There was a sense of inevitability about 2008 and the Champion's League for Manchester United. The tributes and remembrances poured in to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Munich air crash, in so many ways the defining moment of the club and their involvement in Europe. Then one remembers that this marked the fortieth anniversary of Busby finally achieving the holy grail of the European cup triumph, the phoenix rising a decade later from the ashes to claim Europe's greatest prize.
But so it was with Chelsea, who finally overcame their Liverpool Champions' League hoodoo to reach the final of the competition that had been cherished by their owner for so long. There was definitely poetic license in the fact that the final was to be played in Russia at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium (dodgy pitch notwithstanding), whose oil and gas fields had provided the millions that Abramovich used to purchase Chelsea's success.
The script then, couldn't have been better written for the showdown between the two English titans, first and second in the Premier League this year and champions of England over the past four seasons. It was the first time two English clubs had met in the Champions League final, and crowned the return to dominance of English teams in Europe after the tragedy of Heysel and the subsequent five year ban. Moscow 2008 marks the fourth consecutive year that there has been English participation in the final (Liverpool won in 2005, Arsenal and Liverpool runners-up in 2006 and 2007) which stands in sharp contrast to the 1990s following the end of the 5 year Heysel ban. In the 1990s, an English club only made it to the final on one occasion - Manchester United in 1999 - but with rather spectacular results.
The last time two teams from the same league met the results were disastrous. AC Milan and Juventus fought each other to a standstill. That was partly due to the defensive nature of Italian football, but also due to two great rivals with an intimate knowledge of each other canceling each other out in 120 minutes of cautious and cagey football. Alex Ferguson put paid to any notion of a cautious approach when he named an attacking line-up featuring the trinity of Rooney, Tevez and Ronaldo, with Scholes and Carrick orchestrating the midfield and Hargreaves on the right flank.
United started the stronger team and deservedly took the lead after Cristiano Ronaldo put a bullet header past Cech from a Wes Brown cross (with his left foot no less). United continued to pressure Chelseaby playing a brand of exciting attacking football, and narrowly missed doubling their lead after what was probably the move of the match. Rooney picked up the ball near his own corner flag and carried it up the touchline before launching a magnificent cross-field ball from ten yards behind the half way line to Ronaldo on the left wing. Ronaldo's first touch and pace took him to the bye-line where he clipped a cross into the box right where Tevez's diving header was somehow palmed away by Cech. Terry's desperation clearance found Carrick at the edge of the box and his curled shot was thwarted by Cech's brilliant save.
Football is a cruel game though and Chelsea were very lucky to equalize at the cusp of half time against the run of play, and despite United's domination of the half. Essien made one of his typical powerful bursts forward (one of the rare few in this match given that he was deployed at right back instead of his usual midfield role) and fired in a shot which cannoned off Vidic and then Ferdinand before falling kindly for Frank Lampard, who gleefully tucked the ball into the back of the net past a wrong footed Van Der Sar. It was a poignant moment for Lampard given his very personal grief at the loss of his mother just a few weeks prior to the final. So the teams went into the half level, with United probably feeling that they should be as many as two goals ahead, especially when Tevez narrowly missed tapping in Roony's raking cross just before Lampard's goal.
The second half was rather different as Chelsea controlled play, denying Scholes and Carrick the time on the ball that had been the source of much of United's attacking impetus in the first half. United's free flowing football began to wilt under the Chelsea pressure. The dominance did not necessarily translate into clear cut chances, however, as United's rearguard held firm. In last year's FA Cup, Didier Drogba broke a stalemate when he made one telling contribution from a largely anonymous performance, slotting home a 116th minute winner when penalties loomed large. He almost won this one before full time, narrowly escaping the attentions of his marker and curling a peach of shot against the United upright from 25 yards out in what was probably his only meaningful action of the match till then. Still, a Chelsea winner would have been hard on United. If the match was not quite a tale of two halves, then both teams ended the ninety minutes deservedly equal.
Extra time was defined for me by two moments, when two men could have wrapped themselves in glory. Ryan Giggs had earlier made history by coming on as a substitute for Paul Scholes. This marked his 759th appearance for United, breaking 1968 European Cup final captain Bobby Charlton's long standing record. He had secured three points - and the league title - for United the previous week in his record tying appearance by coming off the bench to score. In Moscow, he had the chance to win the match for United after Patrice Evra made a trademark burst down the left flank and cut the ball back to Giggs. With Cech beaten, Giggs' shot was headed off the line by John Terry. It was then Lampard's chance to be the hero. The marauding midfielder made one of his typical runs into the box when the ball was knocked on to him. He instinctively turned and shot only to see the ball canon off the crossbar.
