In November, 2009 I went to Ai Weiwei’s exhibit So Sorry at Haus der Kunst in Munich, Germany. Ai Weiwei took over the museum, transforming both the front façade (covered in cheap, mass produced backpacks that formed large, graphic characters spelling out the phrase, “for seven years she lived happily on this earth,” a phrase one mother used to commemorate her daughter who died in the Sechuan Earthquake) and the rear (fitting ancient Chinese urns on the ends of bamboo poles that were snugged in between the columns of the museum’s colonnade). Entering the actual exhibit space, one is first confronted by a large spiraling structure of traditional and ancient wooden screen doors, industrially collaged via iron rivets and bars. The piece gives one the feel of witnessing the emergence of a black hole into which the regime of the ancient is being sucked and torn. Before the door into the actual exhibition space, were posted large format news articles testifying to Ai Weiwei’s explicit political nature when it comes to his art. I perused but was more interested in the art behind the next portico. The political motifs were apparent.

Ai Weiwei, Map of China, 2004, Tieli wood from dismantled temples of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), h. 51cm, 200cm, © FAKE Studio

The first cluster within the inner gallery were maps, of a sort, carved from centuries old temple beams. ‘Maps of China,” as the name suggests are all shapes that on one plane resemble the geographical contours of China. However, this view, the one we are most accustomed to is always the last one to be noticed, instead Weiwei chose to present the viewer with a different plane of perception, giving new, albeit based on the geographical, dimensionality to the traditional form of spatial delineation, the nation.

The second room, the largest of the exhibition spaces in Haus der Kunst, contained three works by Weiwei: Soft Ground, Rooted Upon, and images from his groundbreaking Documenta piece, Fairytale. A hall of ancient trees, devoid of moisture placed on wool tiles that mimicked the marble tiles of the museum floort but had no sheen, rather, they absorbed light and sound. It was a silent, lifeless forest turned upside down. On all four walls surrounding the gnarled space were images of the 1001 Chinese men and women Weiwei had brought to Kassel as part of his piece Fairytales for the Documenta exhibition. The prints were almost life-size — all of the people in the images, which were now images and they stared point-blank across the space, through the lifeless forest turned upside-down at the images opposite. Images stare at images, objects gaze at objects in dead-space from sacred places.

Ai Weiwei, Soft Ground, 2009. Wool, 3560 x 1060 cm © Ai Weiwei; and Rooted upon, 2009, 100 pieces of tree trunks, 640 x 3500 x 1100 cm © Ai Weiwei; and Fairytale, 2007, 1001 Chinese visitors. Wallpaper from digital photographs © Ai Weiwei. Installed in Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany 2009

So what is the difference here? How do we move from sacred spaces to sacred places and what exactly is the distinction between these two concepts? Spaces are transitory and vacuous; they are delimited. Places are predicated upon relation, they are defined by there limits. Michel de Certeau in Practice of Everyday Life, distinguishes the concept of place as an “instantaneous configuration of positions. It implies an indication of stability.” He then goes on to say that spaces exist when the “vector” is taken into account. He binds space and time. Space is itself relational but relational to all else whereas place exists in denotation.

Frau Chief hat sich tatsächlich mal wieder rausgewagt. In der Dunkelheit!  Aber irgendwann muß man ja mit dem Glühwürsteln anfangen. Und um nicht NUR zu essen und zu trinken, haben wir das ganze mit einem etwas ausgedehnteren Spaziergang kombiniert.

Dies ist das Panorama, was ich jeden Morgen auf dem Weg zur Straßenbahnhaltestelle genießen darf. Man beachte auch das Graffitti rechts unten.

Erster Glühkindlmarkt, auf dem wir lecker Feuerzangenbowle getrunken haben. Daß ich das Tablett angezündet hab, weil ich nicht den Löffel zum Ausgießen des Schnapses benutzt hab, sondern einfach das Glas ausgekippt hab und dann der ganze Rum Feuer gefangen hat und auf das Tablett gelaufen ist, darüber decken wir mal das Mäntelchen des Schweigens.

