Archive for 200829 results found.I want to donate some money.
Hippy and treehugger… that’s what I remember people being called when I first joined the Geography program at the University of Victoria. I guess that when you are studying about how the planet works or how the environment can affect how we live, you’re labeled as some sort of “alternative†person (i.e. freak like these mask we made in Bali?). I know the environmental movement has been going on … Read more → Mountain air rejuvenates the soul.
Here are a few photos from our trip to Maubisse. Most of the photos are from my digital camera or Muriel’s. I’ve taken some from my film camera, but I haven’t found a decent developer in Dili so I haven’t been able to develop my film. If you want to see sets of photos from my previous trips, you can check out my Facebook Gallery page. We rented a driver … Read more → Thanks, but I'll stick to eating chicken
This photo explains it all in Dili, or Timor-Leste for that matter – infrastructure in need of work, flashy UN trucks, sun and sand, and rising mountains in the distance. Outside of these Dili gates, the population decreases dramatically and things start to get calmer, almost tranquil if you don’t have to think about what the Timorese had to go through in the last 30 years.
There's more than meets the eye.
Had a chance to head to the countryside over the weekend… it is a whole new world out there. Dili is a nice place to hangout, but only for so long. After a month checking out the sites in the capital city, we rented a driver and car and headed out to Maubisse. We weren’t sure if taking my huge UNDP truck would have been worth it given that people … Read more → What's up Portugal??!
Did you know that over 90% of the people in Timor-Leste are Catholic? I guess after 400 years of Portuguese colonization, people pickup a few things. Religion, culture and language have definitely been affected by this 400-year rule. Even the local language of Tetun/Tetum has bits and pieces of Portuguese injected into it. According to a taxi driver I talked to last week, there is approximately 36 different … Read more → Learning more about Timor
About one week into my stay in Dili and I’ve found out some things: It’s very hot and dry Timor Leste, East Timor, Timor Lorosae
The flight was long. To be exact, it was 20 hours of flying, twice changing planes, and an overnight stay in Singapore. There were benefits… like enjoying a nice meal in front of a flat screen TV in business class. Approximately two days after taking off from Vancouver, I arrived in Dili, the capital of Timor Leste.
How important is Skytrain to you?
Urban transportation in Vancouver is a sensitive but important issue. There are still a lot of problems with the light-rail system in Vancouver, but overall it does a good job. To try to address deeper social and security issues with the system, Translink, Skytrain and other transport authorities in the city came together on Saturday for the Skytrian Unconference. The idea of the “un”conference is to bring the authorities together with … Read more → Can you blame me for not writing?
I guess the answer to that is “yes”… I’ve spent this summer in France and didn’t have access to internet for most of the time, and now I’m back in Canada job hunting. The summer was a blast but now it’s back to “reality”. 50 days in France and 21 days (and counting) in Canada… I guess I am lucky to be able to have this much time to be … Read more → Beautiful British Columbia
It’s been a little over a week since I came back to Vancouver… I’ve forgotten how beautiful it is. The sun is finally shining and the weather has been decent. I felt a bit cold for the first few days, but after spending some time exploring Granville Island and Steveston, I think I’m adjusting to the weather (although I still sleep with a toque at night!). Things certainly are … Read more → Five Ways to Survive Any Disaster
Information can save your life in the event of a disaster, according to a disaster researcher. Having the knowledge to plan, prepare, and, most importantly, react to a disaster can save your own life. People tend to react differently in a disaster, and our governments provide certain policies and guidelines on how to respond if a disaster strikes… like when I was growing up … Read more → Break beats and B-boys
One of the most interesting things I’ve seen in a while in Bangkok, La Fete is the annual French Cultural Festival in the City of Angels. The two performances I’ve seen so far have not been disappointing. Although there are usually hits and misses in any festival, the dance performances have mostly been surprisingly good. Hip Hop is growing in Asia and the focus of Hip … Read more → It's good to have options… be ready for headaches
I’m going to miss elephants on the street just outside my apartment when I head back to Canada in July. There’s still a chance of coming back to Bangkok, but that’s really up to me and what I want in the future. I’ve been getting people’s advice and … Read more → Time to move on…
Monday was my last day working at the newspaper. 2 years goes by quickly… the experience was great… challenging at times, but rewarding nonetheless. Although this is my second time around in Thailand, I still had the chance to see new things, pick … Read more → Chinese resentment, Emily Carr, Eco Bounty Hunter…
Here are a few things I’ve been reading that might be interesting in a topsy-turvy world… Resentment follows Chinese violence in Seoul China on Tuesday defended the right of Chinese students in South Korea to protect the Olympic torch, amid a brewing diplomatic row after protesters clashed during the flame’s journey in Seoul. … Public anger is growing over Sunday’s … Read more → Happiness isn't a figment of someone's imagination
Songkran, the annual water festival and new year’s celebration in Thailand, was a little low key for me this year. I think most people who’ve spent enough time in Thailand understand that you can either join the festivities or run away… there’s no in between. This year was a run-away year for me. No water splashing, no crowded locations… just a … Read more → Separating fiction from reality…
I found it quite interesting that we accept things so easily without ever being too critical about where we get our information. We shouldn’t be too nit-picky about everything we hear or see (although I have to admit that I’m just a tad more critical than the average person which does get me in a pickle once in a while). But, then again, it’s good to know the “truth” whereever that may be. … Read more → What did you do this week?