In the end, the match was to be decided by the lottery of the penalty shootout. This too was fitting in its own way. At the start of the season, Man Utd had defeated Chelsea in a penalty shootout to win the Charity Shield following a one all draw with Chelsea. Pizarro, Lampard and Wright-Phillips having their spot kicks saved on that occasion. So, both these clubs would see their seasons end after a similar shootout folllowing a one-all draw. The stakes, in this case though, could not have been any higher.
The shootout was to prove tremendously dramatic. After Tevez, Carrick, Ballack and Belleti (with his first kick of the game) had tucked away their spot kicks, Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up. United's regular penalty taker and scorer of their goal in the final, wonderkid and footballing genius touted as probably the best player in the world, surely, given the immense stage, he could handle the pressure. Of course, he missed. Lampard didn't, nor did Ashley Cole - barely - Van Der Sar got a hand to it but couldn't keep it out. Thankfully, United were still in the hunt as Hargreaves showed nerves of steel to hammer in a penalty, and Nani showed guile to send Cech the wrong way.
The moment was written for Mr Chelsea, for their captain fantastic, for John Terry to ultimately deliver the great prize which the club had been yearning for. Chelsea would be champions of Europe if his spot kick found the net. He stepped up, Van Der Sar went the wrong way and the ball hit the post. Terry's standing foot had slipped during his run up to the ball, and he buried his head in the Moscow turf. Man United and Cristiano Ronaldo had been given a huge reprieve.
It was now sudden death. Anderson and Kalou nervessly dispatched their kicks. That left Ryan Giggs, United's record setter, to step up to the spot in the pouring rain. Surely he would rise to the occasion? He did, placing a precise penalty in the corner. Nicholas Anelka was next up for Chelsea. Something in his body language was not suggestive of the greatest confidence, neither was his short run up to the ball. Van Der Sar guessed went right, guessed right, and pandemonium ensued.
Chelsea were hard down by. They dominated the second half, and hit the post and later the crossbar in extra time. But in truth, there was a certain justice that two fantastic teams, contrasting in styles but evenly matched nonetheless, would be separated by the lottery of penalties. It was truly Russian roulette on a rainy Russian night, and nobody was hit harder than poor John Terry. He was a giant of man, but was inconsolable, weeping copiously onto his manager and assistant manager's shoulders. Even the referee's attempts at consolation failed. Amidst the United celebration one player too lay prone weeping tears of joy, but also relief. Cristiano Ronaldo will be the first to emphatise with Terry at the cruelty of penalties. It might well have been him distraught at letting his teammates, his club and the fans down.
So history had come full circle. Sir Bobby Charlton led the United team up to collect the commemorative plaque for their participation in the final forty years after he had led a different generation of players up to collect the trophy as the triumphant captain. Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs jointly lifted the trophy and United were finally Champions of Europe once again.
With the defeat, question marks were raised first and foremost about Avram Grant's future as Chelsea manager. His days are probably numbered, a harsh fate for a man who led Chelsea to two cup finals and brought them to the brink of a league victory. The fate of a number of their players also remain uncertain, including Didier Drogba and goalscorer Frank Lampard. As for United, the scary thing is the core of the team remains relatively young. If they can keep hold of Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez, there would be few who would doubt their capacity to challenge for this title again.
22 May 2008
16 May 2008
(Re)Discovering Singapore
Juliet, a dear friend from my Oxford days visited Singapore over the past week, so I felt compelled to be the dutiful tour guide and show her the sights. We managed to cover quite a lot of ground - the colonial area on Tuesday, Chinatown on Thursday, the Zoo and Night Safari on Friday, Pulau Ubin on Saturday, and Orchard Road on Sunday. It was great to see Juliet again after such a long while, and also to be presented with the opportunity to rediscover or indeed in the case of places like Chinatown, discover, Singapore for myself.
The jaunt around Chinatown was especially interesting for me, as I had never really taken the effort to see the area. I was especially impressed with the Chinese Heritage Center in Chinatown. It was very tastefully designed, and effective in giving a sense of the living conditions of the Chinese immigrants when the first came to Singapore. On a more random note, while walking around Chinatown, we passed by a small sign leading up to the second story of a shop house (next to a random restaurant) which promised to be the law offices of J.B Jeyaratnam. Also fun was buying a durian and consuming it on the spot at small tables set up just for the purpose.
