Archive for November, 2005
My little hiding place - Shamian Dao
Everyone has a hiding place. Mine is the little island of Shamian. Ever since
I discovered it in 2002, I keep returning this place whenever I can. The people who run the little shops and restaurants there remember me and that makes me happy. Some pictures from Shamian Dao.
East meets west. They added these statues sometimes in 2003. Over the years they have been making this island more and more pretty.
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‘Thang-Ta’, martial arts from Manipur
Manipur, on the eastern frontiers of India, often faced raiders from Burma and other surrounding regions. The rulers of Manipur encouraged Thang-Ta (Thang= sword, Ta=spear) form of martial arts. Another unique feature of Manipur was their women fighters.
If you are in Singapore this weekend, you can see "Thang Ta" live at Esplanade. 11 - 13 Nov 05, Fri - Sun, 7pm - 7.30pm & 8.15pm - 8.45pm, The Edge
A clip from the friday night’s performance.
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Making incense sticks in Vietnam
A video from an incense stick factory in Vietnam. The lady has this bunch of sticks in her hand. She drops a few sticks on the board. She then uses the roller to roll the sticks over the incense powder. The pressure binds the powder to the stick. Finished sticks are collected in the box sitting on her lap.
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Comment fights before the blog days (A reader fights back on an Western guy’s travelogue on Japan)
This one is a travelogue written in the 1930s by an American traveler. I found this in the same old book shop in Bangalore.
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An Italian Spy in China
This is another interesting book I found. It is again set in the crazy 1930s. The author is an Italian man in the service of Japanese Intelligence.
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