I spent the last few days chillaxing in Budapest. There are two main things to do here: eating cake and resting at a spa. Some of the thermal baths date back to the Turkish period. Like the Király, which comes with extra gay gayness to clean out every orifice.
When I leave Budapest tomorrow evening, I guess I will be just as tender as a big, fat piece of warm butter. Melting away and ready to party. Fasten your seat belts.
I vistited Beppu, the hot spring capital of Japan, in 2002. The whole city is basically running on hot steam. Nine of the hot springs are also known as Hells, which offer unlimited tourist fun.
Now today, eons after my visit, I received an e-mail from Beppu, letting me know that the Beppu city administration has installed a webcam. So cute:
We are very pleased to inform you that you can now observe hot springs steam. (…) We hope that you enjoy the scenery of Beppu-Kannawa Onsen, from time to time, through the Live -Camera available 24 hours a day.
Want to go back right now!
Dear Readers,
After Frankfurt Gay Pride, the tour with Ms. Messhausen led us through 3 countries and 5 cities in 8 days. It was the blast, during which we rediscovered our love for the German article “die” (pronounced dee). As some of you may remember this site started as dieproduzentin.de
After Mary went back to Toronto last Sunday, I needed a rest from the binge purge & shopping excesses. Cocooning seemed like the only solution.
Tuesday night, I watched “Die Stein“, a new TV series about die lustig lüsterne Lehrerleben. A welcome surprise of the show is the former Fassbinder actress Irm Herrman in a supporting role as the school’s secretary.
Anyway, here is a picture of die pumps I bought in Antwerp. Now, I’m asking myself, might die MMM heels be to demure?
xoxo
p
Photo by Bitz
German Pavilion by Mies van der Rohe
Reading the daily newspaper Que the day after Spain won the Euro 2008 in front of the entrance to Sagrada Familia
As if the snow in Toronto wasn’t enough, I’m in Sault Ste. Marie until Friday. I’ve learned it’s somewhere in northern Ontario. I guess to make sure that everyone knows how to pronounce “Sault”, the city is also called Soo by them peoples.
I’ve put a couple of pictures on flickr.
It’s Canadian Thanksgiving.
We went to a pumpkin patch to enjoy the holiday.
In November 2002 we traveled to Tierra del Fuego / Feuerland. We went there on our way from Chile and took a twelve hour bus ride from Puerto Natales via Punta Arenas to Ushuaia.
It must have been in Ushuaia, at the small Yamana Museum were I found the postcards below. The museum shows the geological origin of Tierra del Fuego, the way of life of natives (there were four groups: Yamana, Alakaluf, Selk’nam and Haush), and the extinction of the local people through murder and infectious diseases brought by Europeans.
By 1911, only around 300 Selk’nam lived in reserves. Two Christian missionaries were established to provide housing and food for the natives. In spite of the help, Selk’nam were unable to survive without their traditions and lifestyles. A bigger part of the population died because of measles in 1925. The last ethnic Selk’nam died in the 1960/70 (sources give different names and years).
The pictures were taken by Martin Gusinde, a German missionary and Ethnologist. During 1918 to 1924 he traveled to Tierra del Feugo four times and studied the Selk’nam. Therefore, the culture of the Selk’nam is well documented in his 1000 pages strong book. His writing came under criticism later on as it is believed that especially the chapters dealing with religion and family values have not been unreflected from his own contemporary beliefs. However, Martin Gusinde was the first and last Ethnologist who studied the Selk’nam culture as a whole.
The male initiation ceremony of the Selk’nam called Hain was held for several months of the year and different groups came together to celebrate. Young men were brought to a hut were they were thought in myths. The ceremony included rituals in which the young men had to prove their endurance and strength.
The highlight of the festival was the appearance of spirits, actually adult male Selk’nam disguised as such. Each of the spirits had it’s own character. Some of them were there to scare women, others appeared for entertainment. Later on, the real identity of the spirits was revealed to the young men.
The last Hain was held in one of the missions in 1923, and it was photographed by Martin Gusinde. The photos depict various spirits.
Sources
German Wikipedia on Selk’nam
English Wikipedia on Selk’nam
Martin Gusinde Museum Puerto Williams (Spanish)
Museo del Fin del Mundo (Spanish, more photos)
Martin Gusinde Biography (in German)
I took a day trip to Stonehenge today. To get my mystical and spiritual fix. I guess it could have been some sort of cleansing, too.
Why was it build? How was it built? These are the questions the audio guide couldn’t answer. But people don’t know either. We don’t know.
Talks about “something secret and hidden”
Fields around Stonehenge
produzentin 