In the previous part I gave you a taste of miraculous places in Sweden. Basically this is going to my way up. I would like to tell you some about the North Cape or, like Norwegians call it, the Nordkapp.
The North Cape is located on Magerøya Island in northern Norway. It’s a 307 meters high cliff at a junction of the Atlantic Ocean and the Arctic Ocean. Just 2102 kilometers from the North Pole. The North Cape isn’t the farthest point of Europe laying to the north. For example neighboring Cape Knivskjellodden lays 1457 meters closer to the North Pole. A road to the North Cape was opened in 1956, but to get to the Magerøya Island you had to use a ferry.
In 1999 the North Cape Tunnel was built making it easier to get to the North Cape. It’s 6875 meters long and reaches a depth of 212 meters below the sea level. The tunnel has anti-freezing gates which close the mouths of the tunnel in the winter to avoid freezing of leaking water. These gates open automatically when cars approach and are permanently open in the summer, when traffic is denser.
Do you think that the North Cape is worth seeing?
Is it epic enough for a destination of an epic journey?
So I’m going to travel north. But where to? I quickly found a map of northern Europe and started looking suitable place worthy to be a target of my adventure.
At first I look at the Sweden, but nothing caught my eye – lots of miraculous places to see, but nothing in the epic category. Then I tried Finland – beautiful lakes and woods, but not the kind of things I was looking for. Last but not least I looked at Norway. Fjords looked promising, but I tried a little bit more north. The Lofoten – marvelous islands connected by bridges and tunnels with “whale safaris”. I knew I was getting closer, but I looked a little bit more to the north and then I found the perfect destination…
The North Cape.
Further north you can find mainly ice and you need a boat or a plane to get there. So I found the target of my journey. But which way should I go there and how should I get back? Because I have limited timeframe (two weeks, give or take) I decided to focus on northern Sweden and Norway. I quickly found a ferry, which will take me from Gdansk to Nynäshamn (town near Stockholm). From there I will travel north along the shore of Baltic Sea.
My first sightseeing stop will be area known as Hoga Kusten (The High Coast) and Skuleskogen National Park which are on The UNESCO Natural Heritage List. Nature there is astonishing as also the landscapes. One of the most amazing landmarks of this region is The Hoga Kusten Bridge. It’s over a mile long, The road runs 40 meters over the sea level and the pillars are over 180 meters high. It was design to look similar to The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.
In northern Sweden there lots of heritage parks showing everyday life of the Saam people. They’re a nation which lives in northern Finland, Sweden and Norway for thousands of years. There are also many museums dedicated to mining silver and iron. And last but not least one of the biggest and outstanding waterfalls in Europe, like Stora Sjofallet.
Are you interested in visiting Scandinavia?
Do you believe that seeing these marvels of nature is worth traveling great distances?
Stay tunned for part 3: Long way up – The Route (part 2).
First of all, I’ll explain what’s this presentation is about. It’s going to be about my future motorcycle trip. I have a motorcycle for a year now and the farthest place I have been to by my motorbike are Mazury Lakes. Through the last year I was rather thinking about enjoying a Saturday afternoon ride then planning great trips. And then, on a Christmas Eve it began…
It wasn’t the beginning - there are no true beginnings and no true ends – but let’s call it a beginning. As one of presents under a Christmas tree I found a book. At first I was more interested in other presents, but later in the evening I’ve picked up the book to have a closer look. The book was titled “Long way round – Chasing Shadows Across The World” and on the cover were two smiling guys. One was Evan McGregor and the other one I didn’t know. Later I learned it was Charley Boorman, also an English actor (most of you probably also haven’t heard about him before). Swiftly I have learnt that it’s going to be about a motorcycle trip (the catch phrase at the back of the cover stated “Two men. Two motorcycles. 20000 miles.”). The book is Evans and Charley’s diary of the trip.
In 2004 Evan McGregor and Charley Boorman went on a trip from London to New York through Europe, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Russia, next they flown to Alaska, where they mounted their bikes again and went south, discovering the highways of Canada and the United States. With each mile their massive BMW motorcycle conquered problems arose. Exhaustion and tripping of the bikes were the final test of strength and endurance. They rode through treacherous roads, had to endure unforeseeable weather, had to get going with crazy politicians and local crime lords. In Kazakhstan they were chased by paparazzi. In Ukraine they were guests of mysterious and armed men. In Russia they were harassed by police patrols. In Mongolia they were invited by nomads to a supper, where as a main dish were served bulls testecles.
Despite all the obstacles they managed to ride over 22600 miles in four months and this voyage changed their lives forever.
