Reprinted, with permission, from Deepa Krishnan’s Mumbai Magic Blog. Deepa is a GeoBeats host and owns Mumbai Magic.

Go on! I dare you!

Copenhagen’s culture night takes place in October

Culture night in Copenhagen is held the first Friday of the autumn Holiday and is extremely popular amongst all ages. It is when cultural institutions, organizations, shops etc. are open until midnight. Special programs with musicians, speeches, and other things you can try. Organizations and people with passions shows their interest in culture. The angels have a very wide span from politics to practice with paint and clay. A look behind the scene in the theatre. The zoo after closing time to see the animals who normally sleep in the day hours. You can try yoga and taste ecological sausage. Listen to jazz and choirs. Poetry reading and speeches about life and environment. Visit our Parliament. Also special lighting and sounds are a part of the special night.

Canal and Thorvaldsen museum

To get entrance to this amazing table of culture you just need to buy a badge and then shop around. The badge functions as a pass for all public transportation and entrance to hundreds of different culture events. Price is around what a cinema ticket costs.

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Have you heard of Sitar? I recently had the opportunity to watch somebody play it. What an instrument! Here is a nice introductory video.

It’s always the simplest things- a conversation, a laugh, a gesture, an encounter with a longtime friend- it’s these simple things that remind me of why I yearned to come home after living abroad.

It’s election time in Trinidad and Tobago. On November 5th 2007, the people will vote in a new Prime Minister or reinstate the present one. We’ve got a young, fresh party on the market that’s making the political race even more dramatic. Political groups are called “parties” and in Trinidad, this is the most deserving and honest name for soon to be governments.

So today, I overheard a little argument that made me smile. I was walking behind a group of fanatically dressed party supporters and tuned in to what I thought was an intense argument. Intense? Yes. About politics? No. The topic was T-shirts- who had the right or wrong size and whose brother or sister didn’t get one. And understandably, they compared the quality of their T-shirts to those of opposing parties, after all, this is a competition right. So, in the midst of serious rallying, partying and squandering of millions of dollars, some Trinidadians are more concerned about whether their T-shirts are made of cotton or nylon or with or without a collar. Now I understand why my neighbor was sporting T-shirts from all the political parties.I’m sure that she wanted to ensure that she had the best quality T-shirt.

Trinidad is a country of happy, laid-back people who can bring the issue of government down to the quality of a T-shirt and laugh about it. When I think of freedom, I think of no where else but Trinidad and Tobago. This is why I came back home- to experience freedom, the “trini” way.

In October, Paris celebrates its Nuit Blanche. This expression literally means “white night,” a sleepless night. From 7 to 7, you can see performances, listen to a variety of music and enjoy other artistic forms, but also some libraries remain open all night long as well as churches, bars and cafes.

You can access all shows and exhibits for free in any of the five areas of Paris dedicated to the Nuit Blanche.

This year, the Nuit Blanche coincided with one of the most exciting games of the Rugby World Cup, held in France—France beat New Zealand, known as one of the strongest teams.

Yet, the quality of the performances and artwork at the Nuit Blanche draw large crowds as usual. Lydia Dambassina’s installation consisting of cut-outs from newspapers was one of the most political pieces.
Perhaps one of the most eclectic shows was that performed at the Saint Merry Church, a total immersion installation blending in music, lights and 3D effects, using the church as support.

Ok. I have tried my hardest to hold my tongue, but somebody has to do this: Do you know how to pronounce bruschetta?!!

I am asking since it has become a popular item on menus around the world, and lots of people are pronouncing it incorrectly.

Chefs, waitstaff, and restaurant owners are pronouncing bruschetta wrong, so how is everyone else supposed to know how to say it?

I have even seen a chef on the Food network mispronounce bruschetta.

Basta. No more. I am going to single-handedly end this!!!

To hear the correct pronunciation of bruschetta, please see the Rifrullo video in Florence, Italy. The host, Carolina, says bruschetta as she is describing the antipasto platter.

Notice, she is not saying “bruShetta,” because it is not pronounced bruShetta.

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