Have some fun

Volver by Pedro Almodovar

Zat — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 00:31:15 +0000

I watched Volver (Coming back) the other day. It’s the new movie by Pedro Almodovar with Penelope Cruz. I really liked it, go and watch it if you get a chance!

Synopsis (by Pedro Almodovar)
Three generations of women survive the east wind, fire, insanity, superstition and even death by means of goodness, lies and boundless vitality.

Volver is not a surrealistic comedy although it may seem so at times. The living and the dead coexist without any discord, causing situations that are either hilarious or filled with a deep, genuine emotion. It’s a film about the culture of death in my native La Mancha. The people there practice it with an admirable naturalness. The way in which the dead continue to be present in their lives, the richness and humanity of their rites mean that the dead never die.

Volver destroys all the clichés about “black” Spain and offers a Spain that is as real as it is the opposite. A Spain that is white, spontaneous, funny, intrepid, supportive and fair.

A different way to combat speeding in Denmark

Zat — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 04:32:20 +0000

I know it has been a looong time since I last blogged, but here I am back with a really hot piece of news.

What a great idea the Danish road safety officials came up with in order to warn motorists about the dangers of speeding!!! Topless blonde women carrying road signs showing the Danish speed limit: 50km/h. Sounds pretty sexy, doesn’t it?

I won’t say much more, watch the video below and everything will become clear…

And something for the ladies. Asked if Danish authorities would consider using a man exposing his bottom to appeal to speeding women drivers, a road safety official said: “Maybe. We’ll see.”

Do you think other countries will follow Denmark’s brilliant example? Maybe…, but definitely not the US!

International Center – Museum Mikis Theodorakis in Zatouna, Greece

Zat — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 18:49:15 +0000

After years of speculation and planning, the International Center – Museum Mikis Theodorakis is now opening in Zatouna, a small village in Arcadia, Greece.

Mikis Theodorakis (Greek: Μίκης Θεοδωράκης) is one of the most important Greek music composers of the 20th century, and one of the most significant in the world. Politically, until the collapse of the military junta in 1974, he identified with the left; in 1990 he became a member of parliament with the centre-right party. He has consistently opposed oppressive regimes. He was born on the island of Chios in Greece, and spent his childhood years in different provincial Greek cities such as Mytilene, Cephallonia, Pyrgos, Patras, and Tripolis. His father came from Crete and his mother from Asia Minor. He has received several offers to serve as President of Greece, but has refused them. He is known internationally for his scores in the Hollywood films, Zorba the Greek (1964) and Serpico (1973).

In 1968, Theodorakis was banished to Zatouna by the military junta in Greece, along with his wife Myrto and their two children, Margarita and Yorgos. Even in those aggravating circumstances, Theodorakis managed to smuggle messages of resistance and musical scores to the outside world. He also composed a series of song cycles based on the work of Greek poets.

The opening of the International Center – Museum in Zatouna and Theodorakis’s effort to remain creative during his banishment are bright examples which confirm that artistic and cultural inspiration cannot be restricted even under the most oppressive regimes.

Read below more info about the opening of the International Center – Museum Mikis Theodorakis:

International Center Mikis Theodorakis (Eleutherotupia)
Press release about the opening of the Museum (Zatouna.gr)

Mikis Theodorakis: A Man of Peace (Gail Holst-Warhaft)

Mona Lisa: a real da Vinci code?

Zat — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 17:46:40 +0000

I read this piece of news recently and I found it pretty interesting. Apparently, a new theory about Mona Liza’s mysterious smile has been developed by scientists in the National Research Council of Canada. Using special infrared and 3D technology in the Louvre museum in Paris, they peered through the otherwise impenetrable paint layers of Mona Lisa. What they found was pretty interesting.

On very close examination of the painting, the scientists revealed thay Mona Lisa’s dress was covered in a thin transparent gauze veil. This type of dress was typical of the kind worn in early 16th century Italy by women who were pregnant and had just given birth. This is something that had never been seen up to now since the painting was always judged to be dark and difficult to examine. So, based on this theory, Leonardo da Vinci painted Mona Lisa to commemorate the birth of her second son in 1503.

By the way, in case you didn’t know, the woman with the ambiguous half smile has been identified as Lisa Gherardini, wife of Flirentine merchant Francesco de Giocondo. She had five children.

This finding may shed new light onto Da Vinci’s unique painting technique, sfumato, derived from the Italian word for smoke. But what’s really lost in the smoke of time is how the technique was actually applied to the Mona Lisa. The painting is extremely thinly painted and extremely flat, and yet the details of the curls of hair, for example, are extremely distinct. Mona Lisa’s painting technique is unlike anything scientists have seen before. Leonardo was indeed a league of his own.

But how did da Vinci actually paint the Mona Lisa? Scientists says that although it is thought he may have used his fingers there aren’t any indications of finger prints on the Mona Lisa – as have been found on other da Vinci paintings. Art experts know that the sfumato technique involved overlaying translucent layers of color to create the perception of depth, volume, form and lighter or darker areas.

“With the scanning we’ve demonstrated that the darker areas, such as the eyes, are indeed thicker indicating that they are composed of a succession of thinly applied glaze layers,” says NRC-IIT scientist François Blais. However, how the Renaissance master actually applied his layers of pigment and oil medium is still a mystery. Now the scientists are working with commissioned replicas of sfumato on wood in order to better understand the interaction between the 3D laser scanning and the material in the hope of one day cracking da Vinci’s sfumato code.

So, there may be a real code on da Vinci’s paintings. But was Leonardo’s secret just the fact that Mona Lisa was pregrant or did he want to convey a message much more meaningful? I guess, novelists still have plenty of material to work with…

“My Number One” goes Metal

Zat — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 03:14:40 +0000

“My Number One” like you’ve never heard it before! More than one year after Helena Paparizou’s win in Eurovision, “My Number One” is now reformed by the Swedish band Dream Evil and becomes a Metal hit. Guys, this is very different from what you have heard before, but I REALLY like it, enjoy!

Listen to My Number One (Metal version)

Post-party news & photos

Zat — Sun, 17 Sep 2006 23:18:17 +0000

The party was a lot of fun, many people, dancing and A LOT of alcohol… And surprise surprise, no police visit! I love my new neighbors .

Check below photos, they are not many, but you can get an idea of what happened. I also included some pictures from my new house the morning after the party (and before cleaning…).

Photos from the party

Party this Saturday

Zat — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 14:47:09 +0000

New house, drinks, fun people, music and dance, that’s our housewarming party. Opa!

WHEN: Saturday, September 16, 2006 / 8:00pm
WHERE: My house

Be there!

Photos from my trip to Germany

Zat — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 18:20:37 +0000

Well, there you have them. I finally found time to upload some photos from my recent trip to Germany. Enjoy!

Photos from Germany

Back home

Zat — Mon, 04 Sep 2006 23:45:50 +0000

Yes, I am back home. My trip to Germany was GREAT. I met many fun new people, as well good old friends. I will post photos here as soon as possible.

**UPDATE Sep 7, 2006: Getting back to work is not easy. I am extremely busy with research, writing a paper, organizing events for the Cornell Hellenic Student Association, updating the HSA Website and much more… I promise I will upload photos from my trip in Germany within the next few days. Stay tuned.

Off to Germany

Zat — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 04:53:58 +0000

That’s right. I am flying tomorrow to Germany for a conference and I am pretty excited about that! In addition, I have some good friends in Germany and I will get to spend some time with them, too. I will post photos as soon as I come back.