In 2007 Evan and Charley again went on a marvelous adventure – this time they called it “Long way down”. They traveled from John’O’Groats in northern Scotland to Cape Town in South Africa. Again discovering wonderful places, meeting unordinary people.
Reading and watching TV shows about these trips was very inspiring for me. So I decided to a little trip of my own. Hopefully living an unforgettable adventure. Because Evan and Charley covered three out of four directions, they left me only one choice. I’m going to do my own “Long way up”…
What do you thing about traveling to remote regions?
Do you feel like taking some sort of an epic journey?
Lego Company haven't forgotten about computer users and created over 30 games with minifigures. Most of theme are based on movies - like series of Lego Star Wars, where gamers can play as movie characters and in original story but..In Lego World:
Or Lego Indiana Jones:
But the most expected game is Lego Universe - first Lego World based MMORPG where you will be able to do anything with Lego bricks and minifigs:
Beside Lego Games there are also fun made movies. Like this Star Wars Episode I:
there are also music videos made from Lego - like this White Stripes clip:
Most movies are made like old fashion cartoons - with stop motion technique:
Of course there are computer animations clips, but they are rare and short.
AFOLs is acronym for..Adult Fan Of Lego. As Lego is usually toy for young children, nowadays lot of adult people play with bricks. Why? Because it's great hobby, and of course, when you are grown up you can afford to buy any Lego set you want :)
AFOLs have their own community called LugNet (Lego User Group Network) - . In 2004 LugPol () was created, so people from Poland can share their hobby. The second most popular polish site for Lego Lovers is
The biggest fan gatherings - BrickFest, BrickWorld and Brickfair are held in USA.
AFOLs also have their own e-magazine called BrickJournal, which presents best user constructions.
Lego Company also spotted adults playing with bricks and created special program called Lego Ambassadors, whose goal is to spread. Poland was represented by Shaggie, member of LugPol.
There's even special certification program for Lego Lovers. You can be Lego Certified Professional! Person who knows EVERYTHING about Lego. Isn't it great? ;)
The most important part of AFOLs life are MOC - My Own Creation. Those are not standard (not Lego Company created) models representing every possible theme - City, space etc. The most popular site with MOCs is Brickshelf with tons of projects and photos. Like this giant model of world largest hydraulic shovel - Terex RH400
Beside MOCs there's also minifig customization - - like these custom made Star Trek figures:
So are you ready to go back to play with Lego again? :)
Everyone remember them. LEGO. Toy of our childhood. Everything started in begining of 30's when the company was founded by Ole Kirk Christiansen. The word Lego is derived from the Danish words "leg godt" which in Danish means "play well". Then in Latin means "put together". At beginning, he was making wooden toys for local society, but soon he switch to plastic.
Company also created mechanism to lock one brick with another with so called studs. They would stick together, but not so tightly that they could not be pulled apart. In 1953, the bricks were given a new name: Lego Mursten, or "Lego Bricks."
In following years, company started producing sets including trains, trucks, cars, etc.
On June 7, 1968, the first Legoland Park was opened in Billund. This theme park featured elaborate models of miniature towns built entirely from Lego bricks.
In 1978 first minifigure or minifig was created with small arms and legs and a friendly smile. From now on, they were included to almost every Lego set released allowing to create "living" towns.
In next years, Technics, Duplo, Bionicles and many more themes were introduced to public, allowing Lego to occupy whole market.
When we look at the stage design the two doors opposite to themselves seem to represent contrast between this what is masculine and this what is feminine. Our gender is defined by our behaviour and because in present time borderline dividing social roles for man and women is fading away the doors are look almost the same. Spectator could not declare with all certain which one represents which gender.The choice is as individual and independent as our gender and desires are independent from our sex. But what we can say about frame with out a mirror? In my opinion it is relate to character of Trigorin. Because he is hiding his true nature and stifling his sexuality he can not look to the mirror. He can not look at his reflect and face the truth about him self and his desires.
In my opinion director well-turn the story and highlight the issue of human sexuality and roles that we attribute to the man and woman and which is based on our sex. Political correctives require from people liberal perceive of that issue but out from “the big cities” and TV cameras perception of human gender is still more conservative and discussion about this what is masculine and what is feminine is still open. Through the centuries everything was presented in black and white colours but today discussion about social roles become dominated by lots of shades of grey and depending who is watching the performance the new colours to the palette of interpretations can be add.
Question : what do You think about gender theory? sex and gender : different or the same ?
