The Amazing Race, season 12, starts Sunday

by Jamie Rhein on

My best friend from college wants us to be in the The Amazing Race. She made it as far as having an actual interview for Survivor once, so who knows? Perhaps we’d have a shot at it if we could ever find out when the tryouts are. This coming Sunday, November 4 at 8 pm is the premiere of the 12th season.

I had never watched The Amazing Race until my friend said we should give it a shot. I’m always a bit wary when I look to see how cultures are portrayed by the mainstream media, but I have to say, from what I’ve seen, I’m pretty impressed. Instead of making fun of countries, it seems the show is fairly earnest about portraying them in a positive light. Considering the pressure and stress of trying to win by negotiating the details required to travel the 50,000 miles in 28 days, I’m also happy with the way the people on the show behave while traveling. Perhaps saying nasty things about the places does happen, but this seems edited out.

I’ve looked at the video of this year’s contenders and am not sure who I’m rooting for. I’m drawn to the grandson/grandfather team, but the Goth team looks like they’ll create a bit of a stir and might be fun to watch while they travel about the world.

Most popular US Halloween costumes

by Abha Malpani on


Here in Madrid, Madrileños don’t seem to give a rats about Halloween. It’s a pity really.

So I suppose I will not have the privilege of “trick-or-treat” knocks from little witches, nor will I see many vampires or ghosts parading the street unless I hang out around a guiri club that is celebrating Halloween.

The Economist has just published a survey indicating how many people in America are going to dress as what.

The top 10 costumes for this year are:
1) Witch
2) Princess
3) Pirate
4) Spider-man
5) Fairy
6) Vampire
7) Cat
8) Star Wars Character
9) Ghost
10) Monster

The list also mentions ‘Athlete’. Why would you want to dress as an athlete on Halloween? Unless I suppose you go as Mike Tyson! :) Does any costume go, as long as it’s a costume?

When I lived in the UK, I faintly remember dressing as an Indian girl for Halloween. Not sure what my mum was thinking, but I did kind of stand out amongst my friend zombies and ghosts.

International festivals: Celebrate the love

by Jamie Rhein on

This weekend has one of the best events in Columbus, I think. If it’s not the best, it’s pretty darned good. The Columbus International Festival pulls together people from all over the world in two days of food, dance, music performances, displays, and a parade of nations. The groups that come aren’t just local, but from various parts of the world. Sure, it’s one way to see just how diverse Columbus is, but it also captures the richness of the people who call the U.S. home. The people who go are as diverse as the people who are vendors and performers. (This Flickr shot by a. feng is of an African dancer at the Columbus festival. I love the colors.)

My best time to go is right before it closes on Sunday. Prices are slashed so if you have a feasting spirit, you can take away truckloads of food if you want. My problem is deciding if I want to head to Denmark for a dose of frikadeller of to load up on Indian and Greek fare.

Columbus isn’t the only city to throw an international festival in November. I found three others.

10-year-old teaches himself 10 languages

by Abha Malpani on


Little British-Indian kid Arpan Sharma, taught himself how to speak French, Italian (when he was 7), German (at 8), Spanish (at 9), Swahili, Mandarin, Polish, Thai and Lugandan (Uganda); and of course he speaks Hindi and English.

His dream is to travel the world as a doctor, and he wants to be able to speak the native tongue of the country he works in. He is 10.

My primary education was in England too. My mother would force me to study Hindi every Sunday; I hated it. All I wanted to do was read and make snowmen. I speak English, Hindi and Spanish — but there is room for a lot of improvement in all three. Constantly changing countries of residence can teach you new languages but can also destroy your language basics.

Hats off to this child who sitting in one country seems to be fluent in 11 languages.

In Dubai, it is not uncommon to find Middle-Eastern nationalities who speak, read and write English, Arabic and French fluently; they are brought up with these languages. Also, with a large Indian/Pakistani population, many understand and can speak basic Hindi/Urdu.

I’m so envious of multi-lingual people. But if this 10-year-old kid can teach himself, I suppose I have no excuse if I want to be one of them.

Zombie Walk: Organizing events and activities for your inner zombie

by Neil Woodburn on


If you’re a serious zombie-wannabe, Halloween is strictly for amateurs.

The other 364 days of the year provide far better opportunity to surprise people and perhaps even get the jump on them–an important factor for slow moving zombies in search of fresh brains to eat.

But, as we all know, a lone zombie dragging his anemic limbs across the pavement is not the smartest thing to do; they are far easier to beat, burn, or shoot when meandering solo. It has now been documented that the real power of zombies increases exponentially when fellow zombies are at hand–and that’s why they travel and feed in small groups (i.e. a gaggle of zombies).

With this thought in mind, a group of like minded evil dead have formed the rapidly growing Zombie Walk group. This fine organization provides support–both logistically and mentally–for zombies in search of fresh brains. Rather than venturing out on your own, Zombie Walks organizes, well…, zombie walks. Like minded individuals gather together, slather on their pasty white make-up and bloodstained clothes, and then go for a leisurely stroll through some unsuspecting, white-picket-fence neighborhood. Check out the photo gallery here of a recent Zombie Walk in Richmond; it’s hilarious (the photo above is from this collection).

But don’t worry if you are nowhere near Richmond and are interested in taking a stroll with your fellow undead. Zombism is international in scope and Zombie Walk chapters can now be found throughout the States, Canada, and even in parts of Europe. Just check out their website for upcoming walks and join the parade.