WONDERLAND

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

2010-12-14T19:14:00.000+03:00

Just in a couple of weeks we will say good bye to 2010 and welcome 2011. With its sorrows and joy it was a year full with motions and emotions. The best part of the farewell is for sure celebrations of Christmas and New Year. I love this time because I feel myself again like a child and can enjoy all the beauties of the festivity.

Here I would like to share with you some stories and info about Christmas and New Year. Hope you will enjoy reading it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Legend of Baboushka

The Russian version of St. Nicholas is Baboushka meaning 'grandmother' in Russian. The character had been much popular in old Russia before the revolution of 1917. It was reputed that Baboushka was old woman who had no family, rarely received guests and was so used to live alone in a big house that all she could think of was cleaning, doing the household chores and looking after her empty property. One cold evening, when she was scrubbing her floors, the three Wise Men passed her house on their way to see the Holy Child. They spotted her in the window and asked her to come with them to see the new King of the world. But she refused stating that her floors were not yet clean.

She invited them to her house to spend the night but they said that they were in a hurry and bid her farewell and went on their way. Later, that night Baboushka regretted her decision of not going with the three men and gathering a few trinkets from her meager possessions, set off to find them and the Holy Child. She kept on walking inquiring to several people about the three traveling men and the Holy Child destined to be the King of the world but could not find them. It is said that she is still searching and wanders from place to place in search of them. On the eve of Epiphany of 6th of January, she also leaves trinkets as gifts to the good children in the hope that they will help her find Baby Jesus.

Christmas Recipes:

Banana Sour Cream Bread

Ingredients

1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup butter
3 cups white sugar
3 eggs
6 very ripe bananas, mashed
1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons baking soda
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease four 7x3 inch loaf pans. In a small bowl, stir together 1/4 cup white sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Dust pans lightly with cinnamon and sugar mixture.
In a large bowl, cream butter and 3 cups sugar. Mix in eggs, mashed bananas, sour cream, vanilla and cinnamon. Mix in salt, baking soda and flour. Stir in nuts. Divide into prepared pans.
Bake for 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Sweet Potato Pie

Ingredients

1 (1 pound) sweet potato

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup milk

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

Directions

Boil sweet potato whole in skin for 40 to 50 minutes, or until done. Run cold water over the sweet potato, and remove the skin.

Break apart sweet potato in a bowl. Add butter, and mix well with mixer. Stir in sugar, milk, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until mixture is smooth. Pour filling into an unbaked pie crust.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 55 to 60 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Pie will puff up like a souffle, and then will sink down as it cools.

How to Make:

A Wreath for All Seasons

We all know that first impressions count, so why not help your front door put its best face forward? This decoration extends a warm welcome to guests and allows your family's personality to shine. Starting with a store-bought grapevine wreath, you can have the whole household get into the act of customizing the embroidery-hoop ornaments in endless ways (we suggest a few easy techniques here).

Go beyond the holidays by hanging ornaments that celebrate achievements, announce happy events like birthdays and graduations, or cheer on a team. Add or remove ornaments each season, and the fun — and that terrific first impression — can last all year long.

Materials

Embroidery hoops (see tip below)
Solid-color fabric or canvas
Paintbrush and paint, paint pens, or other decorating tools (see instructions for details)
Outdoor Mod Podge

Greenery, faux berries, or other seasonal extras
Grapevine wreath
Floral wire

Instructions

For each ornament, measure the hoop, then cut a fabric circle that's an inch larger in diameter. Sandwich the fabric between the rings of the hoop, then pull the fabric taut and tighten the screw. Trim any excess fabric.
Decorate the ornaments (see ideas below). Let them dry, as needed, then apply a coat of Outdoor Mod Podge for weatherproofing and let it dry. Attach the ornaments and greenery or other extras to the wreath with lengths of floral wire. For the greatest durability, hang the finished wreath in a protected spot.
Stamp simple shapes by applying acrylic paint to a halved apple or a leaf, then pressing it onto the fabric (practice on paper first). Add details with a paint pen.
For a 3-D effect, use strong glue, such as Crafter's Pick The Ultimate, to adhere collage materials like the fishing line shown here (made from a bit of cord) and metal charms.
Acrylic paint and a brush are great for creating bold images like our pie design, and for livening up the hoop frames (paint them before adding the fabric). For more detailed designs, such as our horse drawing, use fabric markers or paint pens.
Create ornaments from photos — like the dog portrait shown here — with inkjet-printable cotton sheets (we used Jacquard brand, available at craft stores). Follow the package instructions to transfer a digital shot or scanned drawing to the fabric, then use a paint pen for extra flourishes. (FamilyFun.go.com)

PIRATES - Daring Adventurers of the Seas

2010-10-08T15:17:00.000+04:00

When we say a "Pirate" we imagine a bad guy with a hooked hand, wooden leg and patch over one eye. Whereas when we get deeper into the piracy history we face a different story.

The history of the piracy is almost old as the history of marine. The oldest evidence of the pirates' existence is an inscription on a clay tablet from the time of Pharo Echnaton (1350 BC). This document describes a pirates' ship attacking in North Africa. There is also an epigraphic evidence from the 340's, from Athens.

The piracy was a common thing during the Ancient Greek and the Ancient Roman age. The ships from those times used to sail near the coast, which made them the easy targets to the pirates.

The Greek's pirate base was in the Lipari Islands for over 2500 years and Rome 's was Istria. Greek pirates, Illyrian, had their attack on Roman's ships in the Adriatic Sea. Therefore, Rome attacked Illyrians twice after that. Since 10 th century BC, Dorian Greek pirates had been based in Crete. This lasted for over 800 years.

In the 2 nd century BC, the eastern Mediterranean was under the supervision of the Rhodeans. There were several attempts to stop piracy. Soon, Crete was not a comfortable place for the pirates anymore.

The Jolly Roger flag popularly attributed to 18th century

Some Lycians were pirates, too. Lycia was in the Antalya Providence, which is today's Turkey. Lycian pirates plundered many ships. Unfortunately, for them, Ramses The Third destroyed their havens in 1194, but after some time the pirates recovered and became active again. The ending of these pirates' activities came with a few Romans' attacks. They finally destroyed the pirates in 67 BC.

After the fall of Romans, the pirates became active once again, with even bigger ambitions.Lycian pirates had not been stopped, till the patrols of the British warships suppressed piracy in the 18th a 19th century.

Cilician pirates were famous, too. Cilicia was also on the territory of today's Turkey, on the southern shore of Asia Minor. The great geographic position, near Egyptian and Palestinian sea lines, made Cilicia an ideal place for the pirates' haven. It became the home of numerous pirates. Cilicia was the biggest pirate haven of the ancient times. On the top of their strength, these pirates almost destroyed Rome Empire. After that, Pompey the Great almost ruined them in 67 BC. Cilician pirates are best known for capturing Julius Caesar in 78 BC and keeping him on Pharmacua till the ransom was paid. However, Caesar had his revenge. His people killed all pirates responsible for his kidnapping.

Since the ancient times, there were particular periods in which piracy was constant threat throughout many seas and oceans. However, it was in the early 18 th century, when the pirates were the most overwhelming and influential in history of the world. It was a time, in which almost all important sea-trade routes were constantly impacted by enormous number of notorious sea-robbers. That period is idealistically called Golden Age of Piracy.

The Golden Age of Piracy began in mid 1680s, just as the last buccaneers disappeared from the Caribbean. It was a result of many circumstances like the ends of many wars and lack of decent naval employment. Many sailors and privateers found themselves without jobs. Therefore, they naturally choose piracy as the trade, knowing it was the best opportunity for them. What encouraged them most is a lack of the strong government in the Caribbean islands and in other American colonies which allowed pirates to sail free and pillage ships without any potential punishment.

The Golden Age pirates plundered ships in the Caribbean mostly, but Atlantic coast, West Coast of Africa, Indian Ocean and South China Sea were also constantly terrorized. It was also a time of most famous names among pirates. Legends like Blackbeard and Bartholomew Robertsplundered many ships and killed countless victims in early 1700s. They have been giving inspiration to many writers for over 300 years, and they are still well known today.

People like, Woodes Rogers, the governor of Bahamas, were the most responsible for suppressing piracy. He and his followers brought order not only to Bahamas, but to the entire Caribbean Sea. Many pirates were hanged, many of them retired and few tried to find their luck in the Atlantic Ocean. However, one thing was certain, the Golden Age of Piracy was coming to an end. Around 1730, increased military presence and international anti piracy laws, banished almost every single pirate and finally put an end to the Golden Age of Piracy.

The Golden Age of Piracy began in mid 1680s, just as the last buccaneers disappeared from the Caribbean. It was a result of many circumstances like the ends of many wars and lack of decent naval employment. Many sailors and privateers found themselves without jobs. Therefore, they naturally choose piracy as the trade, knowing it was the best opportunity for them. What encouraged them most is a lack of the strong government in the Caribbean islands and in other American colonies which allowed pirates to sail free and pillage ships without any potential punishment.

The Golden Age pirates plundered ships in the Caribbean mostly, but Atlantic coast, West Coast of Africa, Indian Ocean and South China Sea were also constantly terrorized. It was also a time of most famous names among pirates. Legends like Blackbeard and Bartholomew Robertsplundered many ships and killed countless victims in early 1700s. They have been giving inspiration to many writers for over 300 years, and they are still well known today.

People like, Woodes Rogers, the governor of Bahamas, were the most responsible for suppressing piracy. He and his followers brought order not only to Bahamas, but to the entire Caribbean Sea. Many pirates were hanged, many of them retired and few tried to find their luck in the Atlantic Ocean. However, one thing was certain, the Golden Age of Piracy was coming to an end. Around 1730, increased military presence and international anti piracy laws, banished almost every single pirate and finally put an end to the Golden Age of Piracy.

Happy Easter

2010-04-03T01:39:00.020+04:00

Dear Friends,

After quite a long time I am back again to share many different and interesting things with you. Thank you very much for visiting my page, and being patient with me. Hopefully I will post more regularly than before. :)

Soon is Easter and I wanted to share some nice pictures with you to put a smile on your face and maybe remind you of your childhood. When I was a child Easter for me was a lot fun,I loved dying easter eggs and later to have easter egg tapping contest. Well I still love to do it but I think I should have more time to do what I used to do as a child.

We should never lose the child inside us!

Hope you like and enjoy these pictures. May be on Easter you can have egg tapping contest and the one who wins can get the dessert first and the biggest piece. ;D

Doesn't matter what religion you belong to, just have some fun and enjoy your day! And don't forget to smile! =))

Happy Father's Day!!!

2009-06-17T15:52:00.006+04:00

Father's Day is a celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and male parenting, and to honor and commemorate fathers and forefathers. Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and typically involves gift-giving, special dinners to fathers, and family-oriented activities.

The first observance of Father's Day is believed to have been held on July 5, 1908 in a church located in Fairmont, West Virginia, by Dr. Robert Webb of West Virginia at the Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South of Fairmont. The church still exists under the name of Central United Methodist Church.

Sonora Smart Dodd of Washington thought independently of the holiday one Sunday in 1909 while listening to a Mother's Day sermon at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church at Spokane, and she arranged a tribute for her father on June 19, 1910. She was the first to solicit the idea of having an official Father's Day observance to honor all fathers.

A bill was introduced in 1913, US President Calvin Coolidge supported the idea in 1924, and a national committee was formed in the 1930s by trade groups in order to legitimize the holiday. Then in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day.President Richard Nixon signed the law which finally made it permanent in 1972.

The officially recognized date of Father's Day varies from country to country.

Father is an important part in everyone's life. He has equal share in nurturing his children. Since he is generally the head of the household and the bread earner of the family, he is loaded with a number of responsibilities, right from nourishment of the kids to their health, education and finance. He would try hard to fulfill all the dreams (even the craziest one) of his family, by putting his own desires on hold. He truly deserves a day specially dedicated to him, so that he is made to realize how important he is in everyone's life in the family. Here comes the importance of Father's Day, which is a day set apart for saluting the supreme role of fatherhood. Not a religious occasion though, a number of traditions are prevalent in the countries celebrating the day. Given below are some of the most popular traditions for Father's Day.

Fathers Day Traditions

A father's love is a powerful force. Here are ten meaningful family traditions to help you celebrate Dad this Father's Day.

1. Make sure Dad knows that this is his day and that you will be spending time as a family doing whatever he wishes. If you have younger kids in the house, ask them to make him a crown that he can wear on his big day.

2. Let the kids make Dad breakfast and send it up to him on a tray when he wakes up. Also make sure he has a cup of coffee or tea, as well as the day's newspaper and a sharp pencil if he enjoys doing the crossword or Sodoku puzzle.

3. Give Dad a Memory Jar. Cut 50 to 100 strips of paper, and give 20 or 30 to each family member so that they can each record special memories they have shared with dear Dad. This Father's Day, present him with the jar. In subsequent years and on other important holidays throughout the year, you can add to the jar by including more strips of paper in his card or gift.

4. Ask the kids to write a letter to their Dad, detailing the things that they appreciate about him, as well as the special memories that they will treasure from the past year. Make this an annual tradition and keep the letters so that you can collect them in a book or album as the children get older. An alternative is to record the sentiments on video. Each year, you can watch the video and add to it.

5. Ask your dad about his favorite charity and, each year, make a donation in his name.

6. What is Dad's favorite sport or activity? Take the family along for a bike ride or picnic, if he enjoys the great outdoors. If he's a golf lover, have the kids plan a few hours of fun at the local putt putt course.

7. What is Dad's favorite board game? Make sure to take time during the day to play a game.

8. Invite the dads in your neighborhood over for a barbecue. The moms can do the grilling while the dads relax with a cold glass of iced tea or other beverage.

9. If you don't have grandparents or uncles living close by, make sure to give each of the special dads in your family a call or send them a handmade card.

10. In many countries, societies, schools and clubs have been organizing cultural programs, competitions to commemorate Father's Day and pay tribute to fatherhood. Some of the common programs include craft making competitions, games and sports events. Board games play a prominent role in entertaining the people and the guest of honor.

GENDER FACTS

2009-03-14T12:18:00.002+03:00

Networking ...

Women use 20,000 words a day while men only use 7,000

Global Issues ...

Females in developing countries on average carry 20 litres of water per day over 6 km
Globally women account for the majority of people aged over 60 and over 80
Pregnant women in Africa are 180 times more likely to die than in Western Europe
530,000 women die in pregnancy or childbirth each year
World population hit 6,872,741,131 on 1 January 2009
Of 1.2 billion people living in poverty worldwide, 70% are women
80% of the world's 27 million refugees are women
Women own around only 1% of the world's land
AIDS sees women's life expectancy of 43 in Uganda and Zambia
5 people are added to the world's population every 2 seconds
Women are 2/3 of the 1 billion+ illiterate adults who have no access to basic education

Innovation ...

Globally women comprise 42% internet users (Italy 37% ... US & Canada 51%)
In OECD countries women comrpise only 30 per cent of degrees in science and technology
Women's representation in computer and information sciences workforce is around 30% globally
Female inventors still only account for around 10% of the US inventor population

Business / Finance ...

Women control $14 trillion in assets and this should grow to $22 trillion over next 10 years
Women comprise 21 of the 37 million people living below the poverty line in the US
Only in Japan and Peru are women more active in starting a business than men
Women spend more time researching before they invest than men do

Media / Arts ...

Only 21% of all news subjects (people interviewed or whom the news is about) are female
Women less than 1% department heads, editors, media owners but third of working journalists
80% of UK purchasing decisions are made by women but 83% of 'creatives' are men

Work ...

Women do two-thirds of the world's work but receive only 10% of the world's income
Women's education is the most powerful predictor of lower fertility rates
One year out of college women earn 20% less than men and 10 years later 31% less
Women on average are away from workforce for 14.7 years compared to 1.6 years for men
The biggest EU gender pay gap is in Cyprus and Estonia at 25% then Slovakia at 24%

Government ...

56% of women who voted supported Obama compared to only 49% of men voted for Obama
Until 20 years ago there had never been more than 5% women MPs globally
Benazir Bhutto was the first woman prime minister of a muslim country (assassinated 27/12/07)
From the 27 EU member states, UK ranks 15 for women's representation in national Parliaments
From 1945 to 1995 the percentage of women MPs worldwide increased four-fold

for more info:

http://www.internationalwomensday.com/

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

2009-03-07T13:33:00.004+03:00

International Women's Day (IWD) is marked on March 8 every year. It is a major day of global celebration for the economic, political and social achievements of women.
Started as a political event, the holiday blended in the culture of many countries (primarily Russia and the countries of former Soviet bloc). In some celebrations, the day lost its political flavour, and became simply an occasion for men to express their love to the women around them in a way somewhat similar to Mother's Day and St Valentine's Day mixed together. In others, however, the political and human rights theme as designated by the United Nations runs strong, and political and social awareness of the struggles of women worldwide are brought out and examined in a hopeful manner.

The IWD is also celebrated as the first spring holiday, as in the listed countries the first day of March is considered the first day of the spring season.

The first International Women's Day

In 1869 British MP John Stuart Mill was the first person in Parliament to call for women's right to vote. On 19 September 1893 New Zealand became the first country in the world to give women the right to vote. Women in other countries did not enjoy this equality and campaigned for justice for many years.
In 1910 a second International Conference of Working Women was held in Copenhagen. A woman named Clara Zetkin (Leader of the 'Women's Office' for the Social Democratic Party in Germany) tabled the idea of an International Women's Day. She proposed that every year in every country there should be a celebration on the same day - a Women's Day - to press for their demands. The conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, representing unions, socialist parties, working women's clubs, and including the first three women elected to the Finnish parliament, greeted Zetkin's suggestion with unanimous approval and thus International Women's Day was the result.
The very first International Women's Day was launched the following year by Clara Zetkin on 19 March (not 8 March). The date was chosen because on 19 March in the year of the 1848 revolution, the Prussian king recognized for the first time the strength of the armed people and gave way before the threat of a proletarian uprising. Among the many promise he made, which he later failed to keep, was the introduction of votes for women.
Plans for the first International Women's Day demonstration were spread by word of mouth and in the press. During the week before International Women's Day two journals appeared: The Vote for Women in Germany and Women's Day in Austria. Various articles were devoted to International Women's Day: 'Women and Parliament', 'The Working Women and Municipal Affairs', 'What Has the Housewife got to do with Politics?', etc. The articles thoroughly analyzed the question of the equality of women in the government and in society. All articles emphasized the same point that it was absolutely necessary to make parliament more democratic by extending the franchise to women.
Success of the first International Women's Day in 1911 exceeded all expectation.
Meetings were organized everywhere in small towns and even the villages halls were packed so full that male workers were asked to give up their places for women.
Men stayed at home with their children for a change, and their wives, the captive housewives, went to meetings.
During the largest street demonstration of 30,000 women, the police decided to remove the demonstrators' banners so the women workers made a stand. In the scuffle that followed, bloodshed was averted only with the help of the socialist deputies in Parliament.
In 1913 International Women's Day was transferred to 8 March and this day has remained the global date for International Wommen's Day ever since.
During International Women's Year in 1975, IWD was given official recognition by the United Nations and was taken up by many governments. International Women's Day is marked by a national holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

Congratulations to all WOMEN!!!

MASLENITSA

2009-02-28T19:33:00.009+03:00

The tradition of Maslenitsa takes its roots in pagan times, when the Russian folks would bid farewell to stark winter and welcome long-awaited spring with mouth-watering pancakes, as round, yellow and hot, as the Sun itself, as well as with games, songs, dances and burning down the Winter effigy. The rites of this holiday are in this or that way associated with the send-off of winter and welcoming of spring. Maslenitsa is celebrated during the last week before the Lent, that is seven weeks prior to the Easter.

Until christening of Russia, Maslenitsa was celebrated on the vernal equinox day. The Orthodox Church, however, timed this holiday to the Lent, in order not to oppose the traditions of the Russian people (in a similar way, Christmas was timed to the winter equinox day).

Maslenitsa is amusing and mischievous welcoming of spring, which brings about enlivening of nature and bounty of sunny warmth. From times immemorial people took spring for the beginning of new life and venerated the Sun as giving life and energy to the whole creation. It was in honour of the Sun that they baked flat cakes, and after leavened dough came into use, they started baking pancakes.

Russian ancestors believed that when eating the round and hot pancakes reminding of the Sun they took in a bit of the warmth and might of the star of day.

