Musings from a child of globalisation.
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  • Science poems in the Tube

    Posted on March 30th, 2010 chivacongelado No comments
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  • Recommended Book: Grown Up Digital

    Posted on March 25th, 2010 chivacongelado No comments

    Chances are if you were born after1980 like countless others (including yours truly) you are marveled, intrigued and annoyed by the way older people see you, your habits and your value systems.  You understand (but don’t always sympathize with) the way your elders understand technology and the web… or don’t. You are used to have the TV on at the same time as your music player while you read a book, browse the web and have friends coming over.  For you video games are as much a social experience as a way to relax and pass away time, and there is no way you would look at them as “The Big Satan”.  If you’re already working, you might have a hard time adjusting to hierarchies, but are a diligent team worker and require honesty from the company that employs you.

    If you want to get a broader perspective of why these characteristics set you apart from your elder peers, or if on the other hand you are looking inside these brats’ fenced garden see how it all came to this ;)   this is the book you want to read.

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  • Mexico notes, part 2

    Posted on January 8th, 2010 chivacongelado 1 comment
    Palacio de Gobierno

    2000 km southeast and 30°C warmer than the previous location: Main square of Mérida, Yucatán.

    Sunset over the pool in Celestún, Yucatán

    Sunset over the pool in Celestún, Yucatán.

    Flamingoes in close-up
    Flamingoes in close-up in Celestún, Yucatán

    Celestún beach
    5 km of virgin beaches in Celestún, Yucatán.

    The only not so nice detail was when on meeting some people I hadn’t seen in a long time I realised that the crab mentality seems to be alive and well in certain sectors of society. Shame, but hey, what can you do. ;-) Overall it was great and I cannot wait to be back again, if only for holidays.

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  • Mexico notes

    Posted on January 8th, 2010 chivacongelado No comments

    As my previous post detailed, I spent a great holiday in Mexico, catching up with friends and especially family.  We spent a week in Mexico City, then 6 days in the Copper Canyon trail and a few days in Mérida and the natural reserve of Celestún before having to return to the winter wonderland.  I was struck by the enormous variety of landscapes and peoples living in the country where I was born, even if I knew it in theory.  As usual, pictures say it better (if you want to see more than these, they’re all here).

    Fiery dusk cloud

    The winter sky sometimes seems to take a life of its own.

    Barranca de Urique desde el Cerro del Gallego

    Copper Canyon: Barranca de Urique from Cerro del Gallego in Chihuahua state. The largest of 32 federal entities in Mexico, Chihuahua is bigger than many European countries, e.g. the United Kingdom.

    Barrancas del Cobre / Copper Canyon national park deep panorama

    Deep view of Copper Canyon in Divisadero

    Barrancas del Cobre / Copper Canyon national park panorama

    Copper Canyon panorama from Divisadero

    Barrancas del Cobre / Copper Canyon national park

    Copper Canyon detail

    Barrancas del Cobre / Copper Canyon national park

    Copper Canyon: Piedra Volada or why would anyone get so close to a loose rock?

    Clothesline with a view

    The rarámuri (tarahumara) peoples live in the area, and many sell their handcrafts to the tourists. I earned some brownie points by thanking them in their own language ("Chirigüeraba").

    Panorama of a snowed over Creel

    It also snows in parts of Mexico, you know? Creel, Chihuahua

    Panorama of Lake Arareco, Chihuahua, Mexico

    This is not a Finnish lake, but Lago Arareco in Chihuahua state.

    Cusarare waterfall

    Cusarare waterfall, Chihuahua.

    Continues in Part 2

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  • Istanbul

    Posted on December 17th, 2009 chivacongelado 2 comments

    Visited the city on a business trip. I have to say that the most interesting things about Istanbul for me were the long historical view you get in the city, and the uncanny resemblance Turks have with Mexicans.

    As usual with these kind of posts, pictures say it better.

     

    Istanbul panorama

    A city between cultural zones and continents, it has more than 10 million people and number of different names throughout history (maybe Byzantium or Constantinople ring a bell). So many different peoples have lived in it, that excavations for the metro and the Marmara project have found ancient ruins (just like Templo Mayor in Mexico City).

