Travelling: Vong Sundara at Copenhagen 2009 2nd World Outgames

September 14, 2009 by vongsundara · Leave a Comment 

Copenhagen 2009 2nd World Outgames

I’m still getting used to travelling. You see, I grew up in Winnipeg, which is eight hours from the next large city, which happens to be Regina, not exactly a tourist destination. People in Winnipeg just don’t travel a lot, especially not to Europe. This is probably why I jumped at the chance to go to the Copenhagen 2009 2nd World Outgames. I went the Montreal 2009 1st World Outgames and had a fabulous time, so I was really looking forward to duplicating the experience in Europe.

To have my trip subsidized, I agreed to be the official photographer for GLISA North America (Gay Lesbian International Sports Association). It was actually quite nice to dust off my old camera and remember pretend like I was back in my old freelancing days. I’ve included the best 30 photos below, hope you like them. Looking back at the photos now brings back all the wonderful memories of being in Denmark.

The only strange part of the trip was not participating in any sports. Luckily, I was able to go to many of the sporting events and cheer my friends on since I had to take photos anyways. I didn’t really get the itch to play until I was actually there. It didn’t help that everyone who knew me in Denmark met me through one sport or another, so I was constantly being asked how my sport was going.

The first big highlight of the event for me was seeing Kemone Brown, keynote speaker on the second day of the human rights conference. In fact, that’s probably my favourite thing about the Outgames, that the organizers include a human rights conference and cultural component so that the event is more than just sports. You must Google Kemone Brown and read all about her. She is one of the freshest voices to come in the world of human rights in a while. It’s amazing that someone of her age has the insight that she has.

I must admit that I have a thing for Danish guys. There’s just something about their facial features combined with the best-in-the-world Danish accent. Danish accents remind me of Arnold Schwarzenegger, if Arnold Schwarzenegger was a giddy Japanese schoolgirl. It’s like a faster, happier version without the roughness. It’s quite sexy.

The best part is that Danish men are so incredibly helpful. I would often have my camera around my neck with a map in my hand and a “I’m lost and need help” look on my face. It wouldn’t be more than a couple of minutes before some cute Danish boy came and helped me along my way.

The cultural portion of the Outgames was incredible. Instead of a centralized stage, there was a trail called Outcities, where several cities from around the world set up their stages and lined up performances. The performances were free and out in the open, running all week long. They had everything from pop to hardcore opera.

I unfortunately missed the opening ceremonies by arriving a day light, but Copenhagen Pride was scheduled to close off the week, and I was fortunate enough to attend. The pictures below give a better idea of how magical the event was than anything I could write myself.

My trip actually ended with a little bit of drama. My flight had been misbooked one day past everyone else’s flight. I should have checked more closely, but everything turned on the way it was supposed to I guess. I ended up having an extra day in Denmark but without a hotel room to stay in. Amazingly, I was able to stay with overnight with a helpful Danish boy.

In fact, this Danish boy ended up being a history scholar who ended up taking me on a tour of Copenhagen on my last day. It was like having my own personal tour guide. He knew absolutely everything there was to know no matter where we were. The canal tour was wonderful, and I highly recommend it to anyone.

I’m still on a high thinking about my fabulous time in Denmark. Hopefully someday I can go back to Europe and build on my world experiences. If you’re planning on travelling, think about going to a gay sporting event. It’s a great excuse to visit new places, and you have more things to do than you normally would.

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Filed under: Gaying, Travelling
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US Open 2009 Controversy: Serena Williams versus Kim Clijsters, Racially Motivated?

September 12, 2009 by vongsundara · 11 Comments 

U.S. Open: Serena Williams penalized on match point to fall in semis -- ESPN.

To start off, please let me say that I am not a big Serena Williams fan (though I do love Venus Williams), more for her after-match press conference remarks throughout the years. That being said, I really respect Serena Williams as a competitor on the court.

