2011年8月31日 星期三

威尼斯金獅: 含淚的獅子到"Seediq Bale"

那年的 The Economist 說 今年的獅子 可能含淚....
那悲情城市
那些化裝節日
那些70年代霧社的霧夜


Taiwan's warrior epic "Seediq Bale" runs for the Lion

VENICE, Italy — Warrior cries and brutal decapitations colour the opening scenes in Wei Te-Sheng's "Seediq Bale," the fierce Taiwanese epic running against Hollywood favourites for the Golden Lion award at Venice this year.

With a record production cost of 24 million dollars, "Seediq Bale" brings to the big screen the true story about a rebellion of aboriginal tribes against their Japanese colonial rulers in Taiwan in 1930 -- at their ultimate defeat.

Produced by renowned Hong Kong-based director John Woo -- whose Hollywood films include "Face Off" and "Mission Impossible 2" -- the film alternates between fight scenes and moments of spiritual anguish for the proud tribesmen.

Stunning cinematography captures the untamed beauty of Wushu, a tribal township on Mount Chilai, where the concept of freedom is inextricably linked to hunting wild animals through lush undergrowth -- a ritual at risk as civilisation takes hold.

"The film tells the story of an encounter between a people who believe in rainbows and a nation which believes in the sun -- a heroic battle in defence of faith and dignity," Wei said about his most ambitious work to date.

Over 12 years in the making, "Seediq Bale" features a cast of 15,000, many of whom were hand picked for the part in a door-to-door search throughout Taiwan for people with the right characteristics: specifically, "hunters eyes."

Wei said he had researched the history behind the "Wushe Incident" thoroughly and had been very aware of not wanting to "exacerbate dormant tensions," but instead "effect some kind of reconciliation between the two opposing sides."

Wei and Lin Ching-Ta -- who plays tribal chief Mouna Rudo -- will be accompanied to the premiere screening on Thursday by co-stars Vivian Hsu and Landy Wen, who both made their names as singers before going into acting.

But it is pop-star Madonna who is expected to draw the screaming crowds on Thursday as she appears on the red carpet ahead of the screening of her second film as a director, "W.E.", which will be shown out of competition.

The diva landed at Venice airport late on Wednesday evening, looking glamorous in a black outfit, with a check shirt and sunglasses, and headed for the luxury Bauer hotel on Venice's Grand Canal.

Her film, starring British actors James D'Arcy and Andrea Riseborough, tells the tale of King Edward VIII's controversial romance with American divorcee Wallis Simpson -- through the eyes of a lonely modern-day New Yorker.

The US singer is expected to arrive on the Lido by speed boat, as are stars Jodie Foster and Kate Winslet, who will dazzle paparazzi on the red carpet for the highly-anticipated "Carnage," directed by the controversial Roman Polanski.

The French-Polish director will not be present. Wanted in the United States for alleged sexual assault dating back to 1977, he risks extradition should he travel to Italy.

Related articles

Twenty-two films -- all world premieres -- will compete for the prestigious Golden Lion award (AFP, Alberto Pizzoli)

Map

Cities Go Mad: 北京/ 內蒙古鄂爾多斯

China’s capital is a prison where people go mad.




【失速中國】(一)地方債13年暴增36倍,建“白宮”只為拼GDP   前不著村,後不著店,原本是形容人煙稀少,舉目不見房捨,如今,
內蒙古鄂爾多斯這片沙漠城市,硬是要寫下歷史,直接就把一排房子“種”在這片荒地上,炫耀這個城市的暴富……

鄂尔多斯市- 维基百科,自由的百科全书


2011年8月27日 星期六

Japanese Island as Unlikely Arts Installation

Cultured Traveler

Japanese Island as Unlikely Arts Installation

Kosuke Okahara for The New York Times

The Benesse House Museum on Naoshima island, where museums, installations and cutting-edge architecture blend with nature in novel ways. A “pumpkin” by Yayoi Kusama looks over the Seto Inland Sea. More Photos »


ON a chilly night last November on the tiny island of Naoshima in the Seto Inland Sea of southern Japan, I found myself alone in a dark concrete gallery, a sweater pulled over my pajamas. I was staying at the Benesse House Museum, a 10-room hotel set inside a contemporary art museum, on the island’s craggy southern coast, and still battling jet lag. So instead of tossing in bed, I visited the deserted galleries of the museum — guests of the hotel are permitted to wander beyond closing time. Before long, I was transfixed by Bruce Nauman’s art installation, “100 Live and Die,” a neon billboard of flashing phrases.

Multimedia

“CRY AND LIVE,” it read in large, glowing letters. “THINK AND DIE.” “SMILE AND LIVE.”

On my way to bed, I detoured past a whitewashed alphabet by Jasper Johns and the blue hues of a David Hockney swimming pool, the only sound in the galleries the scratching of my hotel slippers on the concrete floor. No guard hovered over Cy Twombly’s scribbles; no tour group blocked Jackson Pollock’s splatters. This was the essential appeal to the Benesse’s unusual hotel-within-a-museum setup: an exhilarating intimacy with art. The museum had been closed for more than an hour when I finally shuffled out of the gallery and crawled into bed.

That accessibility to art is not uncommon on Naoshima, where, thanks in large part to a corporate benefactor, a cultural convergence has been percolating over the past two decades, as museums, art installations, cutting-edge architecture and nature blend in astoundingly novel ways. The result is a sleepy island that has become an unlikely destination for globetrotting art pilgrims.

