Play the Game of Life
Ryan Petersen's Blog

I paid a couple of local guys $1.00 to show me how to climb to the top of this waterfall--and to jump at the same time so I could be sure it was deep enough to survive!

Labels: Africa, Benin, video, West Africa

If you have an hour or two to dedicate to learning today, you'll enjoy this video of Jared Diamond's talk at Columbia University about his most recent book, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succceed.

Labels: Collapse, International Development, Jared Diamond, video

Two presentations all entrepreneurs should watch:



Presentation two, for the Tech Coast Angels venture capitalist organization: Guy Kawasaki at UCLA

Labels: business, entrepreneurship, inspiration, personal growth, video

Labels: Africa, Columbia Business School, International Development, Kenya, video

Jeffrey Sachs and Angelina Jolie discuss Sauri, Kenya

Labels: Africa, Columbia Business School, International Development, Kenya, video

Labels: science, video

An introductory video to the Richard Dawkins foundation.

Labels: religion, science, video

This post is dedicated to all those friends and family who missed out on our feast this year.

Labels: family, food, video

Labels: china, video

Labels: video, vietnam

Labels: video, vietnam

Labels: video, vietnam

Labels: my favorite posts, video, vietnam

Labels: video, vietnam

Most days of our ride included at least a couple of stretches of road just covered with excited children who were suprised to see crazy white cyclists coming their way. I was lucky to have the video camera out for this one.

Labels: video, vietnam

This is not something you plan when you set out to ride your bike through Vietnam. Without speaking a word of Vietnamese, I managed to convince these lively construction workers that it would be really cool to let me drive their earth mover. And it was.

Labels: video, vietnam

Labels: video, vietnam

Every day of the ride we were blessed with the constant accompaniment of small, joyous children overwhelmed with enthusiasm. Who taught these kids to reflexively smile and wave with genuine glee at the first sight of foreigners? Is that something they are born with, an innate sense of kindness to true strangers? Unfortunately another first reaction was to try and hold us back so they could postpone our departure. But once instructed through a few proper waves, their restraining grasps turned into willing pushes, helping us up the endless chain of long hills that characterize northwest Vietnam.

Labels: video, vietnam

Day three's main climb was a beast of more than 1000 meters (3300 feet). All three of us hitched a ride on the back of this truck for a few hundred meters but I couldn't keep my grip (Michael J. Fox made it look so easy in Back to the Future). So I ended up having to actually use my leg muscles to "pedal" up the mountain while filming this video.

Labels: video, vietnam

The sun was beginning to set before we realized our mistake. Coming upon a crossroads the afternoon of our second day in Vietnam we had followed the directions of three locals. As it turns out, our poor command of Vietnamese tones (or was it the lack of geographical sense so common in Asia?) led us completely astray. And now it appeared the onset of darkness was prepared to make us pay for our mistake. Having already cycled more than 8 hours, we suddenly found ourselves at least 20 kilometers from the nearest town with a guest house. Refusing to despair, primarily because of Charlie's eternal optimism, we set to the task of finding the perfect farmers hut where we could beg to be taken in for the night. Much to our suprise, we instead came across an entire village gathered for the butchering of a water buffalo. The perfect opportunity to make friends before it got too dark to find our way.

Labels: video, vietnam

Vietnam issued us visas on September 23rd, but they didn't become valid until the 25th. Bored with waiting in China to cross the border, Bernhard and Charlie decided to stage a swim race across the river just to check things out on the other side. However, taking homeland security into his own hands, a Vietnamese farmer proceeded to send them scurrying back to China. All captured on this video..

Labels: china, video, vietnam

A fairly substantial export trade from China to Vietnam is conducted everyday using old bicycles loaded down with all manner of products, from manufactured goods to vegetables. All this has developed since 1992, when this border crossing at Hekou-Lao Cai was finally reopened after two decades of closure for political reasons. (Actually, I should say the bicycle-based trade "re-developed," as the Viet Cong were supplied from China in nearly the exact same manner throughout the American war in Vietnam. The goods were pushed thousands of miles over jungle trails to the front lines in then South Vietnam.)

The export of Chinese manufactured goods makes sense, as China is one of the world's lowest cost producers, however I would have thought that vegetables and other produce would be flowing the other way across the border. But in fact, nothing comes in from Vietnam at this crossing except empty bicycles ready to be loaded. I think this would be worth studying if there are any China-focused economic researchers looking for a good thesis out there.

