Thursday, August 30, 2007
Never Visit This Place
Never visit this place
Every business must have a selling point – a reason a customer chooses the service or good. The same applies to hotels. For a place to lay your head, Tokyo offers little cells to sleep in. France has automatic credit-card check-in joints for the simple and budget-conscious travelers. Inner-city luxury hotels with in-room Jacuzzis whet the appetites of the over-night romantic splurgers… et cetera.
One could imagine that in a rustic, converted farm manor such as Sonnerupgaard Gods that the main point of paying exorbitant prices for a hostel-style (re: shared bathroom facilities) bed and breakfast would be to ‘get away from it all’. Thus, the smell of cow dung, heavy on the air (interestingly, there was not a single farm animal to be seen – only a few ducks); the mosquitoes; the lack of internet facilities, and the curt manner of the staff would only add to the charm of the place.
However, if after 11 p.m., the walls and floors start shaking and the sound of exceedingly loud and tacky disco-pop start floating into your room, one begins to wonder why one drove out 3 hours from Copenhagen to find this place, surrounded by peaceful hills. Does this not defeat the purpose of the stay? So, a peaceful, relaxing night of rest did not materialize until 4 a.m. And a rude awakening followed shortly after seven with the sound of hung-over (or not yet slumbered) party guests of the previous night) shouting in the hallways as they prepare for breakfast.
I would have gained free-entrance into a nightclub (and perhaps even a complimentary drink), heard the same music, slept at the same time, picked up a wireless connection, and avoided a few mosquito bites. I also imagine they would have a more talented DJ that could at least mix records seamlessly. The only thing in common between a night at Sonnerupgaard and a nightclub would have been the smell of shit.
fon @ 4:53 PM link to post * *
Monday, August 27, 2007
Haikea olo = nostalgic feeling
Some messages I got over last night and this morning:
"... thanks for the awesome party. Cheers ya. :)"
"Kiitos juhlista! Nyt vähän haikea mieli mutta uudet tuulet odottavat. Oli ihana kesä sun kanssa." "Thank-you for the party! Now a little nostalgic, but new winds are waiting. It was a lovely summer with you"
"Hey babe, I wanted to apologize again for this riehuminen [mucking about] yesterday. I'm so sorry I made you cry in your party and gave you a black eye! I'm a pain in the ass when I'm that drunk...."
(Just to clarify, I didn't get into a fight, and nobody really gave me a black eye ... We were just trying out some complicated dance-moves and I ended up hitting my eye on the corner of a chair ... and it's not really black... more like red - someone also ended up also almost losing a diamond ring as a result!)
I had a little bit of a "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to" situation at the party, and I'm so glad all the girls (and one certain 'gentleman') were there to make me feel loved, and got me back partying in moments!
I'm going to miss everyone soooo much after this summer!
Other than that, there's been a few nights of various activities, as you'll see from the photos:
High-so and Hobos theme farewell party:
http://monashedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=20349&l=a65b6&id=533997463
Last days of misbehaviour:
http://monashedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=20357&l=a6899&id=533997463
I STILL haven't packed. Maybe it's about time now.
fon @ 10:27 PM link to post * *
Friday, August 24, 2007
The difference set in rain
The rain outside is falling so hard that I feel it contains a note. In fact, I'm sitting up and humming it now. What a fabulous way to wake today! The note is not on any scale, and can't be juxtaposed to any other, yet it's many notes at the same time. See, if told you it was an F#, that would immediately place it within the context of a western tonal system, and you might think that it's a member of a minor chord, with a D# and A# accompanying it with full melancholy on either side.
But it's not. It's just a note. It's every note on a spectrum of sounds. The sound of rain falling is the same in Indonesia, but one may find a hundred notes to describe it, beaten out in a gamelan orchestra, whilst a master of strings in Japan plucks out a note that slowly vibratoes on the biwa.
In India, the sustained and fluctuating alap finds many notes in one breath of the nadaswaram, and the African thumb piano makes single plinks and ploinks and is sometimes an entire choir of high and low voices on its own.
Yet, no matter how we all hear the rain, it's an unmistakable sound, and it sounds exactly the same to every listener. The rain has subsided now, to a distant murmer, and I wake up thinking that today we'll forget the differences we ourselves carved into the unwitting rain.
fon @ 11:15 AM link to post * *
Monday, August 20, 2007
Ajo-ohjeet Sipooseen
Vassvikintie 41
Paikkamme on 60 astetta 14.111 minuuttia pohjoiseen päiväntasaajasta ja 25 astetta 27.128 minuuttia itään Greenwichistä.
