My Valentine's Day Present

This is what I got from my dear for this year's Valentine's day. There are 8 volumes in total, and this is the first one in the series. The two stories, 'Tintin in the land of the Soviets' and 'Tintin in the Congo', are the first two Tintin comics (one can tell from the way characters are drawn in the Soviet story), and are also the hardest to find in the market. I've always loved Tintin, so I finished the book before the night is up. =)

We decided to spend this year's V Day a little differently. Instead of paying exorbitant prices for dinner for two, we had beef stew and soup, which we cooked together. It was overall a nice experience, except that the beef stew (cooked by me) tasted a little off. I need more practice.

The Australian Bushfires

If there's one distressing situation that keeps popping up in the news this week, it is the bushfires that continues to rage in the south eastern part of Australia. When I first heard of it, I thought it is just the 'usual stuff', as bushfires seem to be pretty common in that part of Australia. What makes it different this time round is that the fire don't seem to stop burning, even after it has claimed more than 180 fatalities. Some estimates put the final the number of fatalities at more than 200. It is reported that at least some of the fires, worst since 1983, has been set by arsonists.

It saddens me to hear stories about charred bodies found in homes, or in cars as the occupants tried to flee from the raging fire. It is no less distressing to hear that the fires came so quickly that sirens and other conventional warning signs were not effective in alerting residents of the impending danger.

I just read that the Indonesian Police force is sending their DVI (Disaster Victim Identification) forensic team to Australia to help out with the identification of bushfire victims, in addition to US$1 million aid to help reconstruct public schools. The sum may not be much, but in such times of emergency this is a sign for solidarity between neighboring nations. Action is always better than simple sympathies. The state owned news agency, Antara, also noted that Australia as a friendly nation who has provided assistance when Indonesia was hit with natural disasters, notably after the tsunami in Aceh-Nias in 2004 and 2005.

Best TV Commercial 2008 : Visit Indonesia

The above TV commercial was created as part of the Visit Indonesia Year 2008 campaign. I would say that it is one of the best TV commercial ever put up by an Indonesian ministry (in this case the Ministry of Culture and Tourism).

Why does this clip deserve the title of 'Best TV Commercial', you ask? Firstly because it effectively communicates the tourism message of inviting people from all over the world to visit the country. Secondly, the video manage to combine a unique blend of colour, sights, and sound. The video itself show good editing work and the presentation flow very seamlessly from one scene to the next. Last but not least, the usage of local cultural belief (butterflies signalling the coming of visitors) and the little girl as narrator form the finishing touch which made this video feel special, unlike the multitude of cheesy tourism commercials out there.

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PS: For the benefit of those who's considering Indonesia for their next holiday destination, below is another tourism commercial. Not as impressive as the one above, but still quite nicely done.