10 spectacular places i’ve been in the past 10 years

Mostly a tribute to flickr either because i am writing this post between home (where my pics are stored) and office and because soft copies of the pictures are only available from the last five years. I didnt follow a meaningful order, just browsing in my memory: 

1. Aragonese Castle, Italy

A unique place with an awsome history connected also to Michelangelo Buonarroti’s life. It shall deserve a rich post asap. (image by me)

2. San Francisco Aquarium by flickr

Even though Hong Kong and Genoa Italy aquariums are two of the biggest and most beautiful, i still loved Frisco one. why? Because you walk under real tunnels of the Bay Area!

3. Pan de Azucar in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil by flickr

A combination of spirituality and cable car is the most thrilling experience for me!

4. Big Buddha, Lantau Island

This other combination of spirtuality&cable-car is really close to my home and I could potentially get the experience every weekend. Last month with a friend from Vancouver we went up for two consecutive days just for tasting the feeling to fly higher and higher into the mountains and have the majestic Buddha waiting for us on the other side!  You may also want to enjoy a more accurate post about it soon. (image by me)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Jamaican beach

It was a lovely family tour during my stay in US. Bathing in the warm Caribbean waters every morning and chatting with the locals on the beach all day long until evening. We also met a direct friend of Bob Marley living upon discographic projects and hand making palm leaves hats for tourists. Most hospitable place. (photo flickr – my dad keeps all the real pics)

6. Havana de Cuba downtown

Harmony of colors and extreme relaxation and freedom in the streets. On our fly-route back from India e Moscow with my friend Maneesha, we took loads of pictures and then… lost the camera. Ahahahh. I just remember we were in ecstasy for the whole day spent there. A most welcoming taxi driver strolled us everywhere and gave us contact number in case we’ll be back. If anybody interested.  (photo flickr)

7.  Parque Chicaque, Colombia

The most vivid nature, the real “selva Colombiana”.  An amazing day trekking in the jungle, few of us, completely absorbed by beauty and silence in the country Garden of the world. There is an Indian story about Shri Vishnu, He had to leave India  because in trouble and went seeking refuge with Garuda precisely in Colombia, chosen because it was the only place on Earth so much rich in plants and fruits.  

8. Faraglioni, Italy

Did you know it’s the Zen Garden of Italy? Have a look, it’s my home. Really.

9. Beihai park in Beijin, China

A remarkable park to understand the lifestyle of old emperors. Many of them have written lovely poems to their own mothers, whose words are often engraved on marble pillars around.

10. Elephanta caves, India

I was speechless here I was totally stunned by the grandness of majestic Lords Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu.

 

I just realized there are more than 10 spectacular places i’ve seen but for now i will just confine into the maryadas of this TAG. And yes you have been tagged too! Which one are your most spectacular visits… 5, 10, 15 you number them. And leave me a message below when you have done the post, and please tag more people. Let’s travel all together! Do you know something shocking about travelling? I know it cause my sis is a travel agent in Italy. Last week she spoke over the phone that Italians are so crazy about traveling and holiday that despite of the economy struggle they are  paying rates for their vacation even if it’s just for few days!

Source of much of Chinese culture

When I came to the United States I was surprised that there were so many translations of the I Ching in English. I cannot immagine how these translators all found the I Ching scholars and did the decades of study necessary to truly learn the I Ching.

To the Chinese, the I Ching is like a Holy Bible written by the four most honored sages in our history – Fu Xi, King Wen, the Duke of Zhou and Confucious. The Chinese translation of Holy Bible is Sheng Ching. Sheng is equivalent to holy, and Ching means classic. Chinese understand that Ching is the Tao, the Truth, the holiest of the ancient books, and because they revere and respect the sacred writings of the Jews and the Christian church, they honor the Bible by calling it Ching.    

The I Ching is truly a profound book.  It is the source of much of Chinese culture. Originally, the I Ching was a handbook for divination. After Confucius and his students had written the commentaries, it became known as a book of ancient wisdom. It is a book that not only tells one who consults it about the present situation and  future potential but also gives instruction about what to do and not to do to obtain good fortune and to avoid misfortune. But one still retains free choice. The guidance is based upon comprehensive  observations of  natural laws by ancient sages and their profound experiences of the principle of cause and effect.

