Postmodern Jukebox

"You say I'm crazy

'Cause you don't think I know what you've done

But when you call me baby

I know I'm not the only one.

I know I'm not the only one

I know I'm not the only one

And I know

And I know

And I know

And I know

And I know, no

I know I'm not the only one."

But if I am 

I don't caaare! 

Ta daaaam...

Sarah Reich (she is so cool!)

In Bucuresti, pe 29 mai la Sala Palatului. Puteti cumpara bilete de aici: Scott Bradlees Postmodern Jukebox Bucuresti

Traieste in felul tau. Ce inseamna cu adevarat sa fii rebel? OSHO

     Cand vom avea indivizi, vom avea cu totul altfel de societati: vor fi comune, nu societati. Nu vor mai exista natiuni, fiindca nu e nevoie de ele.

    Ce nevoie e de natiuni? Pamantul intreg e unul. Numai pe harti continuati sa trasati linii si din cauza acelor linii va luptati si va omorati si va masacrati. E un joc atat de stupid incat, daca nu cumva intreaga omenire e nebuna, e imposibil de inteles cum de continua.

     Ce nevoie e de natiuni? Ce nevoie e de pasapoarte si de vize si de granite? Acest intreg pamant e al nostru: oriunde vrea un om sa fie, are dreptul sa fie. Soarele nu e proprietatea nimanui, pamantul nu e proprietatea nimanui, luna nu e proprietatea nimanui; vantul, norii, ploaia - nimic nu e proprietatea nimanui. De ce trageti aceste linii?

     E lesne de inteles... in curand veti vedea linii pe luna. Deocamdata nu sunt, dar in curand veti vedea zona rusa, zona americana, zona chineza. Nu traieste nimeni acolo, nu va trai nimeni niciodata acolo. Nu pare sa existe posibilitate ca viata sa se dezvolte pe luna. Luna e moarta - nu se gaseste pe ea nici macar o singura picatura de apa. Da, poti sta acolo cateva ore cu masca de gaze si cilindri de oxigen si toate cele necesare, dar oamenii nu pot trai asa acolo. Insa deja si-au pus steagurile... Nu e nimeni acolo sa vada steagul, nimeni care sa salute steagul - nici macar vreo pasare care sa se gainateze din cand in cand pe el! Primul lucru pe care l-au facut americanii a fost sa puna un stalp si sa ridice steagul. Ce idiotenie! Si pentru cine? Dar vor urma si alti netoti. Se vor duce pe Marte, se vor duce pe alte planete si vor face acelasi lucru peste tot.

     Nu e nevoie de natiuni - atat numai ca politicienii au nevoie de natiuni, pentru ca fara natiuni nu va exista politica; atat numai ca generalii au nevoie de natiuni, pentru ca fara natiuni nu vor fi razboaie; atat numai ca fabricile care produc arme vor ramane fara producrie. Ce se va intampla cu fabricile voastre de arme nucleare si cu toata energia implicata in ele? - caci daca nu mai exista natiuni, nu mai e nevoie sa fabrici arme nucleare. Pentru cine?

     Solutia cea mai simpla pentru a salva umanitatea este sa fie inlaturate de pe harta toate liniile - si doar de pe harta; pe pamant nu exista linii. Doar de pe harta inlaturati toate liniile si nu veti mai avea al treilea razboi mondial si nu veti mai avea nevoie de atatea armate in toata lumea.

   Insa eu vreau sa-ti spun ca a pasi clipa de clipa in necunoscut reprezinta cea mai mare binecuvantare a vietii. A ramane in sfera cunoscutului e plictiseala pura, fiecare zi e la fel. Si ce rost are sa traiesti? Ai mai trait acelasi lucru de mai multe ori, in multe zile.

      Incurajarea mea pentru tine este: iubeste schimbarea, iubeste necunoscutul.

    Risca tot ceea ce iti e cunoscut in favoarea necunoscutului si vei fi intotdeauna intr-o stare de extaz. Vei fi intotdeauna un castigator, fiindca necunoscutul are comori ascunse pe care le dezvaluie numai celor care pot renunta la cunoscut. Insa eu nu-ti pot spune decat atat: renuntarea trebuie sa vina din partea ta. Ea trebuie sa fie decizia ta, angajamentul tau - numai atunci iti va aduce bucurie.

Intimitatea, OSHO

     "Sa fii autentic inseamna sa ramai fidel fata de propria fiinta. Cum sa ramai fidel? Trebuie sa tii seama de trei lucruri, sa le respecti cu sfintenie. Primul, sa nu asculti niciodata de nimeni, sa nu asculti ce ti se spune. Asculta-ti intotdeauna vocea interioara, ce ai vrea sa fii, altfel iti vei irosi toata viata. Mama ta vrea sa fii inginer, tatal tau vrea sa fii doctor, tu vrei sa fii poet. Ce e de facut? Bineinteles ca mama are dreptate, pentru ca, din punct de vedere financiar, e mai bine sa fii inginer. Si tata are dreptate, pentru ca meseria de doctor e o marfa buna pe piata, are o valoare de piata. Poet? Ai innebunit? Nu esti in toate mintile? Poetii sunt blestemati. Nimeni nu-i vrea. Nu e nevoie de ei; lumea poate sa existe fara poezie - nu va fi nicio nenorocire daca nu exista poezie. Lumea nu poate sa existe fara ingineri; lumea are nevoie de ingineri. Daca esti necesar, esti valoros. Daca nu esti necesar, n-ai nici o valoare.

Dar daca tu vrei sa fii poet, fii poet. Poate ai sa fii cersetor - bine. Poate n-ai sa te imbogatesti din poezie, dar sa nu-ti faci griji din pricina asta, pentru ca altfel ai putea fi un mare inginer, ai putea castiga multi bani, dar nu te vei simti implinit, nu vei avea nicio satisfactie, vei tanji mereu, fiinta ta interoara va tanji sa fie poet.

     Am auzit ca un mare om de stiinta, un chirurg caruia i s-a acordat Premiul Nobel, a fost intrebat: "Cand ti s-a acordat Premiul Nobel, nu pareai prea fericit. De ce?" Chirurgul a raspuns: "Eu am vrut mereu sa fiu dansator. N-am vrut din capul locului sa fiu chirurg, si acum nu numai ca am ajuns chirurg, dar sunt si un foarte bun chirurg si asta e o povara. Voiam sa fiu doar dansator si am ramas un dansator ratat - asta e durerea mea. Ori de cate ori vad pe cineva dansand, ma simt foarte nefericit, trec prin chinurile iadului. Ce sa fac cu acest Premiu Nobel? El nu poate sa devina un dans pentru mine, nu-mi poate oferi un dans.""

     "Asa ca vreau sa-ti spun urmatorul lucru: accepta-te asa cum esti. Este cel mai greu lucru din lume, intrucat intra in conflict cu educatia ta, cu cultura ta. De la inceput ti s-a spus cum ar trebui sa fii. Nimeni nu ti-a spus ca esti bun asa cum esti, toti ti-au introdus in minte diverse programe. Ai fost programat de parinti, de preoti, de politicieni, de profesori, iar ideea a fost una singura - sa te imbunatatesti, sa te perfectionezi. Nu conteaza cine esti, trebui sa alergi dupa altceva, continuu, fara odihna. Invatatura mea e simpla: nu amana viata. Nu astepta ziua de maine, ea nu vine niciodata. Traieste astazi!"

     "Cand te indragostesti de o persoana, persoana aceea ti se pare frumoasa. Iubirea introduce ideea de frumusete, nu invers. Insa rar se intampla sa gasesti o persoana care sa se potriveasca intru totul cu tine. Iar daca ai norocul sa o intalnesti, viata e un cantec. Atunci exista doua trupuri si un singur suflet - acesta este cuplul adevarat."

Our dreams, their inspiration. Val Thorens, France

I couldn't find a more suitable title for this post as this one. And I really felt it that way. The French did it again! We dreamed and they created a place exactly like in our sweetest winter dreams. I was not an avid ski person until I put my feet on this winter land which seemed out of a ski film scene. Les 3 Vallées is the world's largest ski area, it has 600 km of pistes accessible for ski, 372 downhill ski pistes, 167 ski lifts and 1,512 hectares of maintained pistes...oh là là. Voilà.

I have to be honest with you: I was a little bit afraid of this sport that I've tried before and I actually never took it seriously, maybe because I was too lazy to wake up at 7 am during vacation, it was too cold or too expensive, I was frightened of all the falling, of all the "what if" I am not good enough of it or...worse, I didn't have the right pair of pants. Girls, do you remember these questions: where are my ski pants, did I lend them to you? :)))

But this year I wanted to be different, I wanted to learn how to ski and that was enough. So I took 6 days of ski lessons (3 group lessons and 3 private lessons) in Val Thorens and I am the queen of the green pistes and the joker of the blue ones, eh, not all of them but the difficult blue ones. Next year I am sure that I'll be even better. Step by step.

                                                                       On greens

                                                                     & on blues :)))

What makes Val Thorens really special is that it's not only the highest resort in Europe with stunning views of the beautiful mountains and wide, long slopes but it also exceeds in other areas such as great food, live music on the pistes and countless possibilities to enjoy your time after skiing: cool après-ski (try La Folie Douce), husky dog sledging, fun slope, snowmobiling, nice bars, cosy restaurants, para gliding, spa, the highest zip line in the world (accessible to skiers only) etc.

Les 3 Vallées is shinning again and this time in your plate. It is the mountain area with the most Michelin starred restaurants recorded ever. No, I didn't try any of them, actually I never tried a Michelin starred restaurant (yet, I have this on my list!), but I can recommend you two very good restaurants from the bottom of my heart.

The first one - Les Chalets du Thorens - is right on one of the pistes. I was completely surprised to see that they even have a sushi bar in the restaurant. Who ever ate sushi on the slopes? I surely did. They served a variety of traditional Savoyard specialities, seafood, Italians pastas and delicious French sweets. Eating their exquisite food I was thinking that I ended up somehow in the Ratatouille movie. I'll let you have a look at my photos, but please don't drool over the computer :)

What do you think?

