In a recent four part series we took a look at the top 20 Chinese celebrities who were part of Forbes Magazine’s China’s 25 Most Powerful Celebrities. From actors to athletes the list has them all.  However, rather than just listing the celebrity’s name and their “power” rank like the Forbe’s article does, we decided to look into who each of these celebrities are and what makes them famous and so “powerful.”  Below is a quick index for the 4 parts we posted and who was profiled in each part.

20 Most Powerful Chinese Celebrities – Part 1 (Rank 20 – 16)

20.  Huang Shengyi – actress/singer

19.  Betty Sun Li – actress

18.  Lin Dan - athlete (badminton)

17.  Ge You – actor

16.  Huang Xiaoming – actor

20 Most Powerful Chinese Celebrities – Part 2 (Rank 15 – 11)

15.  Zhang Liangying – singer

14.  Zhang Guoli – actor

13.  Guo Degang – comedian/actor

12.  Xu Jinglei – actress/singer

11.  Gong Li – actress

20 Most Powerful Chinese Celebrities – Part 3 (Rank 10 – 6)

10.  Zhao Benshan – actor

9.  Li Bingbing – actress

8.  Zhou Xun – actress/singer

7.  Zhao Wei – actress/singer/director

6.  Fan Bingbing – actress

20 Most  Powerful Chinese Celebrities – Part 4 (Rank 5 – 1)

5.  Zhang Ziyi – actress

4.  Yi Jianlian – athlete (basketball)

3.  Jet Li – actor

2.  Liu Xiang – athlete (track & field)

1.  Yao Ming athlete (basketball)

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In our quest to learn a little more about the world we’ve embarked on the World Bra Tour to examine how different countries approach advertising something as simple as a woman’s bra.  Last time we checked out the latest undergarment fashions in Germany.  This time we go to Asia and see how Korea advertises bra’s and other intimate clothing.  Here we learn not all countries’ bras are advertised and sold in the same way.

How do you say “Bra” in Korean?

I figure it’s a good place to start learning to say how “Bra” in korean.  According to google translate Bra in Korean is “브래지어.”  I can’t read Korean script so this didn’t helped me.  I plugged this into a Korean text-to-speech tool and found that it sounds like this:

To my ears it sounds like “pu-ree-jiao” (my apologies if I’ve butchered the language)

I thought knowing how to say 브래지어 (“bra” in Korean) would help me find some good commercials, but in then end just searching in English seemed to work better.

Vivien

Click here to view the embedded video.

When I first found this commercial, I wasn’t even sure if it was a bra commercial.  At first I thought it might just be a slide show some fan put together featuring pictures of his favorite model or actress, but if you keep watching it changes from a slideshow to a very short “live” video.  I know it’s a bra commercial because at the 27 second mark they flash a quick shot of a bra (evidence below).

Vivien bra's meant to be worn, not seen

It was interesting to see how there was very little focus on the bra and instead more focus on the model making different poses.  Not wanting to assume that all Vivien commercials are like this I looked through some more and found this one.

Click here to view the embedded video.

This one was not a slide show, but of all the bra commercials that I have seen up to now (and I have seen my fair share of them now…all in the name of research) this Vivien commercial has got to be the most scientific I’ve seen.  At the 14 second mark ithey introduce a high tech looking shot of a computer analyzing the flexibility of the bra’s wire.

High tech computers created Vivien bras

What’s interesting to note about both of the above Vivien bra commercials is that neither of the models are actually shown wearing a bra.  In both commercials the bras are just lying about, but never visibly worn by a human.

I was curious to see what the online store looked like and equally as curious to see if their catalogs were as racy as the German bra catalogs we had featured last time.  It took a little digging but I found Vivien’s e-shop for bras.  Immediately you can see there’s a big difference in how they sell bra’s in Korea vs. Germany and even the United States.

That’s right, if you look closely just at the above screen shot from their e-catalog of the 8 models wearing bras only 2 are clearly human, everyone else is a mannequin.

Venus

This Venus bra commercial is different from the Vivien commercials since it actually shows a human wearing a bra.  However, if you watched it you might have noticed that the person wearing the bra might not necessarily be the woman who was featured in the beginning of the commercial.  It could have been a body double.  The other thing to note with this commercial is how much more dramatic it was compared to the other commercials (ie not as scientific).  They have crying, running, and opera music.

Looking a little further back to a 2007 Venus bra commercial we can see that Venus in has decided to show more skin in their recent commercials.

