Hoppin' John

Eat poor that day, eat rich the rest of the year. Rice for riches and peas for peace.
- Southern saying on eating a dish of Hoppin' John on New Year's Day.

A traditional dish for New Year's Day in parts of the USA is Hoppin' John, made with rice and black-eyed peas. It dates back to the 1800s and may be named after a street hawker in South Carolina. (details)

It is usually served with hog jowls, corn bread, and cooked greens. Put a shiny dime into the pot for extra good luck for the person who gets it in his portion!

photo credit

bloody world

It is a new year . you can't expect who will be killed next year , who will assasinate and who will be assasinated next year? We are living in a bloody and hatefully world.

Bullfighting in Costa Rica

Spanish bullfighter Oscar Saenz makes a pass to a bull during the annual bullfight festival at the Zapote bullring in San Jose, December 28, 2007. REUTERS/Juan Carlos Ulate

Note: It is important to point out that this isn't the typical kind of bullfights that take place in Costa Rica. We only allow Spanish bullfighters to perform here as long as they agree not to kill the bull during the event.

Merry X'mas from Japan

Merry X'mas !!

Please enjoy Japanese Flash Animation here or click the image.

merry x-mas!

http://www.htmllive.com/glitter/

Costa Rica establishes diplomatic relations with Oman

(Xinhua) - Costa Rica has established diplomatic ties with Oman, the Costa Rican Foreign Ministry said Thursday.

The document on the establishment of relations was signed Wednesday, which said both countries wished to "strengthen the friendly and cooperative ties in the political and economic sectors based on mutual respect."

Both nations pledged to respect each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, the international law and the United Nations Charter.

"The government of Oman and the government of Costa Rica express their conviction that the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries conforms to both states' national interests and will contribute to the strengthening of peace and international cooperation," said the document.

On Aug. 16, 2006, Costa Rica announced that it decided to move its embassy in Israel from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv.

The Central American country has ever since established or resumed diplomatic ties with several Arab countries, such as Egypt, Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain and Yemen.

The Sacrifice Holiday ( Kurban Bayramı )

One of the religious days in Islam called " Kurban Bayramı". It has started on last Thursday and last tomorrow ( 4 days). If person is capable (in terms of financially), he sacrifices a sheep,goat etc. for the name of Allah. He then allow small part of meat for his taste. And he gave remaining part to poor people.

Some people choose foundation like me. For example I gave the amount of money to "Mehmetçik Vakfı" ( Turkish Military Foundation). They buy a sheep for me, sacrifice it and deliver people who needs.

DMZ

It has already been over fifty years since the Korean War. Today Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), situated along the borderline between North and South Korea, symbolizes both war and peace. I had a chance to enjoy an interesting tour to this site during my training course in Seoul last November. On a bridge very close to this zone some soldiers came into our bus and checked our passports, and our guide was telling us again and again that many tourists actually believed that they were entering North Korean territory by this pass control and we in fact were still in South Korea.
It was a morning with deep fogs. Our classmates from hot countries (majority of them were from very warm places, in contrast to even colder mongolian climate) started taking pictures and posing next to a symbolic monument for unification of Korea, while shaking in cold temperature. Our friend from Bangladesh, as usual in his suits and tie without any coat, bought a warm hat, scarf and globes and looked rather amusing. The monument resembles a sphere broken to two pieces, each piece with caved images of each country’s map, so that it can make a whole sphere together. Also there are statues of people pushing the half spheres from both sides symbolizing the unification dream of Korean people. The symbolic ideology of the monument seemed to be outstanding.
The 3^rd tunnel. This tunnel was dug in 1970s by North Korea with military infiltration purpose. This tunnel is 1635m long and dug over 70m deep underground. There have been four such tunnels found in total. In the beginning some peasants heard explosion noises underground and South Korea started looking for tunnels. They drilled holes and put some long tubes in and filled them with water. When an explosion caused water to burst back up to surface, they found the tunnels. We used some mining type of wagons to go down, then we walked for some 300 or 400 meters and reached the first barricade. Behind the barricade there are mines to protect against possible infiltration. There are three such barricades. An interesting fact is that when South Korea declared that they found North Korean made tunnels, the latter actually had guts to claim that it was South Korea, who actually was the creator of the tunnels. The tunnel was able to allow passage to thousands of soldiers; it proved actually my friend note that Kim Il Sung actually preferred unexpected military attacks to nuclear weapons strategically. It was located only 50km from Seoul, hence one can imagine how devastating such an attack could have been.
We went to Dora Observatory afterwards. We tried to look at the DMZ and North Korea through telephoto lenses, but it was no use due to fogs. There is actually a village in DMZ, called Freedom village, where only some 250 people live. They do not pay taxes and military service is not mandatory for them. Also there were North and South Korean flags raised very high, as one morning North Korea raised its flag higher. Next morning South Korea raised its flag even higher, and so on. In the end, two flags were hanging very high.
Next site was Dorasan station, the first station to North Korea, not the last station from South Korea. This brand new station is already ready for some transportation. We got our passports stamped as if we went in and out. The destination was Pyeongyang as we went up down stairs. The rail track was brand new. Our guide mentioned that the unification of Korea would mean railway routes to overseas; one of them was through Mongolia, which would be very good for us, as we can travel to Seoul by train. There were some other places, which are not open to public. There is an agreement facility, where agreement table is actually divided by the border line. Also, people mentioned that South Korea was helping North Korea by building a factory in DMZ and constructing railway for them.