The name of the holiday, Maslenitsa (derived from maslo, which means butter or oil in Russian) obviously owes its existence to the tradition of baking pancakes. With the help of pancakes people tried to evoke the grace of the Sun and induce it to better warming of the frozen earth. Thus, they baked those encouraging little suns of pancakes.

Besides, it was a custom in Russian villages to do various actions associated with a circle, such as, for example, going on horseback around the settlement several times, decorating a cart wheel and carrying it on a pole along the streets, and dancing the round dance (khorovod). Such ceremonies were believed to butter the Sun, cajole it and make it kinder. Hence is the name Maslenitsa.

Every day of Maslenitsa (Pancake Week) has its own name and needs certain rites.

Monday is welcoming. By this day they finished building ice-hills, seesaws and show booths. The rich already started baking pancakes. The first pancake was traditionally given to a beggar in remembrance of the dead.

Tuesday is playing. From the very morning the young were invited to chute ice-hills and eat pancakes. People would invite the kinsfolk and friends with the words: "We've got the ice-hills ready and pancakes baked , please, come and try.

Wednesday is regaling. On this day the son-in-law would pay a visit to the mother-in-law's pancakes. Besides her daughter's husband the mother-in-law would invite other guests as well.

Thursday is merry-making. From this day on Maslenitsa unfolded to its full extent. The folks indulged in all kinds of entertainments, such as ice-hills, shows, seesaws, horse-riding, carnivals, fist fights and carousals, for sure.

Friday is mother-in-law's party. Now it was the turn of the sons-in-law to invite their mothers-in-law and treat them with pancakes.

Saturday is sister-in-law's party. Young wives would invite their sisters-in-law for a feast. The newlywed was supposed to give presents to her husband's sisters.
The last day of Maslenitsa is Forgiveness Sunday, when everyone asks each other's forgiveness to be freed from sins before the Lent. In response they hear the traditional "God will forgive".

On the last day of Maslenitsa they burn down a straw effigy symbolizing winter. Thus they are sending-off winter till the next year.

The rite of burning the effigy is related to the ancient, both pagan and Christian, idea of revival through sacrifice and death; it stands for the revival of fruit-bearing powers of nature, the renewal of its life power. It appears that this pristine holiday harbours profound meaning: the birth of life through struggle, death and revival. The Christian Church, however, tried to uproot this holiday as being pagan, yet it only contrived to shift its dates and shorten the festivity span from fourteen to seven days.

So bake the sunny pancakes and let the winter burn away!

Sources:
Russian Wiki
prazdnik.by

Globalization - Part 4

2008-12-13T14:56:00.002+03:00

The Globalization of Organized Violence

War, military force and organized violence have been central to the globalization of human affairs for much of history, especially in the modern epoch and more recently in the Cold War era.
By comparison with previous epochs, contemporary military globalization is remarkably extensive and intensive (measured , for instance, in terms of military diplomatic links, arms sales and global military production) for an era distinguished by the absence of empires, great power conflict and interstate war.
Since the end of the Cold War there has been a continuing institutionalisation and (albeit uneven) regionalization of military and security affairs to the extent that a majority of states are now enmeshed in multilateral arrangements or multilateral fora for military or security matters, and neutrality no longer appears a credible defence posture.
In comparison with previous epochs, there has been over the course of the last fifty years a rapid world-wide proliferation of unprecedented military capability and the capacity to project military power across increasing distances, including the capacity to produce and utilise weapons of mass destruction, which is both transforming the pattern of stratification in the world military order and creating new global and regional risks which require multilateral action.
Even though the end of the Cold War has undermined the logic of the global arms dynamic, the Cold War itself ensured the accelerated diffusion of military-technological innovation across the world's major regions such that, for instance, whereas it took two centuries for the gunpowder revolution to reach Europe from China in the middle ages, it took less than five decades for India to acquire its existing nuclear capability.
In comparison with earlier periods there has been a significant shift in the organization of defence production in the direction of more extensive and intensive transnationalization through licensing, co-production agreements, joint ventures, corporate alliances, sub-contracting, etc. Few countries today, including the US, can claim to have an autonomous military production capacity.
The same infrastructures which facilitate global flows of goods, people and capital have generated new potential security threats for states, in the form of cyber-war, international terrorism, eco-terrorism and transnational organized crime, which are no longer primarily external or military in character and which require a combination of multilateral and domestic policy responses.
Despite the ending of the Cold War, global arms sales (in real terms) have remained above the level of the 1960s and since the mid 1990s have continued to increase, whilst the number of countries manufacturing arms (40) or purchasing arms (100) is probably greater than at any time since the 1930s, an era of regional and global crises.
In the post Cold War period all major arms producers have become increasingly reliant upon export markets; the imperatives driving defence industrial restructuring have intensified to the extent that regional and transregional production arrangements are being strengthened. Few states can realistically continue to aspire, as in previous periods, to an autonomous defence industrial base. This is especially so as key civil technologies, such as electronics, which are vital to advanced weapons system production, are themselves the products of highly globalized industries.

What is Globalization? - part 3

2008-11-18T19:21:00.002+03:00

The Territorial State and Global Politics

Conventional maps of the political world disclose a very particular conception of the geography of political power. With their clear-cut boundary lines and unambiguous colour patches, they demarcate territorial areas within which there is assumed to be an indivisible, illimitable and exclusive sovereign state with internationally recognized borders. At the beginning of the second millennium, this cartography would have appeared practically incomprehensible; even the most well-travelled civilisations would have been able to make little sense of the details of the known world today.
Two fundamental transformations have affected the shape and form of modern politics. The first of these involved the development of territorially based political communities. The second has led to an era of emerging multilayered regional and global governance.
The first transformation was marked by the growing centralization of political power within Europe, the sedimentation of political rule into state structures, the territorialization of politics, the spread of the interstate order, the development of forms of accountability within certain states and, at the same time, the denial of such accountability to others through colonial expansion, the creation of empires and war.
The second transformation by no means replaced the first in all respects, although it was correlated with the final demise of empires. It has involved the spread of layers of governance both within and across political boundaries. It has been marked by the internationalization and transnationalization of politics, the deterritorialization of aspects of political decision-making, the development of regional and global organizations and institutions, the emergence of regional and global law and a multilayered system of global governance, formal and informal.
This second transformation can be illustrated by a number of developments including the rapid emergence of international agencies and organizations. New forms of multilateral and global politics have been established involving governments, intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) and a wide variety of transnational pressure groups and international non-governmental organizations (INGOs). In 1909 there were 37 IGOs and 176 INGOs, while in 1996 there were nearly 260 IGOs and nearly five and a half thousand INGOs. In addition, there has been an explosive development in the number of international treaties in force, as well as in the number of international regimes, such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation regime.
To this pattern of extensive political interconnectedness can be added the dense web of activity of the key international policy-making fora, including the UN, G7, IMF, WTO, EU, APEC, ARF and MERCOUSUR summits and many other official and unofficial meetings. In the middle of the nineteenth century there were two or three interstate conferences or congresses per annum; today the number totals over four thousand annually. National government is increasingly locked into an array of global, regional and multilayered systems of governance - and can barely monitor it all, let alone stay in command.
The substantial growth of major global and regional institutions should be highlighted. In the context of state history the latter are remarkable political innovations. While the UN remains a creature of the interstate system, it has, despite all its limitations, developed an innovative system of global governance which delivers significant international public goods - from air traffic control and the management of telecommunications to the control of contagious diseases, humanitarian relief for refugees and some protection of the environmental commons.
At the regional level the EU, in remarkably little time, has taken Europe from the disarray of the post Second World War era to a world in which sovereignty is pooled across a growing number of areas of common concern. Despite its contested nature, the EU represents a highly innovative form of governance which creates a framework of collaboration for addressing transborder issues. There has also been an acceleration in regional relations beyond Europe: in the Americas, Asia-Pacific and, to a lesser degree, in Africa. While the form taken by this type of regionalism is very different from the model of the EU, it has nonetheless had significant consequences for political power, particularly in the Asia-Pacific (ASEAN, APEC, ARF, PBEC, and many other groupings). Furthermore, there has been a growth in interregional diplomacy as old and new regional groupings seek to consolidate their relationships with each other. In this respect, regionalism has not been a barrier to changing forms of political globalization - involving the shifting reach of political power, authority and forms of rule - but, on the contrary, has been compatible with it.
There has, moreover, been an important change in the scope and content of international law. Twentieth century forms of international law - from the law governing war, to that concerning crimes against humanity, environmental issues and human rights - have created the basis of what can be thought of as an emerging framework of 'cosmopolitan law', law which circumscribes and delimits the political power of individual states. In principle, states are no longer able to treat their citizens as they think fit. Although, in practice, many states still violate these standards, nearly all now accept general duties of protection and provision, as well as of restraint, in their own practices and procedures.
Global politics today is anchored not just in traditional geopolitical concerns, but also in a large diversity of economic, social and ecological questions. Pollution, drugs, terrorism, human rights are amongst an increasing number of transnational policy issues which cut across territorial jurisdictions and existing political alignments. These require, and will continue to require, international cooperation for their effective resolution.

What is Globalization? - part 2

2008-10-30T14:26:00.003+03:00

People on the Move

Human beings have been migrating, journeying and travelling for millennia, across great distances. It is only in this millennium that New Zealand and many Pacific Islands were finally reached by humans.
For most of recorded history migrations have taken three main forms. Elite migrations from the core of empires to their periphery in acts of conquest and conversion followed by settlers; elite and mass migrations to imperial cores and cities from the hinterlands and the countryside in search of work; the expansion and contraction of nomadic societies. Most of these have been regional in scope, though the early Islamic and later Mongol Empires had a global reach.
From the sixteenth century onwards the shape of global migration was transformed by the European conquest of the Americas and then Oceania as well as more tentative colonial expansion in Africa and Asia.
The first great wave of early modern migrations involved the forced movements of the transatlantic slave trade which shifted around 9-12 million people by the mid-nineteenth century. By comparison, the more regional Arabic slave trades and the early modern European emigration to the New World were minor.
From the mid nineteenth century onwards, the slave trade was dwarfed in extent by an extraordinary outpouring of Europe's poor to the New World, overwhelmingly the USA. This was accompanied, beginning in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, by a series of Asian migrations (predominantly of indentured labourers) to the USA, Canada and European colonies. Over 40 million people moved in this way in the quarter century before the First World War.
During the First World War, international migration plummeted. Although the war triggered some forced migrations, of Armenians and Greeks from Turkey for example, international migrations within Europe almost ceased. North America closed its borders, creating the first set of systematic border controls and immigration legislation in the modern era.
The bitter struggles and ethnic violence of the Second World war led to unprecedented levels of forced migrations, refugee and asylum movements. Ethnic Germans fled the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, Jews headed for Israel, Pakistan and India exchanged millions and Koreans flooded south.
Economic migration and the rebirth of Western European economies in the 1950s and 1960s drove a renewed epoch of global migration. Despite the oil shocks of the 1970s and the closure of many European immigration programmes, Western Europe's foreign population and ethnic mix have grown as family reunions, unpoliceable borders and sheer demand for labour have driven migration from the European peripheries (Turkey, North Africa ) as well as the most distant outposts of old European empires (Southern Asia, East and West Africa etc.) to the continent.
In the 1970s these waves of migration were accompanied by a take-off in legal and illegal migration to the USA and Australasia, enormous flows to the oil-rich and labour-scarce Middle East and new patterns of regional migration within Africa, Latin America, Oceania and East Asia. In the late 1990s, the USA in particular has been experiencing levels of migration that are comparable to the great transatlantic push of the late nineteenth century.
Moreover, recent economic migration has been accompanied by an astronomical rise in asylum seeking, displaced persons and refugees from wars of state formation (and disintegration) in the developing world.
For OECD states, the current era is characterised by high levels of global and regional migration, borders that are difficult to police, a range of migrations and travellers that are hard to control and in Europe, in particular, unprecedented levels of ethnic diversity. Over 10% of Swedes are foreign born for example.
Attempts at international regulation of migratory flows have met with limited success. Many states find it very difficult to mobilise internal support for tracking illegal migrants and are in some cases highly dependent economically on their labour. Simultaneously, all states are having to reassess the meaning and practice of national citizenship in an era of increasing heterogeneity. Dual nationality is on the rise.

The Fate of National Cultures

The globalization of culture has a long history. The formation and expansion of the great world religions are one of the best examples of the capacity of ideas and beliefs to cross great distances with decisive social impacts. No less important are the great pre-modern empires which, in the absence of direct military and political control, held their domains together through a shared and extensive ruling class culture.
For most of human history these extensive ruling cultures passed through a fragmented mosaic of local cultures and particularisms - little stood between the court and the village. It was only with the emergence of nation-states and national cultures that a form of cultural identity coalesced between these two extremes.
With the rise of nation-states and nationalist projects, the globalization of culture was truncated. Nation-states took control of educational practices, linguistic policies, postal and telephonic systems, etc. However, from the eighteenth century onwards as European empires began to entrench themselves and as a series of technological innovations came on stream (regularised mechanical transport and the telegraph most notably), new forms of cultural globalization emerged. These were accompanied by new private international institutions like publishing houses and news agencies, but their impact on more local and national cultures remained limited.
The most important ideas and arguments to emerge out of the West in the era of its expansion were science, liberalism and socialism. Each of these modes of thought and the practices that came with them transformed the ruling cultures of almost every society on the planet. They have certainly had a more considerable impact on national and local cultures than contemporary popular cultures.
In the period since the Second World War, however, the extensity, intensity, speed and sheer volume of cultural communication at a global level are unsurpassed. The global diffusion of radio, television, the Internet, satellite and digital technologies, and so on, has made instantaneous communication possible, rendered many border checks and controls over information ineffective, and exposed an enormous constituency to diverse cultural outputs and values. While linguistic differences continue to be a barrier to these processes, the global dominance of English provides a linguistic infrastructure that parallels the technological infrastructures of the era. In contrast to earlier periods in which states and theocracies have been central to cultural globalisation, the current era is one in which corporations are the central producers and distributors of cultural products.
The vast majority of these cultural products originate within the USA and certain key Western societies. However, the evidence available in support of a crude thesis of 'cultural imperialism' is thin. National and local cultures remain robust, national institutions continue in many states to have a central impact on public life, foreign products are constantly read and reinterpreted in novel ways by national audiences.
Those states which seek to pursue rigid closed-door policies on information and culture are certainly under threat from these new communication processes and technologies, and it is likely that the conduct of economic life everywhere will be transformed by them as well.
Cultural flows are transforming the politics of national identity and the politics of identity more generally.

Sand Art - Sand Sculptures

2008-10-24T12:55:00.004+04:00

By piling, digging, carving and hollowing out this common element, turning it into mythical scenes and fairytale figures, sand sculptors have turned the art of carving in sand into a new trend in many big cities.

Known as a modern art for only 20 years, sand sculpting is a popular and recreational art capable of drawing widespread attention from the public. Sand sculptures can create new tourist programmes wherever they go, bringing in considerable commercial profits. From this point of view, the art is the result of the perfect combination of modern art and modern commerce and is closely linked with tourism. For the last 20 years, this symbiosis has greatly promoted the development of sand sculptures around the world.

Sand sculptures can now be found in more than 100 countries and regions, especially in popular coastal cities. Sand sculptures have become one of the most popular itineraries during sea visits. Meanwhile, the art has also spread to the inland cities.

Over the past few years, the art has aroused widespread interest in Asia -- with Japan, Singapore and China as hosts to various sand sculpture contests. With the launch of the International Colored Sand Sculpture Festival in Yunnan Province , China, the art is also becoming richer in content.

Instant-Disintegrating Art

Sand and seawater are the basic materials for sand sculptures, which are molded into various patterns by digging, carving and hollowing out sand. Sand sculptures contain no chemical adhesives. Once a piece of the sculpture is completed, a special glue-water solution is sprayed over the surface to set the sculpture. Normally, the sculpture can be preserved for several months. Since it is not easy to preserve sand sculptures, which disintegrate over a period of time, the art form is also known as "instant-disintegrating art".

Sand sculpting is also a kind of land art that blends with nature and without emitting any pollutants. Sand sculptures, unlike most traditional sculptures, are admired for their large scale.

Sand sculpting is also a marginal art -- an amalgamation of the elements of sculpting, painting, construction and outdoor recreation. Requiring no professional training, the art can be taken up by anyone. Sand sculpting is known as a fashionable, healthy and exciting programme for leisure and entertainment purposes.

What is Globalization?

2008-10-21T17:41:00.004+04:00

First of all before I start with the topic I would like to appologize from my readers for not updating my blog recently.Last 1,5 month was very busy and important for me as I needed to pass some exams in order to become a MA student,which I became finally :).So I couldnt work properly on my blog.Unfortunatelly I cant update very often now my blog but I will do my best so you can enjoy your reading and get some new and interesting information.Hope you will understand me. :)

I guess many of you heard this term more than once.But how many of you exactly know what is globalization and what place it takes in our life.As now I am more involved in all these topics as a MA student of interntional relations and diplomacy I would like to put some information about globalization.
Here is some info that interpret us the meaning of globalization.

Introduction

Globalization - the 'big idea' of the late twentieth century - lacks precise definition. More than this, it is in danger of becoming, if it has not already become, the cliché of our times.

Nonetheless, the term globalization captures elements of a widespread perception that there is a broadening, deepening and speeding up of world-wide interconnectedness in all aspects of life, from the cultural to the criminal, the financial to the environmental. At issue appears to be 'a global shift'; that is, a world being moulded, by economic and technological forces, into a shared economic and political arena.

Behind the rhetoric of globalization - rhetoric found in public as well as academic debate - lie three broad accounts of the nature and meaning of globalization today, referred to here as the hyperglobalist, the sceptical, and the transformationalist views.

- Hyperglobalists argue that we live in an increasingly global world in which states are being subject to massive economic and political processes of change. These are eroding and fragmenting nation-states and diminishing the power of politicians. In these circumstances, states are increasingly the 'decision- takers' and not the 'decision-makers'.

- The sceptics strongly resist this view and believe that contemporary global circumstances are not unprecedented. In their account, while there has been an intensification of international and social activity in recent times, this has reinforced and enhanced state powers in many domains.

- The transformationalists argue that globalization is creating new economic, political and social circumstances which, however unevenly, are serving to transform state powers and the context in which states operate. They do not predict the outcome - indeed, they believe it is uncertain - but argue that politics is no longer, and can no longer simply be, based on nation-states.

What is to be made of these different positions? Are we, or are we not, on the edge of a global shift with massive political, economic and cultural implications?

What is Globalization?

- Globalization can usefully be conceived as a process (or set of processes) which embodies a transformation in the spatial organization of social relations and transactions, generating transcontinental or interregional flows and networks of activity, interaction and power.

- It is characterized by four types of change:

1- First, it involves a stretching of social, political and economic activities across political frontiers, regions and continents.
2- Second, it suggests the intensification, or the growing magnitude, of interconnectedness and flows of trade, investment, finance, migration, culture, etc.
3- Third, the growing extensity and intensity of global interconnectedness can be linked to a speeding up of global interactions and processes, as the evolution of world-wide systems of transport and communication increases the velocity of the diffusion of ideas, goods, information, capital, and people.
4- Fourth, the growing extensity, intensity and velocity of global interactions can be associated with their deepening impact such that the effects of distant events can be highly significant elsewhere and even the most local developments may come to have enormous global consequences. In this sense, the boundaries between domestic matters and global affairs can become increasingly blurred.

In sum, globalization can be thought of as the widening, intensifying, speeding up, and growing impact of world-wide interconnectedness. By conceiving of globalization in this way, it becomes possible to map empirically patterns of world-wide links and relations across all key domains of human activity, from the military to the cultural.

- From the pre-modern, through to the early modern (1500-1800), modern (19th to early 20th century), to the contemporary period, distinctive patterns of globalization can be identified in respect of their different systemic and organizational features - uneven as they often are. These patterns constitute distinctive historical forms of globalization. By comparing and contrasting these changing historical forms, it is possible to identify more precisely what is novel about the present epoch.

- Accordingly, to advance an account of globalization it is necessary to turn from a general concern with its conceptualization to an examination of the key domains of activity and interaction in and through which global processes evolve.

This is just the part of it.Later on I will put some more information and some facts about what is going on in our world.I guess each of us should know about it as it is effecting our life directly.

Cappadocia - Turkey

2008-09-28T20:47:00.005+04:00

Cappadocia which is unique in the world and is a miraculous nature wonder is the common name of the field covered by the provinces of Aksaray, Nevsehir, Nigde, Kayseri and Kirsehir in the Middle Anatolian region.

