Important Notice to My Readers

This blog will be incorporated into my current blog, The Diary of an Eternal Student. Some of the most-read posts will be copied across to the new blog so you are more than welcome to join in the discussion over there. 🙂

Moving…

This blog will be moving to a new URL within the next couple of weeks.

All of my earlier posts have been archived and the new URL will be posted here soon enough. Watch this space! 😉

EDITED – Here is the new URL :  http://analectsofconfusion.wordpress.com/

China Festival of Lights : Thoughts and Photos

It’s been two weeks since I visited the China Festival of Lights lantern exhibition at Dierenpark Emmen, so I thought it was about time that I shared some photos and my thoughts of this wonderful evening out. For those of you who haven’t had the chance to visit it but would like to, the exhibition will be running until February 7, 2010, so you only have one more week to stop by and admire the beautiful Chinese lanterns on display.

If I could choose one word to sum up the festival, it would be “spectacular”. Sander and I have attended many Chinese and Japanese events around the Netherlands and have always been a little disappointed. The Moon Festival held in Den Haag last October was a particularly disappointing affair so I didn’t harbour any illusions that the lantern festival would be any better. And how wrong I was! Even the walk along the pedestrian crossing and shopping centre was thoroughly enjoyable. Small lanterns graced the walkway while tigers prowled the streets and penguins looked right at home as they frolicked in the snow.**

At the entrance to the zoo, we were greeted by a beautifully-decorated ornamental gate (the text on the gate can be loosely translated as “The best lantern (or lanterns) under the sky” or “The best lanterns in the world”). We showed our tickets to the friendly, shivering attendants and made our way into this veritable wonderland of lanterns.

Playful pandas to the left of us, an elephant arch to the right, and a lost valley of dinosaurs all contended for our attention. I was amazed at the quality and beauty of the lanterns. I’ve visited lantern festivals in China and Taiwan and I honestly didn’t expect to see anything quite as fantastic as I had in Asia. We made our way past flamboyant flamingos, bugs of all shapes and sizes, snarling tigers, and a cheeky monkey sitting amidst an orchard of trees bearing immortal peaches.

We soon came across one of the main attractions, a 100-metre long dragon lantern which blew out puffs of smoke at regular intervals. At this point, we decided to grab some Chinese tea and coffee to warm the cockles. Of course, we had chosen a particularly cold night to attend the festival but we didn’t let the cold and subsequent snow storm deter us.

We plowed on and came across cranes, lions, a couple of adorable phoenixes and even a cute baby crocodile nestled away in its egg. We even saw a few playful sea lions (real ones!) swimming back and forth in their pool and performing somersaults for the amusement of the festival-goers.**

We decided to grab a quick bite before continuing so we stopped at a small stall which sold a variety of Asian treats, including kroepoek (prawn crackers) and a selection of rice sandwiches. The rice sandwiches were literally slices of compressed rice. Sander had his with a serving of teriyaki chicken, while I settled for one with tempura prawns and wasabi mayonnaise.

After eating these tasty morsels, we began our trek through the final section of the zoo. We past some spectacular archways reminiscent of Japanese torii gates and stumbled upon a group of kids riding on the back of a somewhat disgruntled ox. I suppose I’d be disgruntled too if I had a cheeky little so-and-so tugging on my tail!

We left the cheeky little chaps behind and slipped and slided our way past an Indonesian-style temple and some extravagant elephants before making our way past a pair of loved-up swans and a beautiful blue vase which was decorated by pandas. The “vase” was made of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of tiny LCD cells and was sponsored by the WWF, known here in the Netherlands as the Wereld Natuur Fonds.

The final display was a lively display of acrobatic dogs (at least I think there were dogs) spinning around on balls to bid the festival-goers farewell.

After a quick stop at the souvenir shop, we made our way back to the car (which was parked a good 15-minute walk away) and began to drive home. The drive home was a hair-raising one. Emmen is a good 2-hour drive away from Almere and a blizzard hit us only 20 minutes into our journey, so it took us almost 3 hours to get home. And just as we were about to turn off the roundabout which leads into our street, the car skidded off the road and narrowly missed hitting a lamppost. Whoops! Thankfully, both us and the car survived the ordeal uninjured. Black ice is a force that just can’t be reckoned with. :p

The full gallery of photos taken at the festival can be found here.