On that autumn night, I of course could not have known the terror that the following spring held for Japan or how frighteningly prescient some of Mr. Nauman’s glowing commands were. According to Yoshino Kawaura of the Naoshima Fukutake Art Museum Foundation, the area, which is about as far from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant as North Carolina is from New York, was not directly affected by the earthquake, tsunami and resulting rolling blackouts, or increased radiation levels. (Since April, the State Department’s travel alerts for Japan have advised visitors against traveling to destinations only within a 50-mile radius of the stricken nuclear plant on the northeastern coast; Naoshima is over 500 miles south of the plant.)

Still, Naoshima, like all of Japan, suffered a significant drop in foreign tourism after the disaster. At the Benesse House, Naoshima’s only hotel, most reservations in March and April held by foreign guests were canceled.

The island’s intriguing harmony of culture and nature, though, continues to attract Japanese tourists to the island even as foreign visitors are scarce. Overseas travelers, actually, are coming back as well: In May, Rei Namikawa, a representative for the Benesse hotel, wrote in an e-mail that foreign guests have slowly been returning as the crisis wanes, adding that the hotel was fully booked during the Golden Week holidays that straddle April and May.

The emergence of modern art and architecture in this relatively isolated place can be credited to corporate donations from Benesse Corporation, a Japanese company that specializes in test prep and language schools. The company’s chairman, a native of nearby Okayama, is the billionaire art-lover Soichiro Fukutake, whose longstanding support has fueled the transformation of Naoshima and a growing number of surrounding Seto Inland islands, particularly Teshima and Inujima — remote fishing islands with aging populations.

Over about 20 years, Benesse Corporation has financed one project after another. Last year, this accrual of art got a boost from the Setouchi International Art Festival, a 100-day celebration with works from 75 artists distributed among seven islands, including Naoshima. The festival ended on Oct. 31, but many of the featured works remain permanently. Teshima is now home to “Les Archives du Coeur,” an installation of recorded heartbeats by the French artist Christian Boltanski, and the Teshima Art Museum, which houses one work in a water-droplet-shaped structure created by the artist Rei Naito and the architect Ryue Nishizawa, a winner of last year’s Pritzker Architecture Prize.

The construction of the Benesse House Museum in 1992 marked the beginning of a fruitful partnership between Benesse Corporation and another Pritzker winner, the Japanese architect Tadao Ando. To date, he has designed seven structures on the small island, including three museums and the Benesse House Park building, which is studded with museum-worthy pieces.

On Naoshima, another recent addition financed by the corporation is the Lee Ufan Museum, a space wholly dedicated to the work of Mr. Lee, a Korean artist whose meditative works are on display as part of a retrospective at the Guggenheim in New York, running through Sept. 28. The new museum, which opened in June 2010, is the result of collaboration between Mr. Lee and Mr. Ando, whose modern concrete creations have been integral to the evolution of Naoshima’s art scene.

Naoshima, about three square miles in size, supports a population of about 3,300. Local residents have opened a few traditional guesthouses, which provide alternative lodging options to the Benesse hotel, and restaurants, but it is the art that brings visitors, my husband and me included, to the island.

Before my nighttime visit to the Benesse galleries, we had explored the other impressive buildings affiliated with the hotel. We clambered aboard a six-seat monorail that trundles up the wooded hill behind the museum, and discovered another of Mr. Ando’s sleek structures, a six-room hilltop annex called the Oval, which opened in 1995, one of four of the museum’s lodging options. The spare space is anchored by a dramatic black oval pool, and blends seamlessly into the natural surroundings, with tumbling waterfalls and a grassy rooftop lawn with panoramic views.

The next day, a rainy one, we hopped on a mini-bus to Honmura, on the eastern side of the island, where in an innovative effort called the Art House Project, artists have transformed abandoned houses into stand-alone projects that are woven into the fabric of this traditional neighborhood.

One contribution did involve the creation of a new structure. Titled “Minamidera,” the building was designed by Mr. Ando in 1999 to house a work by the American artist James Turrell. The work, “Backside of the Moon,” is an interactive, mind-bending experience for the viewer. (A full explanation would spoil the exhibit’s surprise.)

The artists’ messages are not always easy to decipher. At “Haisha,” the artist Shinro Ohtake has installed a hodgepodge of neon-light pieces and a two-story simulacrum of the Statue of Liberty. At the secluded “Go’o Shrine,” Hiroshi Sugimoto’s work is more straightforward: a glass staircase that descends from an above-ground shrine to a subterranean cave.

The island’s big-ticket draw, though, is Mr. Ando’s Chichu Art Museum. Chichu means “in the ground,” and indeed, the museum, built into a hilltop, is entirely underground, though it doesn’t feel that way to the visitor, thanks to a series of open courtyards and strategic skylights.

On the lowest level of the museum is an installation by the American sculptor Walter De Maria. On the floor above, a set of three progressive works by Mr. Turrell culminates with “Open Sky,” where viewers recline on stone benches to watch the evolving sky framed by the open ceiling; during our visit, raindrops pattered onto the floor.