In the upper Myosen period in the Cappadocia region as a result of the vulcanic eruptions occurred in Erciyes, Hasandag and Gulludag, in the region was formed a large tableland from the vulcanic tufas and together with the erosion of the Kizilirmak river and wind over ten thausands of years there appeared the chimney rocks which are a wonder of the nature. In the old Bronze Age the Cappadocia which was the population zone of the Assyrian civilization later has hosted the Hittite, Frig, Pers, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman civilizations. The first Christians escaped from the persecution of the Roman Empire in the 2nd century B.C. came to the Cappadocia over the Antakya and Kayseri and they have settled here. The first Christians finding the underground cities from Cappadocia have been hidden in these underground cities which gates were made in such way in which they couldn't be easily observed and they have escaped from the persecution of the Roman soldiers. Due that they had live in the underground cities for long duration without being able to go out they have developed these underground cities by making provisions rooms, ventilation chimneys, wine production places, churches, abbeys, water wells, toilets and meeting rooms.

In the prehistoric periods the first human settlements have begun and the humans have constructed the underground cities in the volcanic rocks in form of tufa due to protect themselves from the wild animals and they lived for long times in these underground cities.

In these cities made in form of rooms connected to each others some of the rooms were connected to each other only with the tunnels tight and permitting passing of just a person. At the access gates of these tunnels there were huge stone rollers used for closing the tunnels for security reasons.

The first populations of the region of Cappadocia were Hatties, Luvies and Hittites. In the 3000-2000 years B.C. the Assyrians have established trade colonies in this region. The Cappaddocian tables with cuneiform in Assyrian language founded at Kanes which are lighting the social and politic life of the period and were in the same time the trade and economical agreements are the firs written tablets of Anatolia. According to these documents in that period in Anatolia were founded small local kingdoms non-depending from a central authority. These had in generally in their hands a little area and were living in peace. The region creating the core of the Hittite Empire later has go under the domination of Phrigia and Pers. The Pers civilization has called this region Katpatuka and its center was Mazaka. When Datames the Satrab (Starab: little district administrator at Pers) of Cappadocia has bear arms against the biggest king of Pers, the other Anatolian Satrabs have been supported him but the revolt has been raided. In 33 b.c. the Big Alexander has captured a big part of Cappadocia. In 188 B.C. The Cappadocia which entered under the Roman domination has been captured in 100 B.C. by the Mithridatesd the king of Pontus but in 63 B.C. Pompeius has defeated Mithridates and took again the Cappadocia under the domination of Rome. In the period of Tiberius the Cappadocia gainded the status of Roman district.

Cappadocia was one of the most important places in the spreading periods of the Christian religion. The first christians trying to escape from the Roman soldiers who wanted to avoid the spreading of the Christian religion have settled in the region of Cappadocia which was so suitable for hiding and so they were able to continue their natures and to spread their religions. Saint Basileious from Kaisera and Saint Gregorios from Nyssa had settled in Cappadocia. In 647 A.C. together with occupation of Kayseri by Muaviye Cappadocia has met with the Arabian invasions. Cappadocia which went under the domination of the Seljuks in 1072 has been added to the lands of Ottoman Empire in 1399 by the Ottoman Sultan Yildirim Beyazit

Cappadocia which is in our days one of the most important tourism centers of Turkey is visited every year by hundred thousands of tourists coming from every part of the world.

Wine - The Drink of Gods

2008-09-24T15:39:00.003+04:00

Wine is one of the oldest drinks known to mankind. Although historians may not be entirely sure that this is how the fermentation of wine started, an overview of the history of wine is full of interesting tidbits.

Made of fermented grape juice, wine is an alcoholic beverage that is both made and drunk in many parts of the world. The history of wine starts over 5000 years ago. It was said to have been discovered when grapes were left for too long in amphorae or earthenware jugs. These grapes somehow became tainted with wild yeast, which caused the grapes to ferment. Some courageous individual took a drink and realized the fermentation process had produced something that would be come known as wine.

There are several different basic types of wine. The most basic breakdown is red wine and white wine. When the grapes that make these varieties of wine are combined, a rose or blush wine can be created. If the wine is allowed to ferment in a way that produces carbon dioxide bubbles, it becomes a sparkling wine. If the sparkling wine comes from a particular region in France called Champagne, it is known as Champagne. There are also fortified wines – these wines are also fermented from grapes, but additional amounts of alcohol from other sources are added to the wine to raise its alcohol content. An example of a fortified wine is brandy.

Making wine is not an easy process – the fermentation of a really good wine may take years or even decades to complete. The type of oak barrel that wine is typically fermented in is also the result of a difficult process. Out of the 400 species of oak that grow on Earth, only 20 species are used in oak barrels for winemaking. Of those 20 species, only 5 percent of the wood taken from these trees is deemed good enough to be made into wine barrels.

The amount of grapes needed to produce quality wine is another of the many mind boggling wine tidbits known. Generally, it takes four clusters or 300 grapes to produce just one bottle of wine. Since there are only about 40 clusters of grapes produced on a grapevine per year, this means that each vine is only capable of making 10 bottles of wine. Given this fact, it is pretty amazing that wine is as cheap as we find it.

As you can see, wine is a not a simple fermentation process. The next time you drink a glass of your favorite chardonnay, think about the difficult journey that it made from grape to bottle.

by Xavier Moldini

General Cheese and Wine Pairing

The possibilities of pairing cheese and wine are endless. There are so many wines and so many cheeses. Below are some of them:

Young, mild, and milky cheeses such as fresh goat cheese with light, fruity delicate wines such as Sauvignon Blanc and Beaujolais

Assertive, strong-flavored cheeses such as Provolone with young, robust red wines such as and Chianti and Syrah

Aged mellow cheeses such as Parmigiano and Gouda with older, robust wines such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel

Strong, pungent cheeses such as Pont l'Eveque or Taleggio with young, full-bodied wine such as Merlot or sweet dessert wines such as late-harvest Reislings and Sauternes

Soft-ripened cheeses like Brie and Camembert with full-flavored Chardonnays or Champagne

Tangy strong goat cheeses such as Crottin di Chavignol with Burgundies

Blue cheeses such as Roquefort and Stilton with sweet dessert wines like Port or Sauternes

Soft, rich cheeses without overpowering flavors are best with fine, older wines.

Parable of the Day

2008-09-19T15:33:00.004+04:00

The pastor entered his donkey in a race and it won.
The pastor was so pleased with the donkey that he
entered in another race and it won again.
The local paper read:

PASTOR'S ASS OUT FRONT.

The Bishop was so upset with this kind of publicity
that he ordered the pastor not to enter the donkey in
any more races.
The next day the local paper headline read:

BISHOP SCRATCHES THE PASTOR'S ASS.

This was too much for the Bishop, so he ordered the
pastor to get rid of the donkey. The pastor decided to
give it to a nun in a nearby convent.
The local paper, hearing of the news, posted the
following headline:

NUN HAS THE BEST ASS IN TOWN .

The Bishop fainted.
He informed the nun that she would have to get rid of
the donkey so she sold it to a farmer for $10.
The next day the headlines read:

NUN SELLS ASS FOR $10.

This was too much for the Bishop, so he ordered the
nun to buy back the donkey and lead it to the high
plains where it could run free.
The next day the headlines read :

NUN ANNOUNCES HER ASS IS WILD AND FREE.

Alas... The Bishop was buried the next day.

MORAL OF THE STORY !!!!

Being concerned about public opinion can bring you
much grief and misery and even shorten your life. So,
be yourself and enjoy life. Stop worrying about everyone else's ass and you'll live longer.

Rilski Monastery - Bulgaria

2008-09-19T14:01:00.005+04:00

Today I would love to give some information about one of the amazing places of my country. Though Bulgaria is a small country, it is full of beatiful places where you can enjoy the beauty of the nature and the masterpieces of human beings.

This is the biggest Bulgarian architectural monument and the biggest religious center in Bulgaria. It’s situated in the northwest part of Rila Mountains and stands 1150 meters above sea level. It’s built near the mountain rivulets of Rilska and Drushlyavitsa and is 120 km away from Sofia.

It is traditionally thought that the monastery was founded by the hermit St. John of Rila (Ivan Rilski), whose name it bears, during the rule of Tsar Peter I (927-968). The hermit actually lived in a cave not far from the monastery's location, while the complex was built by his students, who came to the mountains to receive their education.

Ever since its creation, the Rila Monastery has been supported and respected by the Bulgarian rulers. Large donations were made by almost every tsar of the Second Bulgarian Empire up until the Ottoman Conquest, making the monastery a cultural and spiritual centre of Bulgarian national consciousness that reached its apogee from the 12th to the 14th century.

The Rila Monastery was reerected at its present place by a local feudal lord named Hrelyu Dragovola during the 14th century. The oldest buildings in the complex date from this period were—the Tower of Hrelyu (1334–1335) and a small church just next to it (1343). The bishop's throne and the rich-engraved gates of the monastery also belong to the time. However, the arrival of the Ottomans in the end of the 14th century was followed by numerous raids and a destruction of the monastery in the middle of the 15th century.

Thanks to donations by the Russian Orthodox Church and more precisely the Rossikon monastery of Mount Athos, the Rila Monastery was rebuilt in the end of the 15th century by three brothers from the region of Kyustendil, who moved John of Rila's relics into the complex.

The complex acted as a depository of Bulgarian language and culture in the ages of foreign rule. During the time of the Bulgarian National Revival (18th-19th century), it was destroyed by fire in 1833 and then reconstructed between 1834 and 1862 with the help of wealthy Bulgarians from the whole country, under the famous architect Alexi Rilets. The erection of the residential buildings began in 1816, while a belfry was added to the Tower of Hrelyu in 1844. Neofit Rilski founded a school in the monastery during the period.

The monastery complex, regarded as one of the foremost masterpieces of Bulgarian National Revival architecture, was declared a national historical monument in 1976 and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. Since 1991 it has been entirely subordinate to the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.

On 25 May 2002, Pope John Paul II, the Slavic Pope visited Rila monastery during his pilgrimage to Bulgaria. He was greeted by the Monastery's igumen, Bishop Ioan, who had been an observer at the Second Vatican Council.

Georgia Violated UN Charter – UN Assembly Chief

2008-09-17T19:38:00.008+04:00

Georgia commited an act of aggression and violated the UN charter by invading South Ossetia, the incoming President of the UN General Assembly said at the opening of its 63rd session.

Miguel D’Escoto Brockmann, a former foreign minister of Nicaragua, pledged in his opening address to the session to dedicate his year as president to representing the interests of “the dispossessed of the world” and fostering solidarity between peoples and member states.

Miguel D'Escoto Brockmann

"Georgia was the one who invaded Ossetia. Look at the situation, look at how the whole thing began. I think that Georgia did commit agression against South Ossetia," said Brockmann.

Apart from Russia, Brockmann's native Nicaragua is the only country to so far formally recognise the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

Brockmann's election to the rotating presidency, as well as Nicaragua's recognition of the new republics has lately catapulted the South American country to the world stage.

Russia's ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin said Tbilisi has been asking international organisations not to offer humanitarian aid to South Ossetia if it doesn't become part of Georgia again.

"We mourn for the innocent deaths of everyone, regardless of their ethnic origin - peaceful Ossetians, Georgians and other people of that multi-national land," Churkin said.

Churkin called for the United States to issue visas to officials from South Ossetia and Abkhazia so they can attend a Security Council meeting in early October.

The mandate of the UN observer mission in the Caucasus expires next month, and Russia has insisted its extension is impossible without hearing from all parties in the conflict.

RT documentary screened at UN

A special report by RT's Oksana Boyko entitled 'A City of Desolate Mothers', which investigates the aftermath of the war, was shown to the audience at a commemoration event.

An audience of more than 100 watched the Russian-sponsored screening. Representatives of European Union member states, however, did not show up to the viewing despite receiving two separate invitations.

"I leave very angered that this has happened and the coverage has been so one-sided and distorted. When I read the New York Times it always speaks of Georgian suffering, very little coverage of South Ossetians," said Carla Stea, a New York based journalist.

International relations expert Mathew Russell Lee said he thought the documentary lacked balance, it presented facts he was unaware of.

"There's a piece of footage I've never seen before which was women in South Ossetia saying to Bernard Kouchner, the French Foreign Minister, laying it on strong, saying, 'They're killing us for no reason.' I wasn't aware that he went there. And I wasn't aware that he heard that. And he certainly hasn't said much about that," Russell said.

News from Russia Today

A Blog Award From Life as Experienced

2008-09-15T15:35:00.003+04:00

Thank you Jeff for this award !

They all are charmed with the blogs, where in the majority of its aims are to show the marvels and to do friendship; there are persons who are not interested when we give them a prize and then they help to cut these bows; do we want that they are cut or that they propagate? Then let’s try to give more attention to them! So with this prize we must deliver it to 8 bloggers that in turn must make the same thing and put this text.

In my turn I would like to pass this award on to eight blogger friends: Fanny , Ale , Innocent Eyes , MarlyMS , Cinzia , Beck , ShAshi DhaR and Jack .

A carrot, an egg and a cup of coffee !...

2008-09-15T13:13:00.003+04:00

You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her.
She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up.
She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen.
She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil.
In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans.
She let them sit and boil, without saying a word.In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners.
She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl.
She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl.
Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.

Turning to her daughter, she asked :
- "Tell me, what do you see ?"
- "Carrots, eggs and coffee" she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft.
The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it.
After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.

The daughter then asked :
- "What does it mean, mother ?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity ... boiling water.
Each reacted differently.

The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting.However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.

The ground coffee beans were unique, however.
After they were in the boilingwater, they had changed the water.

- "Which are you ?" she asked her daughter.
- "When adversity knocks on your door how do you respond ? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean ?"

Think of this :
Which am I ?...

- Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength ?

- Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat ?

- Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff ?

- Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart ?

- Or, am I like the coffee bean ? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain.

When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor.

If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.
When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level ?
How do you handle adversity ?

Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean ?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past ; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

To those who have touched your life in one way or another ; to those who make you smile when you really need it.To those who make you see the brighter side of things when you are really down; to those whose friendship you appreciate.To those who are meaningful in your life.

Keep your heart in peace...

Zero: An Investigation Into 9-11 - part 1

2008-09-13T00:34:00.001+04:00

ZERO: An Investigation into 9/11, has one central thesis - that the official version of the events surrounding the attacks on 9/11 can not be true. This brand new feature documentary from Italian production company Telemaco explores the latest scientific evidence and reveals dramatic new witness testimony, which directly conflicts with the US Government's account.

Featuring presentations from intellectual heavy weights; Gore Vidal, and Noble Prize winner Dario Fo, the film challenges assumptions surrounding the attacks. In the words of the Italian daily newspaper, Il Corriere de da Sera, "What results is a sequence of contradictions, gaps, and omissions of stunning gravity."

The importance of this film can not be overstated. If its thesis is correct, the justification for going to war in Iraq is built on a series of outrageous lies.

History of Tattoos

2008-09-10T22:20:00.003+04:00

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’.

The history of tattoo began over 5000 years ago and is as diverse as the people who wear them.

Tattoos are created by inserting colored materials beneath the skins surface. The first tattoos probably were created by accident. someone had a small wound, and rubbed it with a hand that was dirty with soot and ashes from the fire. Once the wound had healed, they saw that a mark stayed permanently.

Despite the social sciences' growing fascination with tattooing,and the immense popularity of tattoos themselves,the practice has not left much of a historical record.

Bronze Age

In 1991, a five thousand year old tattooed man ‘ötzi the ice man’ made the headlines of newspapers all over the world when his frozen body was discovered on a mountain between austria and italy. This is the best preserved corpse of that period ever found. The skin bears 57 tattoos: a cross on the inside of the left knee, six straight lines 15 centimeters long above the kidneys and numerous parallel lines on the ankles. The position of the tattoo marks suggests that they were probably applied for therapeutic reasons (treatment of arthritis).

Pazyryk Culture

In 1948, 120 miles north of the border between russia and china, russian archeologist Sergei Rudenko began excavating a group of tombs, or Kurgans, in the high Altai mountains of western and southern Siberia. Mummies were found that date from around 2400 years ago. The tattoos on their bodies represent a variety of animals. The griffins and monsters are thought to have a magical significance but some elements are believed to be purely decorative. Altogether the tattoos are believed to reflect the status of the individual.

samoan tattoo

Egypt

Written records, physical remains, and works of art relevant to egyptian tattoo have virtually been ignored by earlier egyptologists influenced by prevailing social attitudes toward the medium. Today however, we know that there have been bodies recovered dating to as early XI dynasty exhibiting the art form of tattoo. In 1891, archaeologists discovered the mummified remains of Amunet, a priestess of the goddess Hathor, at Thebes who lived some time between 2160 BC and 1994 BC. This female mummy displayed several lines and dots tattooed about her body - grouping dots and/or dashes were aligned into abstract geometric patterns. This art form was restricted to women only, and usually these women were associated with ritualistic practice.The Egyptians spread the practice of tattooing throughout the world. The pyramid-building third and fourth dynasties of egypt developed international nations with Crete, Greece, Persia, and Arabia. by 2,000 BC the art of tattooing had stretched out all the way to southeast asia . The Ainu (western asian nomads) then brought it with them as they moved to Japan.

Maori man with a distinctive moko of New Zealand, William Hodges, 1771, drawn during James Cook's second voyage

Japan

The earliest evidence of tattooing in Japan is found in the form of clay figurines which have faces painted or engraved to represent tattoo marks. The oldest figurines of this kind have been recovered from tombs dated 3,000 BC or older, and many other such figurines have been found in tombs dating from the second and third millennia BC. These figurines served as stand-ins for living individuals who symbolically accompanied the dead on their journey into the unknown, and it is believed that the tattoo marks had religious or magical significance. The first written record of Japanese tattooing is found in a Chinese dynastic history compiled in 297 AD. The Japanese were interested in the art mostly for its decorative attributes, as opposed to magical ones. The Horis - the Japanese tattoo artists - were the undisputed masters. Their use of colors, perspective, and imaginative designs gave the practice a whole new angle. The classic Japanese tattoo, is a full body suit.

Maori Chiefs, circa 1910

japanese tattoo

Polynesia

In pacific cultures tattooing has a huge historic significance. Polynesian tattooing is considered the most intricate and skillful tattooing of the ancient world. Polynesian peoples, believe that a person's mana, their spiritual power or life force, is displayed through their tattoo.The vast majority of what we know today about these ancient arts has been passed down through legends, songs, and ritual ceremonies. Elaborate geometrical designs which were often added to, renewed, and embellished throughout the life of the individual until they covered the entire body.

In Samoa, the tradition of applying tattoo, or ‘tatau’, by hand,has long been defined by rank and title, with chiefs and their assistants, descending from notable families in the proper birth order. The tattooing ceremonies for young chiefs, typically conducted at the onset of puberty, were elaborate affairs and were a key part of their ascendance to a leadership role.

The permanent marks left by the tattoo artists would forever celebrate their endurance and dedication to cultural traditions.The first europeans who set foot on Samoan soil were members of a 1787 French expedition. They got a closer look at the natives and reported that ‘the men have their thighs painted or tattooed in such a way that one would think them clothed, although they are almost naked’. The mythological origins of Samoan tattooing and the extraordinary cross-cultural history of tatau has been transported to the migrant communities of New Zealand, and later disseminated into various international subcultures from Auckland to the Netherlands.

The Hawaiian people had their traditional tattoo art, known as ‘kakau’. It served them not only for ornamentation and distinction, but to guard their health and spiritual well-being. Intricate patterns, mimicking woven reeds or other natural forms, graced men's arms, legs, torso and face. Women were generally tattooed on the hand, fingers, wrists and sometimes on their tongue.

The arrival of western missionaries forced this unique art form into decline as tattooing has been discouraged or forbidden by most christian churches throughout history.

New Zealand

The Maori of New Zealand had created one of the most impressive cultures of all Polynesia. Their tattoo, called ‘moko’, reflected their refined artistry - using their woodcarving skills to carve skin. The full-face moko was a mark of distinction, which communicated their status, lines of descent and tribal affiliations. it recalled their wearer's exploits in war and other great events of their life.

India / Thailand

Hanuman in India was a popular symbol of strength on arms and legs. The mythical monk is still today one of the most popular creations in Thailand and Myanmar. They are put on the human body by monks who incorporate magical powers to the design while tattooing.Women are excluded because monks are not allowed to be touched by them and because thais believe women do not need the extra boost as they are already strong enough on their own.

