Back into Shape!

Last weeks annual visit to hospital for the mandatory health check was certainly pause for thought. It was more the fact that it made me pull out last years test and compare. Initial signs were good, over the four years my blood pressure is the best it has ever been, finally no worries there! Unfortunately, despite moderate levels of exercise my weight has increased somewhat.

Therefore, from June 1st i am on mission "Get Back Into Shape". I'm always reluctant to go on diets and will refrain from doing so as i know i will not keep to any strict diet. However, the snacks are out and the fruit and vegetables are firmly in and my exercise regime has now doubled in intensity. I'm not looking for fast results. My aim is to steadily decrease until a level i am happy with by the end of the year.

Watch this space! Updates will come monthly!

Our Trip To Hualien (May 28-30)

With the four day holiday George and I decided to head to Hualien for a few days to get away from the rather overwhelming city life of Taipei. So on Wednesday night we got some takeaway pizza, drinks and a movie and settled in to start our holiday, what a great start it was! We had to get up at 6 to catch the train by 7:30 which we just managed to do in time. Then we were all set for Hualien. By the time we arrived it was 11:00 and we bumped into Matt Adam, Rene and George who also had the same idea as we had. So we had lunch together, rented a scooter and found our hotel.

When we got to our hotel it was raining and we were exhausted so we had a lazy afternoon until the evening where we met Georges' army friend at the bay side area. We looked around the night market and chatted. The latter half of the evening was spent drinking beer and relaxing.

We got up early the next day and headed to the beach. It was great there and we just hung out taking in some of the fresh air and sun. We had lunch at a nice place which boasted a selection of goat milk products. It was a great restaurant and right on the sea front. Beautiful! Then we drove to Taroko National Park. I've always liked it there and this time didn't fail to impress either. We took the famous trail in search of the elusive 'Cave of Water Curtain'. I assumed it was a waterfall, although we came across many apparently none were the great cave of water curtain. We had to head back early as it was getting dark. So we headed back into town for dinner.

We lined up two hours, that's right, two hours for the famous oyster omelet. It was good but hardly worth the wait, what is? Then we met Matt and Adam for some drinks in a local bar. The live band was quite good pumping out some rock classics but i was exhausted and we decided to call it a night quite early.

The next day we planned to go to Ocean Park, however, we got up too late and decided to take it easy instead. We headed to a brunch place called Country Mother and had a great brunch there. For there we headed to Carp Lake where we decided to rent a pedalo and paddle around the lake. It was tough going in the heat and we both later regretted our rash decision. By then it was almost time to catch our train so we headed back into town to get some famous Wontons and then on the train back home.

Saturday night was spent at Noah's faying farewell to Anji. It was a great way to end what was a fantastic holiday. I just wish it was longer! Great scenery, great food and drink, great company, great holiday!!

Nouvelle Vague: 'Nouvelle Vague' and 'Bande A Part'

The idea of post-punk classics performed in traditional Brazilian bossa nova/lounge style appears, at first look, a joke at best. This is reinforced by the fact that every classic appears to have been interpreted into this style with wrist-slitting effects! However, Nouvelle Vague, transform these songs transcending any ironic detachment to create something altogether different. These two albums can certainly be viewed as part A and B of one album. They are both well executed, sophisticated, acoustic chansons with the flowery acoustic arrangements and French angelic vocals mesh well with the Latin rhythms. Admittedly, some would never want to hear these classic songs tampered with and I would usually be a strong advocate from this corner. Indeed, a number of songs on here miss the mark entirely. However, songs such as Don’t go are reworked into something unrecognizable, whereas ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ and ‘Blue Monday’ are truly excellent interpretations. Highly recommended.

Plagarism?

Is there any musician left who doesn’t think Coldplay’s Viva La Vida sounds like one of their old tracks? First Joe Stariani, then Enanitos Verdes, now Yusuf Islam is jumping on the bandwagon. Comparing them it would seem the contention is about a 10 note riff that are all different but structurally the same. They all use the same time signature and diatonic chord progression which is in itself a common descending melodic figure. If you were going to apply the same judgment then most jazz standards would be guilty; Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley should have sued through the roof! This riff, like others, have become recognisable phrases in the contemporary pop vernacular. Similarities? Yes! Plagiarism? No! Anyway, here are the songs, judge for yourself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=De3lvudmOAw

Royksopp 'Junior'

Getting an album out of these guys is a painstaking affair at best, torturous as their potential is so high. A mere three albums in the past 8 years. ’Melody A.M’, was a stroke of genius; their follow-up, ‘The Understanding’ was very much a letdown in my opinion. Therefore, this was their make-or-break album for me, and they hit the nail firmly on the head. Their sound has clearly developed and fused the best elements of the past previous albums; namely the laid back ambient feel with more upbeat dance beats. They made good use of quest vocals, my only criticism is maybe they venture too far down that road in an attempt to commercialize their music? They have retained their irreverent playful side but the whole project appears to have a more mature feel to it. There are some real cheesy moments here, what else can be expected from a Norwegian band? However, skips those and focus on the tracks which more than make up for their misguided voyage into that embarrassing world of Euro pop. Their music appears simple but dig deeper and you will hear detailed layers but you have to actually listen to the music! Don’t be fooled into thinking this can be used simply to create a chilled background ambience. Apparently this is part one of its complementary twin ‘Senior’ which will be released later in the year. If this album is anything to go by, then we should be waiting with great anticipation for its big brother to arrive.

You have to love this!

'Etiquette guide' for Thai monks

It is customary for Thai men to enter the monkhood for training at least once. A Buddhist preacher in Thailand has announced plans for new guidelines aimed at curbing the flamboyant behaviour of gay and transgender monks. The "good manners" curriculum - the country's first - is being introduced in the northern province of Chiang Rai. The senior monk told the BBC he was particularly concerned by effeminate activities among novices such as the wearing of make-up and tight robes. More than 90% of the Thai population are followers of Buddhism.
The BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok says tales of monks behaving badly are nothing new in Thailand. In recent years, they have been accused of abuses of their exalted position in society that range from amassing dozens of luxury cars, to running fake amulet scams, to violating their vows of celibacy, our correspondent says. Senior monk Phra Maha Wudhijaya Vajiramedhi told the BBC he would address issues like smoking, drinking alcohol, walking and going to the toilet properly, which are all detailed in the traditional 75 Dharma principles of Buddhism, and the 227 precepts for monks.

He was especially concerned, he said, by the flamboyant behaviour of gay and transgender monks, who can often be seen wearing revealingly tight robes, carrying pink purses and having effeminately-shaped eyebrows. Thailand has a very large and visible population of transgender men, and Phra Vajiramedhi acknowledged that it was difficult to exclude them from the monkhood but he hoped his course could at least persuade them to curb their more extrovert habits. If successful, the "good manners" course, at the Novice Demonstration School, would be replicated at other Buddhist monasteries and seminaries, he said.

Taiwan accepted into WHO meeting

Taiwan received the invitation from the WHO's director-general. Officials in Taiwan say China has dropped its objections to the island's participation in a key United Nations body, the World Health Organization. The move is being seen as a sign of better ties between the governments.
Health Minister Yeh Chin-chuan said the WHO had invited Taiwan to attend its annual assembly as an observer, with the name Chinese Taipei. Taiwan has repeatedly attempted to join the assembly since 1997, but past attempts have been thwarted by Beijing. But relations between the two sides have warmed rapidly since the government of President Ma Ying-jeou took office in Taiwan last year. The announcement that Taiwan has been invited to the World Health Assembly, the WHO's supreme governing body, was made by officials from both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Taiwan was pushed out of the WHO in 1972, a year after losing the "China" seat in the United Nations to Beijing. It has campaigned repeatedly to rejoin the assembly, especially after the Sars epidemic in 2003, but China has always blocked the island's efforts to join any international body as an independent political entity. Chinese officials portray this recent change of stance as a goodwill gesture to the needs of the Taiwanese people, and President Ma Ying-jeou welcomed the news saying his pragmatic cross-strait policies have born fruit.