You’ll notice in this commercial they didn’t show the model or any person for that matter wearing a bra.  They have kept the same dramatic almost artsy feel to their commercials.  This one also seems to have more talking than most bra commercials.

The below commercial has got to be my favorite Venus bra commercial.  Again there’s no actual shot of anyone wearing a bra, but the men shooting the silver beams of light is highly amusing.

Venus does set themselves apart from Vivien by featuring real models in their catalog wearing the actual products.

Overall Lessons Learned

Korean bra commercials are definitely more conservative than German bra commercials (and for that matter the United States).  It seems like most of the focus is on the functionality of the bra (ie the comfort) rather than focusing on the sexiness the underwear will make the customer feel.  Even more interesting if you were paying attention to the e-catalogs for the bra’s there are pre-dominantly non-asian women modeling the clothes…or in Vivien’s case non-human’s modeling the underwear.

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In part 1, part 2, and part 3 of our 4 part series we looked at the most powerful Chinese celebrities ranked from 20 to 6.  Instead of just listing a simple one line description of these celebrities like the Forbes article China’s 25 Most Powerful Celebrities does, we were inspired to look a little more in-depth into who these celebrities are.  Today in our final part we’ll look at the top 5 most power Chinese celebrities ranked.   You probably have heard of these people, but maybe you’ll learn something new.

5. Zhang Ziyi

Best Known For: Being the crazy woman in Crouch Tiger Hidden Dragon and as well as for her roles in Memoirs of a Geisha and Rush Hour 2…

Basic Info: Chinese name is 章子怡 (Zhāng Zǐyí).  She is currently 30 years old (birthday is February 9, 1979) and was born in Beijing, China.  At the the age 19 she was offered her first role in the award winning Chinese film The Road Home.  From there her star continued to rise.  In addition to acting she also has dabbled in singing where she sang a few tracks for the House of Flying Daggers soundtrack.  Had she never gone into acting she saud sge would have liked to have been a kindergarten teacher (since she “loves children”).  She is currently engaged to a multi-millionaire venture capitalist, Vivi Nevo.  In 2007 she made $8 Million.

Click here to view the embedded video.

4.  Yi Jianlian

Best Known For: Being the other tall Chinese NBA basketball player for the New Jersey Nets…

Basic Info: Chinese name is 易建聯 (Yì Jiànlián).  His age is currently disputed, but “officially” it is 21 (birthday is October 27, 1987) and he was born in Guandong (Canton), China.  In addition to speaking Mandarin he also speaks Cantonese.  He was drafted in 2007 by the Milwaukee Bucks, but then in 2008 he was traded to the New Jersey Nets.  He is also quite tall standing at 7 feet tall.  His parents instead of being professional basketball players were actually professional handball players.  2007 was a good year for him as he made $4.2 Million.

Click here to view the embedded video.

3.  Jet Li

Best Known For: His martial arts skills and starring in Romeo Must Die and Lethal Weapon 4.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 李連杰 (Lǐ Liánjié).  He is currently 45 years old (birthday is April 26, 1963) and was born in Beijing, China.  He started out as a member of the Beijing Wush Team (a martial arts team) where he won several championships.  He also was part of the Chinese delegation that visited the United States in 1974 and took part in a 2 man fight performance on the lawn of the White House for President Nixon.  Why the name “Jet”?   A PR firm decided that his career was starting to take off…like a jet.  His launch has been financially rewarding making him $35 Million in 2007.

Click here to view the embedded video.

2.  Liu Xiang

Best Known For: First Chinese person to win a gold medal in a track and field event (110 meter hurdles in 2004 Athen Olympics).

Basic Info: Chinese name is 劉翔 (Liú Xiáng).  He is currently 25 years old (birthday is July 13, 1983) and was born in Shanghai, China.  In addition to be being an Olympic champion he also is a World Record Holder and World Champion.  At 6 feet 2 inches he is taller than most hurdlers and has had to adjust his running style to accommodate his height.  His popularity has soared due to his accomplishments to which even himself he has remarked that “I am a Chinese…and considering the physiology of the Chinese people, it is something unbelievable.”  Popularity has translated into dollars and in 2007 he made $23.8 Million.

Click here to view the embedded video.

