Quiet Friday In

LONDON, United Kingdom

June 29, 2007 (Friday)



(Source: http://www.rbkc.gov.uk)

I saw the craziest dream so far, which felt so real, but luckily it all went away once I was with Kurt in South Kensington. He makes me feel good and feeds my brains with thoughts and ideas. Kurt is a really nice guy with a cheeky sense of humor and never lets me drink an instant coffee. Apart from that, he is very attentive to details and is simple to communicate with. To say the least, he puts me at ease.

If you have not tried a Vietnamese cuisine, then you should. Kurt had prepared Pho Gu, a Vietnamese rice noodle soup with lots of vegetables and chicken, I think. We had a lovely home-cooked dinner and later watched About a Boy, a feel-good British movie with few 'green' breaks. The last time I slept with Kurt was one of the best night sleeps I had in a long time. It was a nice Friday in while it was raining outside. In the middle of the second movie, Mystic Pizza, my munchies started. However, I enjoyed this day and no wonder why people say "Thank God, it is Friday!"

More TGiFs,

~ζ

Academic Presence in Scandinavian Countries and the Nordic States

June 28, 2007 (Thursday)

One more victory in academia... I have been informed by my Swedish colleagues that my empirical study has been published by the Nordicom in Gothenburg, Sweden. It is also available electronically on major scientific databases on the Internet. The title of my research is as follows.

The Impact of the Brazilian Soap Opera, "O Clone", on the Attitudes and Behavior of its Fans in Kyrgyzstan. A Qualitative Analysis. Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 2005.

Brief annotation of the study (http://www.nordicom.gu.se):
For the last fifteen years, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Kyrgyz citizens have witnessed how people get deeply involved in soap operas. For some people soap operas became part of their daily lives or some kind of addiction without which they cannot survive. Hereby Brazilian, Mexican, Argentinean, Colombian and Moroccan cultures are having a great impact on shaping the post-Soviet Kyrgyzstani culture.

As far as I know, the study is presented in two publications and is available for purchase online and in book shops across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. I shall be getting my copies soon. My recent study Complex Aircraft Manufacturing Industry and Media Practice London, 2007, is also going to be published, hopefully, this September.

Book covers are taken from http://www.nordicom.gu.se.


Harrie, Eva (ed.) (2006): Media Trends 2006 in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden: Radio, TV & Internet. Descriptive Analyses and Statistics. Gothenburg, Sweden: Nordicom (University of Gothenburg). Price: €32.


Carlsson, Ulla (ed.) (2006): Radio, TV & Internet in the Nordic Countries: Meeting the Challenges of New Media Technologies. Gothenburg, Sweden: Nordicom (University of Gothenburg). Price: €22.


My publications list is getting longer every year, including the academic one. If you ever come across any of my studies mentioned above, let me know what you think of them.

Some might ask why do I differentiate Scandinavian countries from the Nordic states. Well, Scandinavia consists of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, while Nordic states are Finland and Iceland.

Parts of the study are available in Afrikaans, Chinese, Danish, French, German, Greek, Korean, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Turkmen and Ukrainian under the following titles. Translations are available online and at the local libraries.

Afrikaans | 中文 | Dansk | English | Français | Deutsch | Ελληνικά | Казакша | 한국어 | Кыргызча | Română | Русский | Español | Svenska | Türkçe | Türkmen | Українська

AFRIKAANS:
Die slag van die Brasiliaanse seepie "O Cloné" op die houding en gedrag van sy volgers in Kyrghyzstan. 'n Kwaliteitiewe ontleding.

CHINESE:
关于巴西肥皂剧O Cloné对吉尔吉斯斯坦观众的态度行为之影响的定性分析

DANISH:
Den brasilianske sæbeopera "O Clonés" indflydelse på holdninger og adfærd hos dens fans i Kirgisien. En kvalitativ analyse.

FRENCH:
L'impact de la série brésilienne "O Cloné" sur les attitudes les comportements de ses fans au Kirghizie. Une analyse qualitative.

GERMAN:
Der Einfluss der brasilianischen TV-Soap "O Cloné" auf Einstellungen und Verhalten ihrer Fans in Kirgisische Republik. Eine qualitative Analyse.

GREEK:
Η επιρροή της Βραζιλιάνικης τηλεσειράς "O Cloné" στη συμπεριφορά και στις αντιδράσεις των φίλων τηλεθεατών από το Κιργιζία. Μία ποιοτική ανάλυση.

KOREAN:
브라질 드라마 'O Cloné' 가 키르키스탄 팬들의 행동과 삶에 미친 영향

KAZAKH:
Бразилиянын "Клон" топтамасын Кыргызстандагы табынушіларнын дуниетанусына жане мінезкулыгына ыкпалы. Сапалык талдау.