But the central piece at Chichu will be familiar to most art lovers: one of Claude Monet’s famous large-scale water lily paintings, from the same series that is housed at the Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris (in 2009, the museum acquired four more, smaller Monet water lily pieces). To enhance the piece, a hazy sunset scene of clouds and willow trees reflected in a pond, the room that houses it features an inlaid floor of die-sized cubes of white Carrara marble and rounded walls that shimmer with natural light from above. And in a loop of life imitating art, a garden modeled on Monet’s own in Giverny has been installed outside the museum.

When the rain finally let up, we set out to find the many other works that are strewn about the island in outdoor installations, creating a sort of scavenger hunt for the visitor. On a densely wooded hill, spindly silver tines twirl above the treetops. At the end of a pier, a jumbo-size, polka-dotted yellow pumpkin squats above the sea. Beside a road, a band of 88 Buddha statues made from industrial slag blur the line between waste and art.

After completing our exploration, my husband and I spent our last evening on the island immersed — literally, as it turned out — in an art facility that is also a Japanese-style public bathhouse, or sento, called Naoshima Bath “I Love Yu.” (A bilingual word play, the name uses the character for “hot water,” which is pronounced “you.”) Opened in 2009, the sento was designed by Mr. Ohtake, the visionary behind the manic “Haisha” house in Honmura. Although many visitors simply snap photos of the bathhouse’s fantastically eclectic facade, fully experiencing this artwork demands active participation.

Once stripped of my notebook, camera and every last stitch of clothing, I soaked in the warm water, absorbed in the piece of art that surrounded me. As with so much of the work on Naoshima, the divisions between art and life simply dissolved.

IF YOU GO

GETTING THERE

From Tokyo or Osaka, take the Shinkansen (bullet train; english.jr-central.co.jp) to Okayama, change to the regional train line to Uno; from there, take a 20-minute ferry to Naoshima.

WHAT TO SEE AND DO

The Benesse Foundation’s Web site (benesse-artsite.jp) has detailed information in English about each art site, including admission prices, hours and directions.

WHERE TO STAY

Benesse House (Gotanji; 81-87-892-3223; benesse-artsite.jp) has Western-style rooms in the Museum, Oval, Park and Beach buildings. Rates for two start at 31,185 yen, or about $415, at 75 yen to the dollar, for a double room in the Park building, or 34,650 yen for the Museum.

Staying at a ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn, costs considerably less; the Naoshima Tourism Association lists lodging options at naoshima.net/en.

2011年8月26日 星期五

信濃町柏原出身の俳人小林一茶...

楽コレ! アナクロですが:<その99>湯の里に一を思う - 毎日jp ...
ポケットに荻原井泉水(せいせんすい)編の岩波文庫「一俳句集」。車窓の青々としたリンゴ畑を見たり、黄ばんだ句集をめくっている間に到着した湯田中温泉駅(山ノ内町)。レトロな雰囲気で旧駅舎側には「楓(かえで)の湯」がある。 ...

***紙上遊一下

<その99>湯の里に一茶を思う

2011年8月25日

 長野新幹線が開通して以来、信州、特に北信州路は東京から遠い旅路ではなくなった。長野まで1時間半余り。そこから長野電鉄の特急で45分、終点 の湯田中温泉駅に降り立った。ここ山ノ内町と、もう一つ小布施町。信濃町柏原出身の俳人小林一茶がよく訪れたゆかりの地だ。ぶらりと寄っただけだが、つか の間浸った信州の山気と一茶の句の情感に、しばし心洗われる気分だった。

onsengainoyanagi.jpg

温泉街の柳並木

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 今では企業や役所の世界では長野市と東京間の出張は日帰りとなった。信越線で碓氷峠を越えながら釜飯をつついていたころとは違うのである。長野冬季オリンピック(1998年)に間に合うよう新幹線が引かれた。

 ポケットに荻原井泉水(せいせんすい)編の岩波文庫「一茶俳句集」。車窓の青々としたリンゴ畑を見たり、黄ばんだ句集をめくっている間に到着した湯田中温泉駅(山ノ内町)。レトロな雰囲気で旧駅舎側には「楓(かえで)の湯」がある。

レトロな雰囲気の湯田中温泉駅

 文字通りの駅前温泉で人気があり、投句箱もあるそうだ。さすが一茶のゆかりの地。町内外から参加者がある俳句大会や句作のサークルも盛んである。山の手側の温泉街を歩くと、人々が自ら詠んだ作品がずらりと並んで風に揺れていた。例えば

 <すかんぽや生きる支へはありますか>

 すかんぽは酸葉のこと。見上げながら足を止め、思いをめぐらした。

 <畑打つや定年知らぬ米農家>

 土に生きる人々の確かでしなやかな意志がにじむようだ。

 <春雪にけぶる山見つ湯につかる>

 その愉悦は山の温泉郷ならではだろう。

nokisakini.jpg

軒先に掲げられた俳句

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 一茶(1763~1827年)は不運と不幸の波を何度もかぶりながら、寂しさ、孤独の中に人間味濃く、感情に素直な句風を創造した人だと思う。芸術的に洗練された芭蕉の世界とは異なる。例えば