** Fear not, dear readers. The animals were merely carved out of wood, so no harm came to us or our fellow festival-goers.
** I would like to point out that most of the animals had been moved to their winter enclosures, so the sea lions were the only live animals we came across during our trek through the zoo.

* Kelly’s Thoughts for the Day (30/01/2010)

Am I the only person on this planet who didn’t think Avatar was the best movie of all time? While I can certainly agree that it pushes the boundaries of 3D and CGI graphics to a whole new level, the story seemed to be a blend of Pocahontas and The Last Samurai with a dash of Star Trek : Insurrection for good measure.  The acting wasn’t anything out of this world (no pun intended), it was far too long (almost 3 hours!) and whoever thought “unobtanium” was a clever name for a supposedly-valuable mineral whose actual purpose is never really explained has obviously been watching far too many B-movies…

If you haven’t already gone to see the hype-fest that is Avatar, you needn’t bother. Either save your money or go and see Sherlock Holmes instead. 😉

* It’s Caturday! #4

What better way to spend a chilly night than snuggled up together on a comfy cushion?

Rico and Juno share some body heat while their owners try to decide what to do with their Sunday. Staying home and watching Star Trek seems like the logical solution..

* Sunday Stealing : January 24, 2010

In lieu of an actual post, I’ve decided to fill out a meme instead. It’s been a relatively unproductive weekend thanks to Sander having to work from home for most of it and I’m not particularly looking forward to getting up early for work tomorrow.  The meme below was posted on the Sunday Stealing blog and its theme seems quite appropriate!

Sunday Stealing: The Negativity Meme

• Foods which disgust the crap out of me: Brussel sprouts, offal, soft-boiled eggs, Dutch rookworst.
• TV show I loathe: Desperate Housewives.
• Movie I loathe: Dirty Dancing.
• Music genres I loathe: Drum ‘n’ bass and electronic.
• Magazine which annoys me: Nuts (a trashy lads magazine from the UK).
• Makes me cranky at restaurant: People who have nothing better to do than stare and comment about what you’re eating, dressed like, etc etc (a lot of Dutch diners seem to be unaware that I speak English with Sander but understand Dutch perfectly well).
• Makes me cranky in public: Crowds.
• Makes me cranky in general: A lack of sleep and/or hunger.
• Pisses me off at home: The fact that dishes and clothes don’t wash themselves.
• Pisses me off at work: Printers and software which refuse to cooperate.
• Pisses me off in general: People who push past you without saying “Sorry” or “Excuse me”. That and annoying ring tones.
• Makes me impatient at home: Waiting for the bathroom when I really need to go.
• Makes me impatient at work: Waiting for emails/phone calls from clients or colleagues when something needs to be done urgently.
• Makes me impatient in public: Waiting for my train to arrive.
• Celebrity I hate: Davina McCall.
• Music artist I hate: Kanye West (although I do like some of his songs)
• I could care less about: Reality TV shows, such as Big Brother and I’m a Celebrity.
• Annoys the crap out of me weekdays: Commuting to and from work (though this is bearable when I’m able to have a nap or read my book in peace)
• Annoys the crap out of me weekends: The fact that the weekend seems to fly by.
• Blogger’s habit that annoys you: I can’t really say there’s anything that annoys me, though poor spelling and grammar will often put me off reading a person’s blog.
• Feature on your blog you hate: I don’t really have any regular features on my blog, but I do hate the fact that I suffer from writer’s block on a regular basis and can go weeks without posting anything of note..
• Movie star you despise: Vince Vaughn and Adam Sandler. I can’t decide which of the two annoys me more.
• Politician that you hate: Nick Griffin, leader of the British National Party. I’m not that keen on Geert Wilders either.

If anyone’s bored enough to play along, you’re welcome to post the meme on your own blog and leave me a comment with the link to your answers. I’d be interested in finding out what makes your blood boil. 🙂

* It’s Caturday! #3

Another Saturday, another cat photo for all you cat lovers out there. This photo is a few months old but I think it’s too adorable to ignore. 🙂

This gal is going to be spending part of her “Caturday” at a 5-year old’s birthday party so wish her luck! Fingers crossed that her fellow party-goers don’t quiz her on her Dutch (which is actually quite good these days) or comment on her inability to pronounce “Scheveningen”…

* Kelly’s Thoughts for the Day..