Source : „Notebook of Trigorin” by Tennessee Williams
Now I want to describe a scene from the performance „Notebook of Trigorin” that I want to consider in the presented point of view. I have chosen that scene mostly because of issue that it raises and the way of presentation of it. The scene took place in the second act of the play. The characters that appear in that scene are Trigorin and Arkadina. On the stage audience could see an arranged room. In the centre of the stage stand round table with couple of chairs near by. Behind the table stand small cabinet with frame on it but without any mirror. On the left side of the stage were placed double doors sloped to the audience in the way which gives it opportunity for anyone in the audience to see without any problems anybody who stand in the doors. The exactly the same doors are placed on the right side of the stage sloped to the audience in the same way. This scene is the only one in the play in which homosexual or rather bisexual proclivity of Trigorin are verbalized and presented straightforward to the audience but lets take a look how it was presented. During the whole play we can not notice anything that may suggest the sexual preferences of Trigorin. At the beginning we can see intensive interest Trigorin of Constantine but nothing is going beyond something that we can call mentors interest because Trigorin as experienced play writer try to support the young Constantine in his first experiences with play writing. The way how Trigorin behave in that scene do not give a simply answer how audience should perceive the subject. When Trigorin confess his sexual preferences he was very upset. The observatory may interpret his confession as an attack on Arkadina. The intention of his confession seems to be hurting feeling of Arkadina who is in love in him. The words he spoken are provoked by her. But after a while we can see that Trigorin realized what he done and we can see some kind of uncertainty on his face. The words were spoken and he cannot turn it back but he is not sure is this what he done was a good idea. If we look at the history context declaration like this in the XIX century was unusual and not to safe. The proclamation of own sexuality orientation is still perceived in society as a some kind of faux pas. What is interesting until 1990 homosexuality was enlisted by WHO (World Health Organization gathering 193 countries) on a International Classification of Diseases(ICD-10) and recognized as a deviation and psychological personality disorder and even now in open western societies which are perceived as the most liberal in issue of human sexuality declarations like this sometimes arouse the controversies. Trigorin who realized what did he said can not stand the look of Arkadina turn around and walk away. When he sit on the trunk closer to the audience spectators can see his confusion and afraid of consequences of that declaration. Reaction of Arkadina is also an interesting. She declares that she is an actress and worldly woman so she understands his desires. She also mentioned that she know that fact for a long time. From that statement spectator may perceive Arkadina as a reflection of present feminist. Arkadina seem to understand complexity of human nature and sexuality but from the way the actress who played Arkadina pronounce that statement we can got slightly different impressions. The mimic of face and weak and uncertain voice suggest us to interpret that statement as a desperate try to keep Trigorin close to her. Arkadina occur as a woman who need Trigorin to reinterpret and increase her own self esteem. Her close relationship with Trigorin proves her self that she is still a full valuable. Her rundown relationship with her own son makes her felt as a bad mother and she cannot find herself in that role. The role of actress and worldly woman helps her to build her self-confident. But to achieve that she need Trigorin who can prove and remind her value in the artistic world and help her to forget about her senescence. The suppression - rejection of distressful events and facts - seem to be her live strategy. She tries to convince her self that problem do not exist and focus her thoughts on other aspects. Her acceptation of Trigorin declaration is nothing more then rescuing her self from negative consequences of alone live. To achieve a success in the artistic world that time mostly dominated by men cost her lot and Trigorin became her support. Trigorin take her statement with visible relief.
The point of view I want to look at in my presentation is theories of gender and mainly I want to focus on the problem of sexual orientation that was presented in the „Notebook of Trigorin” („Notebook of Trogorin” which is Tennessee Williams free adaptation of famous „The Seagull” written by Anton Chekhov over a century ago ) nevertheless the leitmotiv of the play originally was not about human sexuality Tennessee Williams make from it a new motivation for the main character. The performance I had opportunity to see. The play tells story of people involved in triangles of loves and shows the consequences of this kind of relations. Tennesee Williams use the famous play of Chekhow to present problems more adequate to present times.
For many centuries masculine and feminine were treated as an obvious categories and fundaments of invariable social order. Sexual revolution in '60 change the way of perceiving gender as an opposite ends of traditionally formulated continuum dividing social roles between man and women. Those events initiate Feminism as a social movement which in determined way tries to indicate changes in way of perceiving that what is masculine and what is feminine. The philosophy of the movement contribute to reconsider the issue of human sexuality and sexual identity and go beyondtraditional frames that demand to perceive as a deviation every sexual behaviour of human incompatible with Christian worldview.
The person who theories dominated the sociological conceptions of the subject in the last decade is Judith Butler. She erases an equal’s sign between sex and gender. In her opinion our sex (male or female) do not indicate our gender and indicate sex drive to opposite sex. Sex and gender are not combined with each other as they seem to be but they are independent and should be perceived and analyzed in different ways. Our gender should be considered in perspective of time and history. Our gender is not defined by who we are in biological sense but by our behaviour what means that our gender is performative. Is defined by the way we want present ourselves to the others. "When the constructed status of gender is theorized as radically independent of sex, gender itself becomes a free-floating artifice, with the consequence that man and masculine might just as easily signify a female body as a male one, and woman and feminine a male body as easily as a female one." [Butler, 1990]
Every person have different taste, that’s why people choose different types of tattoos.