 <やせ蛙まけるな一茶これにあり>

 これは一茶の句の中でも、教科書に載ったりして特に人気があるが、このユーモアと抱き合わせの哀調は彼ならではある。

 <我と来て遊べや親のない雀>

 <あの月をとつてくれろと泣く子かな>

 <これがまあつひのすみかか雪五尺>

 一茶の生涯の軌跡を重ね読むのもいいが、一茶のプロフィルをまったく知らない人が読んでも、それぞれの胸に深いイメージが湧くことにこそ名作の真骨頂はある。

 一茶は農家に生まれ、幼くして母を亡くした。継母とうまくいかず、14歳で江戸へ奉公に出る。ここで俳諧文化に触れる。長く西国行脚もして洒脱 (しゃだつ)な句風を磨く。俳壇に名は知られたが、生活は不安定だった。信濃の父の死後、遺産分配争いが長く続き、50歳の時やっと解決して故郷に定住し た。それが<これがまあ>である。

 そして2年後に結婚し、4人の子供をもうけたが、この初婚では妻ともども子供たちも幼くして亡くした。再婚したが破れ、3度目の結婚をした。自らも病に倒れ、死の前には火事で家を失うという不運にも襲われている。

 子を失った悲嘆は次の句に込められている

 <露の世はつゆの世ながらさりながら>

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 一茶は柏原に落ち着いた後も、この湯田中温泉などあちこちの土地を訪れたり、招かれたりして足跡を残した。こうした文人を大切にし、ついて学ぼうとする風が信州には濃かったようだ。今も「教育県」といわれるゆえんか。

 それはさておき、そのため一茶の句碑などは各地にあり、例えば、この山ノ内町には、一茶と、彼を研究した俳人荻原井泉水の一茶・井泉水記念俳句資料館もある。

 ちょっと一茶から離れるが、温泉街のつじに大きな碑が建っているのに気づいた。何と明治の相撲取りの供養だという。

 彼は当時の東京大相撲の力士で前頭筆頭まで務めたが、1888年9月、ここ湯田中に巡業して場所開催中、病を得て急死した。享年23。なかなか人 気があったらしい。地元の人々は惜しみ、東京の書道家に頼んで揮毫(きごう)してもらい、6年後の命日に碑を建て法要した。年寄名で「二代目玉垣額之助 碑」と記されている。

 土地の人情の厚さを象徴するような碑だ。大事にしたい。

onsengainitaturikisi.jpg

温泉街に建つ力士供養の碑

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 各季節の一茶の句を一つずつ。

 新年 <這へ笑へ二つになるぞけさからは>

 春 <雀の子そこのけそこのけ御馬が通る>

 夏 <恋をせよ恋をせよせよ夏のせみ>

 秋 <うつくしや障子の穴の天の川>

 冬 <はつ雪や駕(かご)をかく人駕の人>

      □      □

 小布施町は湯田中温泉から長野市に電鉄線で戻る途中にある。ここでも街に俳句を見かけた。小布施は今、古き良き時代をほうふつとさせる「町並修景」で人気スポットになっている。そして葛飾北斎と栗の町。出会った人見知りせぬ猫。これは次回に。(専門編集委員)

naganodentetunotokkyuu.jpg

長野電鉄の特急車両

2011年8月25日 星期四

雲和街十一號


梁實秋雲和街故居今年整修完畢,最快預計十月底開放參觀。

每到夜晚車水馬龍、熱鬧的師大路,轉個彎走進巷弄,與師大夜市只有一路之隔,一棟八十年日式宿舍靜靜坐落其中;老宅經復舊翻新有了全新面貌,而在60年前,雲和街十一號,正是梁實秋故居。

探訪雅舍 遙想梁家生活

梁實秋故居經整建後,重現最初日式宿舍建築風華。 記者陳立凱、黃義書/攝影
對於梁實秋的文學作品,一般人印象最為深刻,是其敘寫生活隨筆的《雅舍小品》,除了第一冊寫於重慶北碚,接下來三冊均在台完成,而雲和街十一號正是梁實秋居住的其中一處。

1949年來台後,起先梁實秋夫婦倆並無房產,暫居於朋友家,後來遷入友人提供的日式宿舍;不久後梁實秋接受師院教職,才與妻子程季淑、女兒文薔入住雲和街十一號。

在台近四十年梁實秋換過許多居所,多數均已拆遷不復當年樣貌,雲和街十一號經復舊翻新後,是目前保存最完整一棟宅邸。故居興建年代經考證約在1930年 代,為日治時期台北高等學校宿舍,戰後由師範學院接收;故居占地約八十多坪、建築物僅三十坪,格局方正簡潔、為典型日式宿舍建築。

走入故居中,依然能聞到日式宿舍特有的檜木香氣,而經復舊工程翻新後,屋內仍能看到最初日式設計,諸如廊道寬90公分、高180公分等。師大也特別考證重 現了日式建物特色,一入玄關、抬頭可見日本新居中特有的祈福幣串,作為祈求新屋未來一切安好之意;另外屋內也重建「天袋」、「地袋」的置物空間,與具正 式、精神意涵的「床之間」。

樹蔭遮天 忘不了麵包樹

故居共八十坪,光是院子就佔了一半以上。
雲和街十一號最為人津津樂道的莫過於門口樹齡超過80年的麵包樹,在梁實秋遷進雲和街時,麵包樹就已高聳碩壯,遮蔽了大半個院子;梁實秋居住其中的七年間,朝夕流連感受其下的微風徐徐,更常在樹下與友人聊天敘舊。