Will the NS ever get its act together? I used to enjoy my daily commute to work but the constant delays and cancellations over the past few weeks are slowly getting to me. Can a week go by without any significant delays, wisselstoringen or seinstoringen?? You can’t even blame it on the snow this time.

And I’m pretty sure that the lady who makes the announcements is being  less than sincere. “Onze excuses voor het ongemaak”? Something tells me you don’t really care about us poor souls standing in the cold.. *sniff*

Oooo, and I must remember to post those photos that I took at the Chinese Festival of Lights. Something to add to my ever-increasing “To Do” list..

Author’s Note : As chance would have it, I didn’t have a single delay either to or from work yesterday. Keep it up, NS!

* It’s Caturday! #2

I know this is a day late but here is this week’s Caturday photo. I took this photo of Juno just after Christmas. After she posed for this shot, she proceeded to nibble on one of the branches.

In other news…

Sander and I had a fantastic evening out at the China Festival of Lights, a lantern exhibition that’s currently on display at Dierenpark Emmen. I’ll be putting up some photos of the beautiful displays within the next couple of days, so watch this space.

* It’s Caturday! #1

From now on, every Saturday will be a Caturday. I’ll be posting weekly photos of my two cats, Rico and Juno, for all you cat lovers out there. 🙂

This week, Rico demonstrates the best way to stay warm on a chilly winter morning.

Check back next week for another cute Caturday photo!

Chinese New Year Celebrations in Rotterdam and The Hague

If you’re living in the Netherlands and are fond of Chinese culture, you might be interested to know that Rotterdam and The Hague will be hosting their annual Chinese New Year celebrations in mid-February. Chinese New Year, otherwise referred to as the Spring Festival (春节), will be celebrated on February 14, 2010. For those of you who are interested in celebrating the Year of the Tiger in style, here are some details regarding the festivities in Rotterdam and The Hague.

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Rotterdam :

The Chinese New Year festivities will be held on Wednesday 17 February, 2010, from 12:00 to 18:45 in and around Wijkpark (not so handy for those of us who need to work!)

12:00-12:45 – Opening ceremony at Wijkpark, including a speech from the Chinese ambassador and performances of traditional dragon and lion dances.

13:00-14:00 – Childrens’ karaoke.

14:00-18:00 – Variety show, including performances of Chinese opera, traditional Chinese music and dance, and demonstrations of Tai Chi and other sports.

18:00-18:30 – Chinese lantern competition for primary school children.

18:30 – 18:45 – Closing ceremony and fireworks display.

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The Hague :

The Chinese New Year festivities in The Hague will be held at the Stadhuis and The Hague’s Chinatown starting from 11:30 on Saturday 13 February, 2010.

11:30-12:00 – Opening ceremony with dragon and lion dances (Stadhuis).

12:00-12:45 – Performances by the Jiangsu Song and Dance Ensemble (Stadhuis)

12:45-13:15 – Dragon and lion dances make their way to The Hague’s Chinatown (Stadhuis and Chinatown).

14:00-17:00 – Performances by the Jiangsu Song and Dance Ensemble (Stadhuis)

17:00-18:00 – Fireworks and performances by residents and business owners of Chinatown (Chinatown)

Other events to watch out for are the Chinese Arts and Culture Market, which will be held next to the Bijenkorf from 12:00 to 18:00, as well as a variety of workshops and demonstrations in and around the Stadhuis and Chinatown.

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NOTE : The information above has been taken from the Chineseradio.NL and Chinesecultuur.NL websites and is subject to change. Details of the festivities in Amsterdam will be posted once they have become available.

Ten on Tuesday : 10 Things You’re Looking Forward to in 2010

In an effort to post regular updates on this blog, I’ve decided to take part in some weekly memes from now on. For today’s meme, I’ve chosen to take part in the Ten on Tuesday meme.

10 Things You’re Looking Forward to in 2010 :

1. Getting back in shape and losing some weight.
2. My 30th birthday (!)
3. A road trip through Europe with my partner.
4. Going back home to Gibraltar for a week or two in the summer (work permitting).
5. Taking up a new hobby or sport.
6. Attending the Anime Con in Almelo in May.
7. Geeking out at Iron Man 2 (I’m not even that big a fan of the comics)
8. Playing tour guide when my friends from home come over to visit.
9. Cute baby animals in the spring.
10. Becoming a better blogger.