1.  Yao Ming

Best Known For: Being the extremely tall Chinese center for the Houston Rockets.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 姚明 (Yáo Míng).  He is currently 28 years old (birthday is September 12, 1980) and was born in Shanghai, China.   At 7 feet 6 inches he is among China’s most recognized celebrities.  Both of his parents were professional basketball players.  When Yao was born he weighed more than twice the weight of an average baby (11 lbs) and by age 10 he was already 5 feet 5 inches tall.  In his first year of playing for the Houston Rockets Charles Barkley stated that he didn’t believe Yao would score more than 19 points in any game.  A few months later Yao scored 20 points in a game against the Lakers.  In 2007 he made $56.6 Million.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Laowai Chinese:  Tips and Strategies to Learn Chinese

Laowai Chinese covers various different topics related to learning Chinese — vocabulary, resources, and even pronunciation to name a few topics.  The blog is well written and maintained by Albert Wolfe.   Albert started teaching himself Chinese in July of 2005 and rather than have people learn the lessons he did as he learned he decided to post what he learned on Laowai Chinese.  He’s currently working on a book Chinese 24/7 which is a textbook to help students study Chinese without a formal classroom environment.

2 posts worth checking out:

• Master the Tones:  Tips to help students learn and improve their Chinese tone pronunciation
• What Foreigners Like to Eat:  A list of food that foreigners like to eat and how to order it in Chinese

Beijing Sounds: Beijing sounds, mostly language, through foreign ears.

Beijing Sounds is a Chinese learning blog focused on listening and pronunciation skills related to the Beijing Chinese accent.  They have been around for a few years and what’s unique about Beijing Sounds is how they have audio clips of authentic Chinese speakers accompanying many of their posts.  They also include pinyin with any Chinese written so beginners won’t be clueless as to what is being said.   The blog is authored and edited by the mysterious SYZ.

2 posts worth checking out:

• Does the Beijing-R Mean Anything?:  A discussion on the Beijing habit of adding “-er” or “-r” at the end of Chinese words
• Where Not to Look for Beginner Mandarin Lessons:  Spouse, babysitter… a few places not to go looking for a Chinese language education

Pinyin News: the blog of Pinyin.Info

Pinyin News is the official blog of Pinyin.Info (a guide to the writing of Mandarin Chinese in romanization).  If you can’t guess by the name the blog and website are all about pinyin.  The blog covers issues on the technical details of writing pinyin, sightings of pinyin in real life, and issues related to Chinese learning.  For a beginner pinyin is a great place to start to get familiar with the pronunciation mechanics of Mandarin Chinese.  The blog is authored and maintained by Mark Swofford who is located in Banqiao, Taiwan.

2 posts worth checking out:

• San Francisco Chinatown Signage:  Chinese signs in San Francisco and their pinyin and cantonese pronunciations
• Online texts in Hanyu Pinyin:  List of Chinese language content that has accompanying pinyin

Mandarin Student: An English person learning Mandarin from the Internet

Mandarin Student is the Mandarin language learning blog of Chris.  Chris is from Bath in the United Kingdom and has decided to undertake learning Chinese online.   On his blog you can find Chinese language learning resources he has accumulated and other tips and tricks to help other students.  This is a great blog to read for beginners of Chinese or those looking for the latest online tools to supplement their own learning.

2 posts worth checking out:

• Mandarin Chinese Learning Resources:  A list of some web 2.0 online tools that have helped him learn Chinese
• The Best Thing I Did in Starting to Learn Mandarin:  Title says it all…

Learning Chinese Blog: Experiences in Learning Chinese

The Learning Chinese Blog is Philip Perry’s blog that documents his experiences as he learns Chinese.  This is a newer blog compared to the other blogs mentioned, but it is another great blog for beginners since the Philip himself recently started learning Chinese.

2 posts worth checking out:

• Learning Hanzi: Philip’s strategies for remembering Chinese characters
• Useful Websites:  A list and description of various online tools and resources for learning Chinese

–BONUS BLOG– Lost Laowai “Learning Chinese” Blog Posts

Lost Laowai is technically an expat blog where many different authors contribute blog posts about their experiences living in China.  However, they do have a “Learning Chinese” category for their posts that is worth checking out.  Since there are many different contributors to the blog you get many different perspectives on learning Chinese.

2 posts worth checking out:

• Fallacies in Learning Chinese:  Some great pitfalls to avoid when learning Chinese
• Good Character, Bad Character:  Background on the interesting manner in which countries are named in Chinese

There you have it.  That’s the list so far.  If you have any other additions you think should be added to the list don’t hesitate to post a comment or contact us.  Happy studying!

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In the United States when I think of ladies underwear I think of Victoria’s Secret.  If you were to ask me to name another store I wouldn’t know how to answer.  Victoria’s Secret is a staple in any American mall, men lust over their sexy models, and it seems like every woman loves shopping there.  That’s the situation here in the US, but this got me thinking…where do ladies shop for bras and other intimate clothing in other countries?   What is the equivalent “Victoria’s Secret” in foreign countries and how do they advertise their product?  Armed only with the power of the Internet in this series of posts I set out to find out these answers and embark on the World Bra Tour – an exploration of Bra culture around the world.  Today I start off the tour with Germany.