These are excerpts from the Preface of The Complete I Ching by Taoist Master Alfred Huang. Before coming to China I used to consult I Ching alone or with friends, in Italy for example this book is definitely appreciated and studied by people who meditate and seek for self knowledge in their daily life.  Here in Hong Kong i still did not find anybody who throughly knows about it and some local people often comment not really positively about it. 

This master suggests that the best English versions of I Ching are: Richard Wilhelm’s and James Legge’s although westernized.  He adds that

… the ideal translation should be English but Chinese in essence. As a book of divination, Confucius’s commentaries are crucial. The Chinese call Confucius’s commentaries the Ten Wings. They believe that the I Ching depends on the Ten Wings to be able to fly. In other words, without Confucius’s commentaries the I Ching cannot be understood.

I felt I had no choice because the more I meditated the more I felt that I had an obligation to work out a translation of the I Ching based entirely on Chinese concepts. I began to realize that during his last years, Master Yin’s proposal to teach me the I Ching was not accidental. There was  a reason. I sense now that in this great time of change, when people are longing to transform and the situation is ripe, a new translation of I Ching based upon ancient Chinese wisdom and experience might be helpful for those making their own choices to enter the twenty-first century with confidence.

Presence of magic Indian notes in Italian soil

My brothers from Italy published here the recordering of a raga freshly composed by a santoor musician from India, with his son. Here’s the explanation of the raga given by himself on stage few days ago. It is not really a surprise that artists of such a calibre are now exhibiting in this land in the middle of the Mediterraneo. Italy is a great receptacle of musical understanding and a fast absorber of beautiful divine melodies.

World’s 50 safest banks – 2009

New York, February 25, 2009 — Such has been the turmoil in the world’s banking industry that, for the first time, Global Finance magazine is publishing a mid-year update of its much respected Safest Banks listing. A full report on the list will appear in the April issue of Global Finance. The “World’s 50 Safest Banks” 2009 were selected through a comparison of the long-term credit ratings and total assets of the 500 largest banks around the world. Ratings from Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch were used. Global Finance has published its “World’s Safest Banks” listing for 17 years and this ranking has become a recognized and trusted standard of creditworthiness for the entire financial world.

“The rating agencies have determined these banks have demonstrated a more prudent and sustainable approach to risk than their peers,” says Global Finance publisher Joseph D. Giarraputo. “More than ever customers all around the world are viewing long term creditworthiness as the key feature of the banks with which they do business.”

1. KfW (Germany)

2. Caisse des Depots et Consignations (CDC) (France)

3. Bank Nederlands Gemeenten (BNG) (Netherlands)

4. Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank (Germany)

5. Rabobank (Netherlands)

6. Landeskreditbank Baden-Wuerttemberg- Foerderbank (Germany)

7. NRW. Bank (Germany)

8. BNP Paribas (France)

9. Banco Santander (Spain)

10. Royal Bank of Canada (Canada)

11. National Australia Bank (Australia)

12. Commonwealth Bank of Australia (Australia)

13. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) (Spain)

14. Toronto-Dominion Bank (Canada)

15. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group (Australia)

16. Westpac Banking Corporation (Australia)

17. Banco Espanol de Credito S.A. (Banesto) (Spain)

18. ASB Bank Limited (New Zealand)

19. HSBC (United Kingdom)

20. Credit Agricole (France)

21. Wells Fargo (United States)

22. Nordea Bank (Sweden)

23. Scotiabank (Canada)

24. La Caixa (Spain)

25. Svenska Handelsbanken (Sweden)

 

26. US Bancorp (United States)

27. Banco Popular Espanol (Spain)

28. DBS Bank (Singapore)

29. Pohjola Bank (Finland)

30. Deutsche Bank (Germany)

31. Société Générale (France)

32. Intesa Sanpaolo (Italy)

33. Bank of Montreal (Canada)

34. DnB NOR Bank (Norway)

35. The Bank of New York Mellon (United States)

36. Caixa Geral de Depositos (Portugal)

37. United Overseas Bank (Singapore)

38. OCBC (Singapore)

39. Axa Bank Europe (Belgium)

40. Credit Suisse Group (Switzerland)

41. Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg (Germany)

