Noelle

Perhaps it’s near end of the year, every building beside me is hurrying for a new face-lift. Looking out of my windows, I saw myself totally surrounded by these breath-taking ”green” craft of arts.

To me, bamboo scaffolder has always been one of the most venerable and challenging professions. Imagine climbing up these poles with bare hands, one really needs great determination and courage. By using light bamboo, a small team of 5 to 6 scaffolders is able to sheathe entire building in a matter of weeks. Looking at these workers who spend their lives dangling outside buildings of 30, 40 stories high, securing each bamboo pole into place by twisting and pulling the cord around, I truly admire their perseverance. They suddenly remind me of Yamakasi and Spiderman.

Scaffolding

Scaffolders

The Cologne Cathedral

It was 9am on a Tuesday morning. The weather was wet and chilly. As soon as I stepped out of Cologne's Hauptbahnhof, one of the country's busiest rail stations, I was astonished by the magnificent Kolner Dom. I couldn't wait to explore the city. After a quick check-in and freshen-up at the Excelsior Hotel Ernst, I rushed into the vast and intricately built Gothic architecture.

Excelsior Hotel Ernst:

Building of the Cologne Cathedral began in the mid-13th century, but it wasn't completed until 1880. By that time, it was the tallest structure in the world. Restoration work is still going on now. After a long gaze at the breathtaking exterior, I set off to the entrance. Once inside, like other hundreds of visitors, I simply couldn't stop staring at the medieval sculptures and stained glass windows in speechless amazement.

The Dom has a new pixelated glass window, which is designed by the contemporary German artist, Gerhard Richter. This newly installed mosaic window has been a controversial piece of art. Most Kolners are amazed by the aesthetic effect of the modern application, while others think that the modern design is a mismatch as much of the cathedral's stained glass is of medieval date.

After taking hundreds of pictures in the interior, I climbed a total of 509 steps up to the roof. (The tower is 475 feet tall !) I was almost out of breath. But the astonishing view up there was worth to see.

Museum Ludwig and Wallraf Richartz Museum

Besides being one of Germany's great historical city, Cologne is also a centre of arts. I definitely wouldn't miss the chance of visiting the 2 most renowned art museums, which are just walking distance from the Dom.

Museum Ludwig is a good place to get acquainted with German art of the 20th century. The big names, Kandinsky, Beckmann, Klee, Beuys are all here. You could also find collections of Picasso, Rothko, Warhol and Segal.

The Wallraf Richartz Museum has abundant collections of Renaissance and Baroque paintings, French Impressionism, as well as German medieval art. Useful tips for visiting the museum: you could take as many pictures as you like by simply getting a permission paper at the museum's information centre. No flash of course.

The famous Cologne artist, Stefan Lochner's vision of "The Madonna in the Rose Garden" and "The Last Judgement":

German medieval art:

French Impressionism:

The River Rhine and the Hohenzollern Bridge

The Cologne Hauptbahnhof, a signature historic site with its 250 metre long hall of iron and glass, is a good place to begin and end a tour. My journey to Cologne was surely an experience never to be forgotten.

Having a delicious meal is one of the best ways to lighten up one's mood. Tonight I had a pleasurable dinner at "Fusion 5th Floor" organised by ol.mingpao.com. The restaurant was cosy and the food was mouthwatering. The event offered their members not just merely an enjoyable dining experience but a rather intimate escape from their hectic lives.

http://ol.mingpao.com/htm/729fusion/content.cfm?path=main.htm

If the lost word is lost, if the spent word is spent

If the unheard, unspoken

Word is unspoken, unheard;

Still is the unspoken word, the Word unheard,

The Word without a word, the Word within

The world and for the world;

And the light shone in darkness and

Against the Word the unstilled world still whirled

About the centre of the silent Word.

Help me see your signs when shadows fill my day

Let this be my prayer when I lose my faith

Lead me to the place, show me with your way

Give me faith so I'll be safe

Help me find your light when stars go out each night

Let this be my prayer when I lose my way

Lead me to the place, guide me with your grace

To a place where I’ll be safe

W880i

The Sony Ericsson W880i is my alternative 3G phone to the Apple iPhone for 2007 (as iPhone will not be released in HK till 2008). I bought this phone last weekend and it basically fulfills most of the must-have requirements of my dream phone.

