Olympics - Pay To Watch On Screens?

Thousands of spectators will be charged to watch the Olympics on giant screens.

The decision to charge for entry to the Olympic Park has proved controversial after taxpayers footed the £7.25 billion bill for the site. It is understood there will be at least 20,000 grounds tickets for the park in Stratford, East London, priced at £10 or more. The park houses the 80,000-seater Olympic stadium, the velodrome, water polo center, handball arena, basketball courts and aquatics center.

The largest screen will be double-sided and floated on a pontoon in the River Lea. The banks around it will be landscaped into a bowl shape, where spectators can sit. Organizers Locog had hoped the screens would appease those unable to buy any of the 8.8 million Olympics tickets and help them to feel 'involved' in the event. More giant screens will be put up in London's parks, organized by the Greater London Authority, where spectators can watch the events for free.

In Weymouth, Olympic officials will also "fence off" part of the Dorset coastline to stop people without sailing tickets from watching the competitions. Temporary walls will stop residents and holidaymakers looking out to sea and even block the views from some homes and holiday accommodation. A spokeswoman for Locog said: "One of the biggest reasons for grounds tickets is health and safety because of the venue capacities."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2103577/London-2012-spectators-charged-10-just-sit-Olympic-Park-watch-big-screen.html


xo K

Brit Awards 10 Years Ago - Kylie ;)

February 20th 2002 - it's been 10 years!!

And what a night for Kylie at Brit Awards 2002: absolutely incredible performance, looking stunning, sounding amazing, being unique and unforgettable as always!
To top that all - two awards: Best International Female and Best International Album for "Fever"!!





Let's Step Back In Time and enjoy these precious moments of 2002 Brit Awards! ;)

                                                                  Performance:

Best International Album:                                        Best International Female:                                    

xo K

Roger Federer Wins ATP Rotterdam Title!

Yes yes YES!!!

Roger Federer claimed his 71st career singles title with a 6-1 6-4 win over Juan Martin Del Potro in the ATP Rotterdam final!

Great start to the season 2012 by Roger and we are patiently waiting for some more titles to come, King!! :)) The Swiss took 86 minutes to get the better of Del Potro, who paid the price for a slow start and an inability to convert his break points. Federer raced into a 5-0 first-set lead, showing a dizzying array of shots and never letting the Argentine settle.

"The first set I really was rock solid, while in the second it was more tight and he had his chances," Federer admitted, before adding that he has no plans to retire following a chance meeting with Dutch football legend Marco van Basten, who told him to continue as long as he can. He also said: "I think it has to do with when you turn 30 people think you might retire instead of considering that you are on two-thirds of your career. Andre Agassi was 36 when he retired so I will be a few more years on the tour."

^ Picture Roger posted on his Facebook page not long after his victory :) ^

http://eurosport.yahoo.com/19022012/58/federer-wins-rotterdam-title.html

The ceremony :))

xo K

F1 Rocks Malaysia - Headliners: Kylie&Kelis!

Kylie Minogue will perform her first-ever Malaysian gig as part of March’s F1 Rock in Malaysia event. The concert will take place at the base of Kuala Lumpur’s iconic Petronas Twin Towers on Friday March 23, ahead of that weekend’s 2012 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix. Her upcoming show here is scheduled to be a 90-minute set with ten dancers and four musicians.
Kylie’s many Malaysian fans will be in for a treat, as the singer has promised to perform all her international hits with the added bonus of a major light show and hydraulics.

“I am really looking forward to visiting your beautiful country and performing for my Malaysian fans for the first time!” said Kylie. “I will be visiting the Sepang International Circuit and the F1 paddock, sampling the action on the race track and cheering on my favourite drivers! I am so excited to be performing at F1 Rocks in front of the famous Petronas Twin Towers, I hope everyone enjoys the show!”

The following night American R&B/dance star Kelis will take to the same stage to headline on Saturday.

And the promo video featuring Kylie and Kelis is here! Check it out!!

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/2/13018.html

Dates and schedule for F1 Malaysia 2012 here: http://livelearnshineon.blogspot.com/2012/02/kinky-kylie-at-f1-malaysian-grand-prix.html and http://www.formula1.com/ ;)

xo K

Happy B'Day Aphrodite Les Folies!