We also managed to squeeze in a formal Chinese tea drinking session at Tea Chapter. Discovering Tea Chapter was one of the highlights of my time at MFA (we had our typical company sponsored 'group bonding' session thing there). There is something very relaxing about going through the whole process of preparing the tea, pouring it and drinking it.
I also enjoyed visiting the Zoo and Pulau Ubin again after many years. The Singapore Zoo is much more comprehensive that the Night Safari (which though a wonderfully well worked concept, it more of a tourist thing), and it was impressive to spend a good half a day gawking at all the various animals. I remember going on a class outing to the zoo back in my Junior College days. The open concept Orang Utan enclosure, with interconnected aerial walkways for them to amble across over your heads is wonderfully thought out. The elephant show is also quite a draw, though you risk getting wet if you sit right in the front!
The last time I had been to Pulau Ubin was back in my secondary school days, on a Boys' Brigade hiking expedition. I did the more traditional thing this time round and rented bikes with Juliet to explore the island on foot. One new area which I got to see was the mangrove walk on the Eastern end of the island, including a long walkway jutting out into the ocean and a nice viewing tower (climbing up the steps wasn't all that fun though!).
You really can't got to Singapore without shopping, and Juliet set out to do just that on her last day there, armed especially with a long shopping list for camera equipment provided by her brother. In the end, she indulged herself and bought an iPod touch as her main extravagance of the trip.
So, who would have thought it possible that a visitor would come to Singapore and find 5 days insufficient? Surely not I. But that was indeed the case. Juliet didn't managed to visit the Bird Park, or the National Museum. We'll definitely save that for the next time she comes into town.
The jaunt around Chinatown was especially interesting for me, as I had never really taken the effort to see the area. I was especially impressed with the Chinese Heritage Center in Chinatown. It was very tastefully designed, and effective in giving a sense of the living conditions of the Chinese immigrants when the first came to Singapore. On a more random note, while walking around Chinatown, we passed by a small sign leading up to the second story of a shop house (next to a random restaurant) which promised to be the law offices of J.B Jeyaratnam. Also fun was buying a durian and consuming it on the spot at small tables set up just for the purpose.
We also managed to squeeze in a formal Chinese tea drinking session at Tea Chapter. Discovering Tea Chapter was one of the highlights of my time at MFA (we had our typical company sponsored 'group bonding' session thing there). There is something very relaxing about going through the whole process of preparing the tea, pouring it and drinking it.
I also enjoyed visiting the Zoo and Pulau Ubin again after many years. The Singapore Zoo is much more comprehensive that the Night Safari (which though a wonderfully well worked concept, it more of a tourist thing), and it was impressive to spend a good half a day gawking at all the various animals. I remember going on a class outing to the zoo back in my Junior College days. The open concept Orang Utan enclosure, with interconnected aerial walkways for them to amble across over your heads is wonderfully thought out. The elephant show is also quite a draw, though you risk getting wet if you sit right in the front!
The last time I had been to Pulau Ubin was back in my secondary school days, on a Boys' Brigade hiking expedition. I did the more traditional thing this time round and rented bikes with Juliet to explore the island on foot. One new area which I got to see was the mangrove walk on the Eastern end of the island, including a long walkway jutting out into the ocean and a nice viewing tower (climbing up the steps wasn't all that fun though!).
You really can't got to Singapore without shopping, and Juliet set out to do just that on her last day there, armed especially with a long shopping list for camera equipment provided by her brother. In the end, she indulged herself and bought an iPod touch as her main extravagance of the trip.
So, who would have thought it possible that a visitor would come to Singapore and find 5 days insufficient? Surely not I. But that was indeed the case. Juliet didn't managed to visit the Bird Park, or the National Museum. We'll definitely save that for the next time she comes into town.
15 May 2008
Au Revoir Justine
Justine Henin has just announced her shock retirement from professional tennis, saying that it was the end to a "wonderful adventure". The news could not have come at a more improbable time. Justine is the three time defending champion at Roland Garros, set to begin in two weeks, and has dominated the tournament, winning the previous two years without dropping a single set. Even though she is going through a slump in form at the moment, she would have started as the hot favourite to win for the fourth time in a row. This is no longer to be. Justine will also leave undefended the Olympic gold medal she won at Athens in 2004, and any chance of a career grand slam. Her tenacity and ball-striking ability could never overcome the advantage the power hitters possessed at Wimbledon, though she did reach the final once, even taking a set off Venus Williams.