然而台北多雨天氣,雲和街屋子雨後常積水,對於當時患有風濕的妻子程季淑並不合適,1959年梁實秋經考量後,遂舉家搬遷至安東路,買了塊地自建房子。遷居後梁實秋夫婦想念當初家中的那棵大樹,程季淑更攜了麵包樹種子栽植於安東街的庭院中。

然而梁實秋對於麵包樹的懷想喜愛,並未因時間過去而沖淡;1973年短暫遷居美國的梁實秋,在其七十歲生日時曾寫了一首詞,懷念的依舊是那當年屹立於庭院中、鬱鬱蒼蒼的麵包樹。

幾經波折 預計十月開放

師大進行翻修工程時,也盡量按照原屋原貌做復舊。
1959年梁實秋搬離雲和街十一號後,陸續有師範大學教授入住;但在2003年雲和街十一號經台北文化局指定為歷史建物後,因沒有配套措施、產權未明,房子閒置七年,木造房子少了人跡,開始腐朽衰敗、故居甚至淪為垃圾堆,直至去年由師大接手開始復舊工作。

歷經八個月修繕,梁實秋故居預計十月底開放參觀,空間將委外經營。

參觀資訊

.台北市大安區雲和街十一號

.目前未開放,電話與參觀時間仍未定。


私立東海大學: 從夢谷到毒氣谷


2011年8月25日 公共電視台的午間新聞

報導私立東海大學外的台中工業區的排放 毒氣

嚴重干擾到他們的健康

現在的工業區 在數十年前學生稱之為夢谷

如今成為: 毒氣谷



---

漢清:

聽說許老哥離開歷史系,有一封公開信給歷史系???你有麼?


我沒有呢.....
他跟我們講過該系某些人之惡劣
我們覺得他脫離惡夢/苦海是幸福的
東海如今的空氣
校內和校外都很差 惡劣之至



東海大學可以指:




私立東海大學

私立大學之一。前身為基督教會在我國大陸地區先後創辦的十三所教會大學。民國三十八年,大陸淪陷,相繼停辦。四十四年在臺復校,改名為「私立東海大學」。目前設有文、理、法、工、農、管理六個學院。現址位於臺中市西屯區。

2011年8月20日 星期六

36 Hours in Downtown Manhattan


書名美哉! 馬蒂斯作者陳錦芳
出版者藝術圖書公司, 1995
頁數251 頁

這本書贊美1993年的紐約MoMA 馬蒂斯回顧展
那場展覽我去了 當然也買書
那是第一次到紐約 住康定怡夫婦家

36 Hours

36 Hours in Downtown Manhattan

Nicole Bengiveno/The New York Times

From Left: Watching the progress at the World Trade Center site from the World Financial Center; at Duane Park Patisserie; the scene along Stone Street in the financial district. More Photos »


ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER is rising, and the 9/11 Memorial will open right below it next month on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks. Although progress on the World Trade Center site has been slow, the surrounding neighborhoods did not wait to revive (and in some cases reinvent themselves) after all the emotional and economic devastation. The financial district is bustling, Chinatown is as quirky and enticing as ever, and TriBeCa is bursting with new restaurants, bars and hotels. With the exception of those seeking a night of relentless club-hopping, travelers hardly need venture north of Canal Street for a complete New York weekend.

Multimedia

Friday

2 p.m.
1) CRUISING THE HARBOR

Been there (Liberty and Governors Islands) and done that (taken the free Staten Island Ferry)? There are other options for harbor cruises, and what better way to get an overview of Lower Manhattan? One possibility is a 90-minute sail on the Clipper City tall ship, a replica of a 19th-century lumber-hauling schooner (Manhattan by Sail; 800-544-1224; manhattanbysail.com), which departs from the South Street Seaport. Another is a one-hour harbor cruise with Statue Cruises (201-604-2800; statuecruises.com). The company will soon launch its Hornblower Hybrid, which relies on several power sources, including hydrogen fuel cells, solar panels and wind turbines.

4 p.m.
2) SUGAR AND SOAP

Venture to TriBeCa for a treat at Duane Park Patisserie (179 Duane Street; 212-274-8447; duaneparkpatisserie.com, lemon tarts, $5; “magic cupcakes,” $4) on the shady pocket park it’s named after. Then wander into the nearby shops, ranging from the cute to the serious. At Lucca Antiques (182 Duane Street; 212-343-9005; luccaantiques.com) the owners salvage old wood and metal objects from Europe and brilliantly reformulate them into modern furniture, lamps and wall décor. Torly Kid (51 Hudson Street; 212-406-7440; torlykid.com) has funkily functional clothes for babies to tweens. At the Working Class Emporium (168 Duane Street; 212-941-1199; workingclassinc.com), a shop, you can buy quirky gifts like three-dimensional puzzles and soap shaped like dogs.

6:30 p.m.
3) BANKERS’ HAPPY HOUR

If you resent investment bankers’ salaries and bonuses, then here’s something else to be envious of: the cobblestone stretch of Stone Street. What might be New York’s greatest outdoor drinking spot happens to be right next to Goldman Sachs’s former headquarters. When it’s warm, this quaint block, lined with 19th-century Greek Revival buildings, is practically blocked by tables occupied by financial types, a few sundry locals and knowledgeable tourists. Choose a table outside Adrienne’s Pizzabar (212-248-3838; 54 Stone Street; adriennespizzabar.com) and order a meatball and broccoli rabe pizza ($28.50), enough for three people; a bottle of wine starts at a few dollars more.

