off. Something tells me it would be better that way.

Strange and (Hopefully) Coherent

So, as most you know, my wife and I are a couple weeks out from departing on a seven month Round the World Trip. To this end, I've set up Strange and Benevolent: Chronicling Sarah and Tyler's 2007 Round the World Adventure.

The unfortunate side effect of the trip is that General Admission will probably be quiet until my return in September. But, please, check out Strange And Benevolent. I promise to try to not make it too self-indulgent. And, as an added bonus, you'll get to read entries by my often-mentioned, lovely wife, Sarah.

Enjoy!

My latest bad idea!

Sponsor my Round the World trip!

This can only end in tears.

To see more about the trip, be sure to check out my travel blog: General Travels.

I. I've Got. I've got World Cup Fever.

(Please sing the headline as it appears on Air Maimi's tribute to the the 2002 World Cup: "World Cup Fever")

Anyhow, that's my excuse for not having neglected General Admissions for so long, and I'm sticking to it.

Since, next year, my wife and I are taking a Round the World Trip, I figured it would be in my best interest to take an interest in what interests the rest of the World... the World Cup! (That sentence was officailly fun to write.) So, for the last month or so, I've been attempting to immerse myself in all things Soccer* related; an activity that has been fun for me, but I'm sure is pretty obnoxious for those who have to deal with me on a day to day basis.

To catch World Cup Fever yourself, I recommend starting here: FIFA World Cup official site | Time and Channels to watch games in the US

Beyond that, I've also been designing a card game which simulates two or more feuding, turn-of-the-century, English families attempting to out do each other socially and economically. You try to move into the nicest mansion, have the nicest car, woo rival family members into your household and not pick up a snuff habit. Which, I suppose, is probably pretty close to reality for some people.


Babies... dogs... and cars... a bad idea.

Honestly, I don't know that much about the time period in question. But, I found myself digging through old stock photography websites and thinking "I really like old photos." So, of course, the obvious thing to do is make a card game with them, right? Oh well, I'm having fun!

Beyond that, Because (from the Tater Board) pointed out these amazing Amnesty International billboards. As she said, "wonder why they are only in Europe?"



* Yes, I know they call it Football in Europe. So, all of you who feel compelled to point this out to me can sleep easy now.

Mutants, Robots and Vampires

Really, that's pretty much the only three things that are important in the world, right? Lucky for me then, that I've gotten a dose of each of them in the last 24 hours. To summarize:

Mutants: There is a new trailer for X-men 3 on line. I still hold some serious resevations that this will be the first X-movie to fumble the ball, but really, this trailer looks very cool. See for yourself.

Robots: I beleive someone forwarded this link to me a while ago, but I finally just had a chance to look at it a bit. Being Wired, they attempt to juggle real-world robots with their Hollywood brethern, with mixed results. Most notably, the robot who claims the #1 spot is a big "wha?!" But, anytime someone makes a list of robots, its got to be a good thing, right? Engage.

Vampires: Really, vampires are fun. But, unfortunately, the Goth scene has generally cornered the market on them; and proceeded to wrap them in leather and fetish gear. So, it comes as a breath of fresh air to see them given a distinctly Russian spin in Night Watch. I mentioned this movie back in July when I first stumbled across the trailer. But, my brother and I finally got to see it last night. And, I'm happy to say that, while American hunters have become third rate Matrix rejects, Russian vampire hunters are still fighting the good fight by getting loaded on vodka and blood concoctions, strumbling around the streets of Moscow and regularly getting their ass handed to them by the undead. A little incoherent at times, but coherency is overrated sometimes. Trailer.

The Taj Mahal is totally hotter than the Eiffel Tower

"Architectual beauty contests are the wave of the future!"

Or so Philon of Byzantium thought in the year 200BC.

Now, some 2,200 years later, a group of experts in architecture have picked up the idea again and are holding a competition to determine the New Seven Wonders of the World.

So, starting with a list of 77 Nominees from around the world, a group of experts narrowed it down to 21 finalists. And now, through the end of the year, people from around the world are invited vote by phone for the New Seven Wonders of the World, who will be announced on Jan 1st, 2007.

I'm sure that it is proof that there is something wrong with me that I find all of this more interesting than the Super Bowl.

The Great Grand Everyone Map Project

OK, so here is the idea: I've just discovered this site named Frapper, that allows you to set up a map of the world and then indicate on that map where you currently are located. You can then invite others to come post their locations on the map.

So, I'm going to try something. I set up a map called the Great Grand Everyone Map Project. I'm now going to send an email to all of my friends telling them to add themselves to the map.

In addition, I'm going to ask them to forward the map on to as many people they can. Asking them to do the same.

My goal: To fill as much of the map as I can.

Wish me luck.

Tastes Like Ass

In the News:

Donkey meat on the menu in China
09 September 2005

BEIJING: The cat is out of the bag at a restaurant in northeast China that had been serving donkey meat spiked with tiger urine in pricey dishes advertised as endangered Siberian tigers.

Local media in Heilongjiang got wind that the restaurant was offering stir-fried dishes and medicinal liquor made from tiger meat and bones, sparking local police and health inspectors to pounce, the China Daily said.

"After inspection, the owner confessed that the so-called tiger meat was donkey meat that had been dressed with tiger urine to give the dish a 'special' flavour," the newspaper said.

The restaurant had been charging as much as 800 yuan a dish for the illegal, "rare" fare, tapping into traditional Chinese belief that tiger meat has aphrodisiacal properties.

The restaurant was shut down and fined and the director of the nearby Hengdaohezi Siberian Tiger Park, China's largest centre for breeding the highly endangered animals, reassured the public there was no way meat from its big cats had made its way to the dinner table, the newspaper said.

Only a few hundred Siberian tigers are believed to be alive in the wild in their native habitats of northern China, southern Russia and parts of North Korea.

The report did not explain where the tiger urine had come from or how it was collected.

I just repeated the story here because I wanted to use the title "Tastes Like Ass."

Nochnoy Dozor

Today, while avoiding work, and looking at movie trailers on Apple.com, I stumbled across a trailer for a movie called Night Watch (Or, apparently, Nochnoy Dozor in its native Russian).



It is billed as "the first chapter in an epic fantasy trilogy" and -despite the hyperbole- it actually looks really cool visually. Apparently, the story is about waring tribes of vampires, warewolves and witches. Which could be really dumb, but the fact that its a Russian film, along with its really inventive creepy special effects has me interested.

The trailer: Check out the kid with the red mist coming out of his eyes.

Zheng He: The eunuch who launched 300 ships

Reading National Geographic this weekend, I read a story on Admiral Zheng He, who -nearly a century before Columbus made his journey- sailed a series of 7 voyages which traveled from China to as far as the Kenyan Coast.

The ships of Zheng's armada were as astonishing as its reach. Some accounts claim that the great baochuan, or treasure ships, had nine masts on 400-foot-long (122-meter-long) decks. The largest wooden ships ever built, they dwarfed those of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama. Hundreds of smaller cargo, war, and supply ships bore tens of thousands of men who brought China to a wider world.

His largest armada contained 317 ships, and nearly 28,000 men.

In contrast to most tales of exploration, the story paints him as a man of peace who was deeply interested in -and respectful of- the cultures he encountered. Proving that maybe testicles might be the problem after all.

I really recommend the article though, its also serves as a neat overview of what it was like traveling amoungst the cultures which surrounded the Indian Ocean at that time.
Story.