Auf dem Weg zu Glühkindlmarkt Nr. 2 auf der Praterinsel. Um zu der Ecke in den Isarauen zu gelangen, von wo man diese Fotos machen konnte, hätte ich eindeutig die Nachtsichtgläser brauchen können. Ich Doof. Aber wer kann auch sowas ahnen. Nächstes Mal dann halt.

Hier die Brücke, die zum Maximilianeum führt. Ich weiß nicht, wie sie heißt, Schande über mich. Aber wahrscheinlich sowas wie “Maximiliansbrücke”. Denn es schließt sich nach links auch die berühmte, noble  Maximiliansstraße an. Da, wo Dolce & Gabbana und so.

Die …Ähäm-Kirche…Ich lebe seit fast 10 Jahren in München, finde überall hin, weiß aber keinerlei Namen. Sorry. Sie ist aber auch an der Isar. Irgendwo. Bei mir um die Ecke.

Auf dem Glühkindlmarkt auf der Praterinsel. Wo die ist, weiß ich halt schon.

Meine süßen säuischen Verwandten sind natürlich auch schon da:

Nur in München kann ich wirklich standesgemäß Taxi fahren:

Natürlich am Odeonsplatz.

Danach haben wir dann den dritten Glühkindlmarkt besucht, einen Mittelaltermarkt.

Und sind dann über den Karolinenplatz (ich weiß doch was YAY! und außerdem hat der Obelisk mit dem Mond was von “Stargate”, aber egal):

…und über den Königsplatz (Applaus, den Namen kenne ich auch!):

…zum “Cinema” gelaufen und haben dort Karten für “Zombieland” gekauft.

Und dann waren wir platt.

Und außerdem möchte ich anmerken, daß der Blu Ray Player absolut super ist, der Dolby Surround Sound die Nachbarn endgültig ertauben lassen wird, das Update über das W-Lan Kabel funktioniert, allerdings sehr langsam, so langsam, daß wir in der Zeit noch drei Christmasmärkte hätten aufsuchen können, und nun gerade T4 geguckt wird. Und bisher haben sich die Nachbarn noch nicht beschwert…

Außerdem haben wir in drei Tagen sechs (!) Glühkindlmärkte durchgezogen. Rekord!

A new week starts – the 1st Advent is already gone and with big steps we are approaching Christmas. This year, my service on Christmas Day will be in the parish of Milnerton. This is after 12 years of German Christmas a new experience.

But until then many things must be done, this week I must finish a lot of paperwork and next Sunday, Dominik will be ordained deacon, as mentioned before another chapter is closed then and I have done my duty. In the last 13 years we had in the German-speaking Catholic Community one Primiz, the first mass of a new priest and now the ordination of a German, who will after one year also be ordained priest. Should nobody say that we German-speaking people abroad having not done our bid to keep the church going. 

Otherwise it was a more of a quiet weekend – some relaxation and I must admit this was very much-needed and welcomed.  I slowly but surely get used to my new working rhythm and when I can occupy in February my office at Tygerberg Campus, then I guess I have once again a very much structured working life.  And that is needed, specially with such a broad portfolio as I do have in the moment.

Yesterday came the second invite to participate in a podium discussion during the 2nd ecumenical church day in Munich. So not only “children and AIDS” but also “global learning” is now on my radar for this big event in Germany. I am happy that I can bring in my expertise in both fields and looking forward to Munich. But also the POZ initiative, the pastoral work for HIV positive priests and religious should be a topic for Munich, but as it seems rather on the sideline. There is still a long way to go until I will have this topic in Rome, but I am working on it…

Et parce que l’on en a toujours pas assez des marchés de Noël, retour dans les rues de Munich.

Sur le marché médiéval, les boutiques ont l’aspect d’échoppes moyenâgeuses, et les vendeurs sont déguisés (mais le groupe de musique gothique et dépressive, c’est de trop).