Time passes so quickly! I can't believe it's been more than a year since the tour dates in the USA for Kylie's Aphrodite Tour were released and I bought the tickets to 2 of the shows in NYC for May 2nd and May 3rd... and now it's been ONE year since this absolutely incredible, breathtaking tour started in Herning, Denmark at the Jyske Bank Boxen to a full house of nearly 12,000 spectators that opening night!
P.S. All pictures belong to me.
My Aphrodite experience here: http://livelearnshineon.blogspot.com/2012/01/kylie-minogue-aphrodite-live-2011.html ;)

The tour received glowing reviews from entertainment critics.
Ed Power from The Daily Telegraph gave the concert a four star rating stating that "Kylie Minogue takes retro chic to dizzying extremes on her new tour. Channelling a hitherto unhinted at passion for Ancient Greece and Rome".
Power said that "Through a stunning series of set-pieces Kylie proved herself a peerless conjurer of pop spectacle and demonstrated that, when it comes to the classier brand of arena kitsch, she, not Lady Gaga, remains supreme authority."
Elisa Bray from The Independent gave the concert four stars (out of five) and said that "Minogue's authenticity and down-to-earth persona has always made her the most likeable pop diva. From her earliest fame days as Charlene in Australian soap Neighbours, girly though she remains, Kylie has made the successful transition to show-woman."
Ian Gittins from The Guardian commented that "there is no denying the scale of the production. From the moment Minogue rises from the stage reclining in a golden conch shell in a tableau based on Botticelli's Birth of Venus, it's evident that understatement is not on the menu tonight." He praised her live vocals, describing Minogue's voice as "oddly endearing" and concluded by saying that "it is unfortunate that mainstream America has never taken Minogue to its heart. On this flamboyant evidence, nobody is more ready for a Las Vegas residency."


Even in the USA, where Kylie is not a mega star, and it's her first tour that she actually took there, she got some really great reviews:
James Reed from The Boston Globe gave the Aphrodite Live 2011 concert a favorable review by saying that "all eyes were on Minogue, 42, and she was in regal form as both entertainer and singer."
Jason Lipshutz from Billboard gave the concert a positive review saying that "Minogue is still an under-appreciated musical force, and one that should not be missed on an all-too-rare U.S. trek."
Santiago Felipe from The Village Voice said that "at the center of it all was Kylie, who was by turns bashful and jokingly chiding and absolutely in command, changing dresses as quickly as some people change their mind, flirting with the audience through performances [...] She might be a bit of a cult popstar in the U.S., but she radiated at maximum wattage throughout the evening".

The tour supported Kylie's eleventh studio album, Aphrodite (2010). The tour visited Europe, Asia, North America, Australia and Africa. She has stated the tour was highly technical (as far as staging) yet it remained somewhat intimate. Given the nature of the show, the tour was officially acknowledged by two names: Aphrodite Les Folies (in Europe and Australia) and Aphrodite Live (in Asia, North America and Africa).

At the beginning of the new year, Minogue stated that the tour would be her biggest to date. The stage is proclaimed to be the most extravagant staging built for any concert tour with several movable parts, seven lifts and nearly 600 light sources. It will also feature water jets created by The Fountain People. The entire production is valued at over $25 million, and will see Minogue joined on stage by a cast of dancers and aerial performers along with her live band. The show will be moved throughout Europe by a crew of over 100 personnel in a fleet of 25 trucks.
Designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana (Dolce & Gabbana) worked with Kylie on the costumes of the tour. They stated, "Kylie has always been our Piccola Principessa [Little Princess], not just because of our work together but more so because of our friendship! Working with Kylie has always been very spontaneous and easy. We are given free reign to create because she trusts that we know exactly what she likes. This will be our third tour with Kylie and this time we have revisited iconic Dolce & Gabbana pieces, adapting them to different themes of the tour. This show definitely cannot be missed!"

the tour finished in Cape Town, South Africa on July 14th 2011, with overall of 5 continents, 26 countries and 77 shows!

















Tour Teaser by Lexus CT:



xo K

Starbucks Coffee Love... Too Much?