The most common are:
Colour
Black – just lines
Black – lines and shadows
Tribal
Face
Its the simplest list of what clients would like to have. Black shaded are quite easy in comparison to faces done in colour which are the most complicated in my opinion. The trends with tattoos have been ever changing. From basic black to bright hues. You can find sample designs at almost any studio, or you can make your own to be printed.
Flash is basic tattoo design that shops buy from artists to hang on the walls and give customers something to pick from them. Tattoo shops make much more money when they are tattooing rather than spending time drawing, so they are encouraging their customers to pick something already drawn. The problem is that the page of flash you are choosing from could be in 300 shops across the country or the world That shows that thousands of tattoo customers are viewing those exact images every day. The likelihood that a few hundred people have the exact image you are picking is very high. Tattoos should not be produced like clothes, and you should never have to meet someone with the same tattoo. You might want to make this permanent addition to your body a little more customized to just you.
You should be careful while choosing something from the internet. There are people who put photos of their own tattoos to show the beauty of them, not to give others opportunity to steal their idea. If you already felt in love with design like that you can take it to tattoo artist and ask for advice and new drawing with few details changed in order to make it more suited to you.
Marking for the whole life The traditional or permanent tattoo is for some people the "only correct" form of this art. It consists on introducing the dye under the skin with help of the special device.
Tattoos should be made under strictly hygienic condition. Single needle use or sterilization method. Many studios choose the first method. Not because it’s cheaper (you don’t have to buy sterilization machines etc.) but it makes client and tattooist feel more safe and comfortable. Used needles are kept in special boxes which waits until some kind of health service will come to take them.
You have to remember that having tattoo made is painful. The bigger tattoo the worse pain. It also depends on which place you choose. Belly, spine, neck, head for example hurt the most. During tattooing skin starts to swallow and change color to pink/red.
Right after finishing it’s hard to tell how directly the colors will looks.
Skin heals two weeks. You have to use Alantan or Bepanthen Cream 4 times a day in order to keep skin moistened. Try to make right care about your tattoo, it will look fresh longer.
Tattoo removal
There are a lot of reasons for possibly wanting a tattoo removed.
Tattoo removal procedures are even more popular today than earlier, the technology has advanced where almost every detail of the tattoo can be removed from your body and it can become a thing of the past.
Lasers are the most common method of tattoo removal. They work by targeting the ink with pulses of highly concentrated light that break the ink into tiny fragments, which are then cleared away the your own immune system. However, this isn’t all done with just one treatment.
There are other methods of tattoo removal, but most of them are so painful and ineffective that laser removal replaced them as soon as it became available.
"Tattoo" or "Tatao" or "Tatu" Humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years. The word "tattoo" can have many origins as words in many different languages have the same meaning and similar pronunciation. The word tattoo is said to has two major derivations - from the Polynesian word “ta” which means striking something and the Tahitian word “tatau” which means 'to mark something. It’s the distant ancestor of the modern word "tattoo". The beginning and developing American tattoo artist named Samuel O'Reilly in 1890, started a new era in tattooing thanks to his invention - first electronic tattoo machine. But this kind of art wasn't appreciated at first. Society considered it as something suitable for criminals, junks and drinkers. Now almost everyone wants to experience it on their body parts. The popularity of tattoo increased after many years and now it’s a fashion symbol rather than a simple, poor mark. Previously it seems as a non sense thing but then it become a part of new generation fashion. People want to be unique, that’s why changing appearance is so important. One's prefer characteristic make-up, hair made or clothes but the most permanent way of showing individualism is tattoo. Tattoos are now part of everyday society with over 60% of all North Americans aged 18 to 30 years old having at least one.
Nowadays, it seems like everybody has one. How can we explain why someone would go under the needle? It could be a lot of different reasons but there are types which are the most common.
Many people get them as a gesture of love. It helps them to remember their family members who passed away or the new ones already born. Of course picking other half name as a design of tattoo is also popular but not so wise. Life is changing so as feelings. Another very common is the religious tattoo. It's a sign of devotion to personal beliefs. If that’s important for you why shouldn’t you do that? Sometimes it happens that person can't quite explain and find the reason. It might be because of curiosity or pressure to be modern. These people will say that they just got it "because".