10 p.m.
4) THE ANTI-COPA

Midtown’s Copacabana recently reopened, bringing some throwback flash to New York’s music scene. But for throwback grit, try the Friday night party at 2020 (20 Warren Street; 212-962-9759; 2020latinclub.com), where Latinos working in every kind of downtown job come to dance to the D.J.-supplied rhythms of the Spanish-speaking Caribbean.

Saturday

10:30 a.m.
5) BUENOS AIRES BRUNCH

Under one form or another, the restaurateur Stacey Sosa has run an Argentine restaurant in this cool space in TriBeCa since 1997. And though brunch at Estancia 460 (212-431-5093; 460 Greenwich Street; estancia460.wordpress.com) is very New York, with frittatas, granola and some innovative egg dishes, there are flashes of Buenos Aires, like French toast with dulce de leche. (Brunch for two about $30.)

Noon
6) MANAHATTA

Most people don’t put the Smithsonian on their New York must-do list. But the National Museum of the American Indian (212-514-3700; nmai.si.edu), in the Beaux Arts splendor of the old Customs House near Battery Park, is a reminder that Manhattan and the rest of the Western Hemisphere has a long and vibrant cultural history. The Infinity of Nations exhibition has everything from a macaw and heron feather headdress from Brazil to a hunting hat with ivory carvings from the Arctic. To get an up-close view of a wampum belt and corn pounder used by the Lenape Indians, who called the island Manahatta, head to the museum’s resource center and ask. The museum is free — not far from the price for which the Lenapes famously sold Manhattan to the Dutch.

2 p.m.
7) DOCTORAL DOWNTOWN

Continue your historical education with a Big Onion tour. Downtown’s a complicated place, with layers upon layers of history: Dutch, African-American, Revolutionary and financial, among others. It takes a doctoral candidate to decode it, and that is who will lead you on a two-hour $18 tour that might include “Historic TriBeCa,” “Revolutionary New York” or “The Financial District.” Times vary; see bigonion.com.

7 p.m.
8) WINE BY THE T-SHIRT

At the wine bar Terroir Tribeca (24 Harrison Street; 212-625-9463; wineisterroir.com), the young servers dressed in wine-themed T-shirts don’t look as though they could know what they are talking about, but don’t get them started. (Actually, do get them started.) A glass of wine begins at $8.75, and the menu is full of temptations so nonstandard you can justify it: fried balls of risotto, wine and oxtail ($8), for example, is a perfect way to spend your allotment of deep-fried calories.

9 p.m.
9) SALVAGE AND BRUSCHETTA

Who knows how many diners have walked out of Robert DeNiro and company’s Locanda Verde, the big northern Italian spot, and wondered what was going on in the tiny, bustling restaurant across the street? Decked out with salvaged materials that evoke an old factory or warehouse, Smith and Mills (71 North Moore Street; 212-226-2515; smithandmills.com) seats 22 at tables shoehorned between the standing, drinking crowds. The menu includes tomato bruschetta, oysters with horseradish, burgers and brioche bread pudding; dinner for two about $70, with drinks. One must-see: the bathroom, in a turn-of-the-century iron elevator.

11 p.m.
10) DRINKS ON DOYERS

Head east to Chinatown, where Apotheke (9 Doyers Street; 212-406-0400; apothekenyc.com) is a non-Chinese intruder sitting on the elbow of L-shaped Doyers Street, the spot known as the Bloody Angle for the gang-related killings there in the early 20th century. Here you’ll find one of the city’s top cocktail bars, with throwback décor and dim lighting. Try the Deal Closer, made with cucumber, vodka, mint, lime and vanilla, along with “Chinatown aphrodisiacs” ($15).

Sunday

8 a.m.
11) BROOKLYN BRIDGE CROSSING

With the arrival of the dog days, you have to get up pretty early to walk across this beloved landmark in comfort. As romantic as ever, a walk along the elevated pedestrian walkway provides a photo opportunity a minute. On your way back, stop by City Hall Park to see four decades of Sol LeWitt’s sculptures, on display until Dec. 3. Then head west across Chambers Street to pick up bagels and smoked salmon from Zucker’s (146 Chambers Street; 212-608-5844; zuckersbagels.com).

12: 30 p.m.
12) IN MEMORIAM

On Sept. 12, the National September 11 Memorial and Museum opens, with its pair of one-acre reflecting pools in the footprints of the fallen towers, names of victims inscribed in bronze panels, and rustling swamp white oak trees overhead. The on-site museum will have exhibitions on the original World Trade Center and the day of the attacks. Visitors can reserve free passes at 911memorial.org. No pass is needed to visit the “Unwavering Spirit: Hope and Healing at Ground Zero” exhibition at St. Paul’s Chapel nearby (209 Broadway; trinitywallstreet.org). St. Paul’s became a refuge for rescue workers in the days after the attacks. Now it houses photographs, testimonials and artifacts from those weeks after the city changed irrevocably.

IF YOU GO

The Greenwich Hotel (212-941-8900; 377 Greenwich Street; thegreenwichhotel.com), Robert DeNiro’s 2008 creation, has 88 individually designed rooms in the heart of TriBeCa. Free Internet and local phone calls, and for rooms starting at $495 a night, you actually get your choice of local newspaper.