]]> http://dianhasan.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/the-world%e2%80%99s-greatest-urban-parks-englischer-garten-munich-germany/ Sun, 29 Nov 2009 01:40:20 +0000 dianhasan http://dianhasan.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/the-world%e2%80%99s-greatest-urban-parks-englischer-garten-munich-germany/

By Dian Hasan | November 28, 2009

The hallmark of any great city is its urban park! Commonly located at the center of its core, urban parks play a significant role in providing traffic-choked cities with much-needed green lungs. As well as recreation, sporting and cultural venues for residents and visitors alike. Here’s a look at some of the larger urban parks from across the world.

ENGLISCHER GARTEN, MUNICH (3.7 sq.km./1.4 sq. mi.)

The city that is synonymous with the good times and beer – Munich – the world capital for the annual Oktoberfest Beer Festival is also home to one of Europe’s most picturesque parks.

The Englischer Garten is the German term for “English Garden”, a large public park in the center of Munich, the Bavarian main city in South Germany. Created in 1789 by Sir Benjamin Thompson (1753-1814), later Count Rumford (Reichsgraf von Rumford) and extended and improved by his successors, Reinhard von Werneck (1757-1842) and Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell (1750-1823), who had advised on the project from the beginning.

At 3.7 square kilometers (1.4 square miles), Englischer Garten is one of the world’s largest urban public parks, larger than New York’s Central Park but smaller than London’s Richmond Park. The name refers to the style of gardening; the term English garden is used outside of the English speaking world to refer to the style of informal landscape gardening which was popular in the United Kingdom from the mid-18th century to the early 19th century, and is particularly associated with Capability Brown.

Today Englischer Garten is also popular as one of the few city-center rivers for surfing.  A unique pastime that doesn’t immediately come to mind in a full four season European city like Munich.

Dîner avec Julien au Hacker-Pschorr. Une “petite” brasserie typique.

]]> http://infrenchinthetext.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/tollwood/ Sat, 28 Nov 2009 22:52:31 +0000 Olivier M http://infrenchinthetext.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/tollwood/

Tollwood, le marché de Noël en plein centre de Munich, sur des milliers de mètres carrés. Des stands sympas.

D’autres moins…

Et des stands de saucisses, de vin chaud, de marzipan… et des totems.

]]> http://infrenchinthetext.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/samedi-28-novembre-le-zoo/ Sat, 28 Nov 2009 22:42:27 +0000 Olivier M http://infrenchinthetext.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/samedi-28-novembre-le-zoo/

Visite au zoo de Munich où les ours étaient “indisponibles”, mais où nous avons vu des animaux parmi les plus étranges et les moins recommandables.

Flamands rouges et roses (et blancs) :

Le loup du petit Chaperon (rouge) :

Mandrille (à nez rouge) :

Poule Elvis-Presley :

Et le Grand Cthulhu en personne :

]]> http://lacittaeterna.wordpress.com/2009/11/28/genie-goes-poof/ Sat, 28 Nov 2009 21:27:16 +0000 clistro http://lacittaeterna.wordpress.com/2009/11/28/genie-goes-poof/

5 November, Thursday.

I was up early to make sure I got to school in plenty of time for my seminar in Brit Lit on Sassoon’s “Glory of Women.” It went well, probably since I was too tired to be nervous, and I spent my lunch break in the computer lab doing schedule work and with a quick pizza. Mystics was reading-less again, since the copy shop had worked more mischief and our text was missing from our reader, but Conty saved it with a really good discussion of theoretical physics and its relation to Ockham and Eckhart. Everyone was exhausted and quiet in Italian and it was a mercy to be let out after. Genie, Katie Z., Katie C., Thuy and I went to the nearby bar for Genie’s favorite, capiroskas, and then were planning on dining after.

We waited for Genie in Piazza Trilussa while she went into the Tabacchi around the corner for a bus ticket. When she didn’t come back, we split up to search for her. After forty minutes of no Genie we were worried but had no way of reaching her, so we headed home in hopes to find her there. We met up with some of the others on the bridge and took the busses home. Genie was there, thankfully, in the process of making mushroom pizza, which I managed to beg some of. At night, we set out our plan of attack for Munich the next day. There was a little tension around the apartment, but it was gladly diffused and we all headed to bed for an early morning.

