Table and chairs generate fake news

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

A table and chairs generate fake news

A table and two chairs in a meadow generated lots of news. Got this picture from WeChat and at first sight it made sense: it claims the farmer had requested a license to build a shed for his horses but it was refused. So he put a huge table with two chairs instead “as nothing prohibits putting furniture in a meadow”.

 

The real story

See here the real explanation:

Paarden met gigantische meubels als stal

It says in Dutch that it was simply a publicity stunt by a furniture manufacturer, done in Doellstaedt, Germany.
Or in English with more details:
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/table-chair-horse-shelter.shtml
Yep, another hoax. You can’t believe everything you got on chat groups…
A lot of fake news on the Internet but also easy to get the truth. Just Google it!

Maritimer Abend in Kempinski

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Beijing: endless choice of international cuisine

The Maritimer Abend in Kempinski was planned by our friend and Rotarian Daniel, together with the chef Bela (who is unfortunately leaving).
I will not even try to translate the German menu, lots of fish and a distinct North German (read Hamburg) cuisine.

Lost among Germans

I was one of the very few “non-Germans” for the evening (we were near 30 people), including a Luxembourger and German-speaking Chinese. Oh well, good opportunity to work on my German!
The food was great, in huge quantities (I was so stuffed), along with some home-brewed beer.
So, yes, anything is possible in Beijing. We actually have quite a number of German restaurants here.

Private concert by Peter Ritzen

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

At the home of Peter Ritzen

Another private concert by Peter Ritzen in his Shunyi residence, for a small circle of friends.
This time a selection of Chopin, Bach, Liszt and more.
And the candles? Well, part of the storytelling by Peter, one piece was performed with candlelight only!
After the concert, a nice buffet was served.

A glimpse of his new symphony

Peter has composed a new symphony that he will publicly perform in Vienna (Musikverein) on 5 August, with a large orchestra, choir and organ. Title: Die Wildrose. Includes a German version of the Flemish song “Daar is maar één Land” from Anton van Wilderode.
Here a small sample, with Stella singing the German version.

The Wiener Musikverein, commonly shortened to Musikverein, is a concert hall in the Innere Stadt borough of Vienna, Austria. It is the home of the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra. The “Great Hall” (Großer Saal), due to its highly regarded acoustics, is considered one of the finest concert halls in the world.
“Daar is maar één land dat mijn land kan zijn” (1983) is from Cyriel Paul Coupé (28 June 1918 – 15 June 1998), a Belgian writer and poet, also known by the pseudonym Anton van Wilderode.

Some Chinese understand humor

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Jokes are not universal

Some Chinese understand humor that matches our Western norms. Agreed, the guy is an overseas Chinese and I am not sure Mainland Chinese would get the jokes. Reason why there is an important tip for foreigners in China: avoid telling jokes as it can lead to serious misunderstandings.

Thanks to WeChat

On one of the WeChat groups I found this video, hilarious: “Don’t Skip the Sex Talk”, by Jinx Yeo. The video: https://www.facebook.com/pg/JinxYeoComedy/videos/?ref=page_internal

And see his Facebook page, where you find more videos: https://www.facebook.com/JinxYeoComedy/

For those without VPN, see here the video:

A little secret

This year I hope I can finish and publish my book about … jokes. It will not be for a Chinese readership as the jokes are basically Anglo-Saxon.

Old China Hands Lunch 3 March

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

All pretty busy

Attendance rate is always a wild guess. My experience: “strange” dates when people would be “less” turn out to be well attended. “Normal” dates are often less attended, simply because the Old China Hands are simply busy.
The Old China Hands Lunch 3 March counted about twenty people – the list I manage is a bit over 100.

 

Upcoming lunches

Next lunch is 7 April and then 5 May.