Pre-Columbian stone sphere found in Costa Rica

(La Nacion) - In the final stage of excavation of the remains of an Indian pre-Columbian village in Palmar Sur, in the Costa Rican South Pacific, a National Museum team of archaeologists, led by Costa Rican Adrian Bonilla, found a 1.1 meter stone sphere, in exactly the same place where it was set some 1,000 years ago. He finding was exciting, particularly because the last of such spheres –world renowned because they are found only in the area– had been found in 1994. According to Bonilla, the sphere was a symbol of power.

News from Bulgaria

Today it has been snowing almost all day. Here's a photo of my street I made today.

By the way, I had promised to blog about the local elections in Bulgaria this year. Well, there were not any surprises and we're hoping we made the right choices :) There has been an issue about trading votes for €10 to €30 (the less educated and poor voters prefer to sell their votes; the Parliament passed an act declaring that a crime but it didn't work at all). The other issue was about election tourism (people living abroad were organized and transported to where they were listed to cast a vote for the party that transported them). Other that that, it was OK.

Congratulations Romania

We are quite good in gymnastics, box, canoing, athletics and pretty much that's it. We are not very good in team sports. Usually we are not able to fight till the end of the game. I think it is a mental problem. The exception is the Romanian women handball team which I consider the best Romania's team. We've always had good results in handball, but this team is really good. We have great expectations :)

These days is taking place the world handball championship in Paris, France. 24 teams, 1 gold medal. People in Romania are very attached to their national sports teams. Romanians live to the max every game of their favorite team. Thursdays was one of these days when everybody enjoyed the great victory against France which played in front of 14000 people in the Paris-Bercy hall. In the next few lines we present the review of the game from one of our online newspapers.

Romania national handball team won in front of France on Thursday night (34 : 31) in a heart-weakening game. After starting the game in a modest note and being led at half-time, 14:8, Romania recovered and evened the score. The game time ended at 24:24, the two overtime rounds continued to maintain the equality (27:27) and two extra overtime rounds were finally necessary to decide a winner.
In the next game, Romania will play against Russia, a game similar to the finals last two years ago, when Russia won the gold.

(c) www.HotNews.ro

Buzzwords-of-the-year contest

The winners of the 2007 buzzwords-of-the-year contest have recently been revealed.

"Dogensentoikan" was awarded the grand prize which was said by the governer of Miyazaki (the left man in the photo).
It means "we have to boost the prosperity of our prefecture".

"Hanikamiouji" won the second prize.
It means "Smile Prince" (the right young guy).

What is the buzzwords-of-the-year in your country?
Could you tell us the meaning of it?