Pra completar os posts da nossa viagem, vou falar de Munique (Munich, München, Monaco) e da Oktoberfest. Sempre que o maridex ouvia falar da Oktoberfest ele ficava doido hehe e sempre a gente planejou ir e ou iamos pro Brasil ou não tinhamos folga juntos e nunca dava, mas dessa vez tudo deu certinho! Até o fato da minha irmã já estar na Europa e da minha amiga estar na Itália e ter ido com o marido lá encontrar a gente! O motivo principal da ida lá era a Oktober mas pra mim se tornou a cidade toda pq apaixonei por tudo de Munich, mas assim TUDO! Os alemães que encontramos foram muito simpáticos e receptivos, há quem diga que seja por causa do festival e eles são mesmo assim por causa dos turistas e mais $$ pra eles e tal, but who cares?! Eu achei todos muito gentis e hospitaleiros. Não achamos dificil andar de metrô (U-BAHN) ou ônibus, vc chegando no aeroporto, vc pega um mapinha da cidade e tem todas a linhas de metrô e trem lá, então é só seguir. Ficamos no Hotel Flora e, apesar de ficar bem pertinho do centro e da estação principal eu não recomendo. Bom, a gente ficou lá bem por falta de opção mesmo, culpa nossa porque demoramos pra decidir qdo exatamente iriamos pra Alemanha e por conta da Oktober, os melhores hoteis já estavam lotados! O preço do que a gente ficou é super em conta mas o hotel é bem acabadinho. Se vc pensa em ir pra a Oktoberfest reservem beeeem antes o seu hotel ou vc vai pagar super caro (ou acabar pegando um meio chué). Mas, enfim, era só pra dormir mesmo pq passávamos o dia e quase a noite toda fora então, foi ok até porque estávamos bem pertinho do centro .

OlympiaPark

BMW welt

Nymphenburg Palace

Nymphenburg Palace

Demos uma paradinha para almoçar, e almoçamos no restaurante do Olympic Park e gostei muito! Achei o preço em conta e você escolhe as combinações (our combos) que vc quer, Danke ao nosso amigo, ele pediu pra gente De lá, ´comidos´ demos uma paradinha básica na Allianz-Arena, o hubby nem queria entrar, só tirar uma foto lá fora, para quem não conhece, durante a Copa do Mundo de 2006, esta arena era conhecida como FIFA World Cup Stadium Munich. A noite muda de cor e vc pode ver acesa em branco, azul ou vermelho (ou as duas últimas intercaladas).

Dachau

Une promenade dans Munich, transformée en gigantesque marché de noël.

La maison de l’art, dont la façade est recouverte d’une installation d’Ai Weiwei :

9000 sacs à dos multicolores pour enfants, fixés à la façade par des barres de fer. 1000 mètres carrés de sacs à dos Toy’r Us. La phrase formée par les sacs signifie “elle a vécue heureuse dans ce monde pendant 7 ans”

Ai Weiwei est un artiste et architecte chinois :

Impossible de passer à Munich sans aller se promener dans le jardin anglais.

Et surtout, hors de question de louper la vague statique ! (Et ses surfeurs, frigorifiés mais visiblement motivés et attendant leur vague)

Mélange d’architecture à base d’angles, de parois  de verre et de passerelles défiant la gravité, de mobilier contemporain et de salles d’exposition pour les nouvelles technologies développées par la marque. Même pas certain, par contre, que l’on puisse y acheter des voitures.

Avec restaurant, lounge, jeux vidéos, salles de conférence…

Certains n’ont pas pu résister à la tentation d’essayer les modèles les plus puissants.

Le petit Chaperon Rouge a trouvé un moyen carrément plus rapide d’aller chez sa mère-grand !

Pas de fleurs de cerisier à Munich en cette période de l’année, mais visite du showroom BMW et promenade dans le centre de Munich en prévision.

Noël approchant, la mode est à la déco à base de boules…

Today marked the last day of Justin Bieber’s trip to Europe. He ended the trip by performing live for MyPokito, a television program, in Munich,  Germany. Can’t wait to have you back Justin!