KYRGYZ:
Бразилиянын "Клон" сериалынын Кыргызстандагы суйуучулорунун дуйнотаанымына, турмушту кабыл алуусуна, кулк–мунозуно жана журум–турумуна таасири. Сапаттуу талдоо.

ROMANIAN:
Influenţa teleserialului Brazilian "O Cloné" asupra Atitudinii şi Comportamentului Fanilor în Republica Kârgâză. O analiză calitativă.

RUSSIAN:
Влияние бразильского сериала "Клон" на мировосприятие и поведение его поклонников в Киргизии. Качественный анализ.

SPANISH:
Influencia del serial brasileño "O Cloné" en el comportamiento y aceptación de sus fanáticos en Kirguisia. Análisis de la calidad.

SWEDISH:
Den brasilianska såpoperan "O Clonés" inflytelse på attityder och beteende hos dens fans i Kirgizistan. En kvalitativ analys.

TURKISH:
Brazilyalı "O Cloné" dizisinin, Kırgızistan sevenlerinin davranış ve düşüncelerinin üzerindeki etkisi. Niteliksel analiz.

TURKMEN:
Braziliýanyň "O Cloné" köp-seriýaly çeper filmyň Gyrgyzstandaky teletomaşaçylaryň dünýä garaýşyna we häsiýetine täsiri. Hilli seljeriş.

UKRAINIAN:
Вплив бразильського серiалу "Клон" на свiтосприйняття i поведiнку його прихильникiв в Киргизiї. Якiсний аналiз.

Viva academia,

~ζ

Moscow - The Most Expensive City

MOSCOW, Russia / LONDON, United Kingdom

June 27, 2007 (Wednesday)



(Source: http://www.new7wonders.com)

Mercer Human Resource Consulting released a worldwide cost of living (CoL) ranking of the cities, including housing. Moscow, Russian capital, remains on top for the second consequtive year. No wonder why wealthy Russians are moving to London. Below are the top 50 cities. The source: http://www.mercerhr.com.

2007 Rank | Change | 2006 Rank | City, Country | 2007 CoL | 2006 CoL

1 = 1 MOSCOW (MOSKVA), Russia 134.4 123.9
2 + 5 LONDON, United Kingdom 126.3 110.6
3 - 2 SEOUL, South Korea 122.4 121.7
4 - 3 TOKYO, Japan 122.1 119.1
5 - 4 HONG KONG, Hong Kong 119.4 116.3
6 + 8 COPENHAGEN (KØBENHAVN), Denmark 110.2 101.1
7 = 7 GENEVA, Switzerland 109.8 103
8 - 6 OSAKA, Japan 108.4 108.3
9 = 9 ZURICH (ZÜRICH), Switzerland 107.6 100.8
10 = 10 OSLO, Norway 105.8 100
11 + 13 MILAN (MILANO) Italy 104.4 96.9
12 = 12 ST. PETERSBURG (SANKT-PITERBURG), Russia 103 99.7
13 + 15 PARIS, France 101.4 93.1
14 + 17 SINGAPORE, Singapore 100.4 92
15 - 10 NEW YORK CITY, United States 100 100
16 + 18 DUBLIN, Ireland 99.6 91.8
17 + 24 TEL AVIV, Israel 97.7 89.7
18 + 21 ROME (ROMA), Italy 97.6 89.8
19 + 21 VIENNA (WIEN), Austria 96.9 89.8
20 - 14 BEIJING (PEKING), China 95.9 94.9
21 - 19 SYDNEY, Australia 94.9 91.3
22 + 25 HELSINKI, Finland 93.3 87.8
23 + 36 STOCKHOLM, Sweden 93.1 84.8
24 + 27 DOUALA, Cameroon 92.9 87.6
25 + 41 AMSTERDAM, Netherlands 92.2 83.4
26 + 53 MADRID, Spain 92.1 81.6
26 - 20 SHANGHAI, China 92.1 91.2
28 - 21 KIEV (KYIV) Ukraine 91.4 89.8
29 + 59 ATHENS (ATHINA), Greece 90.6 81.1
30 + 52 ALMATY, Kazakhstan 89.6 81.9
31 + 56 BARCELONA, Spain 89.2 81.2
31 + 48 BRATISLAVA, Slovakia 89.2 82.4
33 + 45 DAKAR, Senegal 89 82.8
34 - 25 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates 88.8 87.8
35 + 45 ABIDJAN, Côte d'Ivoire 88.3 82.8
36 + 60 GLASGOW, United Kingdom 88.1 80.7
37 - 31 LAGOS, Nigeria 88 85.5
38 - 15 ISTANBUL (İSTANBUL), Turkey 87.7 93.1
39 + 65 MUNICH (MÜNCHEN), Germany 87.6 80.2
40 + 61 FRANKFURT, Germany 87.4 80.5
41 + 69 BIRMINGHAM, United Kingdom 87.2 79.7
42 - 29 LOS ANGELES, United States 87.1 86.7
43 + 56 LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg 87 81.2
44 + 70 BRUSSELS, Belgium 86.5 79.5
45 - 30 ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates 85.9 86
45 + 72 BERLIN, Germany 85.9 79.2
45 + 62 DUSSELDORF (DÜSSELDORF), Germany 85.9 80.4
48 - 28 TAIPEI, Taiwan 85.8 86.8
49 + 50 PRAGUE (PRAHA), Czech Republic 85.6 82.1
50 + 51 ALGIERS, Algeria 85.1 82