Concepción: Nicaragua's volcano

The Concepción volcano is one of Nicargua’s highest and most active volcanoes. The symmetrical cone occupies the northeastern half of a dummbbel-shaped island called Isla Ometepe.

The dormant volcano, Maderas, occupies the southwest half of the island. A narrow isthmus connects Concepción and Maderas volcanoes. The Concepción volcano’s size is more than 1,600 m above Lake Nicaragua.

The Concepción volcano has erupted more than 25 time in the last 125 years. The first was in 1883.

Access problems?

I am having a hard time getting to our blog, Topics from 192 countries. I keep getting a 'temporary problem, please try again in 30 seconds' message from Google or a '502 server error'. I can get through to other blogs, and I am able to add a new post by posting from my Dashboard.

Is anyone else having this problem and can anything be done about it?

Thanks for your help, Jane

Paul Bunyan

Paul Bunyan was a larger-that-life lumberjack that faced all obstacles with a can-do attitude. He cleared forests, fought off giant mosquitos, and conquered mountain ranges. His constant companion was a giant blue ox called Babe. Together they straightened rivers and created lakes.
Although only popularized in the early 1900s, Paul’s story is considered American folklore and is read in schools. You can read some of the stories here. You can also find statues of Paul and his big blue ox, Babe, in many places in the US, and Minnesota has developed a road tour to visit places with a Paul Bunyan theme.

Although oral story telling is not a major form of entertainment anymore, there are groups that gather to ‘tell a whopper’ and keep the tradition alive.

Costa Rica plants 5 million trees

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (Reuters) - Costa Rica, a leader in eco-tourism and home to some of the world's rarest species, planted its 5 millionth tree of 2007 on Wednesday as it tries to put a brake on global warming.

President Oscar Arias shoveled dirt onto the roots of an oak tree planted in the grounds of his offices, reaching the milestone in the Central American nation's efforts to ward off what some experts say are the first signs of climate change.

By the end of the year, Costa Rica will have planted nearly 6.5 million trees, which should absorb 111,000 tons of carbon dioxide a year, Environment Minister Roberto Dobles said.

The country aims to plant 7 million trees in 2008 as part of the newly launched program.

Along with other green-minded nations like Norway and New Zealand, Costa Rica is aiming to reduce its net carbon emissions to zero, and has set a target date of 2021.

"I don't know if we will end up being carbon neutral in 2021 as we have proposed, but the important thing is the audacity of the goal and the work we have to do," Arias said.

Costa Rica is a magnet for ecology-minded tourists who come to visit the lush national parks and reserves that cover more than a quarter of the country and are home to almost 5 percent of the world's plant and animal species including exotic birds and frogs.

Over the last 20 years forest cover in Costa Rica has grown from 26 percent of the national territory to 51 percent, though environmentalists complain that loggers continue to cut down old trees and that the national park system is under funded.

Costa Rican authorities have blamed the loss of more than a dozen amphibian species, including the shiny yellow "golden toad," on higher temperatures caused by global warming.

Experts also say climate change is behind a spike in mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever at high elevations where they were once rare.

The number of dengue fever cases so far this year in Costa Rica's high-altitude central valley stands at 3,487 -- 86 percent higher than in the whole of 2006.

Who is at my door?

I want to share this poem with you guys, it really touched my heart. I always wonder, why Rumi's work is not taught in our schools? Yes he is muslim, but the message he portrays in his poetry is universal. 

According to Professor Majid M. Naini, "Rumi's life and transformation provide true testimony and proof that people of all religions and backgrounds can live together in peace and harmony. Rumi’s visions, words, and life teach us how to reach inner peace and happiness so we can finally stop the continual stream of hostility and hatred and achieve true global peace and harmony". Here is a short sample from Masnavi

Love’s nationality is separate from all other religions,
The lover’s religion and nationality is the Beloved (God).
The lover’s cause is separate from all other causes
Love is the astrolabe of God’s mysteries.

Let's get back to the poem :-)

He said, "Who is at my door?"
I said, "Your humble servant."
He said, "What business do you have?"
I said, "To greet you, 0 Lord."


