What I have been doing while not blogging

Here's a brief update:

Have seen two movies - Coco Avant Chanel and Sunshine Cleaning. I liked the first one more than the second one.

Coco Avant Chanel is not a good movie if you actually want to know about Coco Chanel. But it is a biopic so I guess a bit of embellishment is to be expected. I really liked the costuming and set design. Audrey Tautou is fantastic. I like the sincerity she brings to this role. But I thought the ending was a bit abrupt and over-laboured.

Sunshine Cleaning was just okay. Once again a poorly ended movie. I am guessing it must be a hard task to come up with a good ending for a movie... maybe?

Also went alone to one of the talks in the series of Mayoral Conversations. Last night was Rita Justesen talking about the revitalisation of the Copenhagen waterfront. Unfortunately, the venue was truly appalling. Aotea Centre 'conference facilities' are not good at all. The room was the wrong size and shape, so no one could properly see or hear the speaker. The screens for projecting the presentation on to were too low. As a result everyone was bobbing side to side, up and down and arching their necks to see. I would like to point out that it is advertised on The Edge's website as being "New Zealand’s premier conference destination, an unrivalled complex in which to do business." I beg to differ. So as you can tell this was a big distraction in being able to enjoy the event.

My conclusion on the mayoral conversation series: Don't go. The wine is no longer good, the venue isn't likely to be either, the speakers are okay, and the dumb questions people ask are likely to annoy you. In the future I am planning to watch them on YouTube.

On the up side, I am now thinking of adding Denmark onto my list of places to go. It looks pretty. Copenhagen - "It's Chic. It's Exciting." And it has interesting architecture. Maybe my love of architecture and interest in urban planning is thanks to my Danish ancestry?!

Some photos of Copenhagen from: VisitCopenhagen.com