German circus, tattoo woman

Africa

In Africa, where people have dark skin, it is difficult to make coloured tattoos as we know them. But they want to be tattooed anyway, so they have developed another technique - they make scarifications (this is not really tattooing, but it is related to tattooing). Made by lifting the skin a little, and making a cut with a knife or some other sharp thingspecial sands or ashes were rubbed in to make raised scarsin patterns on the body, it can be felt like braille lettering...These patterns often follow local traditions.

Ancient Greece and Rome

The Greeks learnt tattooing from the Persians. Their woman were fascinated by the idea of tattoos as exotic beauty marks.The Romans adopted tattooing from the greeks.Roman writers such as Virgil, Seneca, and Galenus reported that many slaves and criminals were tattooed.A legal inscription from Ephesus indicates that during the early Roman Empire all slaves exported to Asia were tattooed with the words ‘tax paid’.

Greeks and Romans also used tattooing as a punishment. Early in the fourth century, when constantine became Roman emperor and rescinded the prohibition on christianity, he also banned tattooing on face, which was common for convicts, soldiers, and gladiators. Constantine believed that the human face was a representation of the image of god and should not be disfigured or defiled.

The Celts

They were a tribal people who moved across western Europe in times around 1200 and 700 B.C. They reached the British Isles around 400 B.C. and most of what has survived from their culture is in the areas now known as Ireland, Wales and Scotland. Celtic culture was full of body art. Permanent body painting was done with woad, which left a blue design on the skin. Spirals are very common, and they can be single, doubled or tripled. Knotwork is probably the most recognized form of celtic art, with lines forming complex braids which then weave across themselves. These symbolise the connection of all life. Step or key patterns, like those found in early labyrinth designs, are seen both in simple borders and full complex mazes. Much in the way that labyrinths are walked, these designs are symbolic of the various paths that life’s journey can take.

Central and South America

In Peru, tattooed Inca mummies dating to the 11th century have been found. 16th century Spanish accounts of Mayan tattooing in Mexico and central America reveal tattoos to be a sign of courage. When Cortez and his conquistadors arrived on the coast of mexicoin 1519 they were horrified to discover that the natives not only worshipped devils in the form of statues and idols, but had somehow managed to imprint indelible images of these idols on their skin. The Spaniards, who had never heard of tattooing, recognized it at once as the work of satan. The sixteenth century Spanish historians who chronicled the adventures of Cortez and his conquistadors reported that tattooing was widely practiced by the natives of central America.

North America

Early Jesuit accounts testify to the widespread practice of tattooing among native Americans. Among the Chickasaw, outstanding warriors were recognised by their tattoos. Among the Ontario Iroquoians, elaboratetattoos reflected high status. in north-west America, Inuit women's chins were tattooed to indicate marital status and group identity. The first permanent tattoo shop in new york city was settled up in 1846 and began a tradition by tattooing military servicemen from both sides of the civil war. Samuel O'reilly invented the electric tattooing machine in 1891.

Middle-East

During the time of the old testament, much of the pagan world was practicing the art of tattooing as a means of deity worship. A passage in leviticus reads: ‘ye shall not make any cuttings on your flesh for the dead nor print any marks upon you’. (19:28) This has been cited as biblical authority to support the church's position. Biblical scholar M.W. Thomson suggests, however, that Moses favored tattoos. Moses introduced tattoos as a way to commemorate the deliverance of the jews from slavery in Egypt.

England

Explorers returned home with tattooed Polynesians to exhibit at fairs, in lecture halls and in dime museums, to demonstrate the height of european civilization compared to the ‘primitive natives’. After Captain Cook returned from his voyage to Polynesia tattooing became a tradition in the British Navy.By the middle of the 18th century most British ports had at least one professional tattoo artist in residence.In 1862, the prince of Wales, later to become King Edward VII, received his first tattoo - a jerusalem cross - on his arm. He started a tattoo fad among the aristocracy when he was tattooed before ascending to the throne. In 1882, his sons, the duke of Clarence and the duke of York were tattooed by the Japanese master tattooist, Hori Chiyo.

the german Annie Frank 1911, postcard

coca cola advert, 1944, life magazine

Brainwashing

2008-09-08T18:54:00.004+04:00

"Just as most soldiers believe bullets will hit only others, not themselves, most citizens like to think that their own minds and thought processes are invulnerable. 'Other people can be manipulated, but not me,' they declare." -- Margaret Singer, Ph.D.

Have you ever thought that every day we are exposed to brainwashing? No? Daily either by commercials,tv shows,propagandas or any other mass media tools our brains are deformed. Things that you think you want actually are imposed on you without your consciousness.
How you choose your toothpaste? Which brand butter you buy? Why you vote for that particular person? What is the reason you buy things that sometimes you even dont use? If you think a little bit on these questions and answer then you will understand why I am asking .
You dont have to be in a jail or a member of a cult to be brainwashed.Now it is much easier to become zombi with the help of Mass Media.
So be aware of what is going on.The thing what you do,is it imposed on your will or not?

Brainwashing (mind control) is the successful control of the thoughts and actions of another without his or her consent. Generally, the term implies that the victim has given up some basic political, social, or religious beliefs and attitudes, and has been made to accept contrasting ideas. 'Brainwashing' is often used loosely to refer to being persuaded by propaganda.

The Technology of Thought and Behavior Control:

The long evolution of developing procedures to control human behavior all came to a head in the modern world with Pavlov, a Russian scientist. In the early years of the twentieth century, Pavlov made the discovery that you can condition a dog to salivate on command simply by associating food with the ringing of a bell. Once that association is fixed in the dog's mind, the food can be removed and the dog will salivate merely when it hears the bell.

Pavlov carried out the identical experiments on human beings with the same results. Those principles have been adapted to television and motion pictures and can now make people salivate in response to a wide array of bells and whistles. We can call it phase one in the evolution of human behavior control.

Phase two was accomplished by the same Russian scientist, Pavlov. Very few people know of this part of his research. During a particularly severe storm in Russia, heavy rains continued for days and Pavlov's laboratories were flooded. Pavlov and his research assistants were able to return to the laboratory only after the flood waters had receded days later. Upon returning, Pavlov discovered something truly remarkable. Before the flood, many of the dogs had been conditioned to respond to various stimuli. Lo and behold, all traces of the conditioning in the dogs had disappeared! Bells, food, nothing could induce the former salivation response that had been so carefully implanted in the dogs' nervous systems.

What mysterious influence could account for this remarkable turn of events, Pavlov wondered. So, being a good scientist, he studied carefully what had transpired while he was away from the dogs. They had been left without food or warmth. They had been isolated for days; some of them had drowned. They had been subjected to extreme stress, never knowing if they would live or die. These were the factors that had produced the washing away of the previous conditioning from the dogs' brains - brain-washing.

Pavlov and other Russians followed up this line of research, but it was the Chinese communists in the 1950s who first saw its real potential for use with human beings. They employed these very principles in brainwashing American and other Allied prisoners of war during the Korean conflict. Isolation, periodic denial of food or water, cold and exposure, extreme stress associated with uncertainty of life or death--these conditions, together with a continual barrage of indoctrination produced the erasing of previous beliefs and behavior patterns in American soldiers in particular. Thus brainwashing became phase two in the evolution of human behavior control.

Wag the Dog...

2008-09-08T00:30:00.002+04:00

Why does a dog wag its tail? Because a dog is smarter than its tail. If the tail were smarter, the tail would wag the dog.

Wag the Dog (1997) was produced and directed by Barry Levinson. Hilary Henkin and David Mamet co-wrote the screenplay. The film is based on the novel American Hero by Larry Beinhart. The book, however, differs greatly from the picture. In the book the president is specifically George Herbert Walker Bush (in the movie he is unnamed) and the fake war operation is explicitly Desert Storm.

The film explores serious themes, such as the manipulation of the mass media and public opinion, with a comedic sensibility. The film drew attention at the time for similarities to the Clinton sex scandal, although the movie also makes reference to the Persian Gulf War as an example of war used as an electoral tactic. The idea of war as a creation of the media is not, of course, original to the movie.

Great movie!

No Comment...

2008-09-07T20:09:00.002+04:00

Some Things Cost More Than You Realise

2008-09-04T16:39:00.001+04:00

Georgia begins life without Russia

2008-09-04T14:32:00.004+04:00

Russia has closed its embassy in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, and recalled its diplomats. It's the first time in post-Soviet history that Russia has cut ties with any nation.

When governments cut relations, it's part of a political game. But for ordinary people, such measures can often have serious consequences. Georgian residents have been queuing at the Russian embassy in Tbilisi. Each one has a personal connection to Russia.

For some it's relatives, for others it's business. But for every one of them the question is how to continue in this new reality.

"I was a Georgian citizen but today I decided I want to give back my Georgian passport. I came here to ask for a Russian passport. I want to live in Kaliningrad. My parents still live in Georgia, but after what happened I cannot stay here anymore and I decided I want to live in Russia," said Anastasia Valozhaikina, an applicant for a Russian passport applicant.

Since Wednesday all diplomatic links between Russia and Georgia have been cut.

For years Georgia was part of the Russian empire. Then it was one of the wealthiest states of the Soviet Union. The ancient ties between the two peoples are deep and exist on many levels.

The Shana family mixes the blood of four different peoples - Georgian, Ossetian, Russian and Jewish. And like most Georgian families, President Mikhail Saakashvili's decision tears them apart.

"Because of my profession, I have always received lots of offers to work in the States. It would have meant a better financial situation. But I always refused because I believe family must be together. But today it's different, because a big part of my family lives in Russia and to see them is going to be much more difficult," Viktor Shana said.

Until now, Saakashvilli could do what he wanted without criticism. The martial law he imposed at the beginning of the war gave him almost total power. But the parliament's decision to annul it means he has to deal with the local backlash.

"Now that martial law is lifted, there are a lot of questions that will be put on the table about Saakashvili's behaviour. We will speak loudly about him and I personally have some questions to ask him about the situation today. I am going to ask parliament to push for the resignation of Saakashvili's government. I think parliament has to act to create a new government," said opposition MP Professor Paata Davitaya.

And when the smoke of the war clears, Georgians will have to learn how to live without diplomatic ties with their largest neighbour for the first time in hundreds of years.

News from Russia Today

Back to Roots...

2008-09-02T14:56:00.003+04:00

Each day brings into our life new experiences,new happiness or disappointments.Each thing which enters our life changes us,sometimes for better sometimes not.We grow up and usually during this process we forget about one thing, thing which is very important and need to be protect.The Child in us,in that innermost where usually we dont like to look at,the sacred place of our being, where the darkest and the brightest things are kept.While we are afraid to look there not to see the darkest parts we at the same time ignore that Child too, the brightest thing in our existance.This child is keeping us pure and gives us all the good behaviours.

In life we face many things and they can be very cruel, rude and can discourage us.Even if we start with good intentions at the end we can give up or at that crucial stage we can start changing even without noticing it. We can become just like one of others.I call them "zombies" or "clones" for their identical behaviours.People that we were complaining about, that they are rude, selfish, cruel etc are not anymore different from us as we are day by day getting more like them.

To my opinion money is the biggest reason of all this evil and the worst thing is that we bring up our children with this idea of our cruel world and pollute their bright and pure minds and deprive them from having a real childhood.

Try it at least for once, remember your childhood, where there were no worries about money and all that material things. Go out into the nature, be one with it, explore it anew. Walk under the rain, enjoy the sun rays sparkling on your hair, watch children playing, listen to their laughter, have some adventure with nature. Look around, I am sure before because of the the rush of the daily life and financial worries you didnt notice many things, many beautiful things around and you can enjoy them for free!

Don't let the Child inside to die.It is like a flower and neeeds to be watered and cared with love.Love is the only thing that can keep it alive.Don't let life to make you indifferent to it.

Let's go back to our roots inside.Let's remember the good things.Think about how good life can be.If everybody makes some effort that's not that difficult.

by Sveta

Medvedev exclusive: We’re not afraid of Cold War

2008-09-01T00:43:00.003+04:00

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev

News from Russia Today

Medvedev exclusive: We’re not afraid of Cold War

With the Russian parliament backing the independence of the breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, President Dmitry Medvedev gives his views on the issue in an exclusive interview with RT.

RT: Immediately after Kosovo’s independence was recognised, Moscow said this could become a precedent for South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Today, you made a decision to support these republics’ independence. Why did Russia do it? Does this square with international law?

Medvedev: I'll start with your second question. This is fully in line with international law. When the case of Kosovo arose, my colleagues said this was a special case, or, as experts in international affairs say, casus sui generis. Well, each case of such recognition is a special case. The situation in Kosovo was special, and the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia is special as well.

In our situation, it is quite obvious that we made this decision in order to prevent genocide and annihilation of these peoples, and to help them to come to their feet. These unrecognised republics have been struggling for their independence for seventeen years now. Despite all attempts by the international community, no progress was made during this time. Until just recently, we tried to help restore the state unite of Georgia. However, it didn’t work.

The decision to launch an aggression buried all hopes of achieving an agreement. Thus, under current circumstances, the only way to preserve these peoples is to recognise them as subjects of international law, to recognize their state independence.

That is why our decision is fully in line with international law, the UN Charter, Helsinki declarations and other international documents.

RT: Is Russia prepared for a long and tough confrontation with leading world powers that the decision it made today may lead to? And, in general, aren’t we afraid of the prospect to enter another Cold War?

Medvedev: We are not afraid of anything, the prospect of another Cold War included. Of course, we don't want that. In this situation, everything depends on the stand of our partners in the world community, our partners in the West. If they want to preserve good relations with Russia, they will understand the reason for making such a decision, and the situation will be calm. But if they choose a confrontational scenario, well, we‘ve been through all kinds of situations, and we’ll survive.

RT: You have signed the six-point agreement. One of the points says Russia should pull its troops out of Georgia. Nevertheless, Russia is still being accused of not meeting this obligation. Is this true? Are there Russian troops left in Georgia?

Medvedev: That's not true. Russia has fully met its obligations stemming from the six principles of the so-called Medvedev-Sarkozy agreement. Our troops have been withdrawn from Georgia, except for the so-called security corridor.

RT: The presidential campaign is underway in the US. Both candidates have spoken more than once on Russia’s actions in Georgia. Don’t you think this situation is being used as an instrument for the political struggle inside the US?

Medvedev: Well, as far as I know, usually during the elections in the United States of America, voters are quite indifferent to what is happening abroad. But if one of the candidates managed to use this question, well, godspeed him. The main thing is that it should not lead to international tensions. I have no doubt that both candidates will try to spin this situation for his purposes. But such are the rules of the election campaign.

Stop Ruining The Earth!

2008-08-29T15:11:00.005+04:00

Would you do any damage to the place where you live in? Would you put on fire or do something that can destroy your home, your house? You wouldnt! Why should you if you are living in it and if it is the only place where you belong to. Then why people destroy, do harm to our planet which is our home, the place which gives us life? Our planet is writhing with pain and if we dont stop ruining it, soon there will be no place that we can call it "home".

How Russian decision will affect world’s unrecognised states

2008-08-28T09:21:00.004+04:00

The recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia will have repercussions both in Russia and around the world. RT looks at the hopes of other unrecognised states and their relations with the international community.

With 192 member states, the global world order is firmly wedded to the United Nations. So before any aspiring state can be formally recognised, it has to meet the approval of the UN General Assembly. And there are a couple of key hurdles to overcome.

It needs the consent of the Security Council, comprised of 15 countries and most importantly, the five permanent members of the Council. Today, there are a number of regions which are not recognised at all or only partially so.

Kosovo

Kosovo is the most recent example, having been recognised by more than 40 states, including the US, Canada and most of the European Union.

When Kosovo unilaterally declared independence this year, the veto exercised by permanent members Russia and China showed how the obstacles for full international recognition can be insurmountable.

Somaliland

The Republic of Somaliland, located in north east Africa, has not been recognised by any state since it declared independence from Somalia in 1991.

Despite its fragile status, Somaliland is in a territorial dispute with Somalia, claiming the entire area of the former British Somaliland protectorate. Meanwhile, the north eastern region of Maakhir has in turn declared a separate, unrecognised autonomous state within Somalia.

Yet another separatist movement in the western Awdal province makes the international recognition for either of them virtually unachievable. If any of the breakaway regions is officially recognised, the whole of Somalia will collapse like a house of cards.

Ex-Soviet republics: Transdniester

Four more regions, all parts of former Soviet republics, unilaterally proclaimed independence in the early 1990s. They are Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh and Transdniester. They acknowledge each other's status but this is not shared by the rest of the world.

Transdniester is located in a strip between the Dniester River and Ukraine.

Abkhazia,SouthOssetia,Nagorno-Karabakhand Transdniester

After the dissolution of the USSR, Transdniester declared independence, leading to a four-month long conflict with Moldova. Although the ceasefire has held, the territory's political status remains unresolved, and Transdniester has been de facto independent since then.

Nagorno-Karabakh Republic

The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, also known as the Artsakh Republic, is de facto independent, located about 270 km west of the Azerbaijani capital Baku, close to the border with Armenia.

The predominantly Armenian-populated region was long disputed between Armenia and Azerbaijan. However, while the Soviet Union had control over the area, the situation was relatively calm.

In the final years of the Soviet Union, the region re-emerged as a source of dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, culminating in conflict fought from 1988 to 1994.

On December 10, 1991, as the Soviet Union was collapsing, a referendum held in Nagorno-Karabakh and the neighboring Shahumian region resulted in a declaration of independence from Azerbaijan. Since the ceasefire in 1994, most of Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as a number of regions of Azerbaijan in close proximity, remain under joint Armenian and Nagorno-Karabakh military control.

Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

There is another group of countries which have been accepted as sovereign states by UN member-countries, but not by the UN itself. They therefore cannot be considered fully independent states.

The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, situated in the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara, proclaimed independence almost 40 years ago from Morocco. Since then it has remained a partially recognised state. It claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, parts of which are controlled by Morocco and Mauritania.

Taipei.Taiwan

Taiwan – formed after the Chinese Civil War – has essentially been independent for half a century. But China still regards it as a rebel region which must be reunited. It only has diplomatic relations with around two dozen countries and lost its UN seat in 1971.

Northern Cyprus

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus declared independence in 1983, nine years after a Greek Cypriot coup - which was attempting to annex the island to Greece - triggered an invasion by Turkey. Northern Cyprus has only been recognised by Turkey, on which it is fully dependent.

Palestinian Authority

Israel, whose own status is itself disputed by some of its neighbours, has a breakaway region of its own: The Palestinian National Authority.

It was formed in 1994, created to administer a limited form of self-government in the Palestinian territories for a period of five years, during which final-status negotiations would take place. The interim period expired in 1999, leaving the parties without any kind of solution. The situation has been a political stalemate since.

However on Wednesday U.S. Secretary Condoleezza Rice stated that President Bush is ‘tireless advocate’ for establishment of Palestinian state.

News from Russia Today

Do You Still Complain?

2008-08-26T11:34:00.006+04:00

Many of us dont realize how lucky we are by having the daily basic comforts and food.We complain about many things without even thinking that what we have is already a treasure for many other people.Have you ever thought what a gift is to be healthy, have a clean water to drink and water for self hygiene, a shelter to put your head under it and clothes to wear? This is what every person should have.These are basic needs, but for some people it is already a luxury to have them. Instead of complaining for things that are not a problem at all, we should value what we have and try to help others who are in need.Can we sleep with a clear conscience knowing that somewhere there are children dying of famine and lack of basic needs?

You may think "What I can do by myself,I am not in position to change it." Wrong! You are able to do something, if we unite, if we work together we can change many things and make the world better place to live in. Dont be indifferent! Indifference make the society rotten.

Feel gratitude for what you have and dont complain. Do something to help others.

Here are some information that I suppose everybody should know and think it over.

Hunger and Famine

What is hunger?

People usually think of hunger as the feeling they get if they skip breakfast or eat a small salad for lunch. But for millions of children and their families around the world, hunger is a day-in-day-out state that results from surviving on two small meals a day or less for weeks and sometime months.

Sometimes a meal is only a potato, some milk or cooked corn meal. Once a month it may be an ounce of meat. Often the only water for drinking is dirty, and makes people, especially children, sick. People may be hungry because of emergencies, like the recent famine that affected Ethiopia. For children living in the drought-stricken costal areas of Northern Mozambique, meals -for weeks on end - can consist of just a mango or starchy "porridge" made from bitterroot vegetables. These meals hold little nutritional value.

But people are often hungry because of longer-term political or economic situations. In Ethiopia and Angola, where conflict has undermined the country’s capacity for growing and distributing food, children often go without eating nutritious meals for months at a time, surviving only on grain, or in pastoral areas, only on milk.

