I like fine art, classical architecture, Italian cars, Italian food and Donne Italiane Belle....
I actually like many things. I enjoy eating out and love many things Italian, British, Chinese, Korean and Japanese... Culture is food for the soul and I cannot live with culture...
I love and appreciate style, I think style should be understated and I don't do bling... I am really keen on the Latin look. This is reflected in my taste in clothes and the kind of cars I like. I love Italian cars, it is the passion and they are a masterpiece of Italian engineering. I appreciate good design, because design can be used as a method of communication. Things don't have to be expensive, but it should look pleasant and be functional... These days I enjoy cruising on the autostrada/highway, enjoying the music and the scenary... BTW, British_Racing_Green is a colour used on British Sport cars... I live in GB, so I got to credit Britain for something.
BTW, I am Chinese. I am proud of my heritage and I was Chinese before 1997. I am very interested in martial arts and I am currently studying Tai Chi . I have wanted to do this for a while. It is a good for mind body and soul... I am very much into spiritual cultivation.
I am nearly obsessed with quality. I like to see things done well and not take or be second best... The Chinese pioneering spirit is alive in me... I relish a challenge.
...On an August morning in 1978, French filmmaker Claude Lelouch mounted a gyro-stabilized camera to the bumper of a Ferrari 275 GTB and had a friend, a professional Formula 1 racer, drive at breakneck speed through the heart of Paris. The film was limited for technical reasons to 10 minutes; the course was from Porte Dauphine, through the Louvre, to the Basilica of Sacre Coeur.
No streets were closed, for Lelouch was unable to obtain a permit.
The driver completed the course in about 9 minutes, reaching nearly 140 MPH in some stretches. The footage reveals him running real red lights, nearly hitting real pedestrians, and driving the wrong way up real one-way streets.
Upon showing the film in public for the first time, Lelouch was arrested. He has never revealed the identity of the driver, and the film went underground until a DVD release a few years ago.
If you ask me, this is pornography on wheels and no pun intended...
I love Caterham 7's...
The Sisters Vidal
There is also something fun and colourful about Janice and Jill Vidal. Performances seem more freer and uninhibited than most. As far as artistic licence goes, it is a good thing...
Classical music. I love Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Chopin, Joachim Rodrigo, Salieri, Paisiello and many more... Soundtracks, I have a few. Onegin is a good, as are the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The English Patient, In the Mood for Love and 2046...
I like all sorts, I like Rock music with bands like The Eagles, Bon Jovi, Whitesnake, Guns N' Roses, Shakira and all the classics ... A dash of Irish folk with The Corrs and Enya and I am very much an 80's child. I like romantic ballads and I am not ashamed to admit it... Being from Hong Kong, I do like some Cantopop...
Yundi Li plays Chopin - Fantasie Impromptu
Period dramas, Sword & Sandal epics, sci-fi & fantasy, art house movies, romance and the odd comedy or two ... I also like martial arts movies a lot too, but I am very picky... Don't ask me about horror or anything for nancy boys. Do I have a favourite? - Well it depends on my mood. Films like The Italian Job and LeMans are classics. I love that retro feel and look. Top Gun is the ultimate 80's flick and although it might be pure cheese on a stick, it is more about the style, the clothes and the music. I believe both the DVD and soundtrack CD are still popular. Onegin is a nice film that reminds me to treat lady-friends well. These days, I like to move about a bit. Korean cinema is the currently the big thing at the moment...
Favourite actors: Ralph Fiennes, Ewan McGregor, Harrison Ford etc...
Favourite actresses: Audrey Hepburn, Kristin Scott Thomas, Natalie Portman etc...
In my opinion, actors and actresses don't just have to look the part, but they have a certain on screen presence and quality.
Good dramas, documentaries and the odd comedies. My taste for TV is similar to my movies...
Classical Lit, period novels, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, books on Italy and just too many to list at the moment. My preference for books mirror my preferences listed above.
Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Wellington, Nelson and Julius Caeser in terms of leadership... Ayrton Senna in terms of racing drivers. He was a legend... In terms of heroes of Oriental origin, there are far too many to name. I enjoy reading about great generals and statesmen. In terms of martial arts movie stars, I would say Jet Li and Donnie Yen.
To me, to respect somebody is not just about great leadership on the battlefield, politics or the modern worshop of movie stars. There are many others historical figures that I admire, just as Christian saints, yet I am not Christian myself. I look to some of these great saints for some inspiration.
Saint Francis of Assisi (1182 – 3 October 1226)
The founder of the Franciscan Order or "Friars Minor". He is the patron saint of animals, merchants, Italy, Catholic action, and the environment.
Clearly the love of animals, care for the environment and the simple but honest compassion towards the needy, are some of the ideals that inspire me.
Saint George (c. 275/280–April 23, 303)
Saint George was a soldier of the Roman Empire who later became a Christian martyr. Immortalised in the tale of George and the Dragon, he is the patron saint of several countries and cities, including England, Georgia, Barcelona and Moscow, as well as a wide range of professions, organisations and disease sufferers.
Saint George has been strong linked to chivalry and often depected in a romantic way as the knight in shining armour slaying a dragon. His path to sainthood was that he defied orders to persecute Christians, confessed to being a Christian himself and criticised the imperial decision. He died because he spoke up for what he believed in and what he thought was right. Such acts are noble, just and people should always do what is right, not what is easy.
It might seem odd that I, a Chinaman talked about Christian Saints, but many Westerners talk about figures in the East. I am not one for saying the "grass is greener on the other side". However compassion and noble spirit exists everywhere. You do not need to search too far for spirituality, because it should never be too far from you. I might not be a Christian, but I do respect the Christian faith.