Wow.  It’s been a busy month.  The first week of November was enjoyed here at home.  The rest of November has been enjoyed elsewhere.

Running and riding have definitely taken a back seat during the past three weeks, but it’s time to kick it back into gear.

The next few posts will show you a bit of what we’ve been doing, but here’s the Reader’s Digest version.

First off, a week of professional development in a lodge high up in the Bavarian Alps, just across the border from Salzburg, Austria.  Staying at the lodge was a bit eerie, considering it was a hideout for Dietrich Eckart, a man who considered himself Adolf Hitler’s mentor.  There was even a picture (right) in the lodge of Hitler and a couple of his cronies looking up at the  lodge.  All that aside, it’s a beautiful area, although it was gloomy every day except for the morning we drove out.  We were high enough up the slopes that we were in the clouds the whole time.  Luckily Goddess and I would be see more of the area a week later.

Next was a quick overnight back home to wash clothes, repack and scoop up Goddess for the next couple of weeks.  We were off the next day to say farewell and thank you to someone who has served her country for more than 20 years.  What better reason to get together and celebrate?  Well, we did.  But we also played it a bit safe, since Goddess and I had a long drive ahead of us the next day.

By the next evening, Goddess and I were enjoying real Italian food and great wine in Mogliano Veneto, just two stops up the train line from Venice.  Unless you’ve got a suitcase full of money, staying in Venice is really not an option.  Especially if you have a car that you need to park.  Well, I packed well, but no suitcases full of money.  So we stayed outside the city.  That worked fine too, since we just left the car parked and used public transportation.  A bonus after enjoying a glass (or three) of wine.

So after two days of exploring Venice, we headed up the road to another work-related conference.  While I sat in meetings, Goddess explored the countryside and brought a few cases of local wines that she liked back to the room.  At one point we actually discussed mailing some clothes home so that we’d have room in the car for the wine.  That’s a sign of a good trip.

Once that conference was over, Goddess and I pointed the car north, drove through Austria, and ended back in the same town (Berchtesgaden) that I was in the week before.  A beautiful town.  Luckily the weather had cleared and the Alps were visible the entire time.  Unfortunately, not much snow.  But that was OK, since we were able to hike.  After a couple of nights there we pointed the car towards home.  But didn’t make it (yet).

Instead, we stopped for a few nights in Munich.  It truly is a wonderful city.  We made the most of our time there, although one evening of touring the beer breweries really impacted our sightseeing the next day.  We’ll need to go back again to see a few of the museums, but we also know that if we don’t make it back, we definitely did our best to get the feel of the city and we’d be satisfied with that.

Finally, we made it back home and basically collapsed.  Just in time for Thanksgiving, even though the cupboards were bare and the turkey was frozen.  Luckily some friends called that morning and invited us over for dinner and conversation. 

Anyway, that’s the month in a nutshell.  I’ll be posting pictures and words from our trip in separate posts in the coming days.  It’s really been a while (over three years) since I’ve shot so many images in a trip.  So it’s taking me a while to get back into the groove of processing. 

Plus, naps keep getting in the way.  ;^)

I apologise for the extreme lack of posts over the last month or so. I’m afraid this won’t get any better until the new year because I won’t have a computer until then.  You probably think that I’m just being lazy about this, which I am, slightly but it is also the fact that I don’t want a new computer with a German keyboard, plug, garantee and everything when as of Jan I can buy one in the UK. Yes, big news. January I start my new job in London. I will be working at the same company, but in a different country. So the last 2 or 3 months has seen me working that all out and now Christmas is coming. i have a crazy Christmas and New Year season which starts today with my first guest of the holiday season. Tomorrow night we’re having a big flat party to kick off advent with a bang. November I spent quite a lot of time in Munich but went to Vienna for the weekend and spent Halloween in Prague.  October I went on a hiking weekend in the snowy alps and gave myself a bad cold by jumping in a 7 degree lake. Not big or clever but very pretty pictures.  Oh, and before that was the Oktoberfest. I needed a couple of weeks after that just to recover.  So business as usual here.  I wish you a very good advent and stress-free Christmas shopping!

