Month: October 2009

Off For 3 Weeks

/ carlenetan / 2 Comments

It’s been a busy 3 weeks since I got back from my last work trip to Cannes and the attempt of me getting back to regular updates, hasn’t quite gone as plan.  So I’m hoping in the midst of meetings and booth walk ins, I’ll be able to let everyone into my world at the AFM.

Meanwhile, everyone who knows me has heard all my whinging about this trip so no more negative thoughts and I’m focusing this post on why I like work trips 🙂

I get pressies from friends 😉  Thank you Daph for my brand new luggage tag.

Movie catch up time because what else do you do for a flight that’s over 17hours :p I may squeeze in the most recent installment of Harry Potter but I’ll definitely do (500) Days of Summer and Mary & Max, which I wanted to catch at AnimatioNation but missed.  I’m still not sure about the Time Traveler’s Wife so we’ll see.

Other than that, the thing I’ve learnt about going away is that absence makes the heart grow fonder 🙂  So my husband and I are going to pretend like when we first got together and he was living in Vancouver 😉  Except it’s the other way round, now I’m the one in North America.

And of course, I can’t wait for my vegan chocolate cake at Real Food Daily.

Frankfurt, In Transit

/ carlenetan / 4 Comments

On the way back from Cannes, I had something like a 5hours lay over at the Frankfurt Airport.  From previous experience, I knew you can jump on a train and in less than half an hour find yourself in the the main Frankfurt city.  So that was just what I did again 🙂  Here’s the thing I love about Germany, everyone is friendly and everyone speaks English 🙂  I didn’t have a problem finding the counter to get the ticket, the right platform or even which train to get on and before I knew it I was in the middle of a market in Frankfurt city.

Of course, there were sausages and beer for sale.  Wine was sold by the glasses at only €2, same price as the organic apple juice I had :p  It’s kinda like Chatuchak market, German style.  There was obviously food, some clothes, some bric a brac and even livestock.

Since I didn’t read any German, I wasn’t quite sure what the bull was doing there.  It was a massive creature and in true German style, it was very clean and well built.  Heck, I turned the corner from the bull and found an equally clean and well built bunny.

I kid you not, when I say that this bunny is bigger than my sister’s little mini maltese, Wags.  I wouldn’t want to walk into him in a dark alley.  His teeth when he looked up at me, were the size of my finger nails!!  Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating a little but that’s the image that jumps into my head when I think of this bunny now.  Giant rabbit with fingernail sized teeth!!  Think attack of the fluffy killer bunnies … … hmmm … … now that’s a film that should be made into a 3D Stereoscopic film :p  Anyway, their dogs, on the other hand, were not too different as the ones we have in Singapore and they were everywhere 🙂

Then there I was enjoying the sights, the cool European fall weather, sipping my very lovely organic apple juice and taking my time through the market when I stumbled on a bakery stand baking German bread there and then!!!

I was so excited 🙂  I love German bread!!  So I decided to buy a loaf, the baker who also spoke English kindly wrapped my bread in paper and handed it over to me.  Here’s what happened next …

Me: (lest I sound like a careless wanton without a care for the environment) I’m going to get on a plane tonight, so may I have a bag for the bread?
Baker:  On a plane?  To where?
M:  To Singapore.
B: *blink blink*

A beat.

B:  To Singapore?
M: (getting quite nervous wondering if he wants his bread back) Yes.
B: (Laughing loudly and to everyone around)  To Singapore!!  My bread is going ALL the way to Singapore!!

And he proceeds to put my loaf in an environmentally friendly bag 🙂

Post Cannes and Getting Back on Track

/ carlenetan / 3 Comments

It’s been a while and there’s so much I’ve been wanting to put down for the record but let’s just say between inertia and the lack of time, my blog has suffered some neglect in the last month or so.

Here’s me trying to get back on track with an update on my recent trip to France. The thing I like abut flying through the day is being able to look out the window.  So when I was following the flight path on the plane, I noticed we were going over Afghanistan and looked out the window.  I wasn’t quite sure what I was expecting.

But all I saw was desert, quite a beautiful desert … a desert nonetheless.  No stray missiles or fighter planes or explosions on the ground and before I knew it, there was the Caspian Sea.  What did we do before flight paths on planes told us where we are?  And after 12 hours on the plane to Frankfurt, another 1 over hour flight to Nice and yet another hour drive to Cannes.  I was back in Cannes where home for about a week was a  little French apartment overlooking one of Cannes more popular watering holes.  I’m just glad I’m the kind who falls asleep even if there are drunken  parties below my window 🙂

So I found myself back at MIPCOM, which happens annually.  It’s been something like 3 years since I was last at MIPCOM and I have to say the economic situation sure has affected the TV world.  Where there use to be great giveaways, you’d be lucky now if you find a free pen.  Everyone’s cut down on branding and it’s all about the product now, specifically just simple product listings.  Traffic was definitely much quieter.  So why was my schedule so grueling?  With money drying up everywhere especially in the financial sector, I figure people are relying more on government funding.

That’s my biggest gripe about work trips, they leave no time to enjoy the city.  So despite the wonderful weather, which by the way is completely unusual for this time of the year, I was stuck in the exhibition hall and had no time to check out the pastry shop I like so much or the shop that sells the best tailored shirts in the world or the quaint little sandwich and tea place.

It was a chock-a-block schedule that left me feeling like I never saw Cannes at all. Thank goodness for my friends who on the same trip though.  Isn’t it just great when colleagues at work actually become friends 🙂  People who you’d actually hang out with when work’s done.

On the way back to Singapore, again flying in the day *happy dance* I looked out of the window just as we are about to land.  Singapore looks so organised from the sky.

And then there was this … …

A half made bridge in the sea.  Wonder where it leads and where it comes from?  Here’s why I always pick the window seat.

Now I’m home and it’s all steam ahead for preparation for the American Film Market.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I at least get go to my favourite vegan restaurant while I’m there.  Meanwhile, have a HAPPY DEEPAVALI everyone!!!