I would describe this phone as my “love at the first sight”. It instantly caught my attention with its sleek and chic look: ultra slim at only 9.4mm thin, a brushed metal face with a rubbery back that made for an easy grip, and almost weightless in my handbag or on my neck!

One of its features that I have long been fancying for is music recognition. Record a few seconds of a music that you want to identify, TrackID will then send the name of the song, album and artist to your phone. Cool ! But I still haven’t tested this yet.

The phone comes with some nice accessories and features that we need on a walkman phone: 1GB memory stick micro, a headphone adapter that accepts normal, 3.5mm headphones, a handy playlist and equalizer setting.

Though the Disc2Phone software is not as cool as iTunes, it’s easy enough to use. It allows quick copy of your MP3 by making instant link to your existing iTunes folder on your PC.

Other cool features include picture blogging, push email and RSS feeds…

My requests for enhancement on this phone are: a larger display (2.2” or more), and bigger keys. (with the existing tiny keypad buttons, text input can be a hassle)

Babel

In Genesis 11:1-9, men tried to reach heaven by building the Tower of Babel. God stopped the work and punished human arrogance by devising different languages that made understanding impossible. “Babel” came to mean noise, confusion and miscommunication.

The movie “Babel” used this Bible story as an allegory. I found the movie provocative in the sense that it startled my mind with its interwoven stories and poignant images. This film is painfully indicative of the reality of today's society in all cultures. The inability to express what’s inside one’s mind; the chaos of misunderstanding; the unpredictable tragic consequences leading from small, stupid mistakes; are vividly reflected in the movie. But in the world filled with confusion, violence, hatred and suffering, there are love, compassion and forgiveness.

Putting up a Christmas tree is fun. Taking it down is a distressing and uneasy task for me. You couldn’t believe that I still have mine sitting in the living room right now. I promise myself that I must do something to it this weekend.

Anyhow I enjoy looking at the tree for a few minutes every night. It often reminds me of the sweet holiday season...

One of my sweet memories was the party I threw at home with Leut, Cally & Sarah on 29 Dec...

Sarah, Leut, Cally & me@X'masTree

Cheers

X'mas Presents

My Pinky Herbie from Cally (Perfect for relieving PMS)

Chocolate Fudge Cake with Fresh Berries

Chicken with Red Wine Sauce

Tiramisu

Yum Yum

I was eager to see the movie "The Holiday" not only because it featured Jude Law, but also it's written and directed by Nancy Meyers, who directed one of my favourite romance comedies "Something's Gotta Give".

After seeing the movie last night, I feel that "The Holiday" is less compelling than "Something's Gotta Give" though both are heart-warming, entertaining and enchantingly sweet. The former is a movie for women more than men while the latter appeals to both sexes and has greater depth.

The movie has a sugarcoated twist, 2 freshly dumped women swapped their houses and changed their lives. Both Jude Law and Kate Winslet show their charisma in the movie. I enjoyed seeing Jude Law playing a slightly different role here from his playboy stereotype, to an incredibly handsome father and a weeper with a tender and sentimental heart.

The movie's biggest flaw is casting Jack Black as the leading man, one can't take him seriously in romance. Winslet's love affair with him is not convincing as there seems to be more chemistry between her and Eli Wallach than between her and Black.

Everything seems to go wrong today.

I burst into both laughter & tears when I read about a comment on my blog’s picture that my hair looked like a Bluetooth headset! Don’t worry, Vinko, I’m going to have a new hairdo tonight and stop teasing me please!

Getting tired of Starbucks, I decided to get my breakfast from Cova this morning. As I was heading back to my office hastily and contentedly with the paper cup and croissant on one hand, the money change and access card on the other, I sloppily dropped the whole cup of piping hot Earl Grey Tea on the floor in the elevator! You couldn't imagine how embarrassed and miserable I was at that moment.  But I was relieved that I didn’t spill the whole thing on the 2 men standing next to me!

My head was aching terribly for the whole morning. It didn’t seem to get away after taking 2 Extra Panadol. I guess the best way to heal it is to get straight into bed after my haircut tonight.