Nominated for Nobel
Peace Prize 2019, the Swedish environmental activist on climate change received the title of Doctor Honoris
Causa from the University of Mons on October 10, 2019 (she wasn’t here in Mons
for the ceremony).
#FridaysForFuture
Showing posts with label People. Show all posts
Showing posts with label People. Show all posts
Theresa May in Mons
 |
| Photo: Gareth Fuller/ PA |
As part of the commemoration of the centenary of the
Armistice, British Prime Minister Theresa May and Belgian Prime Minister
Charles Michel paid tribute to British soldiers who fell during the First World
War at The cemetery of Saint-Symphorien on November 9, 2018.
During the ceremony, she laid wreaths at the graves of John Parr,
the first UK soldier to be killed in 1914, and the last, George Ellison (he was
killed on the Western Front at 09:30 GMT, before the Armistice came into effect
at 11:00).
“We
remember the heroes who lost their lives in the horror of the trenches. As the
sun sets on one hundred years of remembrance, we will never forget their
sacrifice.”
Niki de Saint Phalle: Ici tout est possible
Some of
my favorites from the exhibition in
BAM.
Visited on October 7,
2018.
Really excited because she
inspired Maria Grazia Chiuri for Dior prêt-à-porter printemps-été 2018
collection. Also because this event marks the first biennial
Mons, Cultural Capital.
Diplomatic Visit
Pupung
Visited:
December 26, 2017
A
friend who works at the Embassy.
Finally
made it to Mons!
Had
a nice lunch (with local beer) at Restaurant Henri, quick tour of the Belfry
and coffee at Moma.
A special day during holiday season.
Going Dutch!
Fons and Famke
(Amsterdam, NL)
Visited: 22 October 2017
Friends of Jompet (see previous post).
Having coffee at L'Excelsior.. and we’re literally “going Dutch”.
Visitor from Home #3: "On Paradise"
Jompet
Kuswidananto
(Yogyakarta,
Indonesia)
Visited:
21-22 October, 2017
(Actually had spent 3 weeks in
Mons, and daily commute to Hornu).
As part of the Europalia arts festival which
this year is celebrating Indonesia, the MAC’s Grand Hornu presents On Paradise, a brand new installation by the
transdisciplinary artist Jompet Kuswidananto, 22 October 2017 – 14 January
2018.
After the vernissage on the 21st of October 2017, we had
dinner with the MAC’s team at Tocco d’Italia and the next day exploring Mons
before he went back to our home country the next few days.
Took the artist to Mundaneum for the Top Secret expo.
It was the first time I revisited Mundaneum after the
renovation.
Visitor from Home #2: Who's the Boss?
Muti
(Jakarta, Indonesia)
Visited: 18-20 October, 2017
The solo backpacker was my editor.
Traveled for 3 weeks around Europe and finally she had the chance to
taste the famous Belgian beer and frites at Ces Belges & Vous.
Visitors from Home #1 - Day 2
Visited: 18 October, 2017
Day two of Saman performance-workshop, at Bibliothèque de Jemappes/ main public library of Mons
(see previous post).
I never visited this place before.
It’s inside and old Maison Communale building, so it’s huge.. with many
rooms, sections and entrance.
Young kids and their parents were so excited asking the dancers and
learning the basic dance movement.
I can really feel the vibe of Europalia here.
Lots of photo and books about home, guest country of Europalia 2017
arts festival.
Busy Days, Visitors from Home #1
Saman Dancers
(Gayo Lues, Aceh - Indonesia)
Visited: 17 October, 2017
The busiest week ever!
Record breaking I had visitors in Mons.
During this week, lots of people visiting from my home country.
From a small village of Gayo Lues to small town of Mons.
This group of 15 dancers (and 1 coordinator) came from a regency (home
of the famous Gayo coffee) in the special region of Indonesia on the island of
Sumatra.
Their visit was part of Europalia arts festival and organized by Jeunesses Musicales Wallonie-Bruxelles.
They came for the Opening Night of
Europalia attended by the Vice President of Indonesia also King and Queen of
Belgium on October 10, 2017 .
Then they were busy touring around
Brussels, Wallonia region and Germany, introducing Saman, "the dance of thousand
hands". One of the most popular dances in Indonesia.
The dance is characterized by its fast-paced
rhythm and common harmony between dancers without any additional music instruments.
On November 24, 2011, UNESCO officially recognized this traditional dance as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of
Humanity.
This is a really long day for the
group at Collège Saint-Stanislas. Starting from 9 in the morning they have to do a 20-minute performance,
q&a session and workshop -- for four times, until school was finished around 3.30 pm (with only about 10 minutes break each part).
Though few days ago they were worried how this day would be tiring, at
the end of the day they’re all happy and smiling :)
Indo-Dutch Visitors
Family of Yuni, Elly, Tuti and Ayu
Visited: 20 August, 2017
Well actually they spent 3d/2n in Mons.
Met some of them the day before at an event in Pairi Daiza.
One of the family I already knew, has been a frequent visitor to the park.
One of their important mission in Mons was: having the famous Belgische
patat! Yes, the famous Belgian frites.
More Japanese Tourists in Mons!
Nancy
Visited:
May 5-6, 2017
Yokoso!
She
was kind of a ‘guardian angel’ when Prince Charming went through his doctoral
research in Japan.
All
the way from Toyohashi to Mons, she brought out sunshine after days of cloudy
spring during the Bière en fête event where she even had a chance to meet
our Mayor!
JERUJI Band
April
10, 2017
Monday
night madness.
Another
random moment living in Mons.. Visited by a legendary hardcore punk band from
home country during their 20th Anniversary European trip.
The
gig at JOC was awesome!
Where Hands Touch
Commemorating Remembrance month,
The Armistice and The Great War Centenary (2014-18) with BAFTA Award
winning writer/ director, Amma
Asante who begins shooting for
her upcoming movie “Where
Hands Touch”, a romantic drama starring Amandla Stenberg (The Hunger Games) and George MacKay (Captain Fantastic) in
Mons on October 31 – November 4, 2016.
Rue Jean Lescart – rue d’Enghien - rue de la Poterie - Collégiale
Sainte-Waudru - rue de la Réunion - rue des Cinq visages - rue des Soeurs
Grises - rue le la Petite Guirlande.
Set in Germany in 1940s during
World War II, the movie tells the relationship between a 16-17 year-old German
mixed-race girl and a 19-year-old German soldier. It’s really about two
teenagers who are coming of age against a back-drop of utter madness… teenagers
who are witnessing horrible, sad, devastating elements of our humanity.
Belgian cities chosen as filming locations because the
historic old towns remained intact with cobblestone streets and beautiful façade.
Release date: 2017
Tantrum Films/ Pinewood Pictures
Production – Protagonist Pictures
Grocery Shopping with the Mayor
July
2, 2016
Grocery shopping 2.0 with the Mayor of Mons/ former
Prime Minister of Belgium at Delhaize.
This time, I took a photo for proof!
Read previous story here.
Princess Astrid Visited My Home Country!
Her visit on March 12-19, 2016 as part of her official state visit to boost bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
She took the opportunity to have her picture taken under the sign of Jalan Astrid (Astrid Street) at Bogor Botanical Garden, West Java .
Princess Astrid, who is the granddaughter of Queen Astrid and King Leopold III, visited the botanical garden as a follow-up visit made by her grandparents in 1928.
International Lunch
Mons
2015 is hosting a culinary adventure.
International Lunch is a monthly event with Cook with Danielle (cooking and language workshops in Mons) at Café Europa.
Each Café Europa, located in cities throughout Europe, prepares a lunch following the same theme or using the same ingredients. At lunchtime, we connect (virtually), and eat together, sharing stories of our experience, comparing our results and talking about our love of food.
It’s
like a cook-surfing event, with a local foodie, Danielle Foster, the most Montoise of Americans. A very fun way to practice
our French and English while cook and have lunch.
March is Happiness Month in the Café Europa, we
can cook what we want, just keep smiling!
Danielle said there were about ten people joining
us today, from different backgrounds and nationalities who live around Mons
area. We can choose to come and cook (starting at 11 am) or just to eat (around
12 pm) and pay 6 Euro for the meal (drink charged by Café Europa).
When I came earlier, Danielle had already wait
with all the fresh ingredients and kitchen utensils. She picked our menu of the
day: vegetarian Tex-Mex, inspired by her hometown, using local ingredients
like goat cheese, locally-grown quinoa and a root vegetable called topinambour.
Then she assigned us to prepare different dishes with a recipe and instruction to
follow. With Ray and Susan, I was in charge in making tortillas. To be honest,
I’ve never made it from scratch before, so was kinda nervous. It’s actually
easy, only take a while to roll the dough one by one and put it in the oven
instead using a pan. And we had no idea how long it should be baked (thanks
Didier for helping).
 |
© Café Europa Mons
|
I didn't find any difficulties cooking in a small space which not really a café
or actual kitchen but when more and more people came it became a bit challenging.
Apparently everyone was busy doing their own task and we didn’t really talk a
lot. One of the most interesting thing while we cook, we’re also connected virtually
to a partner city Kaliningrad
(Russia). So we’re able to see what they’re doing and ask
what they cook, how they’re doing with the cooking, the ingredients etc.
Fortunately the tortillas quickly sold out and
no one complained. There were many things to accompany the flatbread and all
taste very good and fresh. Also that chocolate cookie for dessert, oh so good! Danielle
must be proud with the whole team.
Thank you everyone for the lunch. Can’t wait to
cook with you again!
Turkish Visitors
Tuğçe and Zafer
Visited: January 24, 2015
His colleague Zafer and wife Tuğçe were so excited about the Fête d'Ouverture Mons 2015
and made their way coming from a nearby town. Thank you for your participation
on the opening night. Hope you have a good time during the event.
Royal Visit
The famous royal couple, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William
& Kate paid a visit when I was on holiday.
Well.. you weren’t there as well when we were visiting the Buckingham
Palace.
Accompanied by Prince Harry, they were visiting Mons on
August 4, 2014. It was part of the First World War commemorations.
According to
the First World War memorial site of the Belgian government, Mons is where the
first British soldier was killed during the war.
The members of the British Royal Family were warmly
applauded by more than 7,000 people gathered in the Grand Place, when
they appeared on the balcony of the Hôtel de Ville before took off to Saint-Symphorien Military Cemetery to attend the memorial
service in the evening.
Japanese Visitors
Ryo, Kaori, Katakami-san
Visited: March 8, 2014
Back
in Japan few years ago, Prince Charming and Ryo met at the university.
Still
in touch and found themselves living in Europe gave an idea to arrange a meet up. So one weekend along with his friends, they drove from Düsseldorf.
It's such a lovely day meeting you all. Hope you enjoy the visit, the food and of course the beers.
Arigatou for the omiyage!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)