Nous voilà arrivés à Munich, après à peine une heure d’avion (“Ladies and gentlemen, the wind is pushing our flight, so we will arrive earlier. Armement des toboggans, vérification porte opposée…”)…

… Mais après 2 heures de RER (panne sur le A, panne sur le B, grève sur le reste…)

Les Playmobils réparent les caténaires

6.40 Uhr – ich werde geweckt. Wir sind spät dran, denn wir müssen zum Kreisverwaltungsreferat. Hochzeit in Deutschland anerkennen, Lohnsteuerkarten umschreiben, usw. Ich habe keine Lust aufzustehen, denn ich kenne das KVR. Um bereits 10 Minuten vor 7 Uhr stehen mindestens 40 Leute vor der verschlossenen Tür und versuchen sich so unauffällig wie möglich den besten Platz zu ergattern, um dann – nach Öffnen der Eingangstür – wie von der Tarantel gestochen, auf den Automat mit den Abrissmarken (Wartenummern) zuzustürmen. Anschließend sitzen und stehen viel zu viele Leute mit den unterschiedlichsten Geruchsnoten in einem viel zu kleinen Raum und warten ewig darauf, dass es “bling” macht, Ihre Nummer auf einem Display erscheint und sie zum überaus gut gelaunten Beamten Ihres Vetrauens marschieren dürfen. Der/die nette Beamte/in faselt dann irgendwas, man wird zur Kasse geschickt um einen Phantasie-Betrag zu bezahlen, darf zurück, bekommt noch ein freundliches “mhm” (ggf. plus Kopfschütteln) , seine Papiere und darf gehen.

Aber heute? Kurz nach 7 – keine Menschenseele vor dem Bürgerbüro. Hatte ich mich im Tag vertan? Nein, an der Tür hing ein Schild, wir sind umgezogen -> zur Post (Ohje, Gleiches und Gleiches gesellt sich). Am neuen Bürgerbüro angekommen, war ich ziemlich verblüfft: Das Treppenhaus war hell, der Warteraum groß genug, es gab jemand den man fragen konnte (Service-Point),  es war kein Gedränge und die Zahlen auf dem Display (das gibt es immer noch, auch wenn es schöner ist) änderten sich konstant zügig. Als wir dann an der Reihe waren, sassen wir einer gut gelaunten Mitarbeiterin gegenüber, die uns nach 2 Minuten mit den Worten “danke das war’s” verabschiedete…..Respekt.

The Greedy Rattle EP by Tommigo is the first release on the new German Electro and Techhouse label Konsulat Tonträger. The people around Konsulat claim about themselves they do ‘The music of tomorrow and the sound of today!’ The first release by Munich’s sound wizzard Tommigo who also releases on System New York underlines that.

So the first release comes up with three very special Electro tracks. The title-track Greedy Rattle is a kind of Minimal Electro Techno, hard to define and with some cool vocals in it. The melodies and groovelines are very catchy and will directly go to your head. No chance to get out of again.

Funktekker is the most Electro House like track on the Greedy Rattle EP. This uplifting tune is the right tool for all DJs, who wanna get their crowd wipped.

Trippin To The Beat is the craziest and most outstanding EP track. It is a Minimal Techno masterpiece with its very special style. Tommigo is able to combine dark grooves and snares with a fat portion of funk. Mindblowing melodies will do the rest. Earstrain guaranteed!

Konsulat Tonträger is distributed digitally worldwide through all major retailers like Beatport, Trackitdown, DJdownload or Juno. Konsulat aims to release tasty club sound with different genre style mixes on each release. Also they say, that they are open minded for artists from all around the globe, to bring together a wide range of different local influences in their music and to present only the best Techno, Minimal and Techhouse productions which are strictly dedicated to the club.

So indeed one of the main philosophies of the young label is: ‘Great music is not a question of style, it is a question of groove’.

