I said I would post a link to those New Years Eve panos when they went live and I am not one to fail to deliver on my promise. Here it is, the Times Square New Years Eve shot from the second that it turned 2007 (in New York anyway). There are also a series of other lovely panos from around the world uploaded and ready for you to mouse around. Shot in Prague, Dubai, Copenhagen and on and on, these are actually very well done and capture, I think, the spirit of a moment with exceptional dynamism. Wish I’d done one myself.
Word for the Travel Wise (11/19/06)
Hmm… I’m not sure how you can squeeze this word into some conversation, but if the opportunity should present itself, use it! Use it over and over again, until they go from impressed to annoyed. That way no one can say you never made an effort to speak the local lang!
Today’s word is a Danish word used in Denmark:
tillykke – congratulations
Danish is part of the North Germanic language family, also known as a Scandinavian language. Speak Danish dot com has a ten day intensive online course that provides you with lesson one for free and the rest at a charge of $75 USD. Learn Danish is a good source for all the facts regarding the language, but points us back to the Speak Danish which gets a bit dizzy if you’re looking for an alternative site to visit. For learning abroad in classroom settings click here.
Past Danish words: svimmel
Word for the Travel Wise (07/14/06)
Yet another language I managed to go by for months never posting a single word, but tonight, no more! Tonight we will learn about this West Nordic lingo. Tonight we take to the foreign world of Faroese by storm like the old Vikings took to the seas starting with right here and right now. Ready? Let’s go!
Today’s word is a Faroese word used in the Faroe Islands:
handilskjarni – (pronounced huhn-dils-chuhd-neh) market
Just like the foods found at the market I’m sure you’ll find asking for directions to get there just as much fun. Faroese is spoken by some 60,000-80,000 people in both the Faroe Islands and Denmark. Check out the Wiki for a few words or this small blurb on the Faroe Island tourist site about how the tradtional dance has salvaged the language over several years. Lonely Planet has a small section of Faroese in their Scandinavian phrasebooks worth checking out.
European Rock Festivals
Every time I travel in Europe, it seems that I hear about a really cool rock festival that I just missed, or will be missing soon. I can never seem to find out about them far enough in advance to include them in my travel plans.
Well, this summer might be different thanks to The New York Times who has just printed a guide to the major festivals in Europe and some of the headlining bands. For example, The Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, Spain kicks off this Thursday (oops, too late for me again!) with over 100 bands that include Killing Joke, the Violent Femmes, Lou Reed, Motorhead, Stereolab, and many others.
Other festivals mentioned include Rock am Ring in Nuremberg, Germany; Roskilde in Denmark; La Route du Rock in St.-Malo, France; and the Leeds and Reading festivals in England.
Roskilde Festival
Many of you, upon hearing the name Roskilde, will undoubtedly think of the horrible Pearl Jam tragedy that took place there during the Roskilde Festival about six years ago, when nine people died during a concert. The band almost packed it up and quit, which would have been also tragic, as they are one of my favorite bands of all time. Well, the Roskilde Festival goes on. As always it takes place in the ancient city of Roskilde in Denmark. The festival, as music fans know, is among the top music events in Europe and this year, the celebrating happens between June 29 to July 2, and includes artists like the Streets, Arctic Monkeys and Goldfrapp. Then there will be some golden oldies like Bob Dylan and Guns N’ Roses (please, oh please, let them sing Knocking on Heaven’s Door together).
Tickets for the festival run a grisly $230 and include access to the campgrounds starting on June 25. FYI: Roskilde is just over 20 miles from Copenhagen, and easily accessed by Danish Railways. Let me just say that if I was not a sad, pathetic working stiff that I would be there in a heartbeat.