It’s been almost 40 years, and I had forgotten how beautiful is Paris in the spring-time.
In fine spring weather, few cities are as attractive and enjoyable to be in.
The consistency of architectural scale in the city. Few modern cities in the world have controlled the height of their buildings, like Paris.
Additionally, the visual consistency of the ‘Paris limestone’ used for building construction over the centuries.
Taiwan is known for ‘street food’, but ‘snack food’ is a better description for what is found throughout all of Taiwan.
Taiwanese cuisine is most obviously Chinese cuisine, but influenced by the Japanese, who ‘ruled’ Taiwan for 50 years from 1895 to 1945.
Japan constructed and organised much of Taiwan’s civic infrastructure and has greatly influenced public behaviour in general – something that is still much in evidence in (orderly and efficient) Taiwan today. Continue reading
Cuba has been under a USA trade embargo for almost 60 years, since shortly after the ‘Cuban Revolution’ led by Fidel Castro, which brought socialism to Cuba in 1959.
However, since 2009, relations have improved, travel to Cuba has increased.
Cuban food, café and restaurant eateries appear to be rapidly emerging and growing, with increased trading and more foreign visitors. Continue reading
Having missed Jason Isbell when he visited New Zealand 4 years ago, I didn’t want to miss out this time, especially with our Nadia Reid opening as a stellar bonus – at The Powerstation venue, 27 Mar 2018.
Isbell’s work now is billed with his band as ‘Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit‘.
Now a multi-Grammy winning artist, Alabama-born Jason Isbell was a guitarist first Continue reading
Peruvians are known for their genial warmth and hospitality.
Peru today has a mixed population but is still predominantly ‘Amerindian’ (indigenous American indians). There are many ‘mestizos’ (mixed Amerindian-Spanish/European) but less so in the Andean highlands, away from the capital, Lima. And also a significant Asian (Japanese, Chinese) population or mixed ethnicity. Continue reading
Arguably still the most sublimely uncomplicated and beautiful example of modern architecture sits at the foot of Mont Juic in Barcelona city in Catalunya, Spain.
The German Pavilion, constructed for the Barcelona International Exposition of 1929, was designed by German-American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
Like most of the USA, New Orleans in Louisiana is very much a mixture of races, ethnicities.
Large portions of North America, including Louisiana, were claimed by Spain and France as colonies from the mid-1600s until the Louisiana Purchase from France in 1803.
Louisiana people who descended from those earliest colonial times were known as ‘Creoles’. Continue reading
Three of the headline acts at the week-long ‘Southern Fork Americana Festival’ in Auckland, New Zealand, 7-16 October.
Hayes Carll is a Grammy-nominated Texan songwriter and Lindi Ortega originally hails from Toronto, but both have ‘paid their dues’ for well over a decade and have a handful of albums each.
On the other hand, young siblings The Cactus Blossoms have just issued their first album Continue reading
Birmingham, Alabama, Sept 12 2015.
I was fortunate to catch James McMurtry playing at Workplay Theatre. A really nice all-purpose, small venue – in a city that seems to be re-vitalising, after the decline of the iron and steel industry in the 1970s.
It was my first visit to the Deep South of USA Continue reading
On 4 Dec, Lucinda visited us again and played the Vector Theatre in Auckland, New Zealand.
She presented a solid set of around 20 songs, largely from her own substantial catalogue – most of which are well-known to her fans.
Commencing up-tempo with Protection from the recent album, Down Where The Spirit Meets the Bone. Continue reading
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