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Postcard from Urumqi , Xinjiang

Lake Tianchi - Xinjiang

The city of Urumqi is not a popular tourist destination and most people have probably never heard of it. So allow me to share with you what I have discovered about this wonderful city and the breathtaking province of Xinjiang. Two thousand years ago, one of the many silk roads passed through Urumqi and its historical presence can be seen in the Erdaoqiao Markets. There is a strong muslim presence in Xinjiang and as this is the case, lamb is the number one meat served (yes, it is a nightmare for vegetarians).
You may perhaps recall the scene from the movie "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" where the girl's comb is stolen by "Dark Cloud" and he then takes her to his cave. That entire scene was filmed in the province of Xinjiang, in the Gobi Desert. Xinjiang is also know as "The Centre of the Earth" and is in the Guinness book of records for being the city furtherest from any coastline (2500km).

Beijing 2008 Olympic Games

The forbidden city

Oh China! What a wonderfully mysterious country this is. I have fallen in love with its beauty, and at the same time I have learnt to understand a little more and appreciate its rich culture, tradition and different ways. As our flight arrived into Beijing, I was wandering whether we'd get to see the sunshine for the duration of our stay. You could literally see no further than 200 metres down the road due to the overwhelming presence of thick smog. The Beijing airport looks very new and it is very clear that the Chinese government has not spared a cent in its construction/renovation and made a very conscientious effort to prepare itself for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games which will start here in less than a month.

Phuket 2008

Thailand - Karon beach

Welcome to Thailand, the land of fake Lacoste, Havaianas, Rolex, Omega, Nike, Fifa shirts, DVD's etc...etc... Oh, and ladyboys. The food in Thailand is absolutely delicious, I did a cooking class at the Phucket school of Thai Cookery so I can now say that I am a qualified Thai chef (just kidding)! My means of transport around the island was by scooter, it was quite cheap considering it cost 200 baht per day (that's less than AU$7 per day) and my hotel which was located opposite to Karon beach cost AU$34 per day including breakfast (Baan Karonburi resort). The hotel room had a king size bed, air conditioning (which is definitely a must in Thailand) and there was also a pool with a poolside bar.

Singapore 2008

Singapore style lah!

Somehow I managed to book a hotel in another red light district... again. I was looking for cheap hotel accommodation on AsiaRooms.com but my first place of choice was a total catastrophe! (my good friend Felicia told me so after I had booked the hotel.) I would not recommend anyone to stay at Star Hotel 81 - in Gaelang (Singapore's red light district). Although our hotel experience was quite disastrous (for example our non-smoking room's air-con vent was linked to the smoking rooms), Gaelang was a very adventurous and colourful place to stay at. The food is cheap, the girls are plentiful and the durian smell is overwhelming.

Genesys training in Sydney

Always Coca-Cola

Once again I found myself in the heart of Sydney, ready and prepared to undertake some more Genesys University training (I think it's my 14th course I have taken). The weather was grim, gloomy and wet, but nevertheless, I found myself in more than one adventures, together with my good friend and work colleague Vitaly.

Saint Helena night trip - Genesys outing.

Actors on the St Helena tour

It's amazing that none of us had ever heard of The Saint Helena Island tour as it is supposed to be a popular tourist and school destination (students go to the island for an educational experience). I must say that the experience was definitely worthwhile. The night included BBQ dinner on the boat (the cat'o nine tails) which took about 50 minutes to get out to the island. Followed by some actors that re-enacted part of the history and some particular scenarios that took place in the yesteryear.

Mother's day 2008 - La Gran Paella

La Gran Paella

How I adore my mother. She is such a selfless, giving and loving woman. I think a son can never do enough to repay a mum for all the things that she endured over the years because of our existence. This year, I wanted to do something special for mum but she had already made plans to go to the Spanish Centre and help my father out in "La Gran Paella" celebrations. This event is held about 4 times a year at The Spanish Centre in Brisbane's Archerfield (244 Mortimer Road). Although the name may indicate that this club is strictly Spanish, it is actually quite a multicultural place where many people from various backgrounds come for a good time.

Boula Fiji!

Boula Fiji! - Alexio, Makiri and kid.

When my best friend David visited Fiji in 1997 - the first thing he was told as he stepped off the plane was "Relax, it's Fiji time". Now in 2008, it was my turn to visit these beautiful islands, and nothing could be further from the truth. It's like you're stepping into a different timezone (well you are literally) where people run on a different clock. Everyone is so friendly and everybody smiles. I am told that you can tell what mood a Fijian is in by the way they say 'Boula'. The only three words you need to know when visiting Fiji are boula (hello), vinaka (thank you) and moce (pronounced mothè - which means goodbye).