How Do You Say “Bra” in German?

I was real excited to get started on my Bra quest, however, the first roadblock I came across in my research is that if you search “German Bra Commercials” in Google you don’t get many good results.  The same is true if you search Youtube.  I decided to change my approach and search in German.   But how do you say “bra” in German?

I headed to Google Translate and entered “bra” and was given the German translation “BH.”  Then I learned to say “BH Werbung” (Bra advertisement).  I don’t speak any German, but I was curious to see what “bh” actually sound like and thanks to online text-to-speech I was able to find out.

Here I learned what “BH Werbung” sounded like.

Unfortunately  “BH Werbung” is not very useful in everyday speech, so here’s a phrase that might be more useful “Ich kann Ihre BH!” (I can see your bra!)

Thanks to my new found knowledge I was able to find much more interesting bra commercials.

Bonprix

Click here to view the embedded video.

To be honest this commercial isn’t that exciting. The clip is from their youtube channel, Bonprix FashionTV, where they are advertising and all of their clothing products which also include men, women, and children’s fashion.  Turns out Bonprix is one of the largest e-commerce websites in Germany (top 10 according to their translated wiki page).  They sell their goods through mail order catalogs, online, and a TV shopping show they have.  Their website has this pretty cool feature where you can browse and even download their full catalogs.   For those interested in Bonprix’s  bra and underwear fashions check out their catalog.

The catalog is pretty interesting.  It has page turning animations so as you are browsing you feel like you are viewing a real catalog.   If you happen to find a bra that interests you, you can click on it and you’ll be taken to the product information page.  More impressively, if you click on the magnifying glass on that page you can zoom-in ultra close on the product and model.  I’m assuming the reason you would want to do this is the examine the quality of the material.

Lascana

Click here to view the embedded video.

As Lascana’s slogan “It’s a woman’s world” suggests, Lascana is focused solely on women’s fashion.  They have stores throughout Germany and seem to be similar to Victoria’s Secret, but perhaps more upscale.  In addition to lingerie they also sell swimsuits and “homewear” (which looks like sleepwear to me).  Mahret Kupka, a German fashion blogger, did a great write up (originally in German, but translated courtesy of Google) where she toured a Lascana store and snapped some good photos.  Below is a video tour She did at one of Lascana’s stores.  It seems she was very fascinated by the dressing rooms.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Lascana also has an online catalog so if you are curious you can scope out all the latest Lascana fashions.

Just like Bonprix, Lascana also has their own product super zoom-in feature.  It’s a little different, but basically the same idea.  Find a product you like and then zoom up way close to check out the quality of the fabric.

C&A

Click here to view the embedded video.

Of all the German bra commercials I’ve come across so far , C&A’s seems to be the sexiest.  In addition to showcasing not only their bras but also their “strings” (which I assume are panties…) they have some interesting camera angles and shots.  Here’s another example of their more racy commercials.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The prices don’t seem so bad considering it’s only 6 euros ($8) for the string (panties), 15 ($20) for the “corsage,” and 12 ($16) for the “BH” (which we all learned earlier is bra in German).

However, it should be noted that these videos are from 2003 so if you take into account inflation it’s probably like million euros now.  As you might be able to guess with these kind of prices C&A isn’t going after the high end market (Walmart sells a bra for $19).  Similar to Bonprix, C&A sells all kinds of fashion for men, women, and children.  They have stores all over Europe, but in 2001 closed down all the stores in the UK due to poor sales.  Recently they’ve been trying to reinvent their low budget image by improving the quality and increasing the prices.

You can check out C&A’s bra and underwear fashions by checking out their online catalog.

It’s not as fancy as the other two online catalogs, but they lots of photos and they have their own product super zoom-in feature.  I know Walmart for sure doesn’t have this feature.

Overall Lessons Learned

The German online bra and underwear browsing and shopping experience is very different from the United States.  They take tons of high quality photos of the products and models.  They also have very innovative interactive product catalogs.  I’m still amazed at how you can zoom so close up to the models.  You can see the pores in the skin!  Victoria’s Secret seems so boring now.