What is famine?

Famine occurs when large numbers of people are dying from acute malnutrition – wasting away. Famine conditions occur when there is a drastic and widespread shortage of food. The cause of famine is usually the combination of a climactic shock, such as a drought, combined with civil unrest, political conflict, or poor governance.

How does hunger affect children and families?

Without adequate calories and a diverse diet consisting of grains, fruits, vegetables and proteins that provide the appropriate vitamins and nutrients, families become malnourished, with children and women being the most vulnerable. Children especially need an adequate diet for growth and development. Acute malnutrition results in significant weight loss or even death.

Chronic, or long-term, malnutrition, even at mild levels, can increase susceptibility to diseases like diarrhea, malaria, and measles. Chronic malnutrition contributes to the deaths of 6.5 million children per year around the world. Chronic malnutrition of children under two often results in stunting -- reduced height and permanently diminished physical and mental capacity. Stunting negatively impacts the health and productivity of current and future generations.

World Hunger Facts 2008

World Hunger Education Service

World hunger refers to the second definition, aggregated to the world level. The related technical term (in this case operationalized in medicine) is malnutrition.

Malnutrition is a general term that indicates a lack of some or all nutritional elements necessary for human health .

There are two basic types of malnutrition. The first and most important is protein-energy malnutrition--the lack of enough protein (from meat and other sources) and food that provides energy (measured in calories) which all of the basic food groups provide. This is the type of malnutrition that is referred to when world hunger is discussed. The second type of malnutrition, also very important, is micronutrient (vitamin and mineral) deficiency. This is not the type of malnutrition that is referred to when world hunger is discussed, though it is certainly very important.

Protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) is the most lethal form of malnutrition/hunger. It is basically a lack of calories and protein. Food is converted into energy by humans, and the energy contained in food is measured by calories. Protein is necessary for key body functions including provision of essential amino acids and development and maintenance of muscles.

No one really knows how many people are malnourished. The statistic most frequently cited is that of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, which measures 'undernutrition'. The most recent estimate (2006) of the FAO says that 854 million people worldwide are undernourished. This is 12.6 percent of the estimated world population of 6.6 billion. Most of the undernourished--820 million--are in developing countries. The FAO estimate is based on statistical aggregates. It looks at a country's income level and income distribution and uses this information to estimate how many people receive such a low level of income that they are malnourished. It is not an estimate based on seeing to what extent actual people are malnourished and projecting from there (as would be done by survey sampling). [It has been argued that the FAO approach is not sufficient to give accurate estimates of malnutrition (Poverty and Undernutrition p. 298 by Peter Svedberg).] In July 2008, FAO said that an additional 50 million people became undernourished in 2007 due to higher food prices.

Children are the most visible victims of undernutrition. Children who are poorly nourished suffer up to 160 days of illness each year. Poor nutrition plays a role in at least half of the 10.9 million child deaths each year--five million deaths. Undernutrition magnifies the effect of every disease, including measles and malaria. The estimated proportions of deaths in which undernutrition is an underlying cause are roughly similar for diarrhea (61%), malaria (57%), pneumonia (52%), and measles (45%) (Black 2003, Bryce 2005). Malnutrition can also be caused by diseases, such as the diseases that cause diarrhea, by reducing the body's ability to convert food into usable nutrients.

According to the most recent estimate that Hunger Notes could find, malnutrition, as measured by stunting, affects 32.5 percent of children in developing countries--one of three (de Onis 2000). Geographically, more than 70 percent of malnourished children live in Asia, 26 percent in Africa and 4 percent in Latin America and the Caribbean. In many cases, their plight began even before birth with a malnourished mother. Under-nutrition among pregnant women in developing countries leads to 1 out of 6 infants born with low birth weight. This is not only a risk factor for neonatal deaths, but also causes learning disabilities, mental, retardation, poor health, blindness and premature death.

The world produces enough food to feed everyone. World agriculture produces 17 percent more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago, despite a 70 percent population increase. This is enough to provide everyone in the world with at least 2,720 kilocalories (kcal) per person per day (FAO 2002, p.9). The principal problem is that many people in the world do not have sufficient land to grow, or income to purchase, enough food.

Poverty is the principal cause of hunger. The causes of poverty include poor people's lack of resources, an extremely unequal income distribution in the world and within specific countries, conflict, and hunger itself. As of 2008 (2004 statistics), the World Bank has estimated that there were an estimated 982 million poor people in developing countries who live on $1 a day or less (World Bank, Understanding Poverty, Chen 2004). This compares to the FAO estimate of 850 million undernourished people. Extreme poverty remains an alarming problem in the world’s developing regions, despite the advances made in the 1990s till now, which reduced "dollar a day" poverty from (an estimated) 1.23 billion people to 982 million in 2004, a reduction of 20 percent over the period. Progress in poverty reduction has been concentrated in Asia, and especially, East Asia, with the major improvement occurring in China. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the number of people in extreme poverty has increased.

Conflict as a cause of hunger and poverty. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that as of December 2006, there were at least 22.7 million displaced, including 9.9 million refugees and 12.8 million internally displaced persons (UNHCR 2007). (Refugees flee to another country while internally displaced people move to another area of their own country.) Most people become refugees or are internally displaced as a result of conflict, though there are also natural causes such as drought, earthquakes, and flooding. In the early stages of refugee emergencies, malnutrition runs rampant, exponentially increasing the risk of disease and death (World Health Organization 2003). But, important and (relatively) visible though it is, conflict is less important as poverty as a cause of hunger. (Using the statistics above 798 million people suffer from chronic hunger while 22.7 million people are displaced.)

Facts & Figures on Violence Against Women

2008-08-23T14:08:00.006+04:00

Violence against women and girls continues unabated in every continent, country and culture. It takes a devastating toll on women’s lives, on their families, and on society as a whole. Most societies prohibit such violence — yet the reality is that too often, it is covered up or tacitly condoned. — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, 8 March 2007

Violence against women and girls is a problem of pandemic proportions. At least one out of every three women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime — with the abuser usually someone known to her . Perhaps the most pervasive human rights violation that we know today, it devastates lives, fractures communities, and stalls development.

Statistics paint a horrifying picture of the social and health consequences of violence against women. For women aged 15 to 44 years, violence is a major cause of death and disability . In a 1994 study based on World Bank data about ten selected risk factors facing women in this age group, rape and domestic violence rated higher than cancer, motor vehicle accidents, war and malaria . Moreover, several studies have revealed increasing links between violence against women and HIV/AIDS. Women who have experienced violence are at a higher risk of HIV infection: a survey among 1,366 South African women showed that women who were beaten by their partners were 48 percent more likely to be infected with HIV than those who were not .

The economic cost of violence against women is considerable — a 2003 report by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the costs of intimate partner violence in the United States alone exceed US$5.8 billion per year: US$4.1 billion are for direct medical and health care services, while productivity losses account for nearly US$1.8 billion . Violence against women impoverishes individuals, families and communities, reducing the economic development of each nation .

In 1996, the United Nations General Assembly established the UN Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence against Women. The Trust Fund is managed by UNIFEM and is the only multilateral grant-making mechanism that supports local, national and regional efforts to combat violence. Since it began operations in 1997, the Trust Fund has awarded more than US$19 million to 263 initiatives to address violence against women in 115 countries. Raising awareness of women’s human rights, these UNIFEM-supported efforts have linked activists and advocates from all parts of the world; shown how small, innovative projects impact laws, policies and attitudes; and has begun to break the wall of silence by moving the issue onto public agendas everywhere.

Some facts and figures from around the world:

Harmful Traditional Practices

Harmful traditional practices are forms of violence that have been committed against women in certain communities and societies for so long that they are considered part of accepted cultural practice. These violations include female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM), dowry murder, so-called “honour killings,” and early marriage. They lead to death, disability, physical and psychological harm for millions of women annually.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)

FGM refers to several types of deeply-rooted traditional cutting operations performed on women and girls. Often part of fertility or coming-of-age rituals, FGM is sometimes justified as a way to ensure chastity and genital “purity.” It is estimated that more than 130 million girls and women alive today have undergone FGM, mainly in Africa and some Middle Eastern countries , and two million girls a year are at risk of mutilation. Cases of FGM have been reported in Asian countries such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, and it is thought to be performed among some indigenous groups in Central and South America . FGM is also being practiced among immigrant communities in Europe, North America and Australia .

Since the late 1980s, opposition to FGM and efforts to combat the practice have increased. According to the Secretary-General’s In-Depth Study, as of April 2006, 15 of the 28 African States where FGM is prevalent made it an offence under criminal law. Of the nine States in Asia and the Arabian Peninsula where female genital mutilation/cutting is prevalent among certain groups, two have enacted legal measures prohibiting it. In addition, ten States in other parts of the world have enacted laws criminalizing the practice .

"UNIFEM supported a project in Kenya, which involved local communities developing alternative coming-of-age rituals, such as “circumcision with words” — celebrating a young girl’s entry into womanhood with words instead of genital cutting. The project involved close cooperation with circumcisers, religious leaders, and men and boys in the communities . Another project in Mali, with support from the UN Trust Fund to Eliminate Violence against Women, is currently working to foster dialogue and build capacities among government ministries, parliamentarians, civil society and traditional and religious leaders that can lead to changes in harmful practices and attitudes."

Dowry Murder

Dowry murder is a brutal practice involving a woman being killed by her husband or in-laws because her family is unable to meet their demands for her dowry — a payment made to a woman’s in-laws upon her engagement or marriage as a gift to her new family. It is not uncommon for dowries to exceed a family’s annual income.

While cultures throughout the world have dowries or similar payments, dowry murder occurs predominantly in South Asia. According to official crime statistics in India, 6,822 women were killed in 2002 as a result of such violence. Small community studies have also indicated that dowry demands have played an important role in women being burned to death and in deaths of women being labelled suicides . In Bangladesh, there have been many incidents of acid attacks due to dowry disputes , leading often to blindness, disfigurement, and death. In 2002, 315 women and girls in Bangladesh were victims of acid attacks ; in 2005 that number was 267.

“Honour Killings”

In many societies, rape victims, women suspected of engaging in premarital sex, and women accused of adultery have been murdered by their relatives because the violation of a woman’s chastity is viewed as an affront to the family’s honour. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that the annual world-wide number of “honour killing” victims may be as high as 5000 women .

According to a 2002 report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, “honour killings” take place in Pakistan, Turkey, Jordan, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, Morocco and other Mediterranean and Gulf countries. It also occurs in countries such as Germany, France and the United Kingdom within immigrant communities. It is not only in Islamic countries or communities that this act of violence is prevalent. Brazil is cited as a case in point, where killing is justified to defend the honour of the husband in the case of a wife’s adultery .

According to a government report, 4,000 women and men were killed in Pakistan in the name of honour between 1998 and 2003, the number of women being more than double the number of men . In a study of female deaths in Alexandria, Egypt, 47 percent of the women were killed by a relative after the woman had been raped . In Jordan and Lebanon, 70 to 75 percent of the perpetrators of these so-called “honour killings” are the women’s brothers .

"In Sudan, the UN Trust Fund to Eliminate Violence against Women supported a project to combat “honour killings” in the Nuba Mountains region. The project trained local and religious leaders, women leaders and teachers to become advocates in their communities against “honour killings” and other forms of violence against women. They organized trainings and group discussions, as a result of which “honour killings” were for the first time discussed in public. The project led to positive changes in knowledge, attitudes and practices among community members who increasingly began to regard “honour killings” as a crime, rather than a legitimate means to defend a tribe’s honour."

Early Marriage

The practice of early marriage is prevalent throughout the world, especially in Africa and South Asia. This is a form of sexual violence, since young girls are often forced into the marriage and into sexual relations, which jeopardizes their health, raises their risk of exposure to HIV/AIDS and limits their chance of attending school.

Parents and families often justify child marriages by claiming it ensures a better future for their daughters. Parents and families marry off their younger daughters as a means of gaining economic security and status for themselves as well as for their daughters. Insecurity, conflict and societal crises also support early marriage. In many African countries experiencing conflict, where there is a high possibility of young girls being kidnapped, marrying them off at an early age is viewed as a way to secure their protection.

According to a 2006 report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women on her mission to Afghanistan, an estimated 57 percent of girls in Afghanistan are married before the age of 16. Economic reasons are said to play a significant role in such marriages. Due to the common practice of “bride money,” the girl child becomes an asset exchangeable for money or goods. Families see committing a young daughter (or sister) to a family that is able to pay a high price for the bride as a viable solution to their poverty and indebtedness. The custom of bride money may motivate families that face indebtedness and economic crisis to “cash in” the “asset” as young as 6 or 7, with the understanding that the actual marriage is delayed until the child reaches puberty. However, reports indicate that this is rarely observed, and that young girls may be sexually violated not only by the groom, but also by older men in the family, particularly if the groom is a child too .

Copyright © 2007–2008 United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)

Gender Equality

2008-08-21T17:37:00.005+04:00

While ‘sex’ refers to the biological differences between males and females, gender describes the socially-constructed roles, rights and responsibilities that communities and societies consider appropriate for men and women. We are born as males and females, but becoming girls, boys, women and men is something that we learn from our families and societies.

This set of assumptions, which we construct out of the biological differences between men and women, is what creates gender identities and in turn gender-based discrimination.

Being a social construction, gender is a very fluid concept. It changes not only over time, but also from one culture to another and among different groups within one culture. Therefore, gender roles, inequities and power imbalances are not a ‘natural’ result of biological differences, but are determined by the systems and cultures in which we live. This means that we can address and contribute to changing these roles by challenging the status quo and seeking social change.

Despite efforts at local, national, and international levels, women and girls continue to face discrimination. Gender-based discrimination and inequalities violate the human rights of both women and men and affect the well being of all children. By understanding gender discrimination, we are not only better equipped to help women and children realize their human rights, but also to better understand other kinds of inequalities, such as those based on age, race or class.

Gender-based discrimination takes on many different forms, some aspects include:

Human rights

Despite international laws guaranteeing women equal rights with men, women around the world are denied their rights to land and property, financial resources, employment and education, amongst others. In many cultures, women and girls are subject to female genital mutilation / cutting, and are harmed and even killed in the name of tradition. And for women in all countries, gender-based violence constitutes perhaps the most common and serious violation of human rights.

Work

Both women and men play important roles in productive work throughout the world, providing for themselves and their families. But women’s roles are often invisible, as they tend to be more informal in nature, such as self-employment and subsistence production. Even when women and men do perform the same tasks for pay, women are often paid less and receive lower benefits from their work than men in developed as well as developing countries.

Men hold the majority of positions of power and decision-making in the public sphere, with the result that decisions and policies tend to the reflect the needs and preferences of men, not women. In addition, women’s larger share of reproductive work, often known as the unpaid care economy, is undervalued as well as statistically invisible. In other words, women throughout the world work longer hours for less rewards than men.

Assets

The world’s resources are very unevenly distributed, not only between countries, but also between men and women within countries. While it is estimated that women perform two-thirds of the world’s work, they only earn one tenth of the income, and own less than one per cent of the world’s property. In many cases, women’s rights and access to land, credit and education, for instance, are limited not only due to legal discrimination, but because more subtle barriers (such as their work load, mobility and low bargaining position at household and community level) prevent them from taking advantage of their legal rights.

In 1997, the United Nations adopted gender mainstreaming as the strategy by which gender equality could be achieved. Mainstreaming a gender perspective means assessing the implications for women and men of everything that you do, including legislation, policies and programmes at all levels. It is a strategy for integrating both women’s and men’s needs and experiences into the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes so that gender inequality is not perpetuated.

For UNICEF, gender mainstreaming implies bringing gender analysis into all decision-making processes of the organization, whether core policy decisions or everyday decisions of programme implementation.

Gender mainstreaming is not a process that begins and ends with women. It does not only mean having an equitable number of women and men in the organization or supporting programmes exclusively for women, although it includes these aspects.

Addressing the gender-based needs of men and engaging them as partners in the work for the rights of women and girls is integral to the gender mainstreaming approach. Mainstreaming gender concerns means that programmes are designed and evaluated to ensure that women and girls benefit from UNICEF programmes - from those affecting society at large, such as child-friendly schools aiming to ensure education for all children and to address barriers girls’ face in pursuing their education , to those which specifically meet the gender-defined needs of women and girls, such as safe-motherhood projects to reduce maternal mortality.

by UNICEF

Smart,Rich and Blond - Good combination :))

2008-08-18T23:02:00.003+04:00

A blonde walks into a bank in New York City and asks for the loan officer.She says she’s going to Europe on business for two weeks and needs to borrow $5,000.00.The bank officer says the bank will need some kind of security for the loan,so the blonde hands over the keys to a new Rolls Royce.The car is parked on the street in front of the bank; she has the title andeverything checks out. The bank agrees to accept the car as collateral forthe loan. The bank’s president and its officers all enjoy a good laugh atthe blonde for using a $250,000.00 Rolls Royce as collateral against a$5,000.00 loan. An employee of the bank then proceeds to drive the Rollsinto the bank’s underground garage and parks it there.Two weeks later, the blonde returns, repays the $5,000.00 and the interest,which comes to $15.41. The loan officer says, “Miss, we are very happy tohave had your business, and this transaction has worked out very nicely,but we are a little puzzled. While you were away, we checked you outand found that you are a multimillionaire. What puzzles us is, why would you botherto borrow $5,000.00?” The blonde replies, “Where else in New York City can I park mycar for two weeks for only $15.41 and expect it to be there when I return?”

How to Deal With Stress

2008-08-17T13:18:00.004+04:00

Life can be stressful and at times you'll have to take steps to deal with ongoing stress in a positive way. Stress can have a variety of causes such as family problems, job problems, financial difficulties, poor health, mechanical breakdowns, false expectations or even the death of someone close to you. It is important to recognize the causes (some stress is natural) and, if possible, take steps to deal with the root of the problem or ask for help from friends and, in severe cases, professionals.

Steps:

1. Stop! Take a deep breath and realise that you have power to control your life. Just like everyone else!

2. Be aware of your choices; you always have a choice. This is true for emotions and work. Sometimes you need to let your emotions out but still stay in control.

3. Say something positive to yourself as soon as you wake up.

4. Start every day with reflection, spiritual or otherwise.

5. Set goals for what needs to be achieved in the day then write a "to do list". When writing "your to do list":

-Know your limits - Be realistic about what you can accomplish in a day.

-Prioritize your tasks and work to finish them starting with the highest priority (urgent/important).

-Do your most unpleasant or most difficult task at the beginning of the day when you are fresh, thereby avoiding the stress of last minute preparation. Procrastination feeds stress!

-Focus on one task at a time.

-Emphasize quality in your work, rather than sheer quantity.

-Schedule your day and your stress as this can reduce the number of stressors you must juggle at any one time. Stagger deadlines for large projects.

-Add some "breathing" space that will allow you time for "recharging" and creative thinking. You will also be better prepared when an unanticipated task arrives.

-Remember to delegate.

-Review your goals at the end of the day, this is cathartic and will help you sleep better.

-Know your limits and do not push yourself too hard or beat yourself up when you do not achieve your goals. Tomorrow is another day, start writing tomorrows to-do-list before you lie down so that it is off your chest.

6. Be organized. Much stress arises from feeling overwhelmed being organized and getting your priorities straight can help you break responsibilities down into manageable pieces and focus on the things that really matter.

7. Stop worrying about what you cannot change. Learning to accept things as they are is an important coping mechanism, but not as easy as it sounds.

8. Take responsibility for making your life what you want it to be. It is less stressful to make decisions and take action than to feel powerless and react to other's decisions. Decide what you want and go for it!

9. Treat your body right - You will have more self-confidence and energy, and be less likely to experience the physical side effects of stress:

-Eat a healthy breakfast and healthy snacks only. Your choice of food is very important when dealing with stress; stay away from sugary snacks and have unsalted nuts and fruit available.

-Drink water it is the best beverage and stay off alcohol which always adds to stress one way or another. Caffeine is also known to raise stress levels, so again it is best to drink water.

-Get fit. Exercise a little every day. This releases endorphins that can lower stress levels, also eat chocolate it also releases endorphins, but sorry only in small moderate dosage.

-Take a good vitamin/mineral mix tablet; some vitamins help you cope with stress.

-Get enough sleep, and, if possible, get into regular sleeping habits.

10. Listen to music. Stress can inspire intense emotional reaction. Utilize it. Vent the spleen to a favourite piece of music and experience a happy release. Also, positive and relaxing music can be helpful.