The advice given to most athletes is to bow out on top, on a high, no longer clinging to faded glory, but the drive and determination possessed by most top tier athletes often prevents this. They always believe that they can have one last shot at the slam they haven't won, that they can always rediscover the form they had shown in their heyday. This will not be the case for Justine - she retires at the very pinnacle, as the top ranked woman in the world, in an era where the woman's game could not be more competitive.
The question is, what could have prompted this? There is no one with any doubt that Justine still has so much left in her. At least a few more Grand Slams and probably even the elusive Wimbledon title. If there was any doubt as to her staying power at the top of women's tennis it was her ability against the power hitters - especially the two Williams sisters, but she had seemed to cross a major hurdle by defeating them both in eventually winning her second US Open title last year. The only other player to defeat both Williams sisters in a single Grand Slam tournament was Martina Hingis.
Justine now shares with Martina and fellow Belgium Kim Clijsters, the dubious honour of early retirement. In all three cases, injuries had a major role to play in them. Martina was forced out of the game due to persistent ankle ligament problems while Kim struggled with wrist injuries for much of the latter part of her career. Justine herself has been affected by injuries, notably the virus that hampered her for much of the early part of 2004, a fractured kneecap and a hamstring problem in 2005 , her retirement in the 2006 Australian Open due to stomach pain caused by the use of anti-inflammatories to treat a persistent shoulder problem, and other assorted niggling injuries that were to constantly plague her. There is little doubt that her retirement will only add fuel to the fire that the modern demands of tennis, and the packed tour calendar is causing female tennis players to burn out.
Her retirement is a great loss to the game of tennis. More than any other player, I greatly admired Justine for her courage, her tenacity and her pluck. She was an inspiration, a 1.66m giantess that refused to be dwarfed by a modern generation of big-grunting power hitters. Her one-handed backhand was truly poetry in motion, a beautiful deadly stroke, and her ability to serve at speeds equal to or greater than players a third larger continues to baffle and marvel me.
Justine has been determined to go her own way since the early stages of her career - breaking with her family (though now reconciled) over objections to her marriage with Pierre-Yves Hardenne. The shock announcement of her retirement is no different, and we can only wish her a fond au revoir, and all the best.
The advice given to most athletes is to bow out on top, on a high, no longer clinging to faded glory, but the drive and determination possessed by most top tier athletes often prevents this. They always believe that they can have one last shot at the slam they haven't won, that they can always rediscover the form they had shown in their heyday. This will not be the case for Justine - she retires at the very pinnacle, as the top ranked woman in the world, in an era where the woman's game could not be more competitive.
The question is, what could have prompted this? There is no one with any doubt that Justine still has so much left in her. At least a few more Grand Slams and probably even the elusive Wimbledon title. If there was any doubt as to her staying power at the top of women's tennis it was her ability against the power hitters - especially the two Williams sisters, but she had seemed to cross a major hurdle by defeating them both in eventually winning her second US Open title last year. The only other player to defeat both Williams sisters in a single Grand Slam tournament was Martina Hingis.
Justine now shares with Martina and fellow Belgium Kim Clijsters, the dubious honour of early retirement. In all three cases, injuries had a major role to play in them. Martina was forced out of the game due to persistent ankle ligament problems while Kim struggled with wrist injuries for much of the latter part of her career. Justine herself has been affected by injuries, notably the virus that hampered her for much of the early part of 2004, a fractured kneecap and a hamstring problem in 2005 , her retirement in the 2006 Australian Open due to stomach pain caused by the use of anti-inflammatories to treat a persistent shoulder problem, and other assorted niggling injuries that were to constantly plague her. There is little doubt that her retirement will only add fuel to the fire that the modern demands of tennis, and the packed tour calendar is causing female tennis players to burn out.
Her retirement is a great loss to the game of tennis. More than any other player, I greatly admired Justine for her courage, her tenacity and her pluck. She was an inspiration, a 1.66m giantess that refused to be dwarfed by a modern generation of big-grunting power hitters. Her one-handed backhand was truly poetry in motion, a beautiful deadly stroke, and her ability to serve at speeds equal to or greater than players a third larger continues to baffle and marvel me.
