Saturday, December 27, 2008
25th December 2008, Thursday – I received my copy of Monocle magazine Issue 19 Volume 2, December 2008/January 2009 from the Best Eastern The Mall Gadong yesterday morning.
The front cover page of the latest issue of Monocle.
Another photo of the front cover page.
COVER TOPIC
The cover topic: The 2009 Global Forecast – The faces, forces, policies, and products that will shape the world in the year ahead.
The cover topic
Bundled with this issue of Monocle is a 36 pages of “The Monocle Travel Top Fifty 2008/9”. The booklet is about the surveys on travel related things, such as hotels, airlines, and restaurants, that were done by the Monocle’s editors....I wish Royal Brunei Airlines and the Empire Hotel are on the list. However, it should be noted that the “best” list is based on the editors’ opinion after themselves experiencing the services.
The supplement that come with Monocle Dec08/Jan09.
The nearest among us Bruneians (I guess) is the Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines managed to get the “Best Lounge” title (for their lounge at Terminal 3 Changi Airport, Singapore).
What are the best in the opinion of the Monocle’s Editors may not be necessarily the best in the others’ opinion, because people have different preferences and expectations. But, if you want to have a try on the services in the travel industry that are related to you, the booklet should be a helpful guide. Or it may become the benchmark what the others in the industry should provide.
Personally I want to experience some of the best, such as the “Best Lounge” of the Singapore Airlines, the “Best Hotel Breakfast” of Masuichi Kyakoden (Japan) (which offers fresh ingredients from the local area), and the “Best Club Sandwich” of the Part Hyatt Milan (It may not Halal, but it gives the recipe idea that ‘you’ can try at home).
KITA KOGA
As usual, there is an anime insert Kita Koga, in which the story and the artwork is exclusive done for Monocle by Takanori Yasaka. In this issue, Niels Watanabe tries to escape from being held by the person who is going to distrupt the Phoenix ( a Japanese government’s satellite project), and then save the project itself.
The back cover page of the Kita Koga. You read the anime comic from the back to the front, just like you read a Jawi book.
I do not know what other people thinks. I think this anime hero is similar to the James Bond. One of the question is: In the real world, do the fate of billion dollars (I guess) projects really in the hand of a single person? After watching a few James Bond films, I find out that James Bond 007’s life was based on luck. I have to tell you that the criminals (big criminal, not small one) give James Bond a lot of opportunities to complete his mission (s) and to continue his life.
The criminals should know that James Bond, who is a ‘ secret agent’, is going to give them a lot of trouble. