Sad…

Today when I got home, I found a handwritten envelope. At first I was glad to receive something else than the usual “window envelopes” (with preprinted name + address). Then I noticed the envelope had a gray border. Someone passed on. It turned out it was the father of my friend that I went to high school with, and the only one I still keep in touch with, even though he lives in England. And I’d been trying to call him since Wednesday! No wonder no one picked up…

Even though one of my uncles passed away in December, somehow this one feels so much closer, because it’s my classmate who is the same age as me. So it feels like it could happen to me, too (i.e. my father passing on). Of course, I know it will inevitably happen, but still… Even though my friend’s father was 9 years older than mine, and about the same age as that uncle, still there are no comforting certainties in life. Only that it is bound to happen.

Hospitality Club

Had a great evening with people I never met before(*), members of the Hospitality Club, an international club of people who love travelling and meeting other people and cultures. Members can provide accommodation, or even just meet the travellers and show them around in their city. And membership is free!

Anyway, a few members who live in Delft had organized a dinner, where everyone would cook part of it, like the starter, the main course, or the desert. With 8 people (a few couples and a few singles) this worked out perfectly to form a splendid 4-course dinner (2 main courses ), and the atmosphere was absolutely fantastic: as if we had known each other for years! All this while the club has only existed for 3.5 years.

So I’m pretty sure I’ll sign up, even though I don’t usually travel to places I’ve never been to without knowing someone there already. I might in the future…

Day out in Amsterdam

Went to the Concertgebouw with a friend, to listen to a special Beethoven concert given by Christian Zacharias.
It was special in a few ways:
1) The pianist was multi-tasking as a conductor, in Beethoven’s first piano concerto.
2) The second piece was Beethoven’s most well-known melody (Fifth Symphony), but with a completely new instrumentation, including a box of rocks, and a large metal sheet (!)
3) After the concert, he signed CDs, a chance which of course I couldn’t let go, especially because the CDs cost only 5 Euros. I scanned in the cover, but keep forgetting to upload it… Oh, well…

Afterwards, we (finally) went to A-Fusion, where we had Bubble Tea and dinner , which I wrote about recently. FINALLY! Well, the bubble tea was awesome! The bubbles really nice and soft, the drink a mango milk-tea delicious…
The food was also quite nice: “rice cake” (something like rice sticks: kwe-tiao, but thicker), with delicious stir-fried veggies, chicken, and seafood.

Afterwards we wanted to go and see a movie, but we had just missed a few funny or good ones (Meet the Fockers, Mar Adentro) which started just before 19:00, so we went back to Delft instead…

Happy Chinese New Year

Just like last year, it’s Chinese New Year again, so Happy Chinese New Year! This year (4702 or 2556, depending on which calendar you’re using) will be the year of the Rooster.

According to the Hong Kong wall calendar I have, the celebrations last for 3 days (9-11 Feb), but during the whole month of February, there will be celebrations all over Holland, e.g. as organized by HuaYi youth association.

IFFR pt. 2 & 3

A week late (but better late than never, right?) parts 2 and 3 of the Rotterdam Film Festival:
On Wednesday I saw Electric Shadows, a Chinese emotional story about a family of movie fans. The Chinese friend I was with, said she recognized a lot of the Chinese “cruelty against daughters”.

On Saturday I saw Chasing the Sun, and Indonesian movie about four close friends who grow up and lose their naive belief in friendship / love / fidelity etc. Really not a bad movie for people who never had any formal education in acting, although some scenes really resembled soap operas too much. Still, it was nice to have seen it, and recognize a lot of aspects from Indonesian culture.

IFFR pt. 2 & 3

A week late (but better late than never, right?) parts 2 and 3 of the Rotterdam Film Festival:
On Wednesday I saw Electric Shadows, a Chinese emotional story about a family of movie fans. The Chinese friend I was with, said she recognized a lot of the Chinese “cruelty against daughters”.

On Saturday I saw Chasing the Sun, and Indonesian movie about four close friends who grow up and lose their naive belief in friendship / love / fidelity etc. Really not a bad movie for people who never had any formal education in acting, although some scenes really resembled soap operas too much. Still, it was nice to have seen it, and recognize a lot of aspects from Indonesian culture.

IFFR pt. 2 & 3

A week late (but better late than never, right?) parts 2 and 3 of the Rotterdam Film Festival:
On Wednesday I saw Electric Shadows, a Chinese emotional story about a family of movie fans. The Chinese friend I was with, said she recognized a lot of the Chinese “cruelty against daughters”.

On Saturday I saw Chasing the Sun, and Indonesian movie about four close friends who grow up and lose their naive belief in friendship / love / fidelity etc. Really not a bad movie for people who never had any formal education in acting, although some scenes really resembled soap operas too much. Still, it was nice to have seen it, and recognize a lot of aspects from Indonesian culture.