Thursday, August 31, 2006

Love is around, even on my kitchen window

Yesterday, I witnessed a love. A couple of organic flying object [OFO] were making love on my kitchen window. I saw first one waiting alone and then the second appeared and they attached themselves together... - then the mating started...
I felt embarassed to watch longer such a intimate happening and I went for walk.




When I got back from my long walk they were still making love. I opened the window and they started flying together and tried to come in but I didn't let them.
Let there be plenty of OFOs (organic flying objects) in da future!!!
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Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Fifth Element - Exhibition - Opening 04.08.2006




The Fifth Element Exhibition Opening night at Gallerie Spectra, Kristiinankaupunki, 04/08/2006 @ 16:00

- everything was ready just in a last moment before the opening, it ended up as a group effort; Vala and Kristin were helping to put the paintings and pictures on walls. Ine, Yngvild and Thomas were translating the exhibition text to swedish. Eva helped to put the service table up... and etc.. But eventually we made it together.

We were serving Icelandic specialities, whale garpacio, dried catfish, rotten shark, Brennivin and wine. We were playing Icelandic folk music. We managed to create a relaxed athmosphere and people really enjoyed to be there longer time, no rush back to home... maybe the free wine had something to do with it too...




Whale, sil vous plate!!! raw and red [i am looking more like a dragula with blood in a mug, - but i am not vampire]



Da artist; Örn Helgason



Brennivin and wine were popular products, rotten shark less popular.. Yngvild and Ine came from Norway for opening. It was Yngvilds henn trip before getting married in one week time. (She was kiddnapped to Kristinestad when playing Kroket in Tromsö)


room 3
room 4

Black & White pics, room 4

room 1, the Iceroom
Shapes from Nature 01
Shapes from Nature 02
Shapes from Nature 03 & 04
Landscape wall, room 1

Picture deleted #005 (requested by a person in appearance)

(text not valid due the deletion of the picture)People were enjoying the good athmosphere and warm weather at the courtyard of the Gallery Spectra.

Servings were inside and Örn is checking that if the Brennivin is cold enough to drink..

Later on during the exhibition I stopped serving raw whale meat, instead I started to fry it to the guests when they arrived..

Picture deleted #006 (requested by a person in appearance)

Same day was Helena's birthday and we cooked a whale steak for her as a birtday present. Note, the decoration, a flower, decorating the food makes it taste better, even thou the food was excellent in the first place... heee.. ;)

Picture deleted #007 (requested by a person in appearance)

(text not valid due the deletion of the picture)Hmm.. I wonder what the photographer is doing because Vala is laughing :)

Mr.Aleksur is showing how to eat dried fish in right way, (with butter)..

The artists are posing with the birthday girl.

Charming, ha? ;) heee..

After few hours we had time to relax and enjoy fresments without hazzle

Waiting a taxi to after party....

After the opening party at the gallery we went to after party to Skogstorp in Bergisviken.. and we were vitnessing a fantastic sun set....





And then sauna and spanking with Vihta... ( I redused the picture size because people don't like to be reqocnized or something)

- sorry, no more pictures from the after party because it is almost impossible to carry camera when in sauna or swimming..... and I think its good also to leave some moments free of camera's presence....


Aleksur Thanks everybody for fantastic Exhibition, the party and support. - Till the next time - [to be continued]

Vatnajökull - Birdview

I have been flying to and from Iceland several times and I haven't had a change to see Vatnajökull - glacier before without clouds interfering the sensation. Finally my luck changed and I had a clear view 21st of August when flying to Iceland.

I was surpriced about the beaty of it, escpecially the texture of dirt (stone and sand) on the edges of the glacier.








The blue water lakes (beneath) are interesting, they are formed by volcanic activity underneath the glacier or the ice structure / cristalls that could produce water lakes that wont freeze (check latest New Scientist magazine). The colour of water is amazing blue, candy like blue. - made me wanting to eat candies when I saw them ;)







The scientist claims that glaciers are full of life, some "hardcore" bacterias live in clasiers and they produce protein even they are freezed down to -190 degrees of celcius (recent discovery), that information gives more hope to find life from planets that are covered with thick ice and posses hostile climate (to humans). Who knows if there, somewhere, are living some icehumanoids with deep blue eyes or something.... heh... - ah well, I was carried out again with my imagination..

