september october 2017 finds is long since it’s a double bill, d’oh!
i took the pic above behind tokyo midtown, in roppongi. for a short couple of weeks in september, the inflatable concert hall designed by arata isozaki and anish kapoor was stationed in tokyo. click here for more details.
1. i’m back from my long vacation. i’ve been working so i haven’t posted anything about japan or korea. if you want to see some highlights of the trip, check my instagram.
2.this is charlotte gainsbourg‘s new album, called rest, partly produced by sebastian and which will be released in november. if you were looking for a nice sedate ear worm, just click on this one.
3. the flight back from japan was long, the entertainment console was faulty and the selection limited. this is how i ended up seeing finding mr. right 2. and i remember i saw chinese kids queuing up to see it last year in london.
there is an original film, i gather, starring the same two main actors, in a similar love story. it did so well that they came back with seconds. it was interesting for me to watch a mainstream chinese film. the main actress, tang wei, was banned in her homeland china after having done a film, lust, caution, considered to be too much. click here to read more about her career.
4. another film i watched in-flight was pirates of the caribbean – dead men tell no tales. it was a well-made hollywood blockbuster. the new villain is javier bardem, one extra cherry on the cake. enjoy!
5. last, i saw again crazy, stupid, love with julianne moore, emma roberts and ryan gosling because i was literally out of options. a fun rom-com in case you were looking for one and haven’t seen it yet!
6. mykki bianco goes to johannesburg with i-d to visit the local queer scene. interesting and moving.
7. i was in japan but also in korea. which means i loaded up on cosmetics. among my new favourites, the etude house face stick. i plop it in my bag when i know i will be away from home for hours. i use it mainly around the eyes, it’s light and slightly cooling.
8. from the same brand and line, the moistfull collagen water jelly cream.
9. i bought tony molly gold snail eye patches since i finished my previous jar of patches. the new ones work well and i was lucky to get a 2 for one deal so i’ll be sorted for at least one year.
10. i bought rohto eye drops in japan. i had heard that the japanese like their eye drops to feel like acid but i ignored that bit of info when i bought the cute looking mini bottle. i can confirm that for a minute or less, you’ll wonder why you dropped that in your eye but then the feeling goes away and leaves you with teary eyes. which is kinda exactly what you need. in the reviews i read, they said something about some kind of icy kind of relief. i felt none of that.
11. last but definitely not least, i picked up a sk-II starter pack. it includes a gentle cleanser, a face mask, a rna power cream and the famous facial treatment essence with pitera. i’m old now so i thought it was time to invest in something a little more hard core. i like the results! i think i’m going to start a jar for saving up for similar future investments lol.
12. one of my favourite artists is enrique bunbury. if you appreciate his work, you’ll enjoy watching this documentary following his artistic career. he has recently launched a new album and is currently touring in spain.
13. i started watching mindhunter because it’s directed by david fincher.
the series follows fbi’s attempts to map the psyche of serial killers back in the 70s. it’s not amazing, but it’s ok. the main character is weak but i guess it makes no sense to oppose serial killers to a tough guy. also, the soundtrack seems to never match the mood. anyhow, i’ll probably watch the second series too…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gZCfRD_zWE
14. i started watching narcos. i guess it’s already in the common subconscious so there’s nothing i can add. pablo escobar was really good – props to the casting director and definitely to the actor! but if the 2nd series went slow, the 3rd got literally unwatchable. anyhow, just like in the previous case, i bet the research of the real life stories will prove very interesting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7elNhHwgBU
other than that, listening to so much spanish was great practice. also, whenever i walk down the street i see pedro pascal’s handsome face everywhere, since he’s currently the face of a loewe fragrance called solo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fLl7tSi4Kc
15. i got myself a card at the local institut francais. i got my first one back when i was 14 and i carried books like a mule for many, many years. and now, i’ve started doing it again. my first batch includes 5 graphic novels. i’m totally gonna get into this bd thing since they seemed to have many of them.
i list them in the order of my opinion:
- la lesbienne invisible. meh
- les aventures de la fin du monde. funny enough.
- juniors. two kids go to paris to see dinosaur jr. on a whim. click here to see some of the story in blog format.
- le bleu est une couleur chaude. i’d seen the film, but i still enjoyed reading the story in another format.
- mourir partir revenir le jeu des hirondelles. by far the best and most complex. the drawing style reminded me of persepolis.
16. intramurs is a festival of open doors here in valencia. i discovered a few amazing places!
17. cuina oberta is an event meant to allow people access to more expensive restaurants in valencia. the most expensive price is 45 euro and that’s for dinner at michelin-starred restaurants. i like valencia’s top chef, ricardo macarena, so we had lunch in canalla bistro. very nice!
18. i came across youtube power couple estee lalonde and boyfriend aslan. i watched several of their videos but chose only two so you can get an idea. do you like them?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ct7QSim9ppI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYoXmVP6WDU
19. my day job is translator and interpreter. that is why i liked this article about interpreters who worked with high political figures. interesting read!
20. an airbnb-type platform for those among us who love interesting architecture. it’s called plansmatter. if you like interesting residential buildings, you’re gonna love this!
my favourite is the house of light by james turrell in tokamachi, niigata prefecture, japan.
21. i watched dope on a whim. my opinion? meh.
despite all the big names involed: asap rocky, zoe kravitz, etc. as well as forest whitaker (narrator and producer), pharrell (executive producer) and sean combs (co-executive producer), the film ultimately fails to juggle several things at once. it’s not all bad, but it has its flaws.
22. we took a day trip to sagunto. after visiting the castle and the center, wee took a bus to puerto de sagunto, where we had lunch and checked out the beach. nice place.
23. on sunday, we walked all the way to port saplaya. nice october weather, sunny and windy.
24. on the way back, we stopped by the deserted bodegas vinival i kept on seeing from the train. unfortunately, the building is not reachable.
25. i have recently gone to a violoncello concert at palau de musica. i liked the venue and the fact that the opening speech was in valencian.
26. we went to the opera for the debut on stage of a 4-year old friend who was in madame butterfly. the opera is in the palau des arts reina sofia. my favourite thing was the running translation. there were several options: castellano, valencian, english, french, italian and japanese, if i remember it well. very cool!
now, let november start and bring its a game!
photo and video credits: little aesthete, copyright holders