4WD Fraser Island

Matthew - the tree hugger

Welcome to the beautiful World Heritage listed Fraser Island. The world's largest sand island is absolutely breathtaking. The 3 musketeers of this trip were myself, my brother Matthew and Ian. The drive to the island was quite eventful, and as Ian put it "Nothing can go wrong because we don't have a plan"! So, instead of driving to Inskip Point and catching the 10 minute ferry across to Fraser, we drove north to Hervey Bay then caught the Fraser Dawn across to Moon Point, and trekked through 30 kilometres of Rainforest and bumpy sand tracks until we reached Happy Valley. The quicker way to get to the East Coast of Fraser Island would have been to drive from Brisbane to Rainbow Beach, then catch the Inskip Point barge across (the drive North to Waddy Point would be around one and a half hours). Nevertheless, we made it safe and sound to Happy Valley (minus a few smashed beer bottles in the esky). The first night consisted of camping out under the stars as we were too tired to put the tent up.

Lawnbowls at The Boo

Lawnbowls at The Boo

Lawn bowls at The Booroodabin Lawnbowls Club is fun. Cheap drinks, lovely turf and great atmosphere makes it for an awesome afternoon out. I organised a work social event and the turnout wasn't too bad... My work colleagues brought the children along and everybody had a blast playing on the turf.

Brisbane Powerhouse - The Violinarium

The Violinarium

Sunday afternoons at the Brisbane Powerhouse are lazy and relaxed. Griffith and I went to take a few shots and by coincidence, we stumbled on the Violinarium show for the RESTRUNG SOUND SCULPTURES event.

It was my first time at the Powerhouse and I must say that I think it's quite cool. The décor is a cross between a cold-war factory and a contemporary industrial warehouse - and it is very clean and welcoming indeed. On the day, there was a photography exhibition, a film was being shown, a cafe/bar and of course, the Violinarium was in full effect.

Birches @ Mt. Mee - xmas lunch

Birches restaurant at Mt. Mee

It was the February xmas lunch that lasted 8 hours. The location for this convivial and relaxed event was at Birches restaurant - Mt. Mee. The drive through Samford and Dayboro is quite picturesque and definitely worth it. You'd feel as though you're driving through the lower Swiss alps and slowly making your way to the peak (although these mounts are more humble). Grazing cows wander through the pastures. Brett sharing his personal experience with a milk crate...

Sweet semi-finals!!

The Cauldron on Semi-Final night 2008

T'was the night of the Semi-Final match between the Queensland Roar and Sydney F.C. My night started off delightfully with a BBQ at Andrew's place (he just lives around the corner). After we ate, we made tracks down to The Cauldron to watch the mighty roar pull Sydney F.C.'s defense apart.

Cockroach Racing 2008

Cockroach race - Australia Day 2008

Once again it was another eventful Australia Day. This special day, January 26th, marks the birthday of my Mum, Mina's Dad and my good mate Warwick. This year, we ventured down to the Story Bridge Hotel (which is located right under the Story Bridge) and I witnessed for the very first time the famous (or should I say infamous) International Cockroach Racing day. What a great event! I've never seen so many cockroaches in the same place at the same time!

Gold Coast... Yeah!

Crazy pelican party

It was the week before Warwick's birthday and his family had organised a beach BBQ and pre-birthday party and coincidentally, this was the same day that Mina and I were doing our parasailing stunt on the Gold Coast. I must admit that parasailing was a whole lot of fun... My gorgeous Mina and I dangled in the air for about 10 minutes at a height of around 30 to 40 metres and we could see the whole of the Gold Coast and Surfer's Paradise...

Fishing with Ian on the Hornibrook Bridge

Fishing at Hornibrook Bridge

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and the high tide had come to greet us at 12:00 sharp. The Hornibrook Bridge was looking lively with plenty of fishermen and fisherladies... I brought my fishing rod with me but the problem is that I forgot to bring fishing line!! So Ian gave me some of his (which turned out to be a tangled mess)...

4WD Moreton Island

Moreton Island - 4WD paradise

You know when someone says to you they are going camping, you can always bet your last dollar that it's going to rain. It could be fine and sunny for months and months and the minute you set foot outdoors and start putting up the tent, by some magical, supernatural means it begins to rain. That's what happened to Mina and I when we went to Moreton Island.

Benihana - birthday teryaki 2007

Benihana - Expensive Teryaki

Benihana's Teryaki Restaurant is located in the Marriot hotel at Surfer's Paradise on the Gold Coast. As you enter the venue it looks quite stylish and well presented. One would expect that the cost of food matches the décor and I wasn't wrong! I must say that the food was delicious and served by a professional Teryaki chef. Our chef, José had 4 year's experience, and he did seem a little tired (must have been a long day), but nevertheless, he cut, threw, twirled, stabbed and ignited everything on his BBQ plate with precision, speed and extreme dexterity....

Sydney, oh beautiful Sydney...