What happened to Serena Williams at the US Open 2009 tonight was absolutely ridiculous. If this was the first incident against the Williams sisters, I might look at it differently, as Serena did clearly verbally abuse the lineswoman. Sure, by the rules, everything went according to the book. I just can’t see this as an isolated incident, though.

The horrible part (not as horrible as what happened to Serena of course) is that I’m actually a really huge Kim Clijsters fan, and she was outplaying Serena and had a huge shot at winning the match had it gone on. That being said, Serena has been down in similar situations and still gone on to win the tournament (like this year at Australian Open and French Open). So Kim not being to close it out does indeed leave doubts. Serena holding serve would have had a shot at a tiebreaker to even the match with the third set being 50/50 odds at winning. So let’s be clear that Serena was by no means out of the match when this happened.

I’m getting a little ahead of myself. I should explain the situation.

Serena Williams was serving at 15-30, second serve, against Kim Clisters who was leading 6-5 in the second set. Serena was called for a foot fault, meaning she stepped over the line on her serve. Now, it was foolish of the commentators to try to comment on whether she foot faulted or not. First of all, the camera angles are really difficult to see and second of all, calling a foot fault to give someone match point is almost unheard of in tennis.

Yes, unheard of. Especially for a baseline player who was not approaching the net.

There have also been many, many times worse arguments that did not end with a point violation to end a match. Yes, Serena did have a previous code violation for smashing her racquet earlier in the match. Yes, getting a second violation is an automatic point penalty. Still, though, compared to what has happened in the past in tennis, this was way overboard to have the match end this way. This is when judgment should be used. Ending the match was not good judgment.

Let’s combine this knowledge with all the past incidents that have happened against Serena Williams and Venus Williams, the most notable is of course the Serena vs. Jennifer Capriati match from the US Open 2004 tournament.

Now, this is where it gets iffy, and I know people are going to get upset at this and accuse me of bringing up the race card, but seriously . . . this would not have happened if Serena was white. Yeah, I said it. You all know it’s true too.

Like I said, as an isolated incident, it might be seen differently, but the treatment Serena has received over the years (which by the way I can’t think of the same types of incidents occurring over and over to any other players) leads me to this conclusion.

Yes, Serena could have handled herself better (which I think she did during the Capriati incident), but enough is enough people. Yes, I realize the lineswoman was not white.

Anyhow, that’s still how I feel.

Also, the fact that these incidents ONLY happen during tiebreaks (like Venus getting screwed because the score was incorrectly called “by accident”), or to give break point (Capriati match), or to give match point (Clijsters match). . . well, doesn’t that say a lot.

Having rewatched the calls from the YouTube video above have made me even more mad again.

Please have a look at the video before commenting, as it shows how ridiculous the history has been and why Serena Williams probably lost her cool today.

Just to remind everyone, the treatment of Serena has been so bad in the past that it’s generally agreed upon that it is the single defining moment that pushed the Grand Slam tournaments to adopt a challenge system.

Filed under: Commenting
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Having my mom in Guelph is super awesome and way closer than Winnipeg

September 12, 2009 by vongsundara · Leave a Comment 

I’m typing this blog entry from my mom’s restaurant, Thai Villa Cuisine, in Guelph, Ontario. As a side note, check out http://www.thaivillacuisine.com if you get the chance. It’s the website I built for my parents’ restaurant. Anyhow, back to the blog post.

I have to admit, I haven’t been the best son lately. With my parents being in Guelph, I should be able to come out here most weekends. Unfortunately, now that summer is over, I have volleyball clinics on Saturdays and can’t visit on weekends anymore. I’ll have to try and find some time to come out here and spend with my parents.

I’ve always been fortunate that my relationship with my parents has been so wonderful. Communication styles are very different in Eastern cultures, and my parents are perfect example of that. They never said they loved me while I was growing up. The thing is, they never had to. They made it so obvious by how they were and what they did that actually having to say the words almost diminished the fact.

