All the ingredients are from Trader Joe’s near downtown San Jose.
Tele-Presence vs. Personal Touch
We are applying Schengen visa through Greek Consulate in San Francisco for our next international trip. We were referred to a website which stated the applicant’s passport must be issued within 10 years. My passport got extended twice and is 14-year-old now. My wife made a couple of calls to Greek Consulate and tried to ask if it’s possible to apply the visa with my current passport. The conversations over the phone, I can say, were not all pleasant. The officer insisted that the passport should be renewed and any further questions were considered as wasting his time. Because there is not enough time to renew the passport before the trip and the official Greek Embassy website doesn’t show this requirement, we decided to give it a try anyway. Besides all the required documents, we also prepared what to say if we would be questioned.
Greek Consulate in San Francisco is surrounded by all the Victorian style houses, many of them have beautify gardens and trees are often trimmed into delicate shapes. In fact, the consulate is a small house itself. If it is not painted with the light blue color and has a Greek flag hanging on the building, it is just a nice small house in the neighborhood. The inside is decorated as a family room as well. We were welcomed by an officer. He checked our documents and passports, without any question he told us the visa would be ready the next working day.
Surprised by how easy it was, we brought up the question ourselves. The officer started laughing – obviously, he is the same officer who talked with my wife on the phone. He told us what he had insisted is true but the restriction is not that harsh now and the boarder guards are normally terribly polite. After a couple of minutes, he even gave us some travel tips. We walked out of the building and he lighted up a cigarette. The weather was perfect and neighborhood was elegant. We started exchanging political jokes and found out our two great civilizations have a lot in common. We left the consulate contented.
定风波 – 苏轼
三月七日沙湖道中遇雨。雨具先去，同行皆狼狈，余独不觉。已而遂晴，故作此。
莫听穿林打叶声，何妨吟啸且徐行。
竹杖芒鞋轻胜马，谁怕？一蓑烟雨任平生。
料峭春风吹酒醒，微冷，山头斜照却相迎。
回首向来萧瑟处，归去，也无风雨也无晴。
Drama on the Soccer Field
It’s a quite dramatic day in the World Cup.
The game between Brazil and Holland showed how a small mistake could change the whole game. Brazil is the most balanced team in this World Cup – the forwards are talented; and most importantly, they have the most reliable defending line – the defenders are the perfect examples of combination of skills and strength, and they have one of the best goal keeper in the world. Ironically, it is this dependable defending line gave up the victory to the Dutch team. Before the Holland’ first goal, there was no sign that they could even made a goal; after that, the Brazilian became nervous and lost the control of the game. They failed to organize any meaningful counter attacks. Nevertheless, Dutch is lucky today.
If you think Dutch is lucky, then game between Uruguay and Ghana will just blow you away. The referee normally won’t give the game-deciding penalty kick at the last minute, but this one has to be given, and it is literally at the last second of the game. Totti’s penalty kick in the game between Italy and Australia of the last World Cup was in the last minutes of the match, but not this late. All Suarez did seemed only delayed the inevitable for a minute, but it turned out the action actually saved the team.
Referee’s Mistakes are Part of the Game
If referees hadn’t made mistakes, probably the results of both games would be the same. However, they left a lot of rooms of ‘what if’, especially because both goals are very crucial – one is an equalizer, the other is the first goal of the match. It’s understandable that the rhythm of soccer game should not be broken so some of the technology cannot be applied easily, but having a eagle-eyes camera to watch the goal line or adding an extra referee behind the gate are such easy improvements and will not hurt the purity of the game at all. If FIFA keeps denying them, the conspiracy theory might be the only explanation.
German team is back to my hate list again, because, they just always win.
United States 1:0 Algeria
Unlike most other fields inside and outside of sports, United States has never taken a commanding role in soccer. Although they are ranked 14th in the world, no one really consider them as a strong team. Maybe because America’s role in other world affairs, maybe because they are new comers, a lot of people don’t want them to win. Indeed, they don’t have a super star, they are lacking creativities and less entertaining, however they earned my respect by playing ‘clean’ football, especially in this World Cup. They play aggressively but no intentional hostile foul; there is no tricks, no simulation falls; they keep running, keep attacking without wasting time; and they play as a team. Most importantly, they delivered the result at the time that really matters. All those denied goals, by the referee and by the pole, only make the final moment more dramatic.
Japan – Kyoto – The Heart of Japan
Famous for its refined cuisine, crafts and gardens, Kyoto is considered by many Japanese as where their spiritual hearts reside. The city is not as vigorous as Tokyo or Osaka, the pace is slower and people are dressed less fashionable, but hundreds years of cultural deposition soon reveal their attractiveness once you slow down, lay back and start enjoying the city.
What is more fun than walking around this city wearing the traditional costume in the perfect weather. We saw a lot of families and groups of girls in Kimono at every tourists attraction. Geisha and Maiko are not uncommon either.
We spent two and half days in Kyoto before leaving for Beijing. We had a wonderful time and loved everything we experienced in Japan. The cultures are somewhat close but sometimes totally different from China. We will definitely come back to visit more places in the future.
Cars in Stack
Kyoto Station
Girls wearing Kimono at Yasaka Shrine (八坂神社)
Stone-Paved Roads between Yasaka Shrine (八坂神社) and Kiyomizu Temple (清水寺)
Two-Year Slope (二年坂)
Monk in Kiyomizu Temple (清水寺)
Nishiki Market (锦市场)
Kamo River (鸭川)
Nijo Castle (二条城)
Kyoto Tower
Germany 4:0 Australia
First big-score game in 2010 World Cup. It’s not because Germany is superior, it’s because Australia plays in the same style as Germany, but not as good in every aspect. German team’s skill, their conciseness and their persistence do help them win most of games. Only teams like Brazil or Italy can put them into the test.
I am not a fan of Germany soccer, but I start liking this team because of this match.