Friday, August 25, 2006

Japanese Film from Finland - Kamome shokudo - Ruokala Lokki - 2006



Kamome shokudo - Ruokala Lokki

I found interesting movie today, a japanese film made in Helsinki.
It will be interesting see how Japanese Director presents Helsinki, we are used to see it as dark and depressing place through Kaurismäki films but this film might be different.

Cannot wait to see it :)

Storyline:
In summer that year, a small Japanese eating-house opened on a street corner in Helsinki by the name of Kamome Diner (ruokala lokki). Shopkeeper Sachie (Satomi Kobayashi) is 38-year-old. The menus she recommends are gsoul foodsh that carry the Japanese spirit and gonigirih (rice balls), which Sachie strongly believes in. Sachie had hopes that the diner would become a place where neighbors could easily drop by, enjoy the simple yet tasty food and spend a time of their own.
There were people who would show interest and peek into the diner run solely by a Japanese woman, but days followed in which nobody came in to eat. However, Sachie showed no signs of impatience. Everyday, she thoroughly polished her eating utensils, went swimming in the afternoons and cooked and ate dinner when she got home. The following day, she would open the diner with hopes high again. Sachie had a daily routine of practicing aikido trained by her father whom she left in Japan. After calming her soul, she would gather her gkih(energy) and proceed forward on her knees. This exercise enabled her to forget her worries of living alone in a foreign country.
One day, Kamome Diner saw its first customer\a Finnish young man named Tommi Hiltunen (Jarkko Niem), a zealous fan of Japan and its way of life. His T-shirt illustrates the Japanese comic@book character gNyarome.h He asks Sachie whether she knows the lyrics of the song for Japanese animation gGatchaman.h Unfortunately she can only remember the songfs opening words, gdareda, dareda, daredah (who is it, who is it, who is it).
That afternoon at Academia Bookstore in town, Sachie comes across Japanese woman Midori (Hairi Katagiri) who is reading a book on
Moomin with a difficult expression on her face. Sachie takes the plunge and asks the woman if she knows the lyrics for gGatchaman.h The woman smoothly writes the lyrics down on paper while singing the song.
Sachie thanks her deeply. Midori conveys her the reason she came to Finland. She tells her how she closed her eyes before a world map, and abruptly laid her finger@on it. The place she pointed just turned out to be Finland, she says. Sachie suggests that Midori stay at her home that night. After spending some time together, Midori starts working at Kamome Diner.
Little by little, Kamome Diner started seeing customers other than Tommi. They appetizingly dug into freshly baked cinnamon rolls, and set meals of@roasted pork in ginger and fried pork in breadcrumbs. But there were still no orders for gonigirih (rice balls)\the eating-housefs signature menu. Unable to ignore this, Midori suggests they make onigiri out of herring, reindeer and crayfish. But the attempt doesnft work.
Meanwhile at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, Masako (Masako Motai) stood alone for a long time gazing at the luggage conveyor belt, which showed no signs of carrying her suitcasec
The film, which takes place under the blue sky in a small eating-house located in a street corner of Helsinki, tells a contented story of people who are true to themselves, spending humble days.


Links:
http://www.kamome-movie.com/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0483022/ Posted by Picasa

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Summer Travels accomplished


Hi folks,
I am sorry that I haven't have time to write recently about my whereabouts.
But shortly, first I went to Finland and I had an exhibition in Kristinestad, some tv filming..., then to Tromsö for wedding and then back to finland by bus that took 21 hours.. In Helsinki I attended photo competition in a team of 4, 24 hours time to take photos with various topics. And finally back in Iceland, which is nice cooling place after almost a month of heat in Finland.