It’s been a pretty busy week… mostly to do with climate change and the environment. Did you participate in Earth Hour? The global campaign to turn off anything electric for one hour, yes that’s right, only one hour…. could you do it? did you do it? I hope you didn’t make any excuses. My friends and I ended up sitting in the dark (well, we did light some candles) for almost 3 hours eating our spaghetti … Read more → Lazy week in Laos
Did you know that the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos is one of the poorest and most isolated places in the weird, and more sadly the most heavily bombed country in … Read more → OCHA ROAP Map Atlas
As part of an ongoing project on Natural Hazard Risk for UNOCHA’s regional office in Asia and the Pacific, after analyzing and producing a hazard risk map for each country in the region, the final accumulation was to produce a publication. This was the cover I designed using Wordle. The rest of the publication was also prepared using Adobe InDesign. The publication was not produced as far as I know since … Read more → Google Map of Natural Hazard Risk
As part of an ongoing project on mapping hazard risk with the Asia and Pacific Regional Office of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), I helped to develop this interactive Google Map to highlight the risk data the office was collecting and processing. This included hazard risk data developed by UNOCHA, earthquake locations, tsunami prone areas, historical storm patterns, and the location of the offices in … Read more → Idle time is reality's way of saying "hello"
A couple of interesting articles I came across that makes reality seem like a dream. Ever wonder what it’s like driving in Asia? Have a read through this article about what tourists need to know about driving in China during the Beijing Olympics this August. I would think all the driving rules and … Read more → Death unexpected
Who knew that death would have such an effect. I’ve only Nic in passing, via emails and by name. Yet, his recent death took me totally by surprise and had a definite effect on my being. It makes me realize how short life is and how unexpected everything can be. I can’t guess how his parents and family must be be feeling right now, but I certainly am in a state of shock, sadness, confusion, … Read more → Police: Protect us(?)
According to a news story, police in Thailand can receive over 35% of the value of drugs in cash rewards if they make a successful drug arrest. Am I crazy, or does providing … Read more → Silver Republic
When I was living in Bangkok, I was approached to develop concepts for a logo for local jewellery business. The ideas was to showcase the brand of the company and at the same time make sure that there was reference to the Thai nature of the operation. These were four concepts developed, but they were never used as the company underwent restructuring. Chai Chai… Kopi… ChaiI haven’t had a chance to sit down in front of a computer to write down all the adventures I’ve been having recently. Here’s a run-down: New Year’s celebration: quiet and relaxed My eyes are buggin' out!
Geez… answering emails is hard-work! Who would’ve thought my Saturday afternoon would be consumed by looking through and answering emails. I have … Read more → OCHA ROAP Website
Part of my consulting work with the Asia and the Pacfic regional office of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs was to help to improve their website usability and functionality. Since the basic OCHA website architecture was based on the DotNetNuke content management system, updating the website with the amount of map products the office produced was a time consuming task. In addition, the website only had … Read more → Transitions, Trangressions and Transportation
Can you believe it’s already 2008? Are you prepared for a new year filled with unexpected surprises? For me, I’m looking forward to a brand spankin’ new year. Now that my university is finally over (I still haven’t received official confirmation yet though), and I have only 5 more months of work, I’m kinda getting excited (and a little nervous) about my next step. Where should I go… what should I do? It’ll be an interesting … Read more → |
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