This story makes me laugh every time I read it!
I personally LOVE coffee, but I usually don't drink it, unless I'm in the States, because I can't get past Starbucks there :P So, next time you get coffee, think what you'd like to add... cause this young man clearly didn't know the limits! :D

Logan Warren, 22, an IT consultant who works for company Geeks On Call, went to his local Starbucks branch with a reward card and reportedly came up with the 'most expensive drink ever'. The super-sized, 31-oz coffee took half an hour to make. Mr Warren started with a java chip frappuccino and then upgraded the coffee to a 'trenti' size - a practice now outlawed by Starbucks branches.
The coffee lover then asked for extras to be added - 16 shots of espresso, a shot of soy milk, caramel flavoring, banana puree, strawberry puree, vanilla beans, Matcha powder, protein powder, and a drizzle of caramel and mocha.
The drink had an estimated 1400mg of caffeine - the equivalent of 41 cans of Coca-Cola. <:O

The estimated calorie content of the drink was a whopping 700 calories.
Thankfully Mr Warren's experimental drink, which was a reward on his birthday last year from Starbucks, was not intended for consumption. After just a few sips, he described the drink on his blog as 'tolerable but not good'.
The trenti-size (310oz) is now only available for iced coffees and teas. :D


Mr Warren's pricey caffeine hit beats the previous record, set by blogger Michael Dolen who rang up a bill for $20.65 with another improvised drink. It was based on a venti (200oz) white chocolate mocha, which contains two shots of espresso.
To this he added 22 extra espresso shots and ten syrups - classic, vanilla, sugar-free vanilla, hazelnut, sugar-free hazelnut, caramel, sugar-free caramel, peppermint, raspberry and toffee nut. Opt for soy milk instead of regular, add extra caramel sauce and the $20 treat is complete.
Mr Dolen reports on businessinsider.com that it contains '1,800 mg of caffeine - equivalent to 22.5 cans of Red Bull'.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2102172/Most-expensive-Starbucks-ordered-Texas-costs-23.html


xo K

Klitschko Retains WBC Title!

Ok, I'm a proud Ukrainian and said that not once before! ;))
It feels really good to be a proud Ukrainian when something like this happens! We are very glad we've got some people that show our country from a different side, thanks to whom we are known from a better side!
So, yesterday, the older brother, Vitali Klistchko, won against British Derek Chisora in 12 rounds!

Vitali Klitschko comfortably retained his WBC heavyweight title on Saturday, scoring a unanimous points decision over British challenger Dereck Chisora in Munich's Olympic Hall to ensure his family maintained a global stranglehold on the division.
The 40-year-old Ukrainian, whose younger brother Vladimir holds the WBO, IBF, WBA and IBO crowns, improved his record to 44-2 but was forced to go the distance against the former British and Commonwealth champion, who made more enemies than friends with his antics before and after the 12 round clash.


"I am happy to defend my title. It was a good performance from Chisora. I don't want to make excuses - it was not easy - but I saw every punch from Chisora. I am upset because I wanted to finish the fight before 12 rounds," Klitschko said in a ringside interview.
The taller Klitschko set the foundations for victory by dominating his shorter opponent in the opening rounds, his longer reach allowing him to pound Chisora with punishing rights from a distance.

Chisora, who had slapped his rival at the weigh-in on Friday and also spat water into Vladimir's face during the pre-fight ceremonies, recovered well and rattled Klitschko with a solid uppercut in the fifth round as he gained in confidence.
The judges scored the bout 118-110, 118-110 and 119-111 in favour of the Ukrainian with a defiant Chisora, who continued to stare down both Klitschko brothers after the decision, demanding a rematch as the 12,000 crowd booed and jeered him.

"I have respect for Chisora as a fighter, but not as a human. He set a bad example for boxing and all fighters. He came from Great Britain but he is not a gentleman."

On Friday, Brit slapped WBC heavyweight kingpin Vitali Klitschko across the face during the staredown at the weigh-ins for their championship...
And then made a new low last night by marching up to WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko’s brother Wladimir Klitschko and spitting in his face before tonight’s fight in Munich, Germany. Oh, the shame of it all. Just when you think Chisora couldn’t stoop any lower than his slapping of Vitali on Friday during the weigh-in, Chisora has to go and do this.

http://eurosport.yahoo.com/19022012/2/boxing-klitschko-outpoints-chisora-retain-wbc-crown.html

Good Job, Vitali!! :)

xo K