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In part 1 and part 2 of our 4 part series we looked at the most powerful Chinese celebrities ranked from 20 to 11.  Instead of just listing a simple one line description of these celebrities like the Forbes article China’s 25 Most Powerful Celebrities does, we were inspired to look a little more in-depth into who these celebrities are.  Today in part 3 we’ll look at Chinese celebrities ranked from 10 to 6.  In this group of celebrities we have a traditional Chinese instrument player, girl with white hair, an actress who didn’t listen to her parents, an extra who decided to become an actress, and a actress who opened her own TV production studio.

10.  Zhao Benshan

Best Known For: His skits on CCTV’s New Year’s Gala and more recently acting where in 2007 he won Best Actor at the Golden Horse Awards–the Chinese equivalent to the Oscars for his performance in Getting Home.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 赵本山 (Zhào Běnshān).  He is currently 50 (born in October 1958).  Born into a peasant family his parents passed away when he was 6 years old.  After that he lived with his blind uncle who taught him various traditional Chinese instruments like the erhu (a two stringed violin), suona (chinese trumpet), and the sanxian (a three stringged plucked instrument).  It was with these skills and his sense of humor which got him his first performance on CCTV’s New Year’s Gala in 1987.  All his hardwork made him $2.9 Million in 2007.

9.  Li Bingbing

Best Known For: Her co-starring role in the 2005 romantic comedy Waiting Alone where she was nominated for Best Actress by the Chinese Film Academy.  More recently western audiences might recognize her in the Jet Li and Jackie Chan movie collaboration The Forbidden Kingdom where she played Ni Chang (the girl with the crazy white hair).

Basic Info: Chinese name is 李冰冰 (Lǐ Bīngbīng).  She is currently 33 (birthday is February 27, 1976) and was born in Harbin, China.  Interestingly she never had any intention of being an actress.  She went to school to become a teacher, but after finishing school on a friend’s suggestion she decided to give acting a shot by enrolling in the Shanghai Drama Institute.  The rest is history, albeit a lucrative history, as in 2007 she made $2.9 Million.

8.  Zhou Xun

Best Known For: Being part of the “Four Young Dan actresses” along with Zhang Ziyi, Xu Jinglei and Zhao Wei.   She won numerous awards for best actress for her performance in  Perhaps Love.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 周迅 (Zhōu Xùn).  She is currently 32 (birthday is October 18, 1976) and was born in Quzhou, China.  Against her parent’s wishes she wanted to pursue a career and education in the dramatic arts.  She eventually was accepted to Zhejiang Arts Institute and from there launched her career.  In addition to acting she is also known for her singing career launch 2 different albums and as well singing on the soundtracks for some of the movies she’s been a part of.  In 2007 she made $3.6 Million.

Click here to view the embedded video.

7.  Zhao Wei

Best Known for: Being part of the “Four Young Dan actresses” along with Xu Jinglei, Zhang Ziyi and Zhou Xun. Starring in numerous film projects including lending her voice as Princess Fiona in Shrek 2.

Basic info: Chinese name is 趙薇 (Zhào Wéi) and sometimes goes by the English name Vicki Zhao.  Currently is 33 (birthday is March 12, 1976) and was born in Wuhu, China.  She got her start in acting by being cast as an extra on the set of a movie.  Before she claimed never to have an interest in acting once saying that she thought actresses had to be beautiful and she thought herself ordinary.  However, after that experience as an extra she decided to pursue her acting career.  In addition to acting she has been studying to become a director and has a successful singing career as well.  In 2007 she made $2.8 Million.

Click here to view the embedded video.

6.  Fan Bingbing

Best Known For: For her role as Jin Suo, a fragile maid, in the Chinese TV soap opera show Huan Zhu Ge Ge and its sequel Huan Zhu Ge Ge 2.  Recently she starred in the controversial movie Lost in Beijing which was banned in China for its depiction of sex, rape, and prostituion.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) and sometimes has been known by her nicknames Bingbing or Baobao.  She is currently 27 (birthday is September 16, 1981) and was born in Qingdao, China.  She has transitioned her image from that of the pure “fragile” girl to that of a sexy woman thanks in part to the more recent roles she has played.  She also opened her own TV production studio which produced a TV show called “Rouge Snow.”  All her efforts made her $2.8 Million in 2007.

Click here to view the embedded video.

View the Most Chinese Powerful Celebrities Ranked 15 to 11 (Part 2)

View the Most Chinese Powerful Celebriteis Ranked 20 to 16 (Part 1)

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Apparently the hottest dance craze in France, which originated in Paris, and has quickly spread throughout Europe is a dance called “Tecktonic.”  It’s so popular that American based National Public Radio has predicted that it’s only a matter of time before Tecktonic comes to our American shores.  Watching the videos of Tecktonic dancing online I would have to say Tecktonic is more of a blend of aerobics, disco, glow stick rave dancing without the glow sticks with a pinch of epileptic seizures thrown in.  You have to see it to believe it and see it to start practicing.