42. Nationwide Building Society (United Kingdom)

43. CIBC (Canada)

44. National Bank Of Kuwait (Kuwait)

45. Barclays (United Kingdom)

46. UBS (Switzerland)

47. JPMorgan Chase (United States)

48. Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (Japan)

49. Banque Federative du Credit Mutuel

50. Credit Industriel et Commercial (CIC) (France)

 

 

(BFCM)  (France) 

In Neaples it’s like being in India

Walking thru the markets and the most popular streets of Neaples is like walking thru the market and the popular streets in any of the cities of India. So many colors, voices & sounds, kids, motocycles with three or even four people on board, smells, pollution mixed with the fresh exhibited vegetables on the wooden stalls or on the ground, men pushing behind a small wood wagon loaded with fruits and drinks. Seven hours flight between south of Italy and south of India are nothing in comparison with all the amazingly identical gestures and lifestyle of their populations. There is also an incredible profundity in their own dialect although diverse.

Neaples by night is sometimes a way to attract tourists in the most animated of italian cities. 

Somewhere in internet recently i read that in Neaples anarchy is the rule. It is probably true, in the past time it was even worst and stories of mafia or camorra are very common to the superficial worldwide points of view.  But Neaples is much much much more. A great attraction for all multiculturality travelling especially from Africa, Asia and Russia. The city needs to be discovered in each small detail because it s just magical. It is magical mainly because of her people. In this area live the descendents of the greeks who created the comedy and tragedy of all the main important form of theatre practiced also today.  All the children who attend school in these areas are made familiar with the basic of theatre and acting. For the adults the vision of  life as an eternal drama is attached into the bloody cells. The philosophy that life without enjoyment is not real life is also very much cultivated and developed since long times.

Sunset in Ischia (Mediterraneo)

[photos: Livio & Valeria]

Donneconlavaligia: Italian passion of the travelling woman

If you cannot read Italian you can always see the pictures and browse a typical blog magazine created by a typical original, artistical and versatile woman mind. The mind belongs to Marina Misiti, cool professional journalist from the Bel Paese with tons of stories and experiences to write and tell you inspired by years of travelling almost everywhere (considering the articles she uploads). So you can also understand why we crossed into this life sporadically enjoying the fun of sharing travelling-materials.

Donneconlavaligia (Womenwithetravelbag) is fascinating because:

• it straightly and lightly points out the best of slices of places, countries, cities by using pictures and words in a balanced way
• it summarizes the most important articles written by Marina Misiti in her carrier of journalist and reporter for national well known magazines (many for ladies)
• it gives fun plus useful tips for different topics concerning the places wher eto go, where to eat, what to dress…
• it gives tips about travelling and how to travel
• it is completely open to the internet panorama of other travel/leisure/women topics websites
• it is creating a net of reportages from other travelling women who understand Italian (and Italian culture in the world i ‘d love to say too) and live abroad
• it is a great idea of a blog magazine, extremely modern and complete which explores the feminine world from a wonderful perspective

Enjoy here the reportages in Italian by Radha for Donneconlavaligia: 

Fotoreportage from the train from Hong Kong to Beijing

Where to eat in HK: 5 best restaurants

From India of Gandhi to Italy: a long travel for peace

Hong Kong: not only skyscrapers

Hong Kong daily life

 

Do you want to know how it feels to live on a beach for almost two decades? Read it here

There are many people nowadays who go for holiday in seaside places, in resorts on the beach. Many more are moving to the cities determined to work and live there and see the natural beaches only for vacation because of course in such a materialistic world we live today who is going to choose to stay on a beach for 365 days a year. There are commercials about wireless products and laptops which make people believing that yes they can be in control of their job from an island while sipping a fruit cocktail under a palm tree, arent there? But who would stay settled ona beach for years today? Only the ones who are forced to by the events of life, or who are kind of lost in this universe, let’s’ say.