What are you looking forward to this year?

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow…

This week has seen the first snowfall in the Netherlands this winter and it never ceases to amaze me how a few inches of snow can bring the country to a standstill. Travelling to and from work by train has been tiresome, to say the least, though I’m grateful I didn’t have as much trouble as a colleague of mine did. She spent *4* hours travelling home on Thursday (or was it Wednesday?) due to a complete meltdown at Utrecht Centraal.

On the plus side, I’ve finally finished my Christmas shopping (I almost forgot how much I hate doing it) and the house is all decorated and gezellig. My mother will be coming to stay with us for 10 days so I still have a long list of things I need to get done before she gets here. Christmas and stress seem to go hand in hand..

Restaurant Review – Restaurant Sake, Almere

Name : Restaurant Sake Almere

Location : Brouwerstraat 15, 1315 BL Almere (see MAP)

Type : All-You-Can-Eat Sushi & Teppanyaki Buffet

Prices : 19.80 euro per person (Mondays-Wednesdays), 22.80 euro per person (Thursdays-Sundays)

Opening Hours : 16:30 – 22:00

Contact : +31 681592252 (mobile)

Website : http://www.sake-almere.nl (Dutch only)

Rules : You have up to 2 hours to eat as much as you want. The staff will give you a form which lists all of the dishes available and shows 6 columns labelled as “Round 1”, “Round 2”, etc. You may select up to 5 dishes per person per round for a maximum of 6 rounds. Once you have finished making your selection for that round, a waiter will come to collect your form and the food will start arriving at your table within 15 minutes (it may take a little longer if the restaurant is particularly busy)

Dishes : The standard menu lists 52 different dishes, including a wide variety of nigiri sushi, maki sushi, grilled meats and vegetables, deep-fried foods, salads, noodles, rice and miso soup. You can also order salmon and tuna sashimi but you will need to pay a little extra for these (4.90 euro for tuna, 3.90 euro for salmon). The restaurant also serves a wide range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

Highly recommended : Salmon nigiri, octopus nigiri, hokkigai nigiri, teriyaki chicken, grilled salmon, mushroom kebab, gyoza, and the tuna/salmon sashimi (if you’re willing to pay a few euros extra).

Review : My partner and I visited the restaurant during its opening week and while I cannot vouch for the quality of the food and service a month later, we were both pleasantly surprised at the variety of food on offer and the excellent service from the extremely busy staff. The restaurant is owned by the same team who run the Kimono Almere restaurant (you can see my review of that restaurant here) but the food served at Sake Almere was far tastier, in my humble opinion.

My only warning would be to limit the number of deep-fried foods and meat dishes you order. Try to leave these for the later rounds as these can be very filling. It’s also a good idea to only order as much as you can eat as you will be charged for any food that is left uneaten : 1 euro per piece for sushi and 2 euro per piece for all other items.

We will be paying Sake Almere another visit next week to see if the food and service are still as good as they were the first time around. Watch this space.. [Author’s Note : The food was just as tasty the second time around!]

Note – Originally posted on my other blog, Eye on East Asia.

Five Things to Look Forward to in November 2009

1. Trip to Strasbourg – My partner and I will be spending a few days in the beautiful Alsace. We’ll be staying in a hotel in Strasbourg but we’ll also be exploring some of the nearby towns and villages.
2. My birthday – I’m turning 29 this year, so I’m not sure if this calls for a celebration or whether I should be mourning the fact I’m nearly 30…
3. The company Sinterklaas party – For some reason, my company usually holds its Sinterklaas party in late November. The event is primarily for the employees’ kids but the good Sint and his posse of Zwarte Pieten often make the rounds to give out chocolate letters to all of the staff.
4. The annual “Zwarte Piet” discussion – I work for an international company and there’s always someone who raises the issue of Zwarte Piet’s racist undertones in the lead-up to Sinterklaas. It’s only a matter of time before this sensitive topic is brought up and the department is once again divided on this issue.
5. The release of the Star Trek DVD – I’m a huge geek.

To all you bloggers out there who may be reading this, what five things do you have to look forward to this month?