Se on 50 km (linnuntietä 25 km) Helsingin rautatieasemalta, Etelä Sipoossa, Fortumin öljynjalostamosta n. 7 kilometriä etelä-lounaaseen Kitön ja Löparön välisessä salmessa Kitön puolella. Tie (Vassvikintie) kääntyy meille vasemmalle puoli kilometriä ennen salmessa olevaa siltaa jossa asfalttitie loppuu. Puhelin 09 8767043.
Maanteitse Helsingistä: (Eniron linkki Aleksanterinkadulta)
http://kartat.eniro.fi/query?what=route&rform=1&lang=&fname=&fzip=&fx=&fy=&tname=&tzip=&tx=&ty=&turnaround=0&mapstate=1%3B0.0000%3B0.0000%3B0%3B0.0000%3B0.0000%3B0.0000%3B0.0000%3B&ax=&fstreet=Aleksanterinkatu&fnr=2&fcity=Helsinki&tstreet=VASSVIKINTIE&tnr=41&
Mahdollisesti joudut kirjoittamaan osoitekenttään VASSVIKINTIE 41, 06880 KÄRRBY
Paikallisempi karttaviite on seuraava web-linkki: http://www.sipoo.fi/kartat/map.html?xo=2580586&yo=6681318&skx=2580586&sky=6681318&sr=4000&uusi=4000&teksti=Seppo+%26+Nuanwan&data=kartta&shaku=sipoo (Tämä kartta kun olet jo lähellä)
tai seuraavien ohjeitten mukaan:
1. Helsingistä Porvoon moottoritietä 30 km. Keltaiset viivat puutuvat tiestä kokonaan.
2. Sipoonlahden kaarevan sillan jälkeen pari kilometriä ja liittymä no. 57 osoitaa ulos suuntaan > ’Kalkkiranta’ / Kalkstrand; ’Söderkulla’. Ylitä moottoritie, sitten tietä 1533 vasemmalle ja jatka oikealle rinnakkaistiellä no. 170, Porvoon suuntaan. (Ei Kalkkirantaan oikealle, eikä Söderkullan suuntaan vasemmalle. Vaan > 'Porvoo').
3. Vain kaksi kilometriä itään tietä 170 (’Porvoo’) sitten suunta: > 'Spjutsund' 'Nevas' Boxissa, jossa risteyksessä Shell. Spjutsundintien numero on 1534.
4. +Yhdeksän kilometriä mutkia mutta hyvätasoista asfalttitietä. Tiessä on kaksi keltaista keskiviivaa ja laitaviivat.
5. >’Kitas’ (oikealle). Tiessä on vain laitaviivat osoitamassa ojan alkua.
6. +Yksi kilometri > ’Kitö’ (vasemmalle). Tiessä on vain keskiviiva.
7. +Viisi kilometriä > ’Vassvikintie’ (vasemmalle). Aja keskellä tietä - viivat puuttuvat kokonaan!
8. +410 metriä ja > 41 (oikealle)
9. +300 metriä vasemmalle kaartaen, ohi 39n ja olet perillä
Tervetuloa
PS Pohjoisesta (Lahti, Nikkilä ym.) ja idästä on suositeltavaa ajaa Nesteeen jalostamon kautta. Eniron linkki ohjaa, kuten tämäkin:
Kun yleinen tie päättyy jalostamoalueella, seuraa suuntaa Svartbäck . Runsas kilometri jalostamolta, (alamäessä kapeneva mutta asfalttinen) tie menee sitten maatalon pihapiirin läpi; toinen pitkä kilometri siitä ja mennään Svartbäckin puukirkon editse. Pian tullaan T-risteykseen ja (kolmion takaa isommalle) Spjutsundintielle. Siinä käännös oikeaan ja 300 metrin (puun sahauspaikan) jälkeen vasempaan, punaisen seurojentalon, eli ’Byarsborgin’ editse. Tässä vaiheessa (pihan kautta oikaisten) liitytään ylläolevan ohjeen kohtaan 5 - 6.
fon @ 10:36 PM link to post * *
7 full days to go! (and my route to Groningen)
How fast has this summer passed by? So much has happened behind all those fun photos I've posted (don't want to shock any readers by revealing all!). As they say, every picture is worth a thousand words, and I've taken a thousand photos this summer!
But I've got one week left! It's really just begun to hit me that I really just gotta thank all my friends, and my parents for this awesome summer (which isn't over until the very last of my hungover guests leave on Monday the 27th!)