Having my parents around is awesome. It’s not quite like being in Winnipeg, but at least I get a small touch of Winnipeg nearby when I can visit them.

Filed under: Living
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Thanks for sticking with me through a long and lazy summer of zero updates

September 7, 2009 by vongsundara · Leave a Comment 

Hello readers. Thanks for sticking with me through a lazy summer. This website actually still averaged over 100 visits a day despite my not updating in two months.

I just completed phase one of the upcoming updates: fixing broken links. All YouTube links across all stories are now working again. I started working on a discussion forum, though I don’t think I’ll be launching that anytime soon, as I need to set aside time to write a theme that matches the rest of this website.

I’ve taken away some old features like the photo section. I’ll be redesigning and upgrading this component with full Flickr integration (below is an example of some Flickr integration). In addition to that, I’ll be adding a Press Kit section that will include my bio, headshots and more for members of the press or for fans who are interested.

I’ve also added a Facebook Fan Box, which will hopefully help more people click on Become A Fan on my Facebook page. My goal before the end of the year is to reach 500 fans.

The biggest new addition is the More On This Topic widget at the bottom of this page. The content is syndicated from around the internet and will help add context to my blog posts.

The big decision for me coming up is my coverage of television shows. Last year I covered America’s Next Top Model and American Idol to great success. I just don’t think I have the time this year to cover serialized shows. I may switch to reviewing pilot episodes, as this will be on a case-by-case basis as opposed to a weekly commitment.

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Filed under: Performing
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Charice Pempengco raises bar for all female singers with incredible vocal range

September 5, 2009 by vongsundara · 46 Comments 

LATEST UPDATES
September 5, 2009: Fixed broken links for embedded YouTube clips.
March 17, 2009: Added video and comments for Through The Rain and My Heart Will Go On.
February 25, 2009: Added some information regarding Charice’s vocal range.
February 1, 2009: Original post date.

Sometimes in life, I witness someone so talented and driven that it inspires me to work harder on my own craft. Charice Pempengco is the most recent example of this.

I recently stumbled upon videos of a fantastic young singer from the Philippines named Charice Pempengco on YouTube. It seems as though I’m a little behind the times, as Ellen Degeneres and Oprah Winfrey discovered Charice Pempengco a few months back, and Charice has since gone on to widespread fame after appearing on Oprah three times now.

I am a huge fan of talented vocalists; I won’t listen to any musicians or bands whose vocals aren’t at least up to par (which is why I can’t stand punk music and a lot of pop rock). I’ve recently taken my obsession to YouTube, as it’s the perfect venue to compare vocalists in live performances. In fact, there are many videos that splice separate performances of the same song by different artists together, which makes my life easier when I’m trying to compare different vocalists.

Read more . . .

Filed under: Charice Pempengco, Listening
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Charice Pempengco’s incredible journey from poverty to international stardom

September 5, 2009 by vongsundara · 16 Comments 

UPDATES
September 5, 2009: Fixed YouTube embeds and links.
April 23, 2009: Added props to COOLSMURF for posting the Star King performance on YouTube. (Thanks to Concernedfan for leaving the correction in a comment.)

I’m still relatively new to the whole Charice Pempengco phenomenon. I’ve been following Charice’s best live performances and listening for any news about her upcoming 2009 studio album produced by David Foster. Since there’s a little lull in Charice news, I figured it would be a good time for me to find out about her past. I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing Charice’s Oprah debut that went through her entire history, so hopefully I can patch together information from the internet.

Charice was born on May 10, 1992, in San Pedro, Laguna, Philippines. According to various television interviews, Charice and her brother Carl were raised solely by their mother, Raquel. Charice’s father has been out of her life since Raquel left him and took the kids when Charice was still only three years old to escape a domestically violent situation. Charice has been singing since she was four years old and was taught to sing by her mother. Charice began entering singing contests when she was seven to help bring in money to support her struggling family.

Read more . . .

Filed under: Charice Pempengco
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