One time in Jamaica i met an old man who was surviving to the poverty by singing raggae and making straw-hats under a tree all the time. Every morning he would stay under the pal tree crossing the straw leaves. His skin was dark and wrinkled, he said to have been good friend with Bob Marley and to have composed music for him during young years. Who knows if it’s true. But he was a good man, quite a symbol of a life-on-the-beach in a central american country of the past years. He could have been a good friend of my grandpa probably who was able to understand the variations of the weather just by looking at the sky in the morning. He was always right, very knowledgeable about nature and time cycles. It is because he was living and working on a beach for 80 years. His wife the same for 95 years. Their daughter, my mother, the same and still now at 52 in the old century house with one kilometer of peaceful beach in front of it. The beach where her two daughters, my sister and I also spent all their childhood, the adolescence and few more years.

Do you really want to know how it feels to have spent 19 years on a beach? See again the picture above. Then ask it to the sound of the sea waves, to the light of the starry sky every night, to the melody of the seagulls early morning, to the cool grey sand  under the naked feet, to the storm coming thru the wind, to the punctual sound of the anchor released just behind the barrier rock in the harbour. All this is only imaginable for the ones who did not live two steps from the sea. Nurturing, always calm and shallow sea. Just like a real father.

 

 

I love the place where I was born

I don’t know if all the people can totally confirm it: the fact that they are one with the place where they were born. In my case there was always a special link between my island and myself. I always felt that she was like my mother, that she made me born on her land and also throughout her soil. I was the girl who used to talk to the water of the sea and to the trees in the forest, who felt a solid presence and protection by the surrounding nature thru the years. There was not even a picture from the imagination that I could have ended up in big cities where environmental confusion and nagging noises are regular institution.  

 But the peaceful paradise which Ischia is still accompanies me inside. It’s so true. It is just like thinking of your mother and all is beautiful and smooth. Somebody told me last year that when Nirmala Srivastava, who is actually the highest spiritual human being the world gets the fortune to hold today, came to Ischia in 1991 She said that the people born there must have a lot of punyas from the past lives. How can I contraddict that? Growing in this island never gets you down.

Everything is there, the landscape swarms with parks, squares, shops, schools, cultural centers, theatres, beaches, trekking tracks, thermal gardens, villas and houses. International events about cinema and jounalism are held each year since decades. It has been many times the perfect scenario for movies too. There is a strong dynamism which animates many different activities. Probably it comes from the power of the sea.

It’s not true that a new language should be taught by mothertongues to the kids

                                             photo

I have two close examples which support the fact that children can learn a new language not necessarily from mother tongue teachers.

The first is a long study to which by myself I participated in 1998-1999 with a master thesis in Rome. Based on the main idea of Bruner about constructivism in psychology and learning processes we focused on children at kindergarten level living in an Italian context and being exposed to the English language as second one (L2). The research was inspired by 400 teachers and their young pupils. We eventually wrote this book comprehensive of all the work done. The cool point is that maybe only one of the teacher was a native English speaker, all the others learned in our seminars and transmitted their knowledge in the classroom. We analyzed their progress, prnunciation, improvements, diaries, workshops, a lot of interesting material…They did an excellent job and the children learnt each year more and more! Statistics and databases inclueded in the same book. Do you know why the children learnt English? The main result was that is because the teacher love them and express her lovely attitude plus interest towards them daily and firmly. A section of the project was dedicated to the expressions of her face, to her words and behaviours with the little ones. They love the L2 because they love in primis the person who is teaching them. That is why we intitled the book “The magic teacher”. This magic is nothing but pure love!

Second example is fresher and again comes from an experience in Italy which I only heard about directly and am supporting with material in Chinese language. My auntie, an experienced teacher and coordinator of seminars and workshop at a primary school, is already conducting Chinese classes in ludic form to the kids. And she never spoke Chinese before. She is using the modern Youtube way, karaoke, playful settings and real small storytelling linked to the new life of her adorable daughter (me ) Here is an example i provided her few weeks ago. It is just so much sweet:

“Children understand love more than anyone else” (Nirmala Srivastava)

One thing about Italy I dont celebrate

The thing I never liked about Italy is the wine. The fact that this pretty corner of the world is remembered and celebrated also because of the wine makes me feel really uncomfortable. I always talk the contrary about Italy, that it is not true that the wine is so famous and exalt instead other kinds of interestingness and beauty (which Italy does not miss actually!). When somebody here approaches me praising Italy for the wine I use to give him a burning look and start to tell how dangerous is the wine instead. Why the Italians should be signaled as the ones who indirectly annihilate the senses and the consciousness? Why can’t they be indicated as the ones who bring forth awakening of the consciousness instead? Wouldn’t that be superior and more dignified? 

