Monday, April 13, 2009

Random pictures of Taiwan Airport

Okay! Just got back from the gym so while cooling down I decided to update my blog for your reading pleasure. :)

First and foremost, a little on my whereabouts: Got to Jakarta this morning and decided to head to the 24 hour gym here. After having "excused" myself from the gym for the past week or so (and the only real exercise that I have been doing is focused around the jaw muscles), I have got no one to blame now that my muscles are screaming blardy murder after a mere one hour in the gym. :(

Okay next up.....how about some random pictures taken from my trusty SANYO. Hmmm...As some of you may know, I'm not a "trigger-happy" sort of person. In spite of that, I steadfastly lug my SANYO around with me during my business trips. The picture I take are very random...you know...no theme...whatever captures my fancy at the moment. So today, at 2am in the morning, I shall select a couple to share in my random post for the day.

The following pictures are taken in the Taiwan airport eons ago.


Picture taken outside the store promoting "Hakka" delicacies.
Next time I'm there, I'll be sure to pop by and try some out.

Hello Kitty Telephone Booths in Taoyuan Airport.

Mmmm.....Feels like Disney land all over again.


Hello Kitty World Clock

My 2 years in Taiwan has got me convinced that the Taiwanese just love the cute stuff. Top of their list has got to be the Sanrio cat Hello Kitty! Hello Kitty's fans are not restricted by age..young and old alike. In fact, my colleague, mother of 2, loves the cat so much that her little corner in the office is like Sanrio cat-dom.

Thus, I wasn't that surprised to find a section of the airport designed with the Hello Kitty theme in mind. There was also a Hello Kitty playground, Hello Kitty souvenier shop, Hello Kitty lounge, Hello Kitty internet corner and Hello Kitty holding room. Wow!!

Anyway, if you ever go to Taoyuan airport, remember to check it out!

Monday, April 06, 2009

A new book to recommend...Left Behind

This book has been laying on my shelf for months and all I know of it is:
1) It comes recommended by my brother-in law as light reading
2) It is a fictional story based on the idea of Rapture - a prophesied event in Christian eschatology which gathers Christians for the second coming of Christ.


A little unsure on how I would take to this "light reading" Christian material and frankly a little overwhelmed between work and textbooks, I had never done more then afford the book a cursory glance every once in a while and if ever I was looking for some light reading material, my hand would miraculously pass over it.

Anyway, for some strange reason, I decided to pick it off the shelf and have a go at it. Deep down inside, I had already sounded myself out to put the book back on the shelf if it ever got too "preachy". If I enjoyed it, I would read on.

With each turn of the page, I found myself drawn into the fast paced story, not unlike one that is written by Tom Clancy or Stephen King. Sure! Along the way, there were some Christian teachings here and there but it was just enough to plant an idea and make you want to find out more. Within several hours, I had finished reading the book.

Some research on the internet found that 'Left Behind' is a series of 16 best-selling novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins and even though the New York Times' Bestseller's list does not take Christian bookstore sales into account, in 1998, the first four books of the series held the top four slots simultaneously. Impressive!!

Judging by how much I enjoyed reading the book, I would truly recommend it as a book that is worth considering even if you are a non Christian. In fact, I believe that the next 15 books would be on my list the next time I head down to Borders.

Now, I just need to force myself to stop procrastinating and finish reading those dreaded textbooks!