To keep it boutique but lower the rate, try Gild Hall (15 Gold Street; 212-232-7700; thompsonhotels.com), a member of the Thompson Hotels, where 12-foot ceilings and marble bathroom floors go for as little as $179 a night on weekends.


2011年8月17日 星期三

聯合國發行自己郵票: 慈濟紀念郵票

聯合國發行自己郵票的想法是由阿根廷在1947年首次提出的。 1951年,聯合國與美國郵政局達成了協議,它規定美元面值的郵票只能在聯合國總部的郵局使用。聯合國於1951年10月24日,即聯合國日發行了美元面值的第一套聯合國郵票。這套郵票立即獲得成功,在數天內銷售一空。聯合國還與瑞士和奧地利郵政當局達成了類似的安排。全世界只有聯合國這樣一個既非國家又非政府的機構被允許發行郵票。聯合國郵局也是唯一的以三個不同的幣種,即美元、瑞士法郎和歐元發行郵票的郵局。

聯合國郵票是小型藝術品,曾多次贏得國際設計大獎。它們是由來自世界各地的藝術家們創作,並在不同國家最好的印刷廠印製。由於聯合國郵票反映了其世界組織的工作,郵票超越了集郵的界限,它提示人們關注重大的世界問題,並提醒聯合國對其目標的承諾。

近期發行的郵票議題已涉及瀕危物種,我們的環境,世界和平,與艾滋病作鬥爭,並承諾一個更美好的世界。聯合國郵票在聯合國的紐約,日內瓦和維也納辦事處同時發行。每一個議題進行相關設計,不同的郵局有不同的面額。從聯合國郵政管理處辦公室可以直接購買郵票或通過郵購買郵票,也可從通過郵票商購買。郵票只能在紐約,日內瓦和維也納的聯合國郵局內寄出有效。

請參考聯合國大會提供的代表手冊,其中有說明聯合國郵政管理處提供哪些服務。


***

聯合國出郵票 見證慈濟情

2011709人文志業發展處

聯合國郵政總局為表彰慈濟四十五年來在人道援助上的貢獻,特別於5月份慈濟45周年慶,正式發行了5萬份的慈濟紀念郵票,包括小全張及首日封,透過四張郵票圖案說故事,以表彰慈濟人長期以來在慈善、醫療、教育、人文四大志業上的付出與貢獻。


全球大愛 使節媒體共見證

78日中午,日本、以色列、史瓦濟蘭、巴拉圭、多明尼加、瓜地馬拉等國大使與代表,以及包括中國時報總編輯、聯合報總編輯、東森財經台台長與總編輯、 中天新聞台總監、三立新聞台總編輯、 民視、台視、公視新聞部經理等十八家媒體主管獲邀來到慈濟人文志業中心共同餐敘,並於下午一時於關渡園區與證嚴上人座談,共同分享這份喜悅,見證來自全球的大愛。

上人特別北上與外國使節及國內媒體人分享,「很感恩聯合國為慈濟四十五周年發行郵票,肯定慈濟四十幾年來所做的,真的很感恩。」因為四十五年前一位婦女難產所留下的一灘血,讓上人掛心不已,一念大悲心起而創立了「克難慈濟功德會」,號召竹筒歲月,以不影響家庭生活的情況下,每天省下五毛買菜錢,鼓勵大家日日發願、行善,以愛心帶動愛心,進而開展慈濟四大志業、八大法印。四十五年來慈濟人秉持的小力量成就大愛的精神,足跡遍及全球七十二個國家地區。

竹筒歲月 傳遞愛的力量

竹筒歲月」的精神現在也擴及全球,上人舉緬甸為例,2008遭受納吉斯風災重襲,慈濟人克服萬難前往進行援 助,提供受災農民稻種與肥料,輔導他們重新自立生活。懷抱著感恩心,這群貧困的農民雖然無法捐款助人,但他們煮飯前都會先抓一把米存入「米撲滿」,累積一定的量後,幫助其他更需要幫助的人。

上人讚歎,「窮人救窮人,愛的力量就能不斷傳遞。」 日本311強震受災的災民,看到慈濟人用來存錢的小竹筒,也紛紛開始拿起竹筒存錢助人,以感恩的心回饋這一分來自全球慈濟人的愛心,讓愛的暖流傳而不歇。

證嚴上人表示,去年得知聯合國準備發行慈濟紀念郵票時,相當驚訝,很欣慰台灣「以愛為寶」的精神能被全球看見。還有志工看到自己上了聯合國的郵票,與證嚴上人一起入鏡,既驚又喜。

見證教育:小女孩長大囉…

每一張郵票都有感人故事,代表慈濟走過的足跡。

您還記得郵票中的那位小女孩嗎?921希望工程延平國小於200061日舉辦動土典禮。上人柔聲安慰,手心貼著她小小的胸口。

回想當年,蔡宜庭猶記得師公上人來了,帶了好多糖果,同學們都搶著要,因為「吃了會變聰明。」宜庭要將感恩卡呈給上人時,緊張地說不出話來,沒想到上人蹲下來摸著她的心說「不要緊張。」宜庭才定下心來緩緩地說道:「師公上人謝謝你,來到這邊看我們。

如今事隔11年,小女孩長大了,宜庭從竹山高中畢業後,遠赴美國明尼蘇達州念書,暑假期間返回家鄉南投竹山探望家人,並面見恩師曾彩琴,憶起此往事,仍歷歷在前,除了感恩慈濟的重建,更懷念與上人的一面之緣,隻身赴美求學的她也將謹記當年寫下「口說好話、心想好意、身行好事、腳走好路」的靜思語,繼續把眾人的愛傳出去。

見證環保:志工對大地的付出

還有一張郵票上的照片,是上人去年(2010) 行腳八卦寮環保站時所拍下的,當時上人輕拍官葉境阿嬤的肩膀,感恩環保志工對大地的付出, 而上人的鼓勵讓高齡八十三歲的官阿嬤好感動。

阿嬤知道與上人的合影製成了郵票時,訝異之餘,不禁再三確認是不是自己,看了穿著、打扮,仔細回想了一下,哈哈,對啦!就是我。

聯合國發行的小全張圖片中,以四張證嚴上人的照片說故事,分別代表慈濟的四大志業,除了上述「教育」和「人文」志業的郵票圖案,另還包括證嚴上人慈善訪貧,以及到醫院關懷病患等,由於數量有限,且郵票屬紀念性質,慈濟基金會將做為贈送外國使節及志工會眾認購,以做為永久紀念。

(
文: 慈濟基金會人文志業發展處報導 2011/07/08)




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2011年8月11日 星期四

台灣的神豬競選之風必須禁


台灣的神豬競選之風必須禁

The pigs are hit on the snout to force them to keep eating (AFP/File, Tim Sloan)




Taiwan 'holy pig' contest risks ban
AFP
TAIPEI — Taiwan animal rights activists and community leaders on Wednesday called for a ban on a popular "holy pig" rite in which porkers are force-fed before being sacrificed in public. In the "holy pig" contest, carried out among the ethnic Hakka ...

Taiwan 'holy pig' contest risks ban

TAIPEI — Taiwan animal rights activists and community leaders on Wednesday called for a ban on a popular "holy pig" rite in which porkers are force-fed before being sacrificed in public.

In the "holy pig" contest, carried out among the ethnic Hakka community, farmers compete to raise the heaviest pig in the neighbourhood, with the "winning" animal killed to please the gods.

"The pigs are force-fed until they are paralysed and very ill, and then their throats are cut in public," said the Environment and Animal Society of Taiwan in a statement.

It said the practice, which results in pigs as heavy as 600 kilograms (1,320 pounds), "violates the spirit of worshipping and the global trend of animal protection".

The group said it has secured the support of more than 100 Hakka community leaders and well-known scholars to push for a ban on the "abusive and brutal" practice.

Pigs are often kept in small enclosures to prevent them from moving around and are hit on the snout to force them to keep eating, according to the group.

However, the chief of a Hakka temple in New Taipei city contacted by AFP said there were no plans to call off next year's "holy pig" contest scheduled during the Lunar New Year.

"It's a folk custom and we can't just call it off. The contestants have already registered and people are looking forward to it," he said.


2011年8月2日 星期二

Times Square


  1. Times Square - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    - [ 翻譯這個網頁 ]
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Times_Square - 頁庫存檔
    Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching ...
  2. Time square」的圖片搜尋結果

    - 檢舉圖片
新华社在“时代广场”巨大广告屏“现身”

纽约 据德新社报道,在世界资本主义的中心未来将无时无刻不看到中国官方通讯社—新华社。从本周一��8月1日)起,纽约时代广场的一块18米高、12米宽的液晶广告牌从英国汇丰银行长期转手给新华社,一天24小时显示这个中国官方通讯社的广告。当新华社的标志在该广告牌上开始闪亮时,一些示威者在广告牌下举行示威,抗议中国的西藏政策以及对新闻和言论自由的侵犯。时代广场是美国最活跃的广场之一,是纽约市的一大旅游热点。该地建筑物的墙面嵌满巨大的电子屏幕,广告昼夜不断。此地广告租金昂贵。新华社付了多少租金,目前不为外界所知。


Xinhua Takes on Times Square

Zuma Press
A new electronic billboard leased by Xinhua, the news agency operated by the Chinese government, debuted Monday in Times Square.
AFP/Getty Images

Xinhua, the news agency run by Chinese government, joined Time Square’s glowing pantheon of corporate iconography Monday, taking the second-highest position in a tower of flashing displays for Prudential, Coca-Cola, Samsung and Hyundai.

The huge LED sign measures 60 feet by 40 feet and replaces a billboard at 2 Times Square that had been leased by HSBC for the last decade. (No word on whether the move is part of HSBC’s just-announced round of cuts.)

Xinhua’s ascension to one of the most visible billboards in the world comes on the same day that Al-Jazeera English, an affiliate of the global news organization owned by Qatar, began broadcasting on New York’s Time Warner Cable.

For Xinhua, the billboard highlights its shift into more visible position in New York’s media landscape. The state-run news agency recently finalized a deal to move to the top floor of the 44-story skyscraper at 1540 Broadway — the same building that is now home to the huge Forever 21 store and near media giant Thomson Reuters. The company’s North American news operations had previously been headquartered in Woodside, Queens.

“We are doing more coverage here,” Zeng Hu, Xinhua’s North America bureau chief, told WSJ’s Anton Troianovski in June. With the move to Manhattan, he said the agency may increase its New York staff.

The billboard will bring new visibility to the news organization, but it won’t help spread Xinhua’s news to tourists and office workers hurrying through Times Square.

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