The island I come from in Italy was called Aenaria (the sea in the picture), after the Latin people, that means “Island of the wine”. There is so much green still left in this little pearl and plenty of vineyards cultivated over there. They are used by the locals to make wine and sell it. A big section of the economical proceeds in Italy are drawn from this fragile activity.

The 2007 it has been a special year for the Italians because Mother nature has come to protect them and shock their economy for the better. The weather has changed up to the point that the grapes were not mature enough to produce wine in large quantities: the reason why some ignorant group of people out there is doing its best to increase the prices and so on. But these people will disappear with the time and nucleus of other people whose only desire is to bring light and awareness to the economy will slowly take its own place. It has to be like that if we really want to live in a Shining world. Otherwise let’s be very happy and satisfied with ignorance and blindness. Like in the medieval times. What do you say?

Toys today

Working with electronic toys… I would never expect to do also this job. But now that I am used to this circle I realize that working with toys today puts you in such delicate tasks! You are dealing with the softest of the minds and the skills to really understand the world of a child are lacking tremendously. No matter you have been studying for becoming a teacher at primary school level, or as a psychologist or as infancy educators, or as animators. There are plenty of people with these majors out there but that does not mean that also the quality of understanding is playing a mature role out there.

 These are quotes I collected from an email-thread pointing out resources for toys today: 

…the wonderful paper ideas are fine, and needed for children over 6. Books too can be designed and printed in India, no need to worry about pleasing western publishing firms, print them for our own use, or to sell/give to children we reach.
But for little children, we need classic wooden toys and dolls, excellent control of paints, fabrics, and stuffing, i.e. organic, so they are not toxic.

How about building toys – blocks – an established way to teach math and geometry in preschool – but they don’t have to be boring they could be hand painted with all kinds of creative designs, like mendhi, or abstract, flowers, and angel faces.

Our world economy is going in dire straits. Attention has to be somehow on handicraft too, on artist creation also. All of these we can build it with a good and collective attention on the proper channel to “manufacture it”. Let’s know what you think about the local power of handicraft…???

 Examples of content scripts, the basic software matrix for electronic learning products, proposed by modern companies trying to play their role to educate children on a mass level.

USE+ARROW01+INST17a                  Use the arrow keys to finish building the equation.
SELECT+INST18a+ WSABERKBRD                                 Select a correct operation sign with the lightsaber or the keyboard.
INST19a+INST19b+NUM001+ TIME02                                                Pay attention!  Solve as many as you can in one minute!

Found in an article:

 

“We wanted to get away from the branding. I don’t think children should be advertised to,” says Lee, who co-founded the store two years ago with wife Danielle and sister-in-law Shelley Goldschlager. Their mission: selling toys that would encourage kids to construct, create and invent their own storylines.

Then there’s InquisitiveKid.ca, a new online store offering more than 300 minimalist playthings.

“A good toy is 10 per cent toy and 90 per cent child,” says Peter Emmenegger of Toronto, a software engineer and father of two who launched the venture last month. “The child’s imagination is the engine of healthy play.”

Some important “must have” requirements to work in this field: 

• To have an innocent and childlike personality
• To be familiar with (after having absorbed thru background and other experiences) eradicated good values, humus for a child personality
• To have an established and overflowing creativity covering at least 3 branches of art (e.g. music, painting, drama).
• To have the ability to not think too much
• To have the skill to simplify contents
• To have an extremely flexible and adaptable character
• To have an open mind and heart
• To be able to seek  the playful aspect of the daily life
• To be extremely collective and not individualistic

Today the chances to become really professional in the toy industry (at any level) are not so high, if we give an honest glimpse around ourselves. If at least we already covered three of the above qualities we are probably on the right path to succeed…

One thing Hong Kong does miss

They say that Chinese and Italians have in common the sense of the family. It’s true. In fact Italians and Chinese mothers know very well how to take care of their sons in general. They are loving and firm, simple and spiritual in their way of educate and grow them up. They have strong desire to see the family united and happy, that everything is normal and work hard to preserve good feelings among the members.