The Sydney Opera House

Sydney oh Sydney... How charming she is by night... 1:00a.m. on a Tuesday night, or rather a Wednesday morning. So quiet and beautiful. I was fortunate enough to have Genesys send me to Sydney for a couple of days in November to do some Alcatel training. It brought back so many memories of days that were and nights that had gone. When my boss asked me whether I wanted to go to Sydney for a couple of days I jumped at the opportunity. I was finally able to put my creative instinct to good use and utilise my new Gitzo tripod to take night shots of the Sydney CBD and all of its glorious splendour. The SOH (Sydney Opera House), the Harbour Bridge, the Centre Point Tower... They were all there for the taking! How lucky was I, the moon was shining brightly above these world renowned monuments and I was geared up with 0.5 litres of red wine in my belly...

Queensland Roar 16-11-2007

The Orange Elvis

Woooaaaah! I hadn't been to an Australian soccer league match for quite some time. To be quite frank, it's been around 14 years since I used to be a part of the 'strike squad', that was the official Brisbane Strikers supporting team. Now it's called 'The Orange Army'.I used to go and cheer for the boys in Yellow and Blue - those days Frank Farina was on the pitch kicking the ball around, and not wearing a suit on the bench. The league used to be called the NSL (National Soccer League) and the Suncorp Stadium used to be called 'The Cauldron a.k.a Lang Park... Oh gees, how things have changed... The league is now called the A-League (Australian League) and my home team is called the Queensland Roar and they have changed their colours from Yellow and Blue to Maroon and Orange.

My best friend's wedding

CONGRATULATIONS!!

Monsieur et Madame Ruppen

October 13th 2007 - the day my best friend got married. I wish you my sincerest thoughts of happiness to you and your wife Celeste. The wedding day was absolutely fabulous and I know that I will treasure so many fond memories. I sincerely want to congratulate from the bottom of my heart and may the both of you live long and prosperously together.

PizzOff - The battle of the pizzaiolos

I love Pizza. I enjoy preparing it, rolling it, topping it and baking it and I get much satisfaction seeing people enjoy the fruits of my labour. I wouldn't call myself an authentic Pizzaiolo as I don't throw my dough in the air (although it does look awesome but I'd hate having to clean the flour off the Kitchen floor, walls etc... after I'm done).

Quattro Stagioni

PizzOff 2007 was the first pizza 'battle' we organised and it was so successful that all those present agreed to do it once a year. The two pizzaiolos were myself and Rafaelo - an authentic Napolitan pizza guru who gave me a run for my money. The rules to the contest were as follows:

• Each contestant has to make 4 pizzas
• No help is allowed
• Pizza base and Tomato sauce could be prepared prior to the competition
• Ian printed up some marking sheets which the judging panel had to fill out
• Points are awarded for freshness, presentation, crispiness of the crust, taste and smell

Kevin and Emma's wedding

Kevin and Emma - Sacred Heart church

31st of August 2007 - the day our great friends Kenneth Victor Beer and Emma Jane Mackay united in holy matrimony. It was such a beautiful event and I was stoked that it was the first time I was able to fully unleash the wrath from my new Canon Digital Rebel 400D Camera. I took around 540 happy snaps on the day and I would have taken more had I not filled up my 2GB CF card. You can see the wedding photos for yourself.

Skirmishing at Samford

Skirmish is not everyone's idea of fun, nor is it everyone's cup o'tea - but when it comes to shooting paint balls at 90 metres/second (300 ft/sec) at your good mate Kevin, then it is definitely worth it!

Kevin showing his guns

It was Kevin's Buck's day and Skirmish Samford was the place to be. What an extremely lucky day for the young buck as the friendly people at Skirmish Samford gave him a bright yellow face shield and a colour-matching yellow chest and back armor. That was such a great idea!! It was really easy to spot him behind the trees. I must admit, I did take a few shots at me mate Kevin, but no hard feelings buddy! It's all in the spirit of fun...

BJ was hypnotised by the whole event. It must have taken him back to his Norwegian army days. I don't think I recall ever seeing BJ so talkative without the presence of alcohol

The Tomahawk Arcade

Tomahawk Arcade

• Ghosts N Ghoblins
• Arkanoid
• Double Dragon
• Street Fighter
• Mortal Kombat
• 1944
• Metal Slug
• Samurai Showdown, and
• The Punisher

PDA Themes

Kouch Potatoe theme

I never understood why people spend a fortune on iPods, Creative ZEN's or iJumpsInaRiver and accessories. The thing is that most will purchase a device that does one thing (in this instance - play music) and then try to add a whole bunch of costly gizmoes such as plug in cameras, vibrators, electric toothbrushes etc... in order to increase its functionality.

While I don't claim to be perfect, I think that the smartest thing would have been to purchase one device that already has all of the functions built in. That's right people, I am talking about Personal Digital Agendas A.K.A. PDA's.
Just to give you a quick insite into the world of PDA's, here are just some of the few things I do with mine:

Postcard from Cuba

Los Tres Rumberos de Trinidad

September 1999, the year me and 4 crazy Swiss mates went to Cuba for a 6 week holiday.

Well, you can only imagine how crazy things were - Cuba is like a forgotten museum that the rest of the world has left behind in a time of its own...