From Russia With Love: 3-February Days in Moscow

Carrying on from the Switzerland post – basically it was Chinese New Year and Olga Bereslavskaya; the person that invited me to the World Communication Forum 2013 said I should visit Moscow for a few days – and since it was a holiday and I had never, been I decided to spend the 3 Chinese New Year holidays there.

And it was awesome! While I was only 70% sure what to expect, it was that and more! The key tourist areas are an awe to see in person and the city is so interesting, mixed with the old and new, design-wise and politically-wise.

Sub-Zero Wildfire: My Visit to CERN and Davos in Switzerland

I’m packing in this post with as much as I can to give you, dear reader, a summary of my recent trip around Switzerland and to Russia: it all started with an invitation to speak at the World Communication Forum 2013 in Davos, Switzerland by Amazing Hong Kong creator Olga Berelavskaya – and ended up as a whirlwind tour on planes, trains and ski lifts!

Myojowaraku 2012 is the Coolest Start-up Event in Fukuoka Japan

I was very excited to be invited by Startup Dating to attend the 2-day Myojowaraku: Technology and Creative Festival in Fukuoka Japan – this is the second year they’ve done this festival which is kind-of like SXSW in that it mixes art, music and tech together.

The festival started on Saturday morning (9/8) and ran till 5am (!) then stopped for a few hours and then ended Sunday evening (9/9). It was great to walk around the huge floor at Time Tunnel Gates (!) and see all the artists drawing, DJ’s playing and workshops happening around topics like CSS and WordPress – I’ve never seen such an eclectic mash-up of stuff before happening at the same time in the same hall! Truly amazing – my hats off to the organziers! Now onto the photos…

Creator Neil Gaiman’s Amazing Speech on “Making Good Art”

I’ve known Neil Gaiman for many years, not in person, but through his work on The Sandman for DC Comics. Then I stumbled upon his books like American Gods and really started to like him. He seems like the most normal of the English comic writers, and with this commencement speech the most inspiring – watch it and take notes. The full transcript can be found here.

Grant Morrison’s Batman Run = the Best Batman Comics of the 21st Century

Well so far anyways!

If you had even the slightest tinge of disappointment in The Dark Knight Rises – I have the cure for you if you haven’t read them yet – in my mind the BEST Batman comics to have been produced in ages – the 3 main books that make up BATMAN AND SON, THE BLACK GLOVE and BATMAN R.I.P.

I was so skeptical of the concept (Batman to die again) that I didn’t even bother with them when they came out in 2007-2010 even though they were written by my #2 favorite writer of all time Mr. Grant Morrison.

I sat down and read his entire run this weekend and it was incredible – it feels like the Christopher Nolan films but taken up a notch as only the comic book medium can do in the hands of one of its greatest writers.