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Showing posts from December, 2016

The Revenant

Watched this movie during the flight to UAE last month. Well, actually I could have watched it in my previous Malaysia Airline flight to South Korea but decided not to as the subtitle has already taken up quarter of the in-flight screen. Anyway, this is a really really good movie. Probably one of the best movies I've ever watched, although it didn't win the best picture in Oscar. It won for the best cinematography and best director though. Totally agree with the judges' choice. Good acting by the main actor, Leonardo DiCaprio as well. The movie tells about the survival of a frontiersman, after being attacked by a bear, then left by the team members, witnessing the murder of his son, and then seeks for revenge. At the end, he comes to a clear conscience that "revenge is in the Creator's hands". Kinda bit biblical. It's a dramatic yet adventurous kind of movie. Was very pleasant to follow the entire story.

Thinking of Jesus at Christmas

"For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6 NKJV) The message shared by the pastor in this Christmas is centered around who Jesus is. He is called: 1. Wonderful; as demonstrated by His power. "One day Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn't speak, and when the demon was fone, the man began to speak. The crowds were amazed." (Luke 11:14 NLT) 2. Counselor; where He speaks with authority. ""We have never heard anyone speak like this!" the guards responded." (John 7:46 NLT) 3. The Mighty God. "The Father and I are one."" (John 10.:30 NLT) 4. The Everlasting Father. "In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was c

Rogue One - a mixed feeling

Watched this movie last Saturday. It's a prequel to A New Hope . What I like about this movie is that it has continuation to Star Wars IV. So it's sort like a missing link to the big picture. It has a simple story - how the rebel retrieve the plan of the Death Star. There's not much character development here. Even though the focus is on Jynn Erso, I feel that the director could do more to expand the side of her story. The music score is not memorable. Probably due to shorter time frame to compose and arrange by new composer. I think John Williams could do better. On the downside, the producer had somehow "cheated' the fans - there're at least 12 scenes from the trailers which do not appear in the movie. They must have done a massive re-shooting. Well, if you didn't see the trailers, then the movie is not that bad. Even if you have seen it, if you take into the account of the story, it does serve a good plot. Again it is the good guy vs bad guy theme, where

A trip to UAE - Abu Dhabi and Dubai

I had an opportunity to visit UAE as I was invited to attend a conference in Abu Dhabi last week. Well, U.A.E is not in my wish list. But since I needed to utilize the conference budget, so I just took up the opportunity. Additionally I could also meet my ex-housemate. I planned for a 5-day stay in this country. 2.5 days in Abu Dhabi and the remaining days  in Dubai. I had only one expectation for this country - skyscrapers and odd building designs. True enough, that's what they have. Besides, plenty of malls (especially in Dubai) and theme parks. After this trip, I found that this place is not my type. I was looking for some local cultural and historical influenced places; there weren't plenty. I skipped the desert; keep it for future trip to Jordan. The only cultural influence is the influx of expatriates (Filipinos, Bangladeshis, Indians, Pakistanis). You will see these people a lot more than the locals. By statistic, expatriates consist of 80% of the country population

Walking tour - Yangon

Having been to a walking tour before, I immediately agreed when Dr Michael suggested to take up the free walking tour in Yangon (www.freeyangonwalks.com). That was in year 2015 (my bad for posting this late). The tour was supposed to start at 5pm. But our tour guide was a bit late. Never mind, at least he turned up. Apparently, our guide was working in Yangon for quite some time. So his team members knew a bit of the historical places for the tour. Now he has moved to Australia and started the Old Sydney Walks (http://www.oldsydneywalks.com/#tour-highlights). The walking tour started at the park in front of the city hall, nearby Sule Pagoda (the site where monks demonstration was held few years ago, a.k.a Saffron Revolution). It was very lively and informative as we got to know the history, the reason for the establishment of certain buildings as well as the local political scenario. From this tour, I felt that some of the buildings deserved to be preserved due to their historical valu

Walking tour - Barcelona

While I was in Barcelona few years ago (it was 2013), the cheap and easier way to explore the city was to join the walking tour. I signed up for a free walking tour in my hostel. The tour was guided by a local architecture student. It was a very informative tour. He explained the history, background and some local political issues throughout the journey. We walked passed Gaudi's masterpiece along the way - Casa Mila La Pedrera and Casa Batllo. Then we walked through the La Ramba street, Jewish quarter and finally the city hall. Of course, the participants enjoyed the tour very much. A small tips were given to the student for his pocket money. The entrance of Casa Mila La Pedrera One of Gaudi's architecture design - Casa Mila, which has been converted into hotel now. Another masterpiece of Gaudi - Casa Batllo. Notice the roof that resembles the body of a dragon. Most of his designs have curvy element. A fountain at the main city area. T