Wikipedia defines Tecktonic as a “blend of techno styles (late 80s vogue, 90s waving and old school breakdancing).”  The dance started out in Paris in the early 2000′s, but really didn’t gain any momentum until Tecktonic dancers started posting videos of themselves dancing on Youtube and other video sharing websites.  And there are many Tecktonic videos.

So how big exactly is this dance?  Well if view counts are an indication of popularity than Tecktonic is very popular.  This video featuring some Tecktonic dancers dancing to “À cause des Garçons” (“Because of the Boys”) has over 15 million views.

This video has more views than the original music video for “À cause des Garçons”  by Yelle, a popular French elctro singer, which only has just over 4 million views.

And if you are looking to learn how to Tecktonic dance then you are also in luck because there are numerous videos online teach you how to Tecktonic like a master.   Some of the teachers look like they are 12, but don’t be fooled, they are quite skilled.  The first step in learning to Tecktonic is to learn how move your feet and this video shows you how:

Once you have the footwork down then you can master the Tecktonic hand loop:

Now that you have that basics down you can learn from all the best dancers of Tecktonic.  While so far the videos have only showcased male dancers, this video below by Dance Gemearation shows that females are just as welcomed into Tecktonic dancing circles.  It also has a good moral lesson.  Rather than solve our arguements with fists we should resolve them with good old Tecktonic dancing (you can jump to the 0:49 to watch things heat up).

A lot of the videos that have been showcased so far just look like regular people dancing their favorite dance.  However, it’s not just the “common” people that are doing this dance.  Even professional singers are doing it in their music videos.  Below is a music video by French singer Lorie , sometimes dubbed the “Britney Spears of France,” called “Je vais vite” (which translates into “I go quickly”) where she and her backup dancers are Tecktonic dancing.

I’m not sure if American’s will really welcome this dance with open arms, but you never know.   Maybe if Kanye West or Lady Gaga start Tecktonic dancing this will become a hit in the US.  The last foreign dance craze we had here was the Macarena and the Macarena was huge.  If you didn’t know how to do Macarena you were totally “uncool.”  I never learned the dance and I regret it to this day.  This is why I’m going to start studying Tecktonic before it gets hot.  I’m going to get a head start on this dance craze fad so I can redeem myself for not having learned the Macarena.

What do you think?  Is this dance going be a big hit in the US? Is it time to start studying “How to Tecktonic” videos?

**UPDATE**

I was looking through more videos and was laughing because I found a Tecktonic dance to Kanye West.  I guess Kanye just needs to watch this and he can start making it big.

This video is by a group called Dance Generation.  They are a group dedicated to Tecktonic dancing.  You can check out their blog and the rest of their videos (they have a ton).

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Most travel guidebooks you see for Paris have titles like Paris:  The Eyewitness Travel Guide or simply the Paris Travel Guide Book.  However, this travel guidebook caught my attention.  The full title is Naughty Paris:  A Lady’s Guide to the Sexy City. It’s a guidebook that takes a classy “not trashy” look at Paris’s erotic and sensual underside for women looking to have a sexy time in Paris.

What’s unique about Naughty Paris is that it is directed towards women and it’s written by a woman, Heather Stimmler-Stall.  When I first saw a link for the book online titled “Naughty Paris,” I, being a guy, immediately clicked on it thinking it was going to be a Paris guide to all the strip clubs and other questionable establishments that men sometimes like to frequent.  However, I was pleasantly surprised that it looked like a tasteful guidebook for women to explore the sexy side of Paris.  I mean it’s only fair that women have their share of the fun too.

So what kind of stuff would potential buyers of Naughty Paris expect to find in this guidebook?  Details about the best lingerie shops, female friendly bars, sexy bars, and event how to flirt with French men.  However, the author describes it best:

Written for and by the fairer sex, Naughty Paris: A Lady’s Guide to the Sexy City is the first guidebook that presents the city’s erotic underside in a sophisticated yet accessible tone that appeals to both the innocently intrigued and daring divas alike. Whether you want to be titillated by erotic art or seduced at the city’s most exclusive swingers’ clubs, this guide is the key to choosing your own adventure.