Justine has been determined to go her own way since the early stages of her career - breaking with her family (though now reconciled) over objections to her marriage with Pierre-Yves Hardenne. The shock announcement of her retirement is no different, and we can only wish her a fond au revoir, and all the best.
14 May 2008
Lazarus
It was pub quiz night again, and I ended up a bit late after a sojourn over to Borders which was having one of their usual discount sales. I ended up buying 4 books - Hidden Iran by Roy Takeyh, a cloth bound copy of the Mabinogon (Welsh myths), Hew Strachan's biography of Clausewitz's On War, and a book on European History titled The Pursuit of Power, covering the period from 1644-1815 or Westphalia to the Congress of Vienna.
The team name was apt because we hadn't participated in the quiz for the previous two weeks. Not quite coming back from the dead, but definitely a revival of sorts. It was also chosen with Dave's beloved Leeds United in mind - they lost 2-1 at Elland Road in the first leg of the playoffs against Carlisle and need to come back from the dead in the second leg to make the playoff finals.
It was fairly typical fare, with a round on pop music, communications and the 1990s. We chose the 1990s as our joker round, given that the 'decade' categories have usually been kind to us in the past. This one was rather random with 2 questions on computer viruses (surely the 1990s wasn't that boring, I grew up in them!). It was an excellent and very consistent performance overall, with 8s and 9s on most rounds and a safe seven points in the pot luck to round off the win.
And all that without the redoubtable Princey, who was still suffering after surgery on his bum knees. I am told he will be back next week to take part and I do hope he'll make it. I will be loathe to admit it but I am actually starting to miss the grumpy git.
Update: Our team name proved even more well-founded than we realized, when Leeds United scored an injury time winner to progress to the playoff final. Dave Sowden, who had planned a trip back to England anyway, managed to get himself a ticket to the playoff final at Wembley. Sadly Leeds were outplayed by Doncaster and lost.
The team name was apt because we hadn't participated in the quiz for the previous two weeks. Not quite coming back from the dead, but definitely a revival of sorts. It was also chosen with Dave's beloved Leeds United in mind - they lost 2-1 at Elland Road in the first leg of the playoffs against Carlisle and need to come back from the dead in the second leg to make the playoff finals.
It was fairly typical fare, with a round on pop music, communications and the 1990s. We chose the 1990s as our joker round, given that the 'decade' categories have usually been kind to us in the past. This one was rather random with 2 questions on computer viruses (surely the 1990s wasn't that boring, I grew up in them!). It was an excellent and very consistent performance overall, with 8s and 9s on most rounds and a safe seven points in the pot luck to round off the win.
And all that without the redoubtable Princey, who was still suffering after surgery on his bum knees. I am told he will be back next week to take part and I do hope he'll make it. I will be loathe to admit it but I am actually starting to miss the grumpy git.
Update: Our team name proved even more well-founded than we realized, when Leeds United scored an injury time winner to progress to the playoff final. Dave Sowden, who had planned a trip back to England anyway, managed to get himself a ticket to the playoff final at Wembley. Sadly Leeds were outplayed by Doncaster and lost.
11 May 2008
Siren Song
I was briefly browsing in HMV the other day, when I was struck by the CD they were playing in the store. The singer's voice was luminous and somehow familiar, singing Time After Time in a duet with Cyndi Lauper. It turned out the etheral voice was indeed hugely familiar to me - it was Sarah McLachlan and the album was a newly released second volume of Rarities, B-sides and other stuff.
McLachlan's earlier album Surfacing remains one of my most beloved CDs of all time and a prime candidate for any desert island poll that I take part in. She has a remarkably clear, emotive voice that is at once haunting and familiar. It is unsurprising that when I entered HMV that day, it stopped me in my tracks, as it has always done.
That is the remarkable thing about the great singers and the classic songs - they can communicate to you in an almost instantaneous way. They effortlessly compel and move you. They cannot be ignored. I remember another occasion when I had that reaction - I was watching TV when they advertised a debut album and played a short excerpt from one of the songs. I was immediately struck by the unique quality of the singing, and was determined there and then, after hearing just a 15 second excerpt, that I had to buy the album. It was Norah Jones singing Don't Know Why.
It was a wonderful feeling listening to this 'new' album which did contain some wonderful gems. I particularly loved When She Loved Me, which was used in the movie Toy Story 2, and had not been previously released on any of McLachlan's earlier albums. Other great tracks which showed off her versatility included covers of Blackbird, The Rainbow Connection and The Prayer of St Francis and also a wonderful live duet of the old classic Angel with Emmylou Harris.