     

    Grand Bazaar

    Traders by nature, the culture of haggling in its bazaars is very well developed.

     

    Aya Sofya interior

    The Aya Sofya, one of the most imposing religious buildings I have ever been to, started its life as a church, became a mosque and is now a national museum.

     

    Técnica de panadero

    Mexican similarities exhibit A: look at this baker's bread-carrying tecnique.

     

    Técnica de taquero

    Mexican similarities exhibit B: Kebabs are way too similar to tacos al pastor.

     

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  • Finnish-Mexican fusion cuisine, part II

    Posted on November 18th, 2009 chivacongelado 2 comments

    In many cultures it is common to take advantage of all parts of an animal, not only the average meat.  As I had been missing beef tongue tacos (a Mexican delicacy) for some time, I decided to try the same with reindeer when I found it sold in my local supermarket.  The taste was very good, if a little gamy.

    Tacos de lengua de reno

    Salad, rice, reindeer tongue taco

    Ingredients (serves 2)

    • 500 g of reindeer tongue (2-3 tongues)
    • 1 full head of garlic
    • 1 white onion
    • Couple of stems and leaves of hierba buena (or spearmint)
    • Couple of stems of dill (or dried dill where available)

    Peel the garlic. Cut the onion in 4 parts. Add the hierba buena, dill, and the tongues and boil everything in water for 1.5 hours. Peel the tongues and cut in small cubes.

    Serve with warm tortillas.  Salad and rice as good optional sides.  Don’t forget a good sauce (a taco without sauce is a sad taco), we had some salsa taquera but I’m sure some pico de gallo would also work great.

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  • Remembrance Day

    Posted on November 11th, 2009 chivacongelado No comments

    Armistice Day Poppy
    I came across Remembrance Day in my last stay in London. While I find the tradition very moving (especially given the current servicemen situation in Afghanistan), I am also slightly disturbed by its militaristic overtones.  There’s nothing wrong with remembering your dead, but shouldn’t be used as a justification for hating others.  After all, the First and Second World Wars were already some time ago.

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  • Finnish citizenship test

    Posted on November 6th, 2009 chivacongelado 2 comments

    Flags at work
    If Finland were to apply tests for citizenship applicants, would you be able to pass it? Helsingin Sanomat created one.

    I got 85%, while natural-born Finns I know got 30 points less. Doesn’t seem to make me or any other foreigner any more or less of a Finn in the eyes of society to know for example how people in Rauma speak, as the more I explore suomalaisuus it looks that it is an ethnic rather than cultural concept.

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  • Singapore

    Posted on November 5th, 2009 chivacongelado No comments

    Wikipedia has a better overview of the place.  I’ll just give you my observations in pictures (the rest, as usual, here).

    Chilli crab dinner

    Long-time foreign residents (and good friends) say there's only 3 things to do in Singapore: eat, shop and visit the rest of Southeast Asia. I wouldn't really mind, especially given their awesome weather.

    Singapore skyline at night

    The place looks absolutely stunning at night.

    En México y en Singapur, la cerveza es... Corona

    In Singapore and the rest of the world you can find Corona

    Raffles Place

    Their Financial district didn't appear to have suffered the recession too much. Furthermore, everywhere is spotless.

    Art Noveau building

    There is very, very interesting architecture.

    4 languages in Singapore

    The place is almost a textbook case study of multiculturalism. Not surprising given that it was forced on them by the government a few generations ago.

    All new casino

    The economy is still going strong.

    Singapore doesn't believe in climate change

    The place seems to be slightly constrained on the political freedoms front, juding by the level of discourse in the country's media.

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  • The price of fame

    Posted on October 21st, 2009 chivacongelado No comments

    By now everybody and their mother have heard about the “balloon boy hoax“: a kid was feared to have flown away on a balloon kept in his family’s back yard who garnered huge media and law-enforcement attention until it was found that first he was not there in the balloon and then that it had all been staged.

    More than anything, I think it is a commentary on the length to which some will go in order to attain “fame”, even at the cost of everybody else.  They got their 15 minutes, but could end up with a 2 million USD fine and 6 years in jail.

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