11. Use positive self-talk - One of the first things you can do in facing stressful situations is to reinforce your resolve through positive statements such as, "I can handle this, one step at a time," or "Since I've been successful with this before, there's no reason why I can't do it again".

12. Rehearse (visualize) - When you know that you are going to face a stressful situation, rehearse how you are going to handle it. Picture yourself overcoming it successfully. Create a mental "videotape" that you can play over and over in your mind.

13. Visualize positive things; this does not take long but can help you regain focus.

14. Develop a sense of humour - One of the barriers to stress reduction is the temptation to take things too seriously. It's okay to back off from your intensity and see the humour in life's situations. Laugh a little or better yet, laugh a lot! See the humour in stress.

15. Talk to friends. This is one of the most important things, as keeping things bottled up can only cause more stress.

16. Learn to say no; you cannot do everything you are asked.

17. Accept and appreciate the turmoil around you, without it there couldn't be anything you could call a good thing. Understand, that to feel frustration and anxiety only indicates your own humanity, and it's nothing to feel ashamed of.

18. Communicate your emotions this can improve the situation by informing others you need help; thus establishing a need for change in communication and situation.

19. Learn to meditate and let the stress go.

20. Take a bath this will give you private time and relax the body.

21. Chew gum or a toothpick. It has been shown that the action of chewing can reduces stress; this is why many people who are under constant stress tend to overeat. Chewing gum or a tooth pick is a healthier alternative.

22. Try some relaxation techniques or breathing techniques.

Tips:

- Do not just read about "How to Deal With Stress" ACT ON IT!

- Get rid of the cause of stress. This is the most practical solution but is often disregarded. Stressful things usually do you more harm than good.

- Take positive steps in advance if you know something is going to add to your stress.

- Identify causes of other hassles and minor stresses and eliminate them if possible.

- Be honest about your emotions, do not deny them or repress them as this will only add to the stress. Do not be afraid to cry as this can relieve anxiety and let out bottled-up emotions which can help you cope.

- Apologize to someone if you need. Make sure it will not make the situation worse. Guilt adds pain to stress.

- Plan an event in the future to look forward to. Planning using imagination can also help reduce stress.

- Seek out positive friends.

- Treat yourself to a massage.

- Do not expect perfection from yourself.

- Learnto forgive, particularly to forgive yourself.

- Get enough sunlight.

- Remember stress is a way to know you are alive. Celebrate your awarness of your life and congratulate yourself on your achievments.

- Do nothing and just spend some time by yourself. It could once a week, once a month, but try to do it regularly.

Don't blame it all on yourself. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, it may seem impossible. Giving up on the subject is not a bad thing, but giving up on yourself is not acceptable. You are a unique individual, worthy of love and the stress is just temporary. So breath in deep and tell yourself, you are loved, by you.

Why Men Cheat?

2008-08-16T12:04:00.003+04:00

Top 10 Reasons Why Men Cheat

Why men cheat on women is an age-old question. The reasons why men cheat on women can be varied. Nevertheless, we have compiled a list of the top 10 reasons why both married and unmarried men cheat. Sometimes their reasons don’t even involve you and it’s simply an ego-based decision. Other times, reasons why men cheat can involve you and your relationship, or lack thereof.

So why do some men cheat in relationships? Almost all men know that cheating is wrong, yet many they still do it. Men will blame their reasons for cheating on their genes and their necessity to reproduce. However, aren’t we suppose to be further evolved than a chimp? Shouldn’t we be able to control our bodies through our minds and conscious decisions? Aparrently not always.

Here are the top 10 reasons why men cheat:

1. Because they had the option. The old saying “men are only as faithful as their options” can sometimes ring true. Men don’t get offered sex as often as women so when the opportunity does arise, it can be very difficult for them to turn it down.

2. It boosts their ego. Sometimes men don’t feel like they are attractive to the opposite sex any more and when a woman shows some interest, not only does a man react, he may allow her to stroke his ego and more. There’s nothing like the thrill of the chase to men on the hunt. When they are finally rewarded for their efforts, their egos swell even larger.

3. You grow apart. Maybe the two of you didn’t have as much in common as you thought. He’s met a woman who has more in common with him who loves football or plays golf. He may check out if he is compatible with her under the sheets also.

4. You argue a lot. Men will sometimes cheat to get away from an overly critical or argumentative partner. Who wants to be around someone who is constantly on them about something.

5. He’s fallen out of love. Sometimes men become so comfortable in a relationship, they don’t know how to get out. They may be staying in the relationship because of children or financial reasons. However, they feel like they are missing out on love and may seek it out elsewhere. In their mind, this is as close to win-win as they can get.

6. Your sex life sucks. If a man has a disinterested partner or isn’t getting enough sex to fulfill him, there is a good chance he will have an affair. Just because you have a husband or boyfriend, does not mean you can stop trying. It takes a little bit of effort to keep your sex life from getting boring and non-existent. Some men cheat because they want to try new sexual things that their current partner will not try.

7. To get revenge. A man will sometimes cheat if he finds out his partner was cheating on him. How else is he supposed to heal those hurt feelings of his but through good old fashioned sex?

8. It’s new, different and exciting. Some men get tired of having steak for dinner every night and want to try a hamburger. The same goes for sex with a woman. That’s why men don’t necessarily always cheat with women who are more attractive than their partners.

9. To see if they can get away with it. If a man has the attitude of “what she doesn’t know, won’t hurt her,” he may cheat to see if he is sneaky and smart enough to get away with it. However, with all the advancement in surveillance spy ware, getting caught has now become easier than ever.

10. Because you have allowed it in the past. If you have forgiven a cheating man a couple of times, they are more than likely going to cheat again because they already know if they plead enough, you will forgive them.

Reasons why men cheat can be more complex than the above list or even be a combination of a few different reasons. Nevertheless, no reason is good enough reason to lie and be dishonest. After all, Karma can be a bitch.

By Infidelity Expert Stephany Alexander

Wolf Messing

2008-07-02T09:45:00.004+04:00

One of the most enigmatic personalities of the past century, Wolf Messing was born into a Jewish family and was wanted by Josef Stalin and hated by Adolf Hitler. The phenomenal ability of this legendary man is still shrouded in mystery…

Wolf Messing was born on September 10, 1899, in a village not far from Warsaw. His father and brothers perished in the Maidanek death camp during World War Two. His mother did not live to see that though… Many Polish Jews were then going to Germany driven by scathing poverty and unemployment. The little Wolf was also on his way there. Having no money to buy a train ticket, he hid under the seat and fell asleep… A short while later his slumber was cut short by a ticket checker loudly requesting his ticket. The boy was scared to death and with pretty good reason too because in Hitler’s Germany any transgression, even a free ride could easily cost one his life. His eyes glued to the controller’s, the shaken boy proffered a trembling hand clutching a scrap of newspaper mentally beseeching the man to take it for a ticket. The controller gave him a strange glance: “Why are you hiding then, you little fool? C’mon, get up, we are arriving in Berlin shortly!” he said punching the piece of paper Wolf had offered him.

The boy took some time to realize his suggestive powers though. He explained his luck with the ticket checker as the man being too tired to take a better look or, maybe simply feeling pity for him. It took another incident for Wolf to finally appreciate his supernatural powers…

In Berlin, sweeps were fast becoming a routine affair and many Jews never showed up at home after work being instead whisked away to concentration camps or being summarily executed. Being a Jew, Wolf Messing finally got caught by that deadly dragnet... Having neither an ID card not a job certificate and almost starving, he was thrown behind bars. Another close call… He thought how great it would be if the wardens left his cell unattended and retired into a faraway room. Well, this crazy idea miraculously came true! Shortly after, the guards left. Then they came back only to see that their young captive was gone! Wolf Messing then landed the job of a messenger. Once, hauling a hefty parcel, the starving young man blacked out. Thinking the boy was dead, the doctors sent the body to the mortuary where, much to Wolf’s luck, a young intern managed to feel his heartbeat. Waking up, Messing was told he had been in a coma for a whole three days. Interested, Doctor Abel started teaching the teen the art of telepathy, which was very much in vogue back in those days. Doctor Abel also found him a job with a wax museum where Messing wowed the public five days a week lying inside a crystal casket pretending he was dead.

His first concerts, box office grabbers all, were in Vienna in 1915. It was then and there that Wolf Messing made the acquaintance of Albert Einstein. The great psychoanalyst Zigmund Freud, who was then staying with the great physicist, wanted to check out the young man’s extraordinary mind-reading abilities. Acting on Freud’s mental orders, the shy and self-effacing Wolf went up to the table and picking up a pincer, plucked out three hairs from the host’s famous moustache. A puzzled Einstein winced in pain and Freud gave out a satisfied chuckle. Messing had read out Freud’s mind and stood the test just perfectly! Buoyed by that initial success, Wolf started touring the world as a psychic entertainer. When the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939 Messing fled the country to escape the wrath of Adolf Hitler whose death in 1945 he had publicly prophesied. Messing was wanted by the Fuhrer after declaring his prophesy about Germany’s defeat during its attempted invasion of the east and offered a sum of 200,000 marks for his head. Arrested before he could leave the country, Messing was thrown behind bars. Unfazed by his predicament, he mentally ordered his prison guards to assemble in his cell and, locking them up there, he managed to get away to Moscow. Knowing very little Russian and having no definite profession, Messing took a mere six months to gain a superstar status in the Soviet Union where magicians and mesmerists were never much liked by the country’s Communist authorities. Who knows, maybe he owed his officially backed popularity to a prediction that red-starred tanks would some day be rumbling up and down the Berlin streets?

Word about the great Wolf Messing finally reached the Kremlin and Josef Stalin wanted to see him. Overawed, Messing started showing off his supernatural psychic powers. Puffing on his pipe, Stalin said, “Well, you could rob a bank this way, right?” “Yes, I could…” Messing replied. Shortly after, Wolf Messing, with a bevy of security agents in tow, walked into the Central Bank headquarters in Moscow with an order to take away 100,000 rubles. Walking up to the teller’s window, Messing handed him a blank sheet of paper and opened his briefcase. Receiving a mental order, the no-nonsense teller carefully examined the paper and readily produced the required sum. Messing left the building and immediately returned giving the money back to the teller. The man stared at the empty sheet of paper for one brief moment and… went down unconscious!

On at least one occasion, Messing was able to predict a man’s fate by looking at his photograph. He was able to foretell the future (when he was forced to by circumstances) with accuracy. Messing wrote that foresight or clairvoyance does exist. We cannot explain such phenomena because we have yet to clearly understand the essence of time, its connection to space, and the interconnectedness between past, present, and future.

Wolf Messing lived 76 years. Even a magician of his stature is powerless in the face of Death. Wolf Messing took the secret of his amazing psychic powers with him…

Happiness is an attitude.

2008-06-25T15:14:00.005+04:00

Another wonderful parable...

The 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though she is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready. As she maneuvered her walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of her tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window. "I love it," she stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy. "Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room .... just wait." "That doesn't have anything to do with it," she replied. "Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it ... It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away ... just for this time in my life."

Bulgarian Cuisine Dishes, Bulgarian Food Recipes

2008-06-22T19:54:00.006+04:00

Shopska Salad - a Bulgarian favourite

Ingredients for 4:

4medium size tomatoes,
2 cucumbers,
2 spoonfuls chopped onion or green onion (optional)
2 roasted peppers or fresh green peppers
1 red pepper,
optional: olives
chopped parsley,
grated feta cheese to sprinkle salad,
salt, pepper, vinegar and olive oil

How to prepare:

Cut all ingredients in slices or cubes. Season with salt, pepper, add the chopped parsley, 1 tbs. of vinegar and 2 tbs. of olive oil and mix well. Sprinkle with feta cheese and enjoy either on its own or as a side dish.

Snezhanka/Tarator - a Great Starter or a side dish

Ingredients:
1 small cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly chopped dill
16 ounces thick plain yogurt (or Greek Style )

How to prepare:

Snezhanka - dip style version. Peel the skin of the cucumber using a potato peeler, chop in small pieces, squeeze between your hands to drain most of the water, season with salt, add the chopped garlic, olive oil and dill, and leave for 10 minutes. Then add the joghurt and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

Tarator - cold soup version.

This cold soup is among Bulgarians favorite foods for the summer. It is served as a first course instead of a salad or between meals as refreshment. You might even see it served in a glass.

Ingredients:
2 cucumbers (about 500 g or 1 lb)
500 g plain yogurt (1 lb)
3-4 garlic cloves
2-3 tablespoons of crushed walnuts (optional)
1 bunch fresh dill
oil
salt
water (optional)

How to prepare:

-Cut the cucumbers into cubes and put them in a bowl. You may aslo grate them but it changes the look and the consistency.
- Beat the yogurt with a fork until it gets liquid and pour it over the cucumbers.
- Add the crushed garlic, the walnuts and the minced dill as well as salt and oil to taste.
- If needed add some water to make the soup as liquid as you like but take care not to make it too "thin".
- Put into the refrigerator to cool or add ice cubes.
- Serve cold.

Scarlet Sails (The Book)

2008-06-21T20:20:00.003+04:00

"Scarlet sails" tells the story of a little girl named Asole , who met a story teller one day and was told that someday in the future a ship with red sails would arrive -- to take her away to a new, happy life. She believed the story and kept this faith even when she grew up. She was considered strange, the town's people laughed at her and her life wasn't easy, but she managed to preserve a golden heart and pure eyes of a child.

Known as one of the most beautiful and romantic tales ever written, the book soon became a Russian classic. The best time to read is perhaps when you are still in your childhood, young and dreamy. Later in life, you will realize how powerful the story is. It's like a light in your heart, give you faith and help you standing up from the disappointments.

Saying it that way, the effect of the story on adult readers might not be as strong but it is still worth a look for anyone who has romantic soul and believes in miracles. And of course, Alexander Green's writing style is always joyful, poetic and very enjoyable.

Scarlet Sails (tradition)

2008-06-20T09:34:00.004+04:00

The Scarlet Sails celebration in St. Petersburg, Russia is the most massive and famous public event during the White Nights Festival. The tradition is highly popular for spectacular fireworks, numerous music concerts, and a massive water-show including battle among tens of boats full of pirates on the waters of Neva river. The Scarlet Sails show celebrating the end of school year 2007 was attended by more than one million people.

This tradition began here after the end of WWII, when several Leningrad schools united to celebrate the ending of a school year in connection with symbolism of the popular children's book "Scarlet sails" by Alexander Grin. At the first celebration a boat with scarlet sails was sailing along the English Embankment and the Admiralty Embankment towards the Winter Palace. Although it was designed to update the rusty revolutionary propaganda, the "Scarlet Sails" tradition eventually evolved into a massive demonstration of freedom from "schools and rules" and became the most popular public event ever since, celebrating the ending of school year annually.

Crowds of about one million people are treated to a wide variety of free entertainment provided by the city of St. Petersburg. Entertainment also includes appearances by popular rock stars, as well as St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra, ballet, and other classical acts, performing on several stages simultaneously during the days of the event. The show also includes a series of large-scale events on the waters of Neva river, such as rowing and motorboat races, and a massive battle with pirates culminating with appearance of a tall ship sporting spectacular "Scarlet sails." The show has been always the essential part of the White Nights celebration.

Martial Philosophy/History

2008-06-18T15:04:00.003+04:00

If you think that martial arts are all about fighting, you are mistaken. All martial skills are developed to defend yourself, your loved ones and those who cannot defend themselves. In essence: "Learn the ways to preserve rather than destroy. Avoid rather than check; check rather than hurt; hurt rather than maim, maim rather than kill; for all life is precious, nor can any be replaced." This has been the martial artist's credo, passed down from teacher to student for thousands of years. Historical records date back to the Chou Dynasty (1027 - 256 B.C.), the beginning of the Iron Age.

Huang Ti, China's first unifier (221 - 210 B.C.) prohibited the practice of martial arts for fear that the masses might rise up and destroy the empire. Martial arts were practiced in secret until 206 B.C. when Liu Pang, later known as Kao Tsu, assumed the throne of the Han Dynasty. Emperor Kao permitted the resumption of martial arts practice throughout the realm and they became a vital part of military training.

Unarmed defense principles were advanced through Zen (Ch'an) Buddhist religious practices during the sixth century. Bodhidharma, who was said to have traveled to China, spread the word of Zen Buddhist faith and is believed to be the father of Shaolin Temple Boxing. It is said that he introduced the monks to systematized exercises for strengthening the body and the mind, to endure prolonged mediation. Self-defense movements were devised later from Bodhidharma's knowledge of Indian fighting systems and thus the birth of Shaolin Kung Fu.

The greatest contribution to martial arts by the Taoists is without a doubt Tai Chi Chuan. The Taoist priest Chang Sen-feng, after spending ten years with the Shaolin Monks, retreated to Wu Dan mountain to pursue his search for immortality. After witnessing a fight between a snake and a crane, he developed a complete system designed to maintain health, calm the mind, and increase longevity - Tai Chi Chuan, "The Grand Ultimate Fist." The self-defense aspects became so effective that it was recognized as one of the superior schools of traditional Chinese "boxing".

Over the past quarter century western science and medicine has tested and authenticated the powers and benefits of martial arts training. Practices handed down over thousands of years have stood the tests of modern science.

Quotes:

"Martial Arts Are As Infinite As The Universe." Master Hironori Otsuka

"Violet action may be understood as the way of Martial Arts, but the true meaning of the Martial Arts is to seekand attain the Way of Peace and Harmony." Master Hironori Otsuka

The Martial Arts teaches many things, but not all of these things are physical. As we study Martial Arts, we learn many lessons that guide us through the journey of life. We learn how and when to use or not to use what we have learned.

The "Ultimate Goal" of the Martial Arts philosophy is "Victory Without Combat", or that you can win a confrontation without resorting to physical violence. It also teaches us the habits and characteristics not only just to reach Black Belt excellence but also those things essential to a well-balanced life.

Some of these things you will learn right at the beginning of your journey; some you will learn in the middle; and yet others will take a while to establish.

true power of shaolin kung fu

2008-06-18T14:25:00.001+04:00

This is very interesting video.
I love martial arts and always wanted to be able to do one of them.I enjoy watching differnt types of martial arts performances.

Nu pogodi!

2008-06-18T13:31:00.001+04:00

This is a Russian cartoon from my childhood.It was very popular in Bulgaria too.This one is one of my favorite episodes. :) Each time I watch them, I feel back in those old good days. How wonderful is to be a child! When we are grown up we should keep a part from that child inside us. That makes us enjoy the life and remember life is not all about money and success, but joy and simple happiness.

More than words

2008-06-18T13:01:00.001+04:00

Herat and Ameera (2)

2008-06-13T01:09:00.006+04:00

Here we are again in the desert,
Under Ra’s look.

Here we are again together
Same stars, same sand at the bank of Nile .

Each death was just a door to another life,
Each birth a new journey.

Now we found each other anew
Ready to go on, from where we stopped.

Curse of Isis is over,
She took a pity on us.

Our love will live forever,
No one can separate us.

A new journey has just started,
A journey of Herat and Ameera.

Sveta M

13 June 1.22 am

Ivan (Konstantinovich) Ayvazovsky

2008-06-11T22:09:00.004+04:00

Ayvazovsky is one of my favorite painters.He has stunning works which when I each time go to Russian Museum look at with admiration.

Ivan (Konstantinovich) Ayvazovsky

Ivan Konstantinovich Ayvazovsky was born in the family of a merchant of Armenian origin in the town of Feodosia, Crimea. His parents were under strained circumstances and he spent his childhood in poverty. With the help of people who had noticed the talented youth, he entered the Simpheropol gymnasium, and then the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, where he took the landscape painting course and was especially interested in marine landscapes. In the autumn of 1836 Ayvazovsky presented 5 marine pictures to the Academic exhibition, which were highly appreciated. In 1837, Ayvazovsky received the Major Gold Medal for Calm in the Gulf of Finland (1836) and The Great Roads at Kronstadt (1836), which allowed him to go on a long study trip abroad. However the artist first went to the Crimea to perfect himself in his chosen genre by painting the sea and views of Crimean coastal towns.

