Cape NO. 7

CAPE NO. 7 is a Taiwanese comedic film with neither professional actors nor strong promotional campaign. It is very popular that even my five-year-old nephew could recognize the actors, the songs, and the plot about the movie. The plot consists the stories of two generations, from 1940s to 2000s, and three languages, Chinese, Taiwanese, and Japanese. The story is simple and the roles are local, but it expresses both the esoteric and the ordinary possibilities of lives.

A more than sixty-year ago story came alive when a struggling young man came back to the small village from Taipei. Seven love letters were brought to the grandmother from Japan after her beloved passed away. The director only shot from the sight of the grandmother's back, making it even more deep. Meanwhile the young man found out his way. No matter what our dreams are, about career, love, anything, or everything, it's never too late to pursue them. Have dreams, and make them come true. The sales man in the film shows that earnest is the key. Everyone is small in the world. However with correct attitude and hard working, people would be touched and want to help. It reminded me of the conversation in El Alquimista, "when you really thirst for something, the whole world would help you to get it."

I like the song 國境之南(South of The Border).

[ 國境之南 ] by 范逸臣

詞：嚴云農　曲：曾志豪

如果海會說話　如果風愛上砂
如果　有些想念遺忘在漫長的長假
我會聆聽浪花　讓風吹過頭髮
任記憶裡的愛情在時間潮汐裡喧嘩
非得等春天遠了夏天才近了
我是在回首時終於懂得（也許天氣永遠會那麼熱）
當陽光再次回到那　飄著雨的國境之南
我會試著把那一年的故事　再接下去說完
當陽光再次離開那　太晴朗的國境之南
妳會不會把妳曾帶走的愛　在告別前用微笑全歸還
海很藍　星光燦爛　我仍空著我的臂彎
天很寬　在我獨自唱歌的夜晚
請原諒我的愛　訴說的太緩慢

Cursory Translation of the lyrics of [ South of The Border ] (copied from this site)

If the sea could murmur

The wind fall in love with sands

If my missing were left alone in a long vacation

I would listen to waves whisper

Let the breeze gently swim through my hair

And let the love in my memory be roaring in tides of time

Only when spring goes away will summer be on its way

I wouldn't come to realize until I recalled the past days

When the sunshine once again returns to that drizzling south of the border

I will try to finish the unfinished story of that year

When the sunshine once again parts from that sunny south of the border

Will you give back the love you've taken by wearing a smile before leaving

Ocean is deep blue, and stars are shinning through

I've been still keeping my arms empty

Sky is far from sight, in my lonely singing night

Please forgive me, for conveying my love too slowly

Taiwan - Hualien 2008/11/23 ~ 2008/11/25

Visiting Hualien again! This time I went with my grandfather, my mom, my sister, my brother in law, and my nephew. By the way, visiting Hualien so many times, I didn't know I have so many relatives over there.

We stayed at Farglory Hotel 悅來飯店. On the top of the mountain next to the ocean, the hotel takes the advantage of having an amazing view.

Bruwan 布洛灣山月村 is a tribal village of aborigines. Surrounding by naturals in Taroko National Park.

Lintienshan 林田山 was a flourishing village because of lumbering in 1960s. Now it's a reservation park to keep the Japanese wooden houses, the old railroad, the nostalgic atmosphere, and the natural. It was raining a bit on Sunday, so we enjoyed the tea and coffee in the cafe.

Click here for the last trip in Hualien.

Back home

After three months in the Netherlands, I am back home! This year I have been in the Netherlands for 6 months. Now it's time to make it equal for my home country. :P

In year 2001, I made one book by myself to record all my flights by asking the pilots to sign. One of the pilots, who signed my book today in year 2008, actually signed once before in 2002 already. Such a coincidence!

During the 15 hours in the plane, I watched 5 movies. One of them is Mamma Mia. Last time I saw this musical play was a live show in Taipei. Although this time it's a movie, I still like it and paid more attention on the lyrics.

[ The Winner Takes It All ] by ABBA

I don't wanna talk
About the things we've gone through
Though it's hurting me
Now it's history
I've played all my cards
And that's what you've done too
Nothing more to say
No more ace to play

The winner takes it all
The loser standing small beside the victory
That's her destiny

I was in your arms
Thinking I belonged there
I figured it made sense
Building me a fence
Building me a home
Thinking I'd be strong there
But I was a fool
Playing by the rules

The gods may throw a dice
Their minds as cold as ice
And someone way down here
Loses someone dear
The winner takes it all
The loser has to fall
It's simple and it's plain
Why should I complain

But tell me does she kiss
Like I used to kiss you?
Does it feel the same
When she calls your name?
Somewhere deep inside
You must know I miss you
But what can I say
Rules must be obeyed

The judges will decide
The likes of me abide
Spectators of the show
Always staying low
The game is on again
A lover or a friend
A big thing or a small
The winner takes it all

I don't wanna talk
If it makes you feel sad
And I understand
You've come to shake my hand
I apologize
If it makes you feel bad
Seeing me so tense
No self-confidence
But you see
The winner takes it all
The winner takes it all...