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

The trip around Iceland, Mon 17th of July Day 1

Reykjavík - After buying loads of Fuji 100ASA Dia and Black & White films I took off towards east of Iceland around 09:49, Monday 17th of July. I was following the road number 1 (also called the ringroad) not much stopping because I have been in this area recently, Selfoss, Hella, Hvolsvöllur, Vik, Krikjubærarklaustur... First proper stop was in Skaftafell national park.
The second national park, Skaftafell., established in 1967 (400-500 square kilometres), contains some of the most precious natural pearls of the country. The rugged landscapes, mountains and glaciers, the flora and the fauna have a magnetic influence on the visitors.In 1984, it was increased in area (1736 square kilometres) including a considerable part of Glacier Vatnajokull. In November 2004 the area of the park was still increased to 4,807 square kilometres. It now comprises the Laki Area as well as about half of Euorpe's largest icecap, Vatnajokull. http://www.nat.is/travelguideeng/skaftafell.htm



I took a hike up to a waterfall called Svartifoss, the weather was cloudy but warm and when I arrived to the Svartifoss (black waterfall) the sun nicely shone through a thin layer of clouds giving a nice reflection of the waterfall to a stone pillars behind it. After the waterfall I walked up a hill where fantastic view over the flat, black sanded fields and the other side mountain tops covered with glacial ice. I found a beautiful spot with soft moss and I took a small break by laying on the moss and listening sounds of nature. When walking on the paths a little bird was guiding my way, it was walking front of me and sometimes it flew few meters and waited me. The bird was singing nicely to me and I was feeling good.


Next destination was Jökulsárlón where I have been once before in winter time and I was really eager to see it in summer time. When I arrived there the weather was cloudy and windy that the surface of the lagoon was disturbed and I took a hike towards west end of the lagoon where the water was still. Then I went to a sea shore where little icebergs were on the beach melting slowly by salty water and summer weather. Those icecubes were from the lagoon carried by a river from the lagoon. After exploring the beach I was ready to continue my journey but luckily I looked towards the laguun once again and it was completely still and the sun just popped out from clouds, and I curved back quicly. It was one of the most amazing sunsets what I have ever seeing, result: uncountable amount of pictures taken there.


Prior to 1950 the 1½ km long course of the glacial river Jokulsa was uninterrupted by any lagoon. Since then the glacier tongue has retreated and a lagoon, gradually increasing in area, was created. The average flow of the river is 250-300 m³/sec. and the edge of the glacier snout floats on the water. It calves into the lagoon and icebergs of different sizes can be seen aground and melting rather quickly. The lagoon is very deep, at least 190 metres. The river gets shorter and shorter, mainly because of the constant sea erosion, which eventually is going to destroy the bridge (built in 1967). The result will be a deep bay, which is going to grow longer the further the glacier snout retreats. The lagoon's surface has been lowered almost to sea level and sea water enters with the tides, increasing the water temperature. Salmon, capelin and herring enter the lagoon and the harbour seals follow the food. Eider ducks are very common on the lagoon. It is an unforgettable adventure to take a boat trip between the icebergs to admire the natural ice sculptures and the blue green colour of the ice. http://www.nat.is/travelguideeng/jokulsarlon.htm


It was preatty late when I continued driving towards Höfn in Hornafjörður. After finding a Petroleum Station, which was luckily still open, I filled up the tank and myself with sandwiches. I was trying to find a nice spot to put up a tent and when driving around I found a nice place by the sea and I went to explore it, suddenly I got extremely cold, the coldness went inside me and I started shaking almost like having an epileptic stroke. I went back into the car as soon as possible and I putted the heating on full plast. - It felt like something had tried to take me over, something evil.. After this insidence I desided that I am not going to stay in Hornafjörður by any means (i should call Mulder and Scully to investicate that). http://www.nat.is/travelguideeng/hofn.htm


Being confused and a bit scared after what have happened in Höfn I drove to Djúpivogur, which was nice and small (dubious) village and same time keeping an eye on for a nice spot to put up a tent. Just after "dubios" I found a light house, Karlsstaðaviti, that I tryed to capture onto a film but some nasty seagull like small birds were constantly attacking me so pictures are not too good from there.

Finally I found a nice beach spot to have rest at Kross or Krossgerði. I was too tired to put up the tent so I just took a sleeping bag as a cover and slept a couple of hours in the car. After the power nap I continued the trip.
http://www.nat.is/travelguideeng/djupivogur.htm