During the period of 1840-1844 Ayvazovsky, as a pensioner of the Academy of Arts, spent time in Italy, traveled to Germany, France, Spain, and Holland. He worked much and had many exhibitions, meeting everywhere with success. He painted a lot of marine landscapes, which became very popular in Italy: The Bay of Naples by Moonlight (1842), Seashore. Calm (1843), Malta. Valetto Harbour (1844). His works were highly appreciated by J.W.M. Turner, a prominent English landscape and marine painter. In the course of his work, Ayvazovsky evolved his own method of depicting the motion of the sea – from memory, without preliminary sketches, limiting himself to rough pencil outlines. Ayvazovsky’s phenomenal memory and romantic imagination allowed him to do all this with incomparable brilliance. The development of this new method reflected the spirit of the age, when the ever-increasing romantic tendencies put an artist's imagination to the front.

When in 1844 the artist returned to St. Petersburg, he was awarded the title of Academician, and became attached to the General Naval Headquarters. This allowed him to travel much with Russian fleet expeditions on different missions; he visited Turkey, Greece, Egypt, America. From 1846 to 1848 he painted several canvases with naval warfare as the subject; the pictures portrayed historical battles of the Russian Fleet The Battle of Chesme (1848), The Battle in the Chios Channel (1848), Meeting of the Brig Mercury with the Russian Squadron... (1848).

Towards the 1850s the romantic features in Aivazovsky’s work became increasingly pronounced. This can be seen quite clearly in one of his best and most famous paintings The Tenth Wave (1850) and also in Moonlit Night (1849), The Sea. Koktebel. (1853), Storm (1854) and others.

The process, which determined the development of Russian art in the second half of the 19th century, also affected Ayvazovsky. A new and consistently realistic tendency appeared in his work, although the romantic features still remained. The artist's greatest achievement of this period is The Black Sea (1881), a picture showing the nature of the sea, eternally alive, always in motion. Other important pictures of the late years are The Rainbow (1873), Shipwreck (1876), The Billow (1889), The Mary Caught in a Storm (1892).

Ayvazovsky left more than 6000 pictures, which are of very different value. There are masterpieces and there are very timid works. He failed to draw landscapes, could not draw a man. Aivazovsky got good commissions and became rich. He spent much money for charity, especially for his native town, he opened in Feodosia the first School of Arts (in 1865), then the Art Gallery (in 1889). He was a member of Academies of Stuttgart, Florence, Rome and Amsterdam.

Love Quotes

2008-06-10T19:51:00.003+04:00

To live without loving is to not really live. - Moliere

Gather the rose of love whilst yet is time.- Edmund Spenser

And think not you can guide the course of love. For love, if it finds you worthy, shall guide your course.- Kahil Gibran

No love, no friendship can cross the path of our destiny without leaving some mark on it forever.- Francois Mauriac

Love comforteth like sunshine after rain.- William Shakespeare

At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet.- Plato

Love conquers all things; let us too surrender to love.- Virgil

It is not night when I do see your face.- William Shakespeare

The last of your kisses was ever the sweetest; the last smile the brightest; the last movement the gracefullest.- John Keats

He who love touches walks not in darkness.- Plato

Love is perhaps the only glimpse we are permitted of eternity.- Helen Hayes

If you press me to say why I loved him, I can say no more than it was because he was he and I was I.- Michel Montaigne

Love, like a river, will cut a new pathwhenever it meets an obstacle.- Crystal Middlemas

There is only one happiness in life,to love and be loved.- George Sand

You know you are in lovewhen you see the world in her eyes,and her eyes everywhere in the world.- David Levesque

Love is like a mountain,hard to climb,but once you get to the topthe view is beautiful.- Daniel Monroe Tuttle

To the world you may be one person,but to one person you may be the world.- Bill Wilson

Love is like a blazing flame,golden and full of warmth.- Ben Oliver

A story with no words

2008-06-10T13:46:00.004+04:00

Ameera and Herat

2008-06-09T10:52:00.003+04:00

Let the breeze wipes your tear,

The time has come.

Don't grieve for him Ameera

Keep your heart calm.

He left to come again,

To show you how he cares.

To give you all the world,

For just a kiss of yours.

Sveta

9th June 2008

1 pm

My Home Town - Kardjali

2008-06-08T11:51:00.002+04:00

One of the cutest places in the world is my home town Kardjali. Peaceful, green and quiet. When I was a child it seemed to me that it is a very big city and I was feeling myself like Alice in Wonderland, exploring the places.Later I left the city with my parents,but after years when I was back there I was so surprised.That city I used to see with child's eyes was different.I was so surprised how small it is and how much it has changed.I was expecting to see the same town but as everything in this world it has changed too.But Kardjali never lost it's magic for me.It is still my Wonderland, even though it doesn't seem to me that big like before.It is my Sacred place.

Kardjali is the main town of the eastern Rhodopy Mountains ridge. It is a well developed administrative center with a population of about 60,000 people. Currently the town is attracting a lot of investment, the real estate business in town is booming, tourism as well; business and commerce are improving.

The town is developed with good infrastructure, and provides plenty of places for sightseeing. A few of them are the Museum of history showing a rich exhibition of artifacts from the region. Another interesting fact is that the building was designed by the architect who designed the “St. Alexander Nevski” cathedral in Sofia.

Other sights of importance are the central church “St George” in town, which is famous with its golden domes, the medieval church “St John Precursor” and the monastery “The Assumption” which are temples of national importance.

The town and the region are also famous with its large lakes and white water rivers. Kardjali dam is the second largest lake in Bulgaria (28 km long). Its wall is the highest in the Balkans – more than 100 meters. The lakes and rivers are famous amongst anglers, boatmen and kayakers. Plenty of hunting grounds attract hunters from Bulgaria and abroad. The region has unspoilt nature and is rich in flora and fauna. The region of Eastern Rhodopy is the only habitat in Bulgaria for the black stork and white headed vulture. Climate is moderate, with temperatures a little higher that the average temperatures in Bulgaria, and at least 200 sunny days a year. The mild climate is great for vineyards, as Ivaylovgrad and Stambolovo areas are famous with the production of first quality Merlot and Cabernet wine.

At a distance of 20km from Kardzhali is situated one of the remarkable Bulgarian monuments – Perperikon. According to the scientists it is an unique Thracians Castle, dated from 5-th to 4-th centuries B.C. The monument is impressive for its enormous size - 80m long, 30m wide and 8m high. There are 15 separated rooms, skillful cut into the rock - the throne-room, leaving rooms, corridor and stairs. The experts think that this magnificent complex can be compared to such World famous monuments as Mickena, Delphy or Krith.
The Stone Wedding or the Stone Pyramids are near the village of Zimzilen. They can be reached through the Prostor park or through Solishte – under pick Ivanci – Panchevo – Kurdjali. There are colored in pink Pyramids – resembling men, women, horses, birds and etc.

In the area of Kardjali there is one of the natural phenomenon “The Stone Mushrooms” the reserve of very rare plants “Valchi Dol” and the bed of unique flower “Silivriak” or so called “Orpheus Flower”, the fields of snow drop, red peony, blue juniper and etc.

Here are build tree artificial lakes – “Kardjali”, “Studen Kladenec” and “Borovica”, inhabited by river-fish.

One of the most important Medieval monuments is set up also in Kardjali – The Church “St.Joan Precusor” in “Veselchane” residential district, completely restored in 2000. It was a back to 11-14 c.A.C., when the Church fortress around it change into Baptist’s residence. Founded tomb and discovered pieces of peculiar Baptist’s clothes, which are already restored, prove this fact. The hypothesis that the second Baptist centre is set up near Kardjali might be proved by the last archaeological researches in 2001. One the area of “Bash Klise” near Chiflick village another Christian Cloister Rose from the dead.

My One and the Only

2008-06-06T22:29:00.003+04:00

I just wanted to say here, MOM I LOVE YOU SO MUCH !!! You are my one and the only!

You are my lucky star, my sunshine, my endless well of love. I LOVE YOU!!!

REBIRTH

2008-06-05T16:37:00.002+04:00

Today I woke up with a different feeling, to be more correct, during the day I felt something rising inside me, like sun rises and it brightened my innermost.I felt that I am changing, am I reviving, just like a Fenix.

I realized that we shouldn't stop working on ourselves.Graduating from college or getting the skills we need to survive is not enough.We should keep working not only on our bodies or minds, but also on our souls too.

I decided to change my thoughts, my attitude to life and understand my innermost.I want to see what really lies there.Then I will find myself, my soul will be free and I can live happily in harmony with myself.

We just need to work on ourselves,that's all.Like an artist creates a masterpiece, we create ourselves.

Dont stop! Believe in yourself. Love and spread the love around you. And dont forget to smile! :)

living in an illusion...

2008-06-05T16:09:00.004+04:00

This is a passage which I wrote one night when I was insomniac and was thinking a lot.(Usually I like to think,even if it is not always good. LOL ) When the person remains with himself, he gets better and clearer idea about anything.

People delude themselves and think they are happy by living in an illusion.They dont see the true happiness,because they dont want to,they close their eyes with their hands.I am glad I finally opened my eyes and saw the light which brightened my heart and made me realize how lucky I am by having what I have.Material world is not eternal...Money makes the world goes round...but love makes the hearts fly high...Before it is too late,listen to your heart and open it to the true happiness.

Sveta

P.S. Sometimes insomniac nights could be very useful.In the middle of the night, in the deep silence when you get the needed serenity for the answers you have been waiting...

no more me...

2008-06-05T15:59:00.003+04:00

no more me...what is left is just a ruin...

no more me, just a flesh...

no more me, not anymore,I vanished inch by inch

each time, with the tears I poured

I am nowhere and everywhere...

just wandering in between,like a soul

trying to get beyond borders...

Sveta

April 2008

when love hurts...

2008-06-04T23:05:00.003+04:00

this is another work of mine...
(again without any corrections, it still needs improvement)

Each second turns to eternity when I wait for you
I could wait whole my life
if knew that in the end you will be mine.
You made me believe, you made me want.
It was you who made me fall in love
Now you turn your back and say good bye.
Don’t say we are friends,
I am not and never will be.
I am tired, powerless and worn out
Your each word become a scratch on my heart
Each look… a deep scar
And each smile… a crash
Why you have to be so cruel?
Don’t you understand?
my heart belongs to you
I need you…
You are my sunshine
Only your kisses can make me blossom in the morning
and your eyes can touch my soul so deep
It's only you and no body else...

Time

2008-06-04T14:44:00.002+04:00

This is another parable which I liked very much. Time is all we have.Despite we know all about this, how many of us stop for a while and think about it?How many of us use his/her time to the full.I must confess I am also not using my time properly, but I am aware of it and try to do my best, to use each second of this precious gift called Life.Be good to yourself, live your life to the full and open your heart to love.

Time

Imagine there is a bank that credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening the bank deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course! Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft. Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against the "tomorrow." You must live in the present on today's deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health, happiness, and success! The clock is running. Make the most of today. To realize the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade. To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a premature baby. To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper. To realize the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to meet. To realize the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed the train. To realize the value of ONE-SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an accident. Treasure every moment that you have! And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time. Remember that time waits for no one. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is mystery. Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present!

Need Sunshine...

2008-06-04T12:52:00.003+04:00

4th of June.It is supposed to be summer.Outside is not more than 10 degrees celcius.It's cold and I miss the sun.Even though today is not raining and the sky is clear,still I dont feel my best.Considering that I am ill now,it makes the situation worse.I am sick, with running nose and headache, alone at home with a company of my pc and taking tons of pills that I hate.But this time I can't escape it, as my doc strongly recommended me to take them regularly.Now I have a "nice" big pack full of tablets waiting for me. Blah! Feel lazy too, or just apathic. Hmmm....Actully at these time I can be very productive and can write something good (if I stop being lazy :P ). I realized that bad conditions or emotional experiences make me more productive in writing and I can get the most out of my innermost and put it on paper.So as they say, in every bad thing there is something good. ( When I look at myself from aside I can see there are some improvements in me. :) Even if I complain I still stay or try to stay positive. ) But first I need my headache to disappear. :S

As all women, I am not exception :) , I like to share my problems and to complain.It makes me feel relief a bit.While men try first to solve their problems by themselves and ask for help only if they see they cant handle it, women dont ask for advice but need just to be heard and get the symphaty of the person at that moment.

Is anybody going to show a symphaty for me today? :)

Today's posting is more like a part of a diary.I just feel like write all that, maybe it can help somehow for me to feel better.

God, how I wish now to be on the beach and enjoy the sunshine and the breeze, and leave myself at the embrace of the sea.

Somebody rescue me!!! :)

Foods of Love

2008-06-03T19:46:00.002+04:00

I am sure each of you have once thought about this topic and as love takes a very big part of our lifes, we think how we can make it better. :) So here are some information which is useful I think.Enjoy your reading and dont forget to make your love life more colourful. ;)

Love Foods

People have been adventurous in love, and with aphrodisiacs, for as long as our history has been recorded. In every land we continue to create love recipes to entice and seduce the opposite sex, and to enhance our performance in the act itself.

Although the reasons for attraction and desire are almost as much a mystery today as they were in ancient times, we do know that the spur for sexual desire begins in the brain - in the hypothalamus, which also governs our appetites for food and drink.

The sea is one of the major sources of life. It is therefore no surprise that most sea creatures have the elements to form an aphrodisiac. All shellfish, the strongest aphrodisiacs, contain phosphorus, calcium, iodine, iron, vitamin B and glycophosphates, basic essentials for an aphrodisiac. All oily fish, such as salmon, tuna, shark, eel, herring, mackerel and sardines, and many forms of white fish, including sole and turbot, contain phosphorus, calcium and vitamins A, B and D, important elements in a variety of aphrodisiac treats.

History is rife with the human pursuit of aphrodisiacs in many forms. Scientific tests have proven that some aromas can cause a greater effect on the body than the actual ingestion of foods. Here are some common foods of love used through the ages.

Asparagus: three courses of asparagus were served to 19th century bridegrooms due to its reputed aphrodisiacal powers.

Banana: due not only to its shape, but also its creamy, lush texture, some studies show its enzyme bromelain enhances male performance.

Caviar: is high in zinc, which stimulates the formation of testosterone, maintaining male functionality.

Champagne: viewed as the "drink of love," moderate quantities lower inhibitions and cause a warm glow in the body.

Chocolate: The Aztec and the Mayan people considered chocolate a luxury with aphrodisiac powers. The Aztec emperor, Montezuma, drank 50 cups of chocolate a day to enhance his sexual ability. Chocolatecontains both a sedative which relaxes and lowers inhibitions and a stimulant to increase activity and the desire for physical contact. It was actually banned from some monasteries centuries ago.

Figs: seasonal crops were celebrated by ancient Greeks in a frenzied copulation ritual.

Ginger: Ginger root has been considered an aphrodisiac for centuries because of its scent and its ability to stimulate the circulatory system.

Honey: In Persia, newlyweds drank honey mead for one moon (or month) which is where the term “honeymoon” comes from. Others say the word “honeymoon” is from an old Viking tradition, where newlyweds were given a month to get to know each other. During that month, they were encouraged to drink lots of mead, a wine made from honey.

Soy: In at least one case, soy was associated with a case of “persistent sexual arousal syndrome.” A woman consuming over a pound of soy a day became chronically aroused. Soy milk, anyone?

Tomatoes: The bright red fruit that eats like a vegetable was shunned by the Puritans due to its reputed aphrodisiac powers. They are also known as "pomme d'amour" (French for "apple of love") which resulted from a misunderstanding of "pomme de' Moors."

Pine Nuts: Pine nuts are also high in zinc and have been used for centuries to make up love potions that stimulate the libido.

Oysters: These mollusks have long had a reputation of being aphrodisiacs. Oysters are high in both protein and zinc, which raises sperm and testosterone production which in turn increases libido. Oysters have a slightly salty/sweet scent which has been compared to a female pheromone. The great lover Casanova apparently ate dozens every morning.

Cardamom: This aromatic spice is regarded as a powerful aphrodisiac in certain cultures. It’s supposedly beneficial in treating impotence.

Avocado: The Aztecs call the avocado tree “testicle tree” because its fruit hangs in pairs on the tree, resembling the male testicles.

Basil (sweet): The scent of basil was said to drive men wild. Women have been known to sprinkle dry crushed basil on their breasts to keep their husbands’ eyes from wandering.

The Brick

2008-06-02T22:13:00.005+04:00

Here is another parable which I found and I think we should muse upon it.Especially in the era we live, where everybody is after money and success we forget about the real values which can't be bought.I am really concerned about all this.It seems that we become more and more emotionally impotent and turning into robots.

The Brick

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door! He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown. The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, "What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?" The young boy was apologetic. "Please, mister...please! I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do," he pleaded. "I threw the brick because no one else would stop!" With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car. "It's my brother," he said. "He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up." Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, "Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me." Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay. "Thank you and may God bless you," the grateful child told the stranger. Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message "Don't go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!"

Solitude

2008-06-02T03:19:00.003+04:00

This is another work of mine, yet not corrected,but I hope you dont mind me to put it here in its "raw" version. :)

Solitude

Every night
When the dark downfalls ,
I remain with myself and
feel the loneliness.

My only friend…
Solitude….

From the hidden place of my inner life
It comes through the shadows
And face me with the real.

Self-delusion as a consolation ,
This is what the people do.
Life as a solitary confinement
Full with illusions.

Existence of friends is
disputable question.
Lure of the selfishness
Prevails over the faith...

P.S. It was written at a time that I felt really down, but I would like to say, that I believe in a true friendship and I dont know how could I have managed to overcome all those difficult moments in my life without them.My dear all, thank you for being a part of my life! Real friends are our Guardian Angels.God Bless them!

The History of St.Petersburg

2008-06-01T19:40:00.005+04:00

St Petersburg is a relatively young city, by both Russian and European standards, and was only founded in 1703 by Tsar Peter the Greatas as his "window on the West". Despite its short life so far, Petersburg has a rich and exciting history. From the early days of Peter the Great's "Venice of the North" to the modern events of the 1991 coup d'etat, the city has always bustled with life and intrigue, revolution and mystery.

St. Petersburg is a beautiful and fascinating holiday destination and one of the most intriguing and historically significant cities in Europe. Whether you chose to visit the city in the midst of a romantic and snowy Russian winter or during the dazzling White Nights of the summer months, you will be spellbound by St. Petersburg's culture and beauty.

When and how was St. Petersburg founded?

During the course of the Northern War with Sweden, Russia's forces gradually moved from Lake Ladoga down the Neva River to the Swedish fort of Nienchanz. After an 8-day siege on May 1 1703, the Swedish garrison surrendered. To protect the newly conquered lands on the Neva delta Peter the Great needed a fortress, but Nienchanz was small and badly damaged. Looking for a site for his new fortress Peter the Great chose the Island of Enisaari (Hare's Island), which was known to the Russians as Zayachii ostrov. On May 16 1703 (May, 27 by the modern calendar) St. Petersburg's fortress (the Peter and Paul Fortress) was founded and that day became the official birthday of the city. Several days later a wooden Cabin of Peter the Great was built, and became the first residential building in the new city.

The original clay walls and bastions of the fortress were completed by the end of summer 1703 under the careful supervision of the Tsar and his close associates. The builders of the fortress (mostly soldiers and peasants) worked in very primitive conditions, since the climate was very damp, good housing nonexistent and food in very short supply. Working from dawn to dusk, they died in great numbers, but the war still went on and the fort had to be completed as soon as possible.

By August 1703 the new settlers in Peter's city had already encountered the infamous St. Petersburg floods. Due to the boggy nature of the terrain, the area was considered unhealthy for a town, but it had tremendous strategic importance, so Peter the Great continued constructing the city despite all the losses and extra expenditures. For its first few years the St. Petersburg of Peter the Great was limited to a small town around the fortress, but by 1712 it had grown enough to become the new Russian capital.

The St. Petersburg of Peter the Great

During the first few years of St. Petersburg's history, the the banks of the Neva saw an amazing transition from a swampy, scarcely populated area to a fine European capital. The first structure to be built in the new city was the Peter and Paul fortress. Althout it was originally designed to protect the area from possible attacks by the Swedish army and navy, the fort did not actually take part in any fighting. Just across the River Neva from the fortress Peter built the fortified Admiralty complex, where the most powerful ships of Russia's Baltic Fleet were built. Many of these vessels were to lead Russia to a great series of naval victories during the course of the Northern War. Many of St. Petersburg's street and district names still remind us today of Peter the Great's preparations for war and the great shipbuilding industry he instituted; Liteiny - meaning "the Foundry yard" and Smolny - "the Tar yard", which produced tar for the purposes of shipbuilding, for example).

Tsar Peter the Great's first residence in the city was a small hut, know now as the Cabin of Peter the Great. As the city developed the Tsar commissioned a Summer Palace to be built for him in 1714 and later a Winter Palace, just a little further down the river. Originally there were no bridges crossing the mighty Neva River and people had to be ferried between banks by boat, one of the reasons why St. Petersburg was given the epithet "the Venice of the North".

