Tag Archive
The Debacle In The East China Sea
We’ve all been hearing a lot about the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands lately, what with all the demonstrations in China after the Japanese government purchased the islands from the Japanese owner. Meanwhile, Taiwan is adding their opinion into the mix since three governments claim this territory. So, what’s really going on? What laws govern island ownership? Who [...]
China’s Dynastic Territories
Our intrepid Beijing photographer Jesse found this map on the net a few months ago and I thought it might be helpful to give everyone a visual aid of China’s geographic boundaries over the millennia. It’s fascinating to see how the borders waxed and waned over the centuries. Enjoy!
Philippines: Jeepneys, The ‘In-Between’ Way To Go
I’ve been fortunate to have been able to visit the Philippines several times on business. Yes, they have great malls and wonderful food, but I think the one thing that made the biggest impression on me during my first visit were jeepneys. They were ubiquitous, they were colorful, and many even had religious expressions painted [...]
Chile: A Land of Spectacular Vistas, Culture & People
Chile is a land of contrasts. In the northern part of the country is the Atacama Desert where not a single drop of rainfall has ever been recorded. It is a land of high altitudes, barren landscapes, the world’s largest deposits of copper along with native Indians wearing the flat brimmed hats you associate with [...]
Absolute vs. Relative Philosophy
Long ago the worldview, regardless of where you lived, was one of connection with nature. As Joseph Campbell wrote in his book Oriental Mythology, “The myth of eternal return, which is still basic to Oriental life, displays an order of fixed forms that appear and reappear through all time. The daily round of the sun, [...]
Movie Review: Midnight in Paris
What makes Paris so attractive to so many artists? Is it the architecture, the food and the museums? Is it knowing that so many great writers, painters and thinkers lived there in the past? Has Paris’ Golden Age passed us by? Would it have been better to have lived there some time in the past? [...]
Book Review: “On China” by Henry Kissinger
Many books have been written about China that either focus on the relatively recent past or write with no historical or cultural perspective. I’ve wanted to see a book about China that took both their culture and their view on diplomacy and geopolitics into consideration when discussing the changes over the last half century along [...]