The various floors of friends

It's a file 朋友的不同樓層(the various floors of friends) in Chinese, forwarded by a friend. Below is only part of the content.

There are around 6 billions of people in the world. How many of them could we hug, how many of them could we hold hands, how many of them could we talk to but without touching, and how many of them would we just pass by? Who could really get into our heart in our lives? Maybe they could be counted within the fingers of our two hands.

The author separated the friends into various floors.

The friends on the ground floor are normally the ones who you might talk within 20 sentences, such as "how are you", "where are you going", "it's nice", and etc. Everyone looks stable and satisfied.

The friends on the first floor are the living room friends who you would like to spend time together to talk about social news, economic situation, fashion, and etc. You might pass the loneliness of everyone, and feel happiness.

The friends on the second floor are the kitchen friends who you share your happiness and sadness. You feel that you are known and understood by them, so you don't feel lonely.

The friends on the third floor are the bedroom friends who you could talk and touch. You want to share all your idea, imagination, and dream with them. The ones who know when and how to adjust the atmosphere for you are your good roommates. Meanwhile, you should learn to be the master of changing the atmosphere as well.

The friends of the balcony on the roof are the ones who stop by sometimes, leave some seeds, but you don't know when or whether it would sprout. Some people stop by slowly while others do quickly. Some people stay short, while others do longer. Later on the wrinkle might remind you the memory and feeling, leading to some stories of experience.

We might spend one second to pass by the ground floor, three seconds to pass by living room, three minutes for kitchen, four hours in the bedroom, and maybe five days on the roof to wait for a miracle. Sometimes with a little touching experience, we might forget the fact about 6-billions people, feeling like having everything including all the friends in the building.

A normal friend never saw you crying. A real friend borrows the shoulder for you to cry.
A normal friend don't like your to call while sleeping. A real friend asks why you called late.
A normal friend wants you to stay and support. A real friend wants to stay and support you.

Could not breath

Have you ever experienced that you couldn't breath?
Later on you would realize that you are alive by finding the breath back...

後知後覺 by 張雨生

It's an old song by a talented Taiwanese singer, who passed away few years ago. I am not going to translate the words of the song... :)

張雨生令人懷念的聲音...

[ 後知後覺 ] by 張雨生

你披星戴月 你不辭冰雪
你穿過山野 來到我的心田

你像遠在天邊 又似近在眼前
直到充臆心間 我才後知後覺

你給我安慰 我不致頹廢
你寬容慈悲 我能振翅高飛
你卻功成身退 我不及言謝
你不告而別 我才後知後覺

★間奏★

你披星戴月 你不辭冰雪
你穿過山野 來到我的心田

你像遠在天邊 又似近在眼前
直到充臆心間 我才後知後覺

你給我安慰 我不致頹廢
你寬容慈悲 我能振翅高飛
你卻功成身退 我不及言謝
你不告而別 我才後知後覺

你給我安慰 我不致頹廢
你寬容慈悲 我能振翅高飛
你卻功成身退 我不及言謝
你不告而別 我才後知後覺

我期待 by 張雨生

It's an old song by a talented Taiwanese singer, who passed away few years ago. I am not going to translate the words of the song... :)

張雨生令人懷念的聲音...

[ 我期待 ] by 張雨生

我期待 有一天我會回來
回到我最初的愛 回到童貞的神采
我期待有一天我會明白
明白人世的至愛 明白原始的情懷
我情願 分合的無奈 能換來春夜的天籟
我情願 現在與未來 能充滿秋涼的爽快
SAY GOODBYE SAY GOODBYE
前前後後 迂迂迴迴地試探
SAY GOODBYE SAY GOODBYE
昂首闊步 不留一絲遺憾

我情願 分合的無奈 能換來春夜的天籟
我情願 現在與未來 能充滿秋涼的爽快
SAY GOODBYE SAY GOODBYE
前前後後 迂迂迴迴地試探
SAY GOODBYE SAY GOODBYE
昂首闊步 不留一絲遺憾
SAY GOODBYE SAY GOODBYE
前前後後 迂迂迴迴地試探
SAY GOODBYE SAY GOODBYE
昂首闊步 不留一絲遺憾

It is more blessed to give than to receive...

"Let us complain less and give more!"
It's the content on the last slide at http://spaces.muxlim.com/siecantik/blog/32885/voted-the-best-email-of-this-year-and-deservedly.

Caring what other people think?... what do you think?...
Looking for happiness?... it's inside ourselves...

A man felt frustrate about his situation, and talked to a wise man. The wise man asked the man to put a bucket of salt into a lake, and then asked him to taste the water from the lake. The water from the lake was not salty. "it's not about the salt, but about how wide the lake is. It's not the event itself which makes us to feel sad, unhappy, frustrate, and etc., but the capability which we could take and handle our feelings."