He said, "How long will you journey on?"
I said, "Until you stop me."
He said, "How long will you boil in the fire?"
I said, "Until I am pure.


"This is my oath of love.
For the sake of love
I gave up wealth and position."


He said, "You have pleaded your case
but you have no witness."
I said, "My tears are my witness;
the pallor of my face is my proof.'
He said, "Your witness has no credibility;
your eyes are too wet to see."
I said, "By the splendor of your justice
my eyes are clear and faultless."


He said, "What do you seek?"
I said, "To have you as my constant friend."
He said, "What do you want from me?"
I said, "Your abundant grace."


He said, "Who was your companion on the journey?
I said, "The thought of you, 0 King."
He said, "What called you here?"
I said, "The fragrance of your wine."


He said, "What brings you the most fulfillment?"
I said, "The company of the Emperor."
He said, "What do you find there?"
I said, "A hundred miracles."
He said, "Why is the palace deserted?"
I said, "They all fear the thief."
He said, "Who is the thief?"
I said, "The one who keeps me from -you.


He said, "Where is there safety?"
I said, "In service and renunciation."
He said, "What is there to renounce?"
I said, "The hope of salvation."


He said, "Where is there calamity?"
I said, "In the presence of your love."
He said, "How do you benefit from this life?"
I said, "By keeping true to myself


Now it is time for silence.
If I told you about His true essence
You would fly from your self and be gone,
and neither door nor roof could hold you back!
Source

Yahoo IM for VISTA

Yahooo Released its Vista Version of Messenger....It looks Coool.you can download it here http://messenger.yahoo.com/webmessengerpromo.php

But Amount of memory usage of Yahoo is much higher than MSN messenger.so I prefer MSN messenger than Yahoo.But yahoo Interface is nicer than MSN !!!

JTC 2007

The 13th session of the Carthage theatrical Days (in French) "Journées Théâtrales de Carthage (JTC) will be held this year from November 30 to December 8, 2007.

It is a meeting place between men theater worldwide seeking to disseminate an open theater to all forms and techniques of theatrical expression.

The 13th session will be attended by several troupes from 16 countries: 10 Arab countries, 2 African countries and 4 foreign countries.

A total of 47 plays and 63 performances are scheduled in ten halls and 7 spaces.

A tribute will be made at this session to the great Palestinian poet Mahmoud Derouiche.

In the Estonia, it is winter sport time!

Now you can do winter sport in Estonia. This picture is taken two weeks ago in the Estonian winter paradise Otepää. There are winter sport center Tehvandi. I made my this year's first 30km cross country skiing.

Costa Rica celebrates 59 years without an army

(Inside Costa Rica) - Costa Rica yesterday celebrated its 59th year without an army. The celebration was full of cultural events, tributes and a message from Dr. Oscar Arias Sanchez, Nobel Prize winner and president of Costa Rica.

"Today we come to celebrate the abolition of the army in Costa Rica, and though it is motive to be happy, it is not motive to be satisfied", said president Arias in a speech given at the Museo Nacional (national museum), former barracks of the national army.

"How can we be satisfied, while our children walk to school, others children in the Sudan flee their villages where their parents have been killed? How can we be satisfied, while our young find work, while the job of other young is to go fight in Iraq?", Arias expressed in his speech.

Costa Rica was the first country in the world to eliminate its army, investing rather in social programs, health and education.

Jose Figueres Ferrer or “Don Pepe” as he known affectionately is responsible for the abolition of the military on December 1, 1948, weeks following the conflict of civil war that had gripped the country.

"War is the worst form of violence", said Arias.

To become a millionaire

This is one of the way to become a millionaire.

This End-Year Jumbo lottery tickets will go on sale across the country untill December 21th.

The jackpot is 200 million yen,or about 2 million dollars.

Each lottery ticket costs 300 yen,or about three dollars.

296 people will become a millionaire in the end of the year.

Will I be one of them o(^o^)o?

Do you have this kind of lottery in your country?

World AIDS Day