Theheart of the city was originally intended to be the area between the Peter and Paul Fortress and the Cabin of Peter the Great, which later became known as Trinity Square ('Troitskaia Ploschad'). The focal point of this area was the city's first church - the Trinity Church, and around it houses for the local nobility, a Gostiny Dvor (a market for local and visiting merchants) and several inns and bars were built. Most of the city's prestigious social events (receptions, balls, etc.) took place either in the Summer Gardens or in the residence of the Governor General of St. Petersburg - the luxurious Menshikov Palace.

Unfortunately, very few of the city's buildings from the early 18th century have survived, many havign been torn down or remodeled. The university building of the "Twelve Colleges" and the Kikin House on Vasilievsky Island give visitors an approximate impression of what the original city looked like.

When Peter the Great died in 1725, his wife Catherine assumed power and the city experienced a short decline while various rulers fought over the throne. For a short period, in the late 1720s, the royal court was moved back to Moscow. Many of the nobility and merchants, forced by Peter the Great to move to St. Petersburg, now chose to leave the city. St. Petersburg was only fully revived when Peter's daughter Elizabeth became Empress in 1741. Elizabethan St. Petersburg became a lively European capital and its population reached 150,000 people.

Elizabethan St. Petersburg

During the reign of Elizabeth, daughter of Peter the Great, St. Petersburg developed into a fine European capital to rival those of any in the West.

The Imperial splendor of St. Petersburg was best reflected in its suburban royal residences. Peter the Great's estate Peterhof was remodeled by Bartolomeo Rastrelli, the Italian architect of the Winter Palace and Smolny Cathedral. The Grand Palace and Grand Cascade fountain at Peterhof were luxuriously adorned with gold, precious stones and statues and reflected Elizabeth's decadent tastes and her disregard for Imperial funds.

The Yekaterininsky (Catherine's) Palace in Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin), which originally belonged to Peter the Great's wife Catherine, was turned into a magnificent royal residence with a vast and elaborate Baroque garden.

Elizabethcommissioned the lovely Smolny Convent and the Winter Palace, though she died before both buildings were completed. Ironically, during Elizabeth's reign the area near the palace, which was later named Palace Square, was used as a grazing land for the royal cows.

Elizabeth tried to adopt and adhere to many of her father's public policies. Unlike some of her predecessors, she preferred to appoint Russians and not foreigners to the highest positions in the country and being a patron of the arts and sciences, she established the Russian Academy of Arts. As well as a conscientious leader, Elizabeth was also a very lively and social personality and organised regular balls, receptions, masquerades and firework displays.

Elizabeth's nephew Peter III did not rule the country for long, but shortly after assuming power was overthrown by his wife, a German princess, who reigned the country as the famous Catherine the Great. Under her rule St. Petersburg was turned into a "Grand City".

The "Grand City" of Catherine the Great

Catherine the Great assumed power in 1762 after a coup d' etat, which she engineered together with the officers of the Royal Guard. Unlike her husband, she was well loved by the country's elite and received a very good press in Europe thanks to her contacts with various figures of the French Enlightenment. Catherine enjoyed an extremely luxurious and decadent court life and was the first monarch to move into the newly built Winter Palace. Catherine started a royal art collection which later developed into the world-famous Hermitage which required the construction of several additional buildings (the Small Hermitage and the Old Hermitage) along the Neva embankment to house the growing number of exhibits. Catherine commissioned the building of the Hermitage Theater and ensured the area surrounding the palace was adorned with the finest houses and the only the most elegant architecture.

The embankments of the River Neva were reworked in elegant red granite and the Summer Gardens were adorned with an intricate wrought iron fence, designed by the craftsman Yuri Felten and created between 1773 and 1786.

Under Catherine's patronage science, the arts and trade all flourished. New buildings for the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Fine Arts and the first Public Library (now the Russian National Library) were constructed and the large Gostiny Dvor trading complex was opened on Nevsky Prospect. Many educational institutions were also established.

In Tsarskoye Selo (now Pushkin) several additions were made to the royal palace, including a new wing, the Cameron Gallery, which served as living quarters for Catherine the Great herself. The delightful park surrouding the palaces was littered with pavilions and architectural follies and gives some indication of the lively social life Catherine and her closet confidantes enjoyed.

In 1873 a monument to Catherine the Great was built in a small garden just off Nevsky Prospect (between the Public Library and the Alexandrinsky Theater). Thousands of people come to visit the tomb of the city's greatest and most progressive monarch every year in the Peter and Paul Cathedral.

Not to make it too long I will skip some parts of it and will jump to the part of the Siege of Leningrad.

A socialist city: Leningrad

Shortly after the Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin died, the city was renamed Leningrad (supposedly by public demand). During the years of the Revolution the population of the city had dropped dramatically and the city was slow to recover from the rigors and tragedies of the war.
In the late 1920s mass construction of cheap housing for workers became a very prominent feature of the Leningrad landscape. Many cultural centers, "palaces of culture", were built to provide the city's people with entertainment, clubs and other social activities. In terms of architecture most of what was built was rather modern and less than inspiring. The large apartments that had been constructed during St. Petersburg's Imperial era were turned into "communal" (shared) apartments, housing several families. Life was not easy in the socialist city of Leningrad, but the population was to suffer even greater hardships during WWII and the dramatic 900-day Siege of Leningrad.

The 900-day Siege of Leningrad (Blokada)

This was undoubtedly the most tragic period in the history of the city, a period full of suffering and heroism. For everyone who lives in St. Petersburg the Blokada (the Siege) of Leningrad is an important part of the city's heritage and a painful memory for the population's older generations.

Less than two and a half months after the Soviet Union was attacked by Nazi Germany, German troops were already approaching Leningrad. The Red Army was outflanked and on September 8 1941 the Germans had fully encircled Leningrad and the siege began. The siege lasted for a total of 900 days, from September 8 1941 until January 27 1944. The city's almost 3 million civilians (including about 400,000 children) refused to surrender and endured rapidly increasing hardships in the encircled city. Food and fuel stocks were limited to a mere 1-2 month supply, public transport was not operational and by the winter of 1941-42 there was no heating, no water supply, almost no electricity and very little food. In January 1942 in the depths of an unusually cold winter, the city's food rations reached an all time low of only 125 grams (about 1/4 of a pound) of bread per person per day. In just two months, January and February of 1942, 200,000 people died in Leningrad of cold and starvation. Despite these tragic losses and the inhuman conditions the city's war industries still continued to work and the city did not surrender.

Several hundred thousand people were evacuated from the city across Lake Ladoga via the famous "Road of Life" ("Doroga Zhizni") - the only route that connected the besieged city with the mainland. During the warm season people were ferried to the mainland, and in winter - carried by trucks that drove across the frozen lake under constant enemy bombardment.

Meanwhile, the city lived on. The treasures of the Hermitage and the suburban palaces of Petrodvorets and Pushkin were hidden in the basements of the Hermitage and St Isaac's Cathedral. Many of the city's students continued their studies and even passed their finals exams. Dmitry Shostakovich wrote his Seventh "Leningrad" Symphony and it was performed in the besieged city.

In January 1943 the Siege was broken and a year later, on January 27 1944 it was fully lifted. At least 641,000 people had died in Leningrad during the Siege (some estimates put this figure closer to 800,000). Most of them were buried in mass graves in different cemeteries, with the majority in the Piskariovskoye Memorial Cemetery, resting place to over 500,000 people and a timeless reminder of the heroic deeds of the city.

St. Petersburg today

The 1970s and the early 1980s were a period of stability for the Soviet Union and for Leningrad. Though political freedoms were greatly limited, most of the city's population enjoyed relative prosperity. When the government initiated the reforms known worldwide as Perestroika, stability rapidly disappeared and the population began experiencing economic hardship as the government quibbled over reforms. In 1991, after a city-wide referendum, the city of Leningrad returned to its original name - St. Petersburg.

Now, just after the turn of the new millenium St. Petersburg is still in a transition period, both economically and socially. While the city's industries is still in recession, services and retail sales are gradually improving and more and more foreign businesses are being attracted to the city's new business climate. Although, still far behind Moscow in economic terms, St. Petersburg had become a modern, rapidly growing commercial city.

Even nowadays, people in St.Petersburg are considered to be more intelligent, smart and polite while Moscow people are considered to be more to themselves, business-like, and fast.

St.Petersburg - What a city!

2008-06-01T13:15:00.008+04:00

I am so lucky to live in such a stunning city.So beautiful, so amazing.Here I would like share some pictures from my own archive.Later I will add some info about city.

These are pictures taken in Peterhof.Amazing place.Each time I go there I feel like I am in a fairytale. :)

Cathedrals take place in the city center.

Peterhof

St.Isaac Cathedral

Kazansky Cathedral

Church of Savior on the Spilled Blood

Legendary Bulgarian prophetess Baba Vanga

2008-05-31T23:03:00.008+04:00

As originally I am from Bulgaria, I would like to put some information about a very interesting personality.Evangelia “Vanga” Dimitrova, or Baba Vanga, as she was know to many Bulgarians, is a powerful, mystical figure in Bulgaria’s recent history, whose prophecies have been compared by some to those of Nostradamus.

Biography

Vanga was born in Strumica (today in Republic of Macedonia), and after 1942 lived in Petrich (Bulgaria). Her birth was a premature one and the baby had been suffering from some health complications. In accordance with local tradition, the baby was not given a name until it was likely to survive. After the baby's first cry-out, a midwife went out in the street and asked a stranger for a name. The stranger proposed Andromaha, but it was not accepted for being "too Greek", so the second stranger's proposal, Vangelia (Greek: "herald of the blessed word"), was accepted — also a Greek name, but popular in the region.
In her childhood, Vangelia was an ordinary girl. Her father was conscripted into the Bulgarian Army during World War I, and her mother died when Vanga was quite young. The girl depended on the neighbors for a long time. Vanga was smart, with blue eyes and blond hair. Her inclinations started to show up when she herself thought out games and loved playing "healing" – she prescribed some herbs to her friends, who pretended to be ill. Her father, being a widower, eventually married a good woman, thus providing a stepmother to his daughter.
A turning point in the biography of Vanga is a story about a storm which lifted Vanga up and threw her in the field (this claim has not been verified with meteorological records or other accounts from that time). She was found after a long search. She was very frightened, and her eyes were covered with sand and dust, so she couldn't open them because of the pain. No healing gave results. There was money only for partial operation, so her eyesight was failing.

Philosophy and Predictions

Vanga was illiterate or semi-literate and she did not write herself any books. Her speech was difficult to distinguish and she spoke a heavy dialect (recent TV recordings used subtitles for the Bulgarian audience). What she said or allegedly said has been captured by staff members. Later numerous esoteric books on Vanga's life and predictions were written.
Vanga claimed that her alleged extraordinary abilities had something to do with the presence of invisible creatures, but she couldn't clearly explain their origin. She was saying, that those creatures were giving her information about people, which she could not transmit to them, because, distance and time didn't matter. According to Vanga, the life of everyone standing in front of her, was like a film to her, from birth till death. But changing "what was written on the generation" was beyond her power.
Apart from prophesying, Vanga was believed to be a healer, but only through herbal medicines. According to her, people had to heal themselves only with herbs from the country they live in. She prescribed washing with an infusion of herbs and spices, claiming some beneficial effect on the skin. Vanga did not oppose mainstream medicine, although she thought that taking too much medicines is bad, because "they close the doors, through which nature restores the balance in the body with herbs".
Vanga attempted prophesies of newborn or unborn children. She claimed that she was "seeing" and "talking" to people, who had died hundreds of years ago. Vanga talked about the future, although she did not like to. In her words, in 200 years man will make contact with brothers in mind from other worlds. She said that many aliens have been living on the earth for years. They came from the planet, which in their language is called Vamfim, and is the third planet from the Earth.
Followers of Vanga believe that she knew the precise date of her own death, and shortly before that she had said that a 10-year-old blind girl living in France was to inherit her gift, and that people would soon hear about her.

Vanga’s predictions include:

“At the turn of the century, in August of 1999 or 2000, Kursk will be covered with water, and the whole world will be weeping over it.” (1980)
- The prediction did not make any sense back then. Sadly, twenty years on, it did make a lot of sense. A Russian nuclear submarine sunk in an accident in August of 2000. The submarine was named Kursk. Kursk - the city, could by no means have been covered with water (probably that’s why her prediction seemed so unrealistic at first).

“Horror, horror! The American brethren will fall after being attacked by the steel birds. The wolves will be howling in a bush, and innocent blood will be gushing.” (1989)
- Happened as predicted. The World Trade Center Towers in New York collapsed following terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 . The WTC Towers were dubbed “Twins” or “Brothers.” The terrorists drove passenger planes –“the steel birds”- into the towers. “The bush” obviously relates to the surname of the current U.S. president.

She also predicted:

“Everything will melt away like ice yet the glory of Vladimir , the glory of Russia are the only things that will remain. Russia will not only survive, it will dominate the world.”(1979)
- The prediction was made in Soviet times when just a few people were using the term “ Russia .” It remains to be seen which Vladimir Vanga referred to. There are three real candidates: The Prince Vladimir, Vladimir Lenin, the current president, or the future one…

2008 - Assassination attempts on four heads of states. Conflict in Indonesia. That becomes one of the causes for the start of WWIII.

2010 - The start of WWIII. The war will begin in November of 2010 and will end in October of 2014. Will start as a normal war, then will include usage of nuclear and chemical weapons.

2011 - Due to the radioactive showers in Northern Hemisphere - no animals or plants will be left. Muslims will begin chemical war against Europeans who are still alive.

2014 - Most of the people in this world will have skin cancer and skin related diseases. (as a result of chemical wars).

2016 - Europe is almost empty

2018 - China becomes the new world power.

2023 - Earth’s orbit will change slightly

2025 - Europe is still barely populated

2028 - Development of a new energy source. (Probably controller thermonuclear reaction) Hunger slowly stops being a problem. Piloted spaceship to Venus deploys.

2033 - Polar ice caps melt. World ocean levels rise.

2043 - World economy is prosperous. Muslims are running Europe.

2046 - Any organs can be mass produced. Exchange of body organs becomes the favorite method of treatment.

2066 - During it’s attack on Rome (which is under control of the Muslims) U.S.A. uses a new method of weapons - has to do with climate change. Sharp freezing.

2076 - No class society (communism)

It goes on untill year of 3793. Her predictions sound really scary actually and I hope she was mistaken or at least I hope we can change what she said is going to be.

True Love...

2008-05-31T22:33:00.002+04:00

Here I want to share something that I wrote not long ago, when I was filled with great emotions. :)

The freshness of the daybreak, the energy and the happyness given by the sun...Your favorite song’s melody arises from your heart to the endless sky and reaches your beloved one with the help of the migrant birds...Even the fact that you breathe the same air with him gives you such a great feeling,pacification. You dont mind the distances between two of you, because there is only you in the whole universe and this makes you closer to eachother. The true love doesn’t recognize distances, it makes you fly. Love is not a torn rose but a wildflower, watered with water from melted snow and revived with the sun.

Open your heart to LOVE!

Sveta

...to those who are not afraid to love...

The Art of Loving

2008-05-31T13:35:00.014+04:00

"He who knows nothing, loves nothing. He who can do nothing understands nothing. He who understands nothing is worthless. But he who understands also loves, notices, sees. . . . The more knowledge is inherent in a thing, the greater the love. . . . Anyone who imagines that all fruits ripen at the same time as the strawberries knows nothing about grapes." - Paracel

Erich Fromm
Erich Fromm was born in Germany in 1900 and educated as a psychoanalyst. In 1934 he emigrated to the United States, where he served as a professor at Columbia University and New York University, and traveled widely to speak at other universities throughout North America. Erich Fromm is widely appreciated for his insights on human relationships and the humanistic philosophy.

The Art of Loving
Published in 1956, Erich Fromm's The Art of Loving was an immediate best-seller. Drawing on his background in psychology and psychoanalytical therapy, Erich Fromm identifies a sense of separation as the key threat to happiness. In his book, Mr. Fromm speaks about how to attain a sense of connection through spiritually expansive -- rather than restrictive -- relationships.

"Most people see the problem of love primarily as that of being loved rather than that of loving, of one's capacity to love."

Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving, Part 1

Is love an art? Then it requires knowledge and effort. Or is love a pleasant sensation, which to experience is a matter of chance, something one "falls into" if one is lucky? This little book is based on the former premise, while undoubtedly the majority of people today believe in the latter.
Not that people think that love is not important. They are starved for it; they watch endless numbers of films about happy and unhappy love stories, they listen to hundreds of trashy songs about love -- yet hardly anyone thinks that there is anything that needs to be learned about love.
This peculiar attitude is based on several premises which either singly or combined tend to uphold it. Most people see the problem of love primarily as that of being loved rather than that of loving, of one's capacity to love. Hence the problem to them is how to be loved, how to be lovable. In pursuit of this aim they follow several paths. One, which is especially used by men, is to be successful, to be as powerful and rich as the social margin of one's position permits. An-other, used especially by women, is to make oneself attractive, by cultivating one's body, dress, etc. Other ways of making, oneself attractive, used both by men and women, are to develop pleasant manners, interesting conversation, to be helpful, modest, inoffensive. Many of the ways to make oneself lovable are the same as those used to make oneself successful, "to win friends and influence people." As a matter of fact, what most people in our culture mean by being lovable is essentially a mixture between being popular and having sex appeal.
A second premise behind the attitude that there is nothing to be learned about love is the assumption that the problem of love is the problem of an object, not the problem of a faculty. People think that to love is simple, but that to find the right object to love--or to be loved by--is difficult. This attitude has several reasons rooted in the development of modem society. One reason is the great change which occurred in the twentieth century with respect to the choice of a "love object."

"Our whole culture is based on the appetite for buying, on the idea of a mutually favorable exchange."

Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving, Part 2

In the Victorian age, as in many traditional cultures, love was mostly not a spontaneous personal experience which then might lead to marriage. On the contrary, marriage was contracted by convention--either by the respective families, or by a marriage broker, or without the help of such intermediaries; it was concluded on the basis of social considerations, and love was supposed to develop once the marriage had been concluded. In the last few generations the concept of romantic love has become almost universal in the Western world. In the United States, while considerations of a conventional nature are not entirely absent, to a vast extent people are in search of "romantic love," of the personal experience of love which then should lead to marriage. This new concept of freedom in love must have greatly enhanced the importance of the object as against the importance of the function.
Closely related to this factor is another feature characteristic of contemporary culture. Our whole culture is based on the appetite for buying, on the idea of a mutually favorable exchange. Modem man's happiness consists in the thrill of looking at the shop windows, and in buying all that he can afford to buy, either for cash or on installments. He (or she) looks at people in a similar way. For the man an attractive girl--and for the woman an attractive man--are the prizes they are after. "Attractive" usually means a nice package of qualities which are popular and sought after on the personality market. What specifically makes a person attractive depends on the fashion of the time, physically as well as mentally. During the twenties, a drinking and smoking girl, tough and sexy, was attractive; today the fashion demands more domesticity and coyness. At the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of this century, a man had to be aggressive and ambitious--today he has to be social and tolerant--in order to be an attractive "package."

"There is little reason to be surprised that human love relations follow the same pattern of exchange which governs the commodity and the labor market."

Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving, Part 3

At any rate, the sense of falling in love develops usually only with regard to such human commodities as are within reach of one's own possibilities for exchange. I am out for a bargain; the object should be desirable from the standpoint of its social value, and at the same time should want me, considering my overt and hidden as-sets and potentialities. Two persons thus fall in love when they feel they have found the best object available on the market, considering the limitations of their own exchange values. Often, as in buying real estate, the hidden potentialities which can be developed play a considerable role in this bargain. In a culture in which the marketing orientation prevails, and in which material success is the outstanding value, there is little reason to be surprised that human love relations follow the same pattern of exchange which governs the commodity and the labor market.
The third error leading to the assumption that there is nothing to be learned about love lies in the confusion between the initial experience of "falling" in love, and the permanent state of being in love, or as we might better say, of " standing" in love. If two people who have been strangers, as all of us are, suddenly let the wall between them break down, and feel close, feel one, this moment of oneness is one of the most exhilarating, most exciting experiences in life. It is all the more wonderful and miraculous for persons who have been shut off, isolated, without love. This miracle of sudden intimacy is often facilitated if it is combined with, or initiated by, sexual attraction and consummation. However, this type of love is by its very nature not lasting.