Labels: business, china, video, vietnam

To allow easy access to the building's facade, workers constructed this six-story scaffolding entirely out of bamboo. Even the joints where the lengths of bamboo meet are made by tying thin strips of bamboo tightly around each of the poles. As you'll notice in teh video below (for those not in China at least) the structure just balances on the ground with foundation whatsoever. Needless to say it's extremely precarious.


The same scaffolding structure seen from the inside, with a bit of Shanghai's futuristic skyline visible in the distance.

Labels: china, video

Green means go. If you are turning left into oncoming traffic, green still means go. The rule seems to be that whoever gets to the intersection first goes first. The question is, when you get in an accident because of this, who's actually at fault?

Labels: china, video

Ingredients:

Gigantic Frozen Tuna
Wasabi
Rice
Seeweed

Directions:

Step 1.) Cut gigantic frozen tuna to pieces with industrial strength bandsaw.
Step 2.) Not sure, we only learned step one.

Labels: food, japan, my favorite posts, video

Labels: hong kong, video

Can never get enough of the bowing.



Shot at the Shinkansen station in Tokyo, Japan.

Labels: japan, video

A dance troupe takes to the streets in honor of the Hemeji Castle Festival, an annual celebration of the heritage of the town of Hemeji in Kansai prefecture.

Labels: japan, video

So this is how they do it...




Filmed at a garden in Kyoto, Japan

Labels: japan, video

This poor guy dozes for a couple of minutes and the next thing you know his whole cargo of watermelons is on sale to the highest bidder!

Labels: china, video

This seems to be something of a recurring theme on this blog. Check out these previous posts:

Video from an insane--yet commonplace--intersection in Kunming, China

Observationsabout getting across the street in China.

Labels: china, China traffic, video

The Shen Jia Men night market features competing street-meat vendors dueling from the hip. This is what Tom Peters would call a "dramatic difference" in personal branding. Anybody can BBQ some meat on a stick. But how many guys can look this coool while they do it?

Labels: china, my favorite posts, video

The night market in Shen Jia Men has everything you want, including fried scorpions, cicadas, tarantulas and baby chickens.

Labels: china, my favorite posts, video

Shot in Shen Jia Men, China at the point where the sailors return from long stays at sea. If you notice towards the end as the men start lining up single file, there is a lone man standing in wait on the shore. That is Ma Lin Chao, dreaming of becoming a sailor himself.

Labels: china, video

Anybody visiting China absolutely must wake up before 7 am and head to the nearest public park for a few hours of entertainment. Watching the vigor and grace with which these elderly people approach their infinitely diverse range of exercises, we cannot help but be filled with a profound sense of joy. Great inspiration is to be found in the capabilities of the "long-lived" who have embraced a more empowering perception of themselves.

Video 1: Harmony of Motion
If the video below does not work, please use this link. Don't bother if you are in China. Google Video wants to maintain a quality experience, so they are restricting access here until they are able to stream at full speed.






Video 2: Unusual Exercise in a Chinese Park
If the video below does not work, please use this link. Again, sorry for readers in China but you won't be able to see this clip...try back when Google Video goes live here...

Video 3: Women Staying Fit in Yunnan, China
If the video below does not work, please use this link.

This scene unfolded at my favorite intersection in Kunming today. There appears to be no method to the madness, yet it just seems to work...perhaps it's a microcosm for all of China. Coming East? First read this advice on crossing the street in China.

The embedded Google Video playback hasn't worked in previous attempts, but if we chose to give up so easily every time computers misbehaved, life would be frustrating indeed. Let's not choose that type of life! If it doesn't work, use this link. Users in China, we are out of luck till Google Video decides they are ready for prime time over here.

Labels: china, China traffic, my favorite posts, video

As a foreigner in China you are often granted extra-special treatment. In rural villages where white people are not often seen, the effect can be quite astounding. On a recent bike trip in rural Yunnan Province of China, every where we stopped for more than 15 minutes we were mobbed by crowds of excited children. These three honored our visit with a spontaneous song and dance performance.



Google Video playback does not work for viewers in China (like myself). If you are not in China, check out the video by using this link.

Labels: china, my favorite posts, video

This guy in Guangzhou apparently couldn't afford the aerobics class going on inside the building. So he did what any of us would do: he took off his shirt and followed the class through the window. I don't think he could see the instructors legs however, as that part of his routine appears largely improvised.

Google Video playback may not work for viewers in China (like myself). If you are not in China and have trouble viewing this video here, use this link.

Labels: china, my favorite posts, video

Many Chinese people eat French Fries in a way that I found extremely curious. Rather than creating a small heap of ketchup on their plate and dipping fries in it, they will squeeze just exactly the right amount onto each fry, one fry at a time. Take a look...

Labels: china, food, video