It would be nice if in near future we can find some easy and painless way of getting this art done. And develop some new techniques for easy and safely removing these type of designs from the body. In this world everything has some good and bad effects. It depends upon the person who wants to make its good or bad use. a lot of people's taste will change and in turn, they will refer to their tattoo as a mistake. So try to never regret your decision.
People cannot continue along the present path where water resources management is characterized by policies that are unsustainable from any perspective - economic, social or environmental.
Instead a new approach to water resources management must be adopted to reduce poverty and conserve the environment - all within the framework of sustainable development. This:
Integrally links land-use management with sustainable water management.
Recognizes freshwater, coastal and marine environments as a management continuum, with significant implications for strategy, planning, management and investment actions.
Recognizes water as an economic good and promotes cost-effective interventions.
Supports innovative and participatory approaches.
Focuses on actions that improve the lives of people and the quality of their environment.
Adopting this approach will make the management of river basins, coastal zones and the marine environment complementary. These systems must be viewed as intimately interlinked and a much broader range of 'downstream effects' from human interventions and development activities must be recognized. Concerns about water quantity and quality - historically treated as separate - must now be seen as a global issue that requires a unified management approach.
What can you personally do to help saving water resources?
Sometimes small things done by many people can improve the situation.
For a start you can use those tips in your everyday home activities:
Remember to turn off the tap while brushing your teeth - a running tap wastes over 6 liters per minute.
A dripping tap wastes at least 5,500 liters of water a year. That's enough water wasted to fill a paddling pool every week for the whole summer.
Hand-washing dishes typically uses about 63 liters per session. If those dishes are rinsed off under a running tap the total water used averages 150 liters-in comparison, a modern dishwasher can use as little as 15 liters of water per cycle.
A bath typically uses around 80 liters, while a short shower can use as little as a third of that amount.
Try taking shorter showers to reduce the amount of water you use.
Questions
Do you think that it’s possible to change the entire worldwide water policy to guarantee peaceful future to humanity?
How do you use water at home? Do you care about saving it or you just use it as it was unlimited and always will be?
As demand for water hits the limits of finite supply, potential conflicts are brewing between nations that share transboundary freshwater reserves. More than 50 countries on five continents might soon be caught up in water disputes unless they move quickly to establish agreements on how to share reservoirs, rivers, and underground water aquifers.
Corporate giants force developing countries to privatize their water supply for profit. Wall Street investors target desalination and mass bulk water export schemes. Corrupt governments use water for economic and political gain. Military control of water emerges and a new geo-political map and power structure forms, setting the stage for world water wars.
All those facts can develop serious conflicts because of water. The scenario in which water will be privatized by giant companies and people would have to pay for it isn’t so impossible. In Bolivia in 2003 the private company had an arrangement with government and had ownership of water. People had to pay for water or go thirsty. Since they couldn't pay, they had no alternative but to fight. A popular rebellion and an organization formed, from a group of people ranging from farmers to street vendors and started a resistance. The government sent out the military and police to guarantee the judicial security and profits of the company. More than a hundred people suffered from bullet wounds. After that the Bolivian government gave in and kicked that company out of the country.
Another example is The Coca-Cola Company which gained access to the main water supply in one of the third world countries. They were bottling water and selling it along with coca-cola. There wouldn't by anything suspicious about that if the water wasn't almost twice more expensive than coca-cola.
You can find more information in the very interesting movie Blue Gold – World Water Wars, which I personally recommend.
Questions
Do you think that water can become the new oil and be a cause of military conflicts?
Can you imagine that water is a limited and privatized resource and you have to pay for it?
In my presentation I would like to raise an issue that might have direct influence on your lives. I hope that you will find it interesting, at least in some part. The topic I've chosen is the water supply crisis. There's no life without water and world's water supply is shrinking.
Some organizations claim that this problem doesn't exist. Maybe it's true that it can't be observed all over the world, but in the nearest future it can affect many countries. Human demand for water is raising everyday and world's water resources are finite. Earth's supply of fresh water is stored in aquifers, surface waters and the atmosphere. Although there is a lot of water in the oceans, we must remember that it's saline water and must be converted to drinking water. The amount of energy needed for conversion is prohibitive today. In a result a very small fraction of the world's water supply derives from desalination.
What causes water supply crisis?
The reasons are complex but I'll try to briefly outline some of them:
The world's population tripled in the 20th century, the use of renewable water resources has grown six-fold. Within the next fifty years, the world population will increase by another 40 to 50 %. This population growth - coupled with industrialization and urbanization - will result in an increasing demand for water and will have serious consequences on the environment.
Governments and companies responsible for the management and allocation of water are prone to conscious or unconscious bias towards the rich and powerful. Lack of infrastructure often means no safe water or adequate sanitation services are provided for poor rural and urban communities.