This is also the first guidebook that I’ve seen that even had an accompanying video trailer:

The author has an accompanying blog documenting the creation of her book.  She posted some interesting stats about the manuscript for the book:

First email exchanged about the idea of doing a Naughty Paris Guide: March 25, 2005

First chapter completed (Your Boudoir or Mine?):
April 30, 2007
Last chapter completed (Practical Info):
February 10, 2008

Number of men the author dated during the writing of this guide (for research purposes, of course!):
6 French, 2 American

So at least it seems the author has done her homework on the subject.  I didn’t realize how “naughty” of a city Paris is.  This might explain why French women are becoming more like sexual predators.  Anyway the book is on sale and you can find purchase information on the publisher’s website or you can find the book at Amazon (currently $25.74).  For those curious about the book you can download a free trial chapter (once there click on “add to cart”) they offer through the publisher’s website or check out the embedded document below:

Naughty Paris: A Lady’s Guide to the Sexy City (Free Trial) Chapter 1

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In part 1 of this 4 part series we started profiling the top 20 most powerful Chinese celebrities as listed in a recent Forbes article which ranked the China’s 25 Most Powerful Celebrities for 2008.  While the list is interesting to browse, the Forbes article and accompanying picture show doesn’t go into much depth about each of these celebrities.  Here at Diptogo we wanted go more in-depth to learn these celebrities.  Part 1 looked at those celebrities ranked from 20 to 16.  Today in part 2 we’ll look at Chinese celebrities ranked 15 to 11.  In this group we have a multi-lingual singer, the emperor of China, a tea house performer, the most popular blogger, and the most beautiful woman in China.

15.  Zhang Liangying

Best Known For: Placing 3rd place in China’s national 2005 Super Girl Contest (think American Idol, but for China and only for girls) where she wowed viewers by singing in Mandarin, Cantonese, English and even Spanish.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 張靚穎 (Zhāng Liàngyǐng).  She also goes by the English name Jane Zhang.  She is currently 24 (birthday is October 11, 1984) and was born in Chengdu, China.  Recently she participated in the World Peace concert performing alongside such celebrities as U2 , Madonna, and Green Day.   As a child she used to perform at pubs to help make money for the family.  She doesn’t do that anymore as the $1.7 Million she made in 2007 is probably more than adequate to support her family.

14.  Zhang Guoli

Best Known For: Playing the role of Emperor of China during the Qing Dynasty.  Also is a director in addition to actor.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 張國立 (zhāng guólì).  He is currently 54 (brithday is January 17, 1955) and a native of Tianjin, China.  He’s also known for playing roles in modern political TV dramas. In 2007 he made $4.5 Million.

13.  Guo Degang

Best Known For: His performances as a cross talk (相聲) comedian and acting in a variety of supporting roles in Chinese films.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 郭德綱 (Guō Dégāng).  He is approximately 36 (born in 1973) and originally from Tianjin, China.  He started out doing comedic performances at tea houses and took about 10 years before he “made it.” Early on in his career he once embarrassingly performed for a one person audience. Now his performances are consistently sold out.  In 2007 he made $2.2 Million.

12.  Xu Jinglei

Best Known For: Being part of what the Chinese media consider the Four Young Leading Actresses – which also includes Zhang ZiYi.   Also has a popular blog which in 2006 at one point had the most incoming links of any blog in any language on the internet.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 徐静蕾 (xú jìnglě).  She is currently 34 (birthday is April 16, 1974) and was born in Beijing, China.  Her breakthrough came in 2002 when she wrote and directed the award winning movie My Father and I. Since then she has joined the ranks of successful female directors – a rarity in China.  Recently she has launched a singing career in addition into her acting and directing.  All these talents made her $2 Million in 2007.

11.  Gong Li

Best Known For: Her breakthrough international performance in Oscar nominated Raise the Red Lantern.  Also sometimes credited with bringing Chinese cinema to European and American audiences.  American audiences might recognize her in her supporting roles in Miami Vice and Memoirs of a Geisha.

Basic Info: Chinese name is 鞏俐 (Gǒng Lì).  She is currently 43 (birthday is December 31, 1965) and was born in Shenyang, China.  Over the course of her career she has won numerous awards for her acting.   Despite her enormous popularity in China she held off on doing anything in Hollywood citing her lack of English language confidence as the main reason.  In 2006 she was voted the most beautiful woman in China (at the age of 40!).  All of these accomplishments helped contribute to her 2007 income of $5 Million.