Right now Hong Kong is undergoing some slight changes into the familiar asset. They are mainly due to the pressure of this money oriented society. The young people work and study very hard often morning until night. Many are disoriented falling into a circle of earning and spending. It is increasing the number of singles and couples who are going to live in a flat independently from the parents and see the family during the festivals, public holidays after having arranged day, place and hour of meeting. In how many cities of the world does this happen? That we have to set up an appointment to see our parents. Never in my Italian life this had happened! I used to be with my family almost every weekend or see each other during the week, it’s one of the most pleasant thing that a crowded city will miss forever.

Thoughts recorded by the “daughter within” myself

 

From the Mother:

Don’t lie to me because I already know everything about you.

Don’t ask too much, you also have to know when keep silent. 

Are you conscious of what you are doing? Or you just don’t care? 

Play with and love all your friends coming from other countries because they are children just like you. 

Why do you want to study psychology?  

Enjoy the people any moment you spend with them because you don’t know when you are going to see them again. 

Don’t use a bad language otherwise it will be retorted against yourself one day. 

You have to be a little bit fatter. Men don’t like skinny ladies. 

You have to use comfortable heels you can walk on because you are a woman. Also use skirts more often then pants. 

Help your sister and forgive her all the time if something goes wrong.

It doesn’t matter, I don’t want to listen anything else, you should just forgive that person. Just forgive okey?   

From the Father:

You should not think about money too much because money will come. The most important for you is to behave in a honest and respectful way with your colleagues and supervisors. In this way you ‘ll get any job you wish. 

I expect the other people to talk good about you when they meet me. I don’t want to hear any complaining about you. 

You should nor copy nor follow anybody, you should be yourself all the time and seek for the dimension you are looking for. 

Listen to the people and be interested in their life.

Don’t talk to much, by listening you can grow faster. Listen especially to the elders because the fact that they have white hair it means they can count on a longer experience than yours.

 If its possible try to help everybody at the same way. 

Life is beautiful because is never the same. 

Life is a game. Sometimes its like playing card, you have to decide which card to put down in order to make the best play.  

Don’t lie to anybody otherwise your life will become very confused and complicated and you mind will go crazy. 

When you go to sleep at the end of the day see if your consciousness is clean and light. Every day you should test it. 

Don’t think about the past, it is totally unuseful and blocks your growth. 

Measure yourself, you must know how far you can walk anytime. Don’t make a step longer than your leg (Italian proverb)

Talk to yourself in the mirror. When mistaken have the courage to tell yourself “you are not good, you did something wrong, now forgive it and keep going”. 

Who knows yourself better? Yourself or the others? 

You have to find equilibrium in everything you do and say. 

You should have discipline with yourself, try to get up early every morning. Don’t spoil your body. 

Don’t smoke and don’t take any drug otherwise you will become addicted and loose control upon yourself. 

Don’t believe in the love is commercialized around by the TV and at the movie theatre. This is not the real love. 

The politicians are all there to make you laugh, they are like comics. Same the TV shows.

The culture is not important, the experience is more important.

The Wind from the Inner Island

Of only one thing I am REALLY proud and it is the fact that I took my birth on an island. My father is not an islander like my mother and myself but he keeps repeating to everybody that like Ischia Island there are no other islands in the world (and he is the one who has traveled and seen most of the islands of the globe, trust me).The small Ischia Island is located in the Mediterranean sea and I have spent there the first 18 years of my life. The reasons why you can be proud of this kind of accidental background are:

1)     you grow FREE: the sea, the beach, the forest and the countryside are your secure companions.

2)     You grow CONTENT: people around yourself are all the same, like a big family, they know you, they see you growing, they love and respect you because basically they are extremely simple and unconditioned.

3)     You MEET loads of people from everywhere: at least for 2 seasons in the eighties (now its all over the year), Spring and Summer of every year, you get this wonderful opportunity to mingle with loads of tourists in the narrow streets, listen to a variety of languages and watch a myriad of faces from any country and greet them!

These are just three “practical” aspects, and I would love to tell you more about subtle aspects of growing “surrounded by water” nextly.