Tracklisting
Tommigo – Greedy Rattle – (6.41)
Tommigo – Funktekker – (5.45)
Tommigo – Trippin To The Beat – (6.39)

Format File (mp3, wave)
Genre Techhouse/Techno

Release date November 30 2009

www.konsulat-tontraeger.de

Listen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7aMfB6nwQw

Here’s another band I’ve been following for a few years. The first song I heard by them was Munich, which I couldn’t stop playing. Another big league single for them was Smokers Outside the Hospital. Check these two tracks out at least. You won’t be sorry.

Lyrics here, more below:
We can never go home
We no longer have one
I’ll help you carry the load
I’ll carry you in my arms
The kiss of the snow
The crescent moon above us
Our blood is cold
And we’re alone
But I’m alone with you

Help me to carry the fire
We will keep it alight together
Help me to carry the fire
It will light our way forever

If I say shut your eyes
If I say look away
Bury your face in my shoulder
Think of a birthday
The things you put in your head
They will stay here forever
Our blood is cold
And we’re alone, love
But I’m alone with you

Help me to carry the fire
We will keep it alight together
Help me to carry the fire
It will light our way forever

Help me to carry the fire
We will keep it alight together
Now help me to carry the fire
It will light up our way forever

If I say shut your eyes
If I say shut your eyes
Bury me in suprise
Where I say shut your eyes

Help me to carry the fire
We will keep it alight together
Help me carry the fire
It will light our way forever

I have to say I’m fond of music that doesn’t follow the mainstream. As love songs go this is no exception. His voice is so different and he takes great pains to keep the edge on this song.

I got a bit lost trying to figure out what this spoke when I listened to it. It finally dawned on me that this felt more like opera than rock or alt rock or whatever you want to call it. It has that distinct operatic feel to me. The lyrics alone are brilliant but he brings that darkness with his voice. There’s a sense of high powered drama coming off of it.

Not sure how the New Moon/Twilight crowd will receive this particular track. But kudos to the production for going out and getting some amazing bands and amazing music (Thom Yorke, Death Cab, Muse and many more). The first Twilight movie was made for me hearing Supermassive Black Hole by Muse during the baseball scene. Classic!

So keep an eye on Editors. This will only enhance their exposure. I look forward to future of this band.

I know I’m sucha horrible representation of a travel blogger, but yes, I’ve been travelling so much that I owe this space a huge posts debt! I think I’ll still have a list of cities to blog about by the time I return to Singapore!

Anyhow, here are a couple of other attractions we visited in Munich!

Rathaus – The New Townhall

Definitely one of the most famous buildings in Munich with its amazing Gothic-style architecture. If you look closely at the clock tower, you’ll discover several puppets and wooden toys there. In fact, when the clock strikes at certain hours of the day the toys would “come alive” and dance to the tunes being played, just like a live-size musical box. Haha it’s really lovely how everyone at the plaza just stop whatever they’re busy with, flash out their cameras and camcorders to capture the moment (us included)!

Look at those toys!

Allianz-Arena, Home to Bayern Munich

The exterior of the stadium was pretty amazing I must say. Did you know that it lights up when the sky turns dark? We drove past it the night after on our way to Frankfurt and the colours were super pretty. Moreover the color changes every 20 minutes or so to look something like this:

(Picture credits to http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Allianz-Arena.blue.red.jpg)

*******

Our next stop was the BMW Museum

One day, one day… I earn my own BMW Convertible!!

The BMW museum was actually pretty cool because besides the usual showrooms and prototype displays, there are interactive games for visitors to engage themselves in, and in the process you get to understand the engineering behind the newest/latest BMW models. I loved one of the motion sets where we get to “test drive” a car that can drive through snow and ice super smoothly!

You also get to replay and watch how you’ve performed in the 3 laps of driving through snow, with the uber cool technology tracking everything! The BMW sales rep would also be there to guide you and provide explanations of this new technology. Loves it =)

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Marienplatz – The main shopping district where there’s just about anything and everything you want

Don’t you just love all these traditional Bavarian beer jugs? I reallyreally wanted to get one of them (even though most of them costs at least €20)! I think they make really good souvenirs because the designs are unique and intricate, and they look so pretty even on display. I guess they can probably last me a lifetime too. Perhaps when I’m 70, I’ll still be using them for my beer fix hahah.

McDons looking cool?

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