View the Most Chinese Powerful Celebrities Ranked 10 to 6 (Part 3)

View the Most Chinese Powerful Celebriteis Ranked 20 to 16 (Part 1)

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Here in the United States we have the standard heavy weights in the fast food arena when it comes to burgers:  McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, Hardees / Carl’s Jr., etc…  While many of those fast food joints have been exported abroad, I got to wondering, what are some popular local home-grown fast food restaurants in other countries?  And what kind of food do they serve?  Today we’ll take a look at 5 Japanese fast food restaurants where burgers are the main attraction.

1.  Mos Burger

Mos Burger’s Motto: Making people happy through food

The Basics: The Japanese call it “モスバーガ” (,Mosu bāgā) and the name comes from the first letters of Mountain, Sun, and Ocean.  How that relates to burgers, I’m not sure (maybe how cows sometimes live on mountains, the sun provides food for the grass that cows eat, and the ocean provides the water that grows the grass…) but Japanese people don’t seem to care as Mos Burger is the second most popular fast food chain right after McDonald’s.

Known For: Serving burgers with a twist and using fresh ingredients.

Unique Item(s): Eel Burgers, Rice Burgers, and the Takumi Burger a 1000 yen (about 9 dollars) burger that has “slices of avocado, Tasmanian beef, grated wasabi, and other rare seasonal ingredients”

Learn more: Mos Burger Wikipedia, Official Mos Burger website (Japanese)

2.  First Kitchen

First Kitchen’s Motto: City convenience restaurant (sounds like a nicer way of saying “fast food restaurant”)

The Basics: Known as ファーストキッチン (fāsuto kicchin) it’s basic fast fast food joint that also mixes things up by offering non-standard fast food fare like ice cream floats, soups, pasta and pizza.  Japanese sometimes shorten the name to Fakkin (ファッキン) or simply FK as in Efukei (エフケイ).

Known for: Serving lots of mayo with their hamburgers and having a flavor bar for your French Fries (different ways of seasoning your fries)

Unique Item(s): 8 flavors of French Fries (which they call “Flavor Potato”) including: Korean BBQ, buttered potato, basil, chicken soup, Italian tomato, garlic, Korean seaweed, and regular plain old french fry flavor.

Learn more: First Kitchen Wikipedia, First Kitchen Summary by Topless Robot, Official First Kitchen website (Japanese)

3.  Freshness Burger

Freshness Burger’s Motto: “Freshness Burger” is made from nature friendly ingredients and made with pride.  All “Freshness Burger” staff has been pursuing the heartful service…a bit of urban oasis for everyone.

The Basics: Made to order burgers in an “early American” decor.  The original concept when they first opened in 1992 was that none of the food ingredients were to be frozen.  They operate over 200 locations with the majority in Japan, a few in Korea, and one just recently opened in Hong Kong.

Known for: High quality “fresh” food.  Smaller burger sizes compared to other fast food restaurants.

Unique Item(s): The food is relatively standard, but they do have stuff like a spam and egg burger, interesting condiments like Jamaican Jerk Sauce, fresh lemonade, and offer draft beer.

Learn more: Freshness Burger Wikipedia, Freshness Burger Hong Kong website, Reviews of Freshness Burger by Chowhound

4.  Lotteria

Lotteria’s Motto: Straight Burger Lotteria

The Basics: The name comes from the parent company, Lotte.  Some say Lotteria was just a direct copy off of McDonald’s when they opened in 1972.  The color scheme seems to suggest this.   However, Lotteria was the one of the first fast food restaurants to create the shrimp burger (1977)    Lotteria expanded into Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, and China.  Interestingly Lotteria Korea is more popular than Lotteria Japan.

Known for: Burgers, fries, fried chicken, and the 100 yen menu (think dollar menu)

Unique Item(s): The Marugoto potato:  they take a whole Japanese potato (one of the only companies to use Japanese potatoes), slice a few wedges into it (not separating it), season it with Japanese salt, and then serve.

Learn more: Official Lotteria website (Japanese), Lotteria Wikipedia

5.  Becker’s

Becker’s Motto: Homemade fresh burgers and sandwiches

The Basics: Becker’s is operated by Japan Railways (yes the same people that run the trains and subways in Japan) and freshness is not just their slogan, it’s their way of life.  Buns are freshly prepared in the restaurant and if an hour and half goes by and there are still left over buns they toss them.  To keep anything that old would be counter to their commitment to freshness.

Known for: Fresh buns, Pork Teriyaki burger, and sometimes the ability to pay with a Suica card (a pre-paid Japan Rail pass).

Unique Item(s): Menchi Burger, minced black pork burger.  They also serve poutine, a Canadian dish of french fries with gravy and cheese.

Learn more: Beckers Official website (Japanese), Japan Guide’s Wiki on Fast Food

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