Red City on Volga or the Foggy Albion on Thames

MOSCOW, Russia / LONDON, United Kingdom

June 26, 2007 (Tuesday)

It is shocking how Moscow has changed so rapidly in the past years. I am quite frequent in the Russian capital and every time I visit the city where once lived, the prices are more expensive. Last year just the taxi ride itself from the Sheremetyevo International Airport to the Domodedovo International Airport with one stop at the Red Square cost my companion and I around 5,500 rubles (€140 / £96 / $192).

There is a famous song called Москва слезам не верит [Moskva slezam ne verit] or Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears. Locals joke and say that contemporary Moscow believes in dollars, euros, pounds and then rubles. It makes me wonder how Muscovites survive. Last week The London Paper (http://www.thelondonpaper.com, June 18, 2007) published an article comparing two capitals – the Russian and the British.

MOSCOW | LONDON
Rent: £2,057 | £2,000
CD: £12.77 | £12.99
Cup of coffee: £3.14 | £2.00
Burger meal: £2.47 | £3.89
International newspaper: £3.24 | £1.20

In 2003 I came to Moscow to work on a special project. The company paid $1,200 for my three-room apartment in Strogino, temporary residence permit and food as well as transportation expenses on top of my salary. Basically, I had no expenses but to enjoy my life in the former Soviet capital. My cousin and I would drive around in Moscow on his Mercedes, go clubbing, shopping and drinking. Those careless days... Once the project was completed in 2004, I moved to Riga in Latvia.

My family lived in Moscow during the Soviet times and, of course, life was affordable then. Everyone was Soviet rather than Russian and non-Russian. However, I still think that Moscow is one of the amazing cities in the world. Maybe I am saying it because I spent my childhood there. Below is the cost of living ranking of the cities I have visited or lived by the Mercer Human Resource Consulting (http://www.mercerhr.com).

1. Moscow RU;
2. London GB;
6. Copenhagen DK;
9. Zürich CH;
10. Oslo NO;
12. Saint Petersburg RU;
15. New York City US;
23. Stockholm SE;
25. Amsterdam NL;
28. Kyiv UA;
30. Almaty KZ;
40. Frankfurt-am-Main DE;
42. Los Angeles US.

If you are traveling to Moscow, please keep in mind the current exchange rates against the Russian ruble (рубль, руб. or RUB). Make sure that you do not use the street exchanges. Most of the shops accept foreign credit and debit cards. Here is how far your local quid goes in Russia:
£1 (GBP) – 58 руб.;
€1 (EUR) – 40 руб.;
$1 (USD) – 29 руб.;
¥1 (JPY) – 0.25 руб.;
₣1 (CHF) – 25 руб.

До свидания (Do svidaniya),

~ζ

Mother and Three Virgins

A mother had three virgin daughters. They were all getting married within a short time period. Because mom was a bit worried about how their sex life would get started, she made them all promise to send a postcard from the honeymoon with a few words on how marital sex felt.

The first daughter sent a card from Hawaii two days after the wedding. The card said nothing but "Nescafe!" Mom was puzzled at first, but then went to her kitchen and got out the Nescafe jar. It said, "Good till the last drop".

Mom blushed, but was pleased for her daughter.

The second girl sent the card from the Vermont State a week after the wedding, and the card read "Rothmans." Mom now knew to go straight to her husband's cigarettes, and she read from the pack, "Extra Long. King Size."

She was again slightly embarrassed but still happy for her daughter.

The third left for her honeymoon to Cape Town in South Africa. Mom waited for a week, nothing. Another week went by and still nothing. Then after a whole month, a card finally arrived. Written on it with shaky handwriting were the words "South African Airways." Mom took out her latest YOU magazine, flipped through the pages fearing the worst, and finally found the advertisement for the airline. The ad said, "Ten times a day, seven days a week, both ways."

Mom fainted!