For those of us in the primarily English-speaking nations of the western world – from Canada and the United States, to Ireland and the United Kingdom and right down to large parts of Australia and New Zealand – we take language for granted. English, though not the most-spoken native language, is the most spoken language …
The Monotony of Monolingualism: The Beauty of Speaking a Second Language Read More »
North Korea, the totalitarian “Hermit Kingdom” doesn’t often get a cinematic treatment in Western media. If consumers of Hollywood films were to comb their memories for a film with North Korea as a backdrop, they’d inevitably arrive at the 2014 screwball Seth Rogen and James Franco comedy, “The Interview”. The 2019 South Korean drama “Crash …
Crash Landing on You TV Review: A Recipe for Pathos Read More »
Happy Pancake Day! Shrove Tuesday—or more affectionately Pancake Day—is a feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. It typically falls about 47 days before Easter Sunday, and this year it’s today! The British used Shove Tuesday as the final opportunity to get rid of eggs and fats before starting their Lent fasts, …
Pancake Day: 10 Kinds of Pancakes Served Around the World Read More »
Going on a solo date is something I would have never thought of doing some years back. I always dread the thought of having to sit alone at a restaurant while eating or having a drink or to sit through an entire movie alone at the cinema. I sometimes wonder how I would be perceived if someone …
As the “Month of Love” is almost up, couples worldwide are done with swooning over to portray their love towards their partners. Most of them had only celebrated Valentine’s Day, while others enjoyed the entire week or the entire month instead of sticking to a day (although we recommend loving your partners all year long!). …
How to Make a Long Distance Relationship Less Anguishing Read More »
Ever thought of quitting coffee? Whether coffee’s just too expensive (I’m looking at you, Dubai) or the instant coffee on the shelves just doesn’t make the cut, there will be a point in life where a coffee-lover will have to, sadly, stop drinking coffee. Right now is one of those times for me. As of posting, I’ve …
Barista Abroad: Five Incredible Benefits of Quitting Coffee Read More »
The Associated Press reported on February 22 that a graphic novel by master Japanese animation auteur will be published in the U.S. for the first time—nearly forty years after its initial release in Japan. Titled Shuna’s Journey, the Mizayaki graphic novel is Miyazaki’s adaptation of a Tibetan folk tale about a prince who travels to a …
Miyazaki Graphic Novel to Be Published in the US Read More »
I have a confession: I miss quarantine. The horrors of the pandemic are nothing to be treated mildly or dismissed, and those horrors are ongoing even though society has mostly reopened. But when my state shut down in spring 2020 in an attempt to mitigate transmission, the pause in life as I had known it …
My Own Private Quarantine During the COVID-19 Pandemic Read More »
Last year, I realized that I was no longer an avid book reader. I hadn’t picked up many books to read just for the joy of flipping through pages and immersing myself in them. For a literature lover, I felt like I was slowly losing a piece of me. Most of the books I read …
March 1 marks Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, traditionally the last day of indulgence before the austerities of Lent begin on Ash Wednesday. Forty days of fasting follow until Easter Sunday, in the traditional Catholic calendar followed for centuries by a great deal of Europe and its eventual colonial holdings throughout the world. The Mardi …