So, anyhow, I'm going to Turku on the 28th, and from there, my parents are driving me down to Denmark, and then to Holland. We might be making a day-trip into Belgium or something. Heard some rumour about that. Dunno.
But when winter break comes, I want to do a eastern block tour before I (hopefully) go to Spain for my second semester. Anyone up for that? Care to join?
So the idea is to delay freezing my ass off for as long as possible until hitting Finland in the middle of winter (just to remind myself that the human is, indeed, capable of some pretty amazing feats!). Nothing is set in stone at all, other than the line in red. That's my trip to Holland. I'm driving down there with my parents, so they may keep with the programme. The loop at the end of the red journey is because I'm going to Groningen first, then to Bochum, then back to Groningen.
fon @ 3:47 PM link to post * *
What's in a weekend?
Things you must do for a perfect weekend:
1. Check out this link (because all the bloody pictures are the wrong way around)
http://monashedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=19206&l=cc472&id=533997463
2. Attend flow festival next year (in Helsinki, of course!)
3. Compliment me on my new sunglasses
4. Juggle many drinks at the same time
5. Book airplane tickets online in a totally foreign language (I did it in Latvian for Alex today!)
6. Drink juice on the roof of a church
7. Make out with a girl (especially if you are a girl!)
8. Have a 'vodkabröd'
9. Get a plastic pink kinder convertible
and last but not least:
10. Congratulate Mimo and Antti on their 2nd wedding anniversary!!
fon @ 7:05 AM link to post * *
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Ouch, it is beginning to hurt...
So... I broke up with Sid. And I didn't feel anything at first. And now I just feel shitty about it. But at the end of the day, I can't really be in a relationship for another, can I?
At least that's what Kangana told me.
But I can't help feeling a bit ... a lot ... nostalgic. But it's a good thing I've got good friends here who are always there for me. Especially the girls. I love the girls. You make my life happier, Mimosa, Emma, Kirsti. You fill my heart with little kisses, and my god, you know how to be gentle!
Thank-you for reminding me what it is like to truly care about people.
I love you!
Click here for more photos
fon @ 6:17 PM link to post * *
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Done.
This has really been a week of honesty for me.... my second to last blog spoke of the nature of lies, and I mentioned that the kind of lie I'm most guilty of is the kind where I'm saying things because I think that's what the person would like to hear.
Well, today was another moment of dispelling such behaviour and hopefully becoming a more genuine person. I broke up with Sid. I no longer feel like I'm in a relationship with him because that's what he wants. I feel that now, as a friend, I can finally be myself with him.
It's strange. I got in touch with my old friend, Kangana, after many many years, and she has recently broken up with a boyfriend of 8 years. I said that it'll take forever to get over the relationship, to which she replied that, no - in fact, for the last few years, she was only in the relationship for him, and had lost the desire to share everything with him first. That he just wouldn't grow up.
I guess that means something like all the things that disturbed her about the relationship just never got better. Or perhaps I'm just interpreting it the way that I'm seeing my situation right now.
In any case, I believe I'm through with telling people what they want to hear. I'm sick of misunderstandings and mishaps. I've discovered that trying to hard to please people may prolong relationships with people, but is more likely to lead to sad endings when one hasn't really been telling it to people straight.
The road may be more bumpy now, but at least it's not a winding road that leads to a dead end.
fon @ 11:32 PM link to post * *
Misunderstandings and mishaps
After getting off to a start on the wrong foot, I'm glad to say that Alex and I are once again best of friends! Better earlier than later, huh? At one stage, I spent a full 24 hours trying to avoid him (Aleksi's couch is very comfy), but when I got home, we finally had a discussion that cleared all the clouds that had gathered since about four months ago in Australia. Hurrah for that (And THANKS ILPO!!).
Some photos (please do click on the links):
Alex's first day in Finland
Saturday picnic at the beach, and a Saturday night and Sunday of avoidance
Sunday was awesome, though - I saw the kids I used to look after 6 years ago! They are now 7 and 9 year olds! How awesome is that? I'm really glad I got to see them.... and I'd like to continue to do so in the future, too! After that, I hung out in a small park, where a Jone had organised a DJ-booth and some games for his birthday party, then spent a couple hours back at Aleksi's place before finally heading home before midnight. But going home was definitely worth it, even though I dreaded it all day. I hadn't expected things to take a positive turn like that. Apology accepted... and sorry Alex *hugs*.