But back to the main thrust of this post. That is the real power of beauty of music - something that you can return to again and again, for solace or comfort, in times of unadulterated happiness or unabashed angst. It is the joy of having that eureka moment in a record store when you stop, listen and feel a profound sense of wonderfulness.
McLachlan's earlier album Surfacing remains one of my most beloved CDs of all time and a prime candidate for any desert island poll that I take part in. She has a remarkably clear, emotive voice that is at once haunting and familiar. It is unsurprising that when I entered HMV that day, it stopped me in my tracks, as it has always done.
That is the remarkable thing about the great singers and the classic songs - they can communicate to you in an almost instantaneous way. They effortlessly compel and move you. They cannot be ignored. I remember another occasion when I had that reaction - I was watching TV when they advertised a debut album and played a short excerpt from one of the songs. I was immediately struck by the unique quality of the singing, and was determined there and then, after hearing just a 15 second excerpt, that I had to buy the album. It was Norah Jones singing Don't Know Why.
It was a wonderful feeling listening to this 'new' album which did contain some wonderful gems. I particularly loved When She Loved Me, which was used in the movie Toy Story 2, and had not been previously released on any of McLachlan's earlier albums. Other great tracks which showed off her versatility included covers of Blackbird, The Rainbow Connection and The Prayer of St Francis and also a wonderful live duet of the old classic Angel with Emmylou Harris.
But back to the main thrust of this post. That is the real power of beauty of music - something that you can return to again and again, for solace or comfort, in times of unadulterated happiness or unabashed angst. It is the joy of having that eureka moment in a record store when you stop, listen and feel a profound sense of wonderfulness.
5 May 2008
Bioshock
I finally got round to installing and completing Bioshock recently. It is an excellent game - a blend of an interesting concept and storyline, good gameplay and wonderful design and graphics. The premise is that you find yourself the only survivor of a plane crash, and upon descending in a mysterious bathysphere, you enter an immense underground city called Rapture. Rapture was meant to be an utopia - the dream of one man who wanted to live free from the restraints of government, religion and ideology. Like all utopias, however, it had begun to consume itself from within, and you find yourself in the midst of a civil war pitting two factions intent on gaining control of Rapture.
To control Rapture, you must control 'Adam'. Simply put 'Adam' is a substance that allows an individual to alter his/her genetic code. This lends for interesting gameplay options, as injecting yourself with Adam gives you special abilities such as the ability to emit fire or electric shock, to freeze enemies or even create a swarm of bees that will attack any foes. Defeating your foes is thus a mixture of using these special abilities to harass/stun/temporarily disable them, and the conventional arsenal of machine gun, shotgun, pistol, grenade launcher and wrench (instead of the classic Half-Life crowbar). However, your special abilities don't come free, and you have to constantly replenish your stock of 'Eve' which grants you the ability to use these powers.
The main beauty of the game comes in its design - a rich pastiche of art deco and art nouveau grandeur coming apart at its seams. Every aspect of the game is incorporated into this, including the weapons (think mafia style machine gun and sawed-off shotgun). There is a quite stunning level of detail, from the folding door elevators, to 1930s style bar counters, that literally transports you to a new world. The use of shadows, lighting and sound also ensures an experience which is often unsettling and eerie.
What really sets Rapture apart is the depth of the storyline which is myriad, rich and very detailed. A clever little device where your character can pick up tape recordings left by the inhabitants of Rapture allows you to find out many of the intricate details of its fall from paradise, even as the main plot is slowly being unraveled and revealed. There is also a wonderful and rather twisted little gameplay element that will challenge each gamer's ethics - 'Adam' itself is generated in the bodies of little girls called 'little sisters' - the question is do you 'harvest' them, gaining the maximum benefit and growing correspondingly stronger, or do you 'save' them, releasing them from their bondage as genetic containers, but gaining less benefit in the process?
In sum, Bioshock is gorgeously designed, richly detailed, and an excellent game all the way through. My only complaint would be that the final boss was just not very challenging, which was a bit of a come done, especially given how multi-faceted the rest of the game was. But that would be a very minor gripe in an otherwise excellent game.