And the second recommendation is in the resort this time: Face West Cafe. Try here the dessert, Tarte Tatin chaude, hmmm, I totally forgot to photograph it, I was to busy to indulge in the sweetest and finest tastes.

Editor's choice: stuffed pumpkin with tomme de Savoie, oyster mushroom and parsley  

And since we are in France, all the talking is about or around food. Trust me, I lived there over too years and there were very few times when I could get out of the house just for a drink, without having dinner or at least some amuse-bouche near by... So, another place to buy food for home or to have it with you in the room is this one, La Ferme de Thorens.  

I do not eat meat, but I saw in their shop all kind of sausages with nuts, herbs, cheese and so on.

                                                             
                                                       My favorite cheese: tomme de Savoie

And now let me introduce you to the Vitruvian...pig :) 

Tips:

- if you don't live in France and you don't have internet access on your cell and you can not stay too much without internet, when you book a room in Val Thorens, ask about wifi. They usually do not provide wifi in the rooms and they don't have internet access in every building. You can buy a pass available in Val Thorens for a whole week, but it's not worth it since it's too expensive: 25 euros. 

- 6 days of ski with group lessons at SkiCool : 171 euros

- ski pass for 6 days: 218 euros

For any other details, feel free to drop me a line.

À la prochaine!

  

  

What I wanted for my birthday.

I know that what I wanted for my birthday this year won't come true. And I didn't wish for expensive shoes or fancy trips, but for the health of my friend.

I have to learn at only 37 what to do with so much pain inside. I have to learn to transform it in something else as a larvae to a butterfly. I don't know how to do it...yet. 

In the last years I've read so many books that tell you how to accept anything that happens to you, how to embrace change as the most natural thing in the world... in front of this huge pain, I only realize I didn't actually learn anything. I thought I did. Maybe it's time to read them again.

Instead, I've learned how to pray, in my thoughts and out loud, day or night, lying down, walking or on my knees and I don't even know if my prayers were heard. I don't think so. But I am still praying. Sometimes that calms me down, but sometimes it makes me even angrier, powerless, wondering if I did everything I could for her. 

Maybe I could have been a better friend, maybe I could have disappointed her less during our friendship (we all did that sometimes, right?), maybe I could have listened to her more. Maybe. A thousands maybe, except one. I couldn't have loved her more and she couldn't have loved me more. And this is the only thing that make sense for me these days... and probably forever: love. The last voice message that I have on my cell from her is "Te iubeeeeeesc!" 

I love you too, Ailin. To the moon and back and forever, my dear friend.

So I have another wish for my birthday, hoping to come true: be happy and tell today anyone you love "Te iubesc". The last lesson learned from my friend is to cherish every single day and make the most of it.    

Spotted in Val Thorens

     In the south of France, in Veryere-du-Lac, two magic hands give life to beautiful, genuine, unique creations inspired by nature. 

     In her workshop, Adjie works with birch, spruce or other local wood and recycled wool. You can see the results above. She creates in a funny manner sheep, rabbits, donkeys, deers and other dear pets ready to come with you in your home.

     Take a look at her facebook page HERE, and watch a short movie in French about her creations HERE.

Rosenborg Castle, Copenhagen

Royal crowns, thrones guarded by three life size silver lions, a treasury with the royal jewelry, twelve huge tapestries, clocks, elegant pieces of carved furniture, paintings etc. all gathered in a kind of small pleasure summer castle by Christian IV, King of Denmark and Norway from 1588. Rosenborg was built between 1606 and 1634 and the king designed himself a big part of this Renaissance castle.

What make Rosenborg special is its long museum tradition and its unique style of presenting the royal collections gathered over time in the castle. In fact, it is the first museum of contemporary culture in Europe. Rosenberg was opened to the public in 1838. At that time, most of the museums were arranged thematically by furniture, portraits etc., but Rosenborg's collections were arranged chronologically so the visitors can have an overview of the history.   

Japanese lacquered cabinet was used by queen Charlotte Amalie to keep inside her collection of seashells.

The Great Hall or the Knights' Hall was used originally as a ballroom, then its destination changed for banquets. Christian V added 12 tapestries made in Copenhagen and representing scenes from the Scanian war (1675-1679).

In the picture below you can see the coronation chairs, one for the Danish kings (as you look at the picture on the left side) and the other one for the Danish queens (on the right side). The first one is made of narwhale-tusk and the second one is made of silver.

   In this very well maintained tapestry you can see Christian V on the right side. 

The underground Treasury

    Cristian's IV crown

Emeralds and brilliants set. The emeralds seemed to be a present from Christian VI to Queen Sophie Magdalene.

                                          Hair ornament

Interesting fact: the crown jewels may be used now by the queen, but they are owned by the state. The queen is not allowed to wear them outside Denmark and she generally uses them at New Year's banquet or during other events at the Royal House. It is a big privilege for us all to be able to see in a castle the crown jewels that are still worn by the queen.