Consumption is rising due to economic development and growing standards of living. From 1900-1995 global consumption of water rose six-fold.
Millions of people have no choice but to drink water that could kill them. Globally water related diseases are the single largest cause of sickness and death.
The natural environment, which is the home and source of water, is often destroyed by industrial pollution and degradation. Deforestation and soil erosion are major causes of dwindling water supplies.
In addition to the effects of poor sanitation water is also polluted by industry and agriculture. The results of this combined pollution cause disease on a huge scale. The poor are usually the first to suffer from pollution as they are often forced to use water from downstream sources and do not have the access to adequate sanitation that the rich enjoy. Contaminated water spreads bacteria and parasites, for example causing diarrhea, and carries water-based hosts, such as guinea worms.
Climate change is increasing the number of natural disasters such as floods and droughts, both of which have a negative impact on water resources.
Globally there is a huge shortfall in finance and investment in the water sector, both for investment in new operations and for maintenance of existing infrastructures. This lack of investment and the absence of effective planning and management of scarce water resources are often the root causes of water shortages and inadequate sanitation. Governments lack the will, or the capacity, to develop and integrate sustainable water management policies.
Groundwater resources are heavily over-used. People pump out more water than is returned in the natural cycle.
The Aral Sea is one of the most drastic examples of how water usage can completely change the landscape and ecosystem. The picture below shows the Aral Sea has lost more than 1/2 of it's area because the water was diverted for irrigation purposes.
Facts
2 out of 3 people will be living with water shortages by 2025
Over 2.4 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation
At the start of the 21st century unclean water is the world's second biggest cause of death for children
3.575 million people die each year from water-related disease
43% of water-related deaths are due to diarrhea
84% of water-related deaths are in children ages 0 – 14
98% of water-related deaths occur in the developing world
884 million people lack access to safe water supplies, approximately one in eight people
An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than the typical person living in a developing country slum uses in a whole day
Questions
Are you aware about the water crisis? Do you think it's a real problem?
Do you think it's worth to take some action to improve the situation?
The key to successful fish keeping is routine and regular maintenance.
Once established, your aquarium will require a minimum of time and effort to keep it looking attractive.
We can put the maintenance activities into three groups – things that we need to do every day, every week, and every 2-3 weeks.
On a daily basis w need to: - check water temperature - check fish numbers and behavior - remove debris such as dead leaves - check if all the equipment (filters, heaters etc.) are working - feed fish
On a weekly basis: - if necessary, partial water change - prune plants
Every 2-3 weeks: - partial water change (approx. 20-30%) - clean filters - clean tank - remove algae from front of glass - check if plants need thinning
When doing every thing right you should never have to do a full water change in your tank. Regular partial water changes are far more beneficial in ensuring that both fish and plants remain healthy. By changing all the water you kill the good bacteria that consume ammonia and nitrites.
The water you use for refills should be treated with dechlorinator or at least left in a bucket for a day.
Always remember to turn all the electrical equipment before putting your hands into the water. You would not to want to be electro shocked incase of some equipment failure.
Also remember to clean the filter sponges in old aquarium water only, and not in tap water as chlorine would destroy the beneficial bacteria in them.
In this part I would like to tell you how to setup a freshwater fish tank.
Equipment
Before setting up a tank we need to buy some basic equipment. The minimum we need is: a tank – buy the biggest tank you have place for a filter – there are many different types of filters. When buying you should choose a one that can pump and appropriate number of liters per hour a heater – it keeps a constant temperature of the water. The bigger your tank the stronger heater you need a thermometer – to control the water temperature lights – fish and plants will need 12 to 14 hours of light. Depending on the type of fish and plants you will need different amount of light. You can assume that about 1W of fluorescent lamp per liter of water is enough.
Setting it all up
When you have all the needed equipment it’s time to start setting it all up.
The first thing you need to think about is where you want your tank to be located. Make sure that the spot you have chosen is away from direct sunlight otherwise you will have a major problem with algae. Before placing the tank on the stand level it up.
When the tank is on the stand you can start filling it up. The first thing we want to put in is the gravel on the bottom of the tank. Before putting in the gravel we need clean it. Put the gravel in a bucket, fill it with water and rinse it to remove any dust. Do it until the water becomes clean. Now your gravel is dirt free.
If you bought a background scene you should tape it on to the tank.
Now it’s time to install the equipment that goes inside the tank. Install the water filter and the heater following the producer manual.
Stand back have a good look of your tank and try to visualize how you would like it too look. When you have an idea start putting in all the decorations.
It’s time to start adding some water. Fill the tank to half height with water. Now it’s time to plant your plants. After that fill the tank carefully to the top. While doing it be careful not to damage the plants.
The last thing you need to do is mount the light over the tank and plug all the equipment in.
Never put fish in a fresh tank. Fish must only be added when your filters have had time to mature, this would be at least two to three weeks.
I can tell you from my experience that the bigger the tank and the more stuff you put in it, the more time you spend on setting it up. Approximately it can take from couple of hours to a day. It’s a good idea to do it on a weekend. Start Saturday morning and even if you don’t manage to finish it in a before the evening you always have the Sunday.
If you have some questions I will be happy to answer them.
Maybe you have dome it before and know some tips&tricks. If so please share with us.
Today I would like to write about one of my old hobbies – Fishkeeping.
Fishkeeping is a hobby concerned with keeping fish in a home aquarium (fish tank) or garden pond.
In my article I will be focusing only on keeping fish in a tank.
Types of fishkeeping
There are two main categories of fishkeeping: freshwater and saltwater.
Freshwater fishkeeping
Fish that live in inland water bodies, rivers, streams and lakes are freshwater fish. Freshwater fishkeeping is the most popular branch of this hobby. We can distinguish two most popular types of freshwater tanks: a community tank and a biotope tank. A community tank is a tank containing a variety of peaceful species. A Biotope tank is a tank that tries to simulate a particular geographic location by combining fish and decoration specific for that location.
Saltwater fishkeeping
Fish that live in openwater in the sea are saltwater fish. Saltwater fishkeeping is the most difficult to maintain and most expensive branch of this hobby. It is best to have some major experience in freshwater fishkeeping before starting a saltwater tank.
Dutch Aquarium
We can distinguish another group of fishkeepers that actually don’t keep fish in their tanks – they focus on aquarist plants. Such “plant only” tanks are also known as the 'Dutch Aquarium'.
What should I choose ?
If I got you interested in this hobby you might be asking yourself this question.
The answer is, if you’re a beginner, definitely go freshwater. However if you insist on going saltwater I recommend to start with a freshwater tank, gain some experience and when you feel enough confident and have the money go saltwater.
If you’re not convinced yet I recommend a trip to the Warsaw ZOO so you can see it with your own eyes. They have a large number of beautiful freshwater and saltwater tanks.
If any of you have a fish tank, please share and write something about it.
Without a doubt, one of the most remarkable festivals in the world: Kanamara Matsuri - which means Festival of the Steel Phallus sometimes refereed as “the Penis Festival” for obvious reasons ;)
It's an annual Shinto fertility held in Kawasaki celebrated on the first Sunday of Spring.
As you can see, the main theme of the event is penis, reflected in all kinds of forms: illustrations, candy, decorations.
It takes place around phallic shrine (or penis-venerating shrine). Some say, it was build based on a local legend. Legend says that a demon hid inside a girl, forcing her to castrate two men on their wedding nights. Then a blacksmith made an iron phallus that was used to break the demon's teeth. It's also said that divine protects business prosperity, easy delivery, marriage, and married couple harmony.
Nowadays, this festival become a tourist attraction. It helps to raise money for HIV/AIDS research.
My two previous blogs are about nice aspects of Arabic paradise – Dubai. Today I would like to describe much more serious and not so pink situation that have reached also this part of the world – the global economic crisis. The current global crisis has hit the rapid development in Dubai. In recent years, the Gulf state became a magnet for property investors attracted by the prospect of substantial returns, and has been marketed as a luxury shopping, holiday and high-profile sporting events destination. The position of Dubai has been set as an international finance and trading center within today’s global economy. Now the boom appears to be slowing down.
The Biggest developers have started firing staff and paring projects. Government-owned developer Nakheel, one of Dubai’s largest employers, reduces its workforce by 500 people. Dubai’s banks like Emirates NBD ENBD.DU have blocked consumer credit to employees of companies at risk, and at least one major mortgage company has stopped lending altogether. Many investors fear that individuals and corporations going to have troubles paying back Dubai's non-bank foreign currency debts estimated at just under $70 billion.
Shares in the region have lost around $1 trillion since the beginning of the year as investors fled. At the end of April the UAE finance ministry announced its plan of 70 billion dirhams ($19 billion) injection into the banking system, and has already been looking at doing more to keep interbank liquidity flowing.
Huge problem of UAE’s downturn is connected with cheep workforce - unskilled construction workers, mostly from South Asia (from India and Pakistan), who have flooded regions of the Gulf during the building boom for the last few years. High rises and tourist resorts were built by legions of those foreign workers. Dubai became an international magnet, reinventing itself as a financial capital and tourist mecca in the Persian Gulf. Then the global crisis reached this outpost and boom turned into bust. More than half of the construction projects in the United Arab Emirates, worth $582 billion, have been put on hold. Hopefully some projects are still going ahead, thanks, in part, to the $10 billion bailout from the UAE's capital, Abu Dhabi. But still most of income labors are unemployed and forced to pack and return to their origin countries or stuck here and wait for better economic situation.
Worker advocacy groups - including the United Nations International Labor Organization - have increased pressure for wider protection covering the hundreds of thousands foreign workers faced with unemployment nowadays. The demands include ending the illegal-but-common practice of companies holding workers' passports, effectively blocking their chances of looking for other jobs under the country's sponsorship system.
Lots of editors and experts have optimistic approach and say that the region is starting to react to the economic downturn. Dubai has moved to stabilize its economy with its $20 billion sovereign bond program. For the short term, it should be sufficient to meet the city's refinancing needs this year and lend stability to the economy. Government is counting that the oil prices will return, situation on the real-estate market will correct and there will be a very quick rebound in Dubai. On the other hand there are also economists that have not so optimistic view about economic future in Dubai. Behind there is shown a movie with discussion about future of Dubai in light of the ongoing financial crisis.
Although the Dubai real-estate and development market suffer from the financial crisis, and unemployment is rising, the economy is still growing. Dubai will be probably among the first countries to benefit when the worldwide recession is finally over. Dubai is beginning to recover from the impact of the global economic crisis as international financial markets show signs of thawing and federal financial support begins to take effect. The recovery will be fuelled by the return to the market of liquidity and the availability of capital for real estate investments. UAE government says that 2009 is going to show a continued state of challenge and reducing rates in the market. In 2010 they see some traction formed with a bit of stability, and in 2011 they see as a period of recovery.
All we can do is to observe what will happen in global economy and if prognostics are suitable to the real situation in Dubai – the pearl of the Persian Gulf…
When somebody thinks about Japan usually 3 things come to his mind: Anime, Crazy tv game shows and Japanese girls ;)
I'm not really Anime fan (well I watched Akira many many years ago but that's it) , so i'll just show some pictures of anime and anime ispired games. I'm not so sure what are these games about but the cover seems cute ;) this one even runs on vista!
If you are really anime fan, you probably should have one of this.
Japan isn't only about Anime, it's also about video games. Almost everyone had or had contact with Pegasus (it's cheap Chinese version of Japanese NES -8-bit video game console by Nintendo). So it's obvious that Japanese likes video games, actually in Japan best selling console is Nintendo Wii if you're owner of PS3 or XBOX you probably shouldn't go to Japan.;p that's why :P (how Japanese media portray Wii and PS3 buyers )
Japanese TV game shows is topic for whole post. You're probably familiar with polish “Hole in the Whole”, so here's Japanese version.
There's also more and more different game shows, here are some of my favorite:
Japan, everyone knows something about this country, like the fact that it's far far away, even further than US&A or CHINA and they have strange language and even more strange letters. They also smile all the time.
I decided to write about something you surely didn't know, and probably wouldn't even imagine theres something like this. So, let's start my first post with dogs and cats.
Japan love dogs, that's for sure! They are willing to spend large amounts of money on them. The number of dogs in Japan has doubled to more than 13 million in the past decade – actually there are fewer children under 12 then dogs in Japan.
Ok, but as you probably know, Japanese people are usually very busy, and don't have enough time for dogs. In such case, they could rent dog in “pet rental” (i'm not saying if it's good or bad). It's probably hard to bealive, but renting animals (from an hour to several days) became very popular. The number of companies renting pets in Tokyo, increased from 17 in 2000 to about 135 at present. Another thing that you can do for your dog is buy him some clothes. It's surely more common in Japan than in Warsaw;)
There was even fashion show with dogs in Tokyo at the weekend during the New Year Dog Party. Kumi Shiraishi, the producer of the event said: “As our population is declining, fewer women are having babies, more people are working and many people feel lonely. As a result, a pet dog is the perfect companion. Sooner or later, the number of pet dogs will be higher than the number of children. That is how much Japan loves its dogs."
In the previous part I gave you a taste of miraculous places in Sweden. Basically this is going to my way up. I would like to tell you some about the North Cape or, like Norwegians call it, the Nordkapp.
The North Cape is located on Magerøya Island in northern Norway. It’s a 307 meters high cliff at a junction of the Atlantic Ocean and the Arctic Ocean. Just 2102 kilometers from the North Pole. The North Cape isn’t the farthest point of Europe laying to the north. For example neighboring Cape Knivskjellodden lays 1457 meters closer to the North Pole. A road to the North Cape was opened in 1956, but to get to the Magerøya Island you had to use a ferry. 