The one person I'd really like to talk to now is my Daeshious. But he's too busy for lil' ol' me :(
Or reply to messages... I wonder how long we can actually go on like this?
fon @ 2:20 PM link to post * *
Thursday, August 09, 2007
must must must must must and a philosophical waxing
It isn't that there is nothing going on at the moment. There's plenty going on (those who stalk me on facebook would know that).
I just finished reading the most beautiful book, called "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night" by Mark Haddon. It's written from the point of view of an autistic teenager. But that's not really the point. The book explores the nature of lies, and asks "When is it ok to lie?" and whilst it doesn't particularly provide an answer, it explores the nature of lies and their effects (both positive and negative) on peoples' lives and feelings - all through the eyes of a boy who cannot technically lie, but has no understanding of the 'text between the lines'
It's really made me reflect on my own life somewhat. There are many 'white lies' that I've told. The book reflects at length on white lies, too. What is a white lie? There are times when you know you aren't lying, but you also know that you are intentionally concealing the truth when it would be better to reveal it.
Then there are the lies that you tell because you want to please people. The book doesn't really talk about that - but that's what I'm most guilty of. Telling people what I think they want to hear, because I don't want to upset them. And then I end up going to great lengths to make what it is that I lied about a truth. ie, "Can the chef please make my dish with only one potato, and the rest vegetables, and change the sauce on the dish to the mole sauce, which he should put to the side? Oh and less cream if at all possible." me: "Not a problem at all!"
Later, chef: "WHAT THE F****???"
But this doesn't apply only to work. It applies to personal relations, too. Don't we all prefer to cater to what people would like to hear. I think we must do it to a large extent. I spent a recent time telling someone something that person didn't want to hear, and it only confused the person intensely. We tend to expect certain outcomes, and it's difficult to realise outcomes aren't as expected, but that through the barricade, there's another possible path, one that could be better, worse, happier, grayer... anything!
Viva la sorpresa en la vida, I say!
fon @ 2:12 PM link to post * *
Monday, August 06, 2007
crawly dream
I'm working somewhere, and I can't find anything anywhere, and I forget the place is closed keep offering customers drinks... very frustrating...
I'm trying to change around settings and nothing is working out.
But the worst is these two insects, little black things, that crawl into a pot on a flame. They don't like the hot water, so they crawl out, but they grow bigger as I stand there trying to get rid of them. They crawl into the fire and now they look like two huge, cockroaches, except they are slimy and they survive the fire, and they crawl all over me.
**wake** I'm feeling itchy and creeped out. Can't get back to sleep for a while. Need water.
I go back to sleep and next time I wake up, my mouth is tingly... I never knew mouth muscles could fall asleep!
My mother and father had some lovely guests over last night :) Had a nice long day on the terrace, enjoyed a few bottles of wine, including a Thai mangosteen wine! Lots of drunken bugs by then end of the day - maybe that's why I dreamed of insects?
The usual suspects:
Photos of friends and good times in Helsinki
Photos of my little darlings playing in Bangkok
fon @ 1:39 PM link to post * *
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
arzel
The gloomy nature of relationships, was the hot topic of today's conversation. Arzel just got back from the Philippines yesterday, and so I caught up with him today, and somehow we started philosophising over beer, just like in the good old days.
It seems that what is needed for two people to remain in a genuinely working relationship is a degree of repulsion. We came to the conclusion that in order for a relationship to work, there needs to be that need to dominate somewhere in the mix - that 'I wish I could change him/her' element. Point is, when you are attracted to someone, part of what attracts is the flaws, or those things that make one feel insecure. So after a while, you try to eliminate those things that make you feel uncomfortable. And once that person is 'just right', they just aren't so exciting anymore, and the mind wonders elsewhere in search of the next 'conquest'. There's been too much gravitation towards each other. Boom. Blast. Nothing.
On the other hand, sometimes there's too much push, and people just drift apart, not really caring about the other that much, other than on the rare occasions when there's some spark.
Maybe that's why so many people of this generation are a bunch of 'degenerate nymphos' :P. Or are we?
The analogy that we came up with was protons and neutrons, with the relationship being the nucleus. There needs to be just the right amount of push and pull, positive and negative. Too much, and you get a relationship that explodes and dies (ie, like the atom bomb), and too little, and you get an atom that just doesn't hold together. Bye bye atom. Ciao relationship. Peripheral meetings?
Maybe that's why I tend to be on the restless side in my relationships. I'm too much of a control freak who just wants things my way. That doesn't bode well in love, now does it?
fon @ 4:57 AM link to post * *