What really sets Rapture apart is the depth of the storyline which is myriad, rich and very detailed. A clever little device where your character can pick up tape recordings left by the inhabitants of Rapture allows you to find out many of the intricate details of its fall from paradise, even as the main plot is slowly being unraveled and revealed. There is also a wonderful and rather twisted little gameplay element that will challenge each gamer's ethics - 'Adam' itself is generated in the bodies of little girls called 'little sisters' - the question is do you 'harvest' them, gaining the maximum benefit and growing correspondingly stronger, or do you 'save' them, releasing them from their bondage as genetic containers, but gaining less benefit in the process?
In sum, Bioshock is gorgeously designed, richly detailed, and an excellent game all the way through. My only complaint would be that the final boss was just not very challenging, which was a bit of a come done, especially given how multi-faceted the rest of the game was. But that would be a very minor gripe in an otherwise excellent game.
4 May 2008
MPH Warehouse Sale
My mother noticed that there was a MPH warehouse sale taking place over the weekend, and asked me as early as Thursday if I was interested in going. I was hesitant on two counts - firstly, it is held at the Singapore Expo which is quite far from my home, and secondly, every single time my family goes to MPH warehouse sales, we usually end up coming home with cartons of books, having burned at least a $500 hole in our pockets.
However, we did end up going after our usual family lunch. The sister even expressed interest in going down at around 7pm after she finished her last therapy session in Tampines, which was relatively near-by, but I told her that it was unlikely that we would be staying that long. So, naturally, she rang at 7pm to find that my mother and I were still at the Expo having accumulated several boxes full of possible buys.
But I must say, this was quite a stupendous haul that we managed. But here are the three most stupendous bargains that we got on th day:
The Lord of the Rings hardcover Illustrated Edition - retail price 75 pounds total, purchased for S$21
The World's Greatest Wine Estates by Robert Mondavi - retail price over S$100, purchased for S$7
The Lonely Planet Citescape Box Set (10 Books) - retail price 45 pounds, purchased for S$10
There were also a fair number of books that I found there at bargain prices that I would have been more than willing to pay full dollar for including:
The Judgement of Paris - The Great 1976 Wine-Tasting
1491: America Before Columbus by Charles Mann
Crusader Nation: The US in Peace and the Great War
The Bible: A Biography by Karen Armstrong (Hardback)
The Wealth of Nations: A Biography by P.J O'Rourke
First Man: The Authorized Biography of Neil Amstrong (Hardback)
Q School by John Feinstein
This also fails to mention books by John Updike, Don DeLillo, Orhan Pamuk, Ismail Kadare, and lots of other Vintage trade paperbacks that we purchased along with two volumes of 3 in 1 hardback Tintin reprints, 7 volumes of the graphic novel series Transmetropolitan, three beautiful Lonely Planet coffee table books, and stacks of interesting random history and non-fiction.
All in all, it will suffice to say that it was a very good day indeed.
However, we did end up going after our usual family lunch. The sister even expressed interest in going down at around 7pm after she finished her last therapy session in Tampines, which was relatively near-by, but I told her that it was unlikely that we would be staying that long. So, naturally, she rang at 7pm to find that my mother and I were still at the Expo having accumulated several boxes full of possible buys.
But I must say, this was quite a stupendous haul that we managed. But here are the three most stupendous bargains that we got on th day:
The Lord of the Rings hardcover Illustrated Edition - retail price 75 pounds total, purchased for S$21
The World's Greatest Wine Estates by Robert Mondavi - retail price over S$100, purchased for S$7
The Lonely Planet Citescape Box Set (10 Books) - retail price 45 pounds, purchased for S$10
There were also a fair number of books that I found there at bargain prices that I would have been more than willing to pay full dollar for including:
The Judgement of Paris - The Great 1976 Wine-Tasting
1491: America Before Columbus by Charles Mann
Crusader Nation: The US in Peace and the Great War
The Bible: A Biography by Karen Armstrong (Hardback)
The Wealth of Nations: A Biography by P.J O'Rourke
First Man: The Authorized Biography of Neil Amstrong (Hardback)
Q School by John Feinstein
This also fails to mention books by John Updike, Don DeLillo, Orhan Pamuk, Ismail Kadare, and lots of other Vintage trade paperbacks that we purchased along with two volumes of 3 in 1 hardback Tintin reprints, 7 volumes of the graphic novel series Transmetropolitan, three beautiful Lonely Planet coffee table books, and stacks of interesting random history and non-fiction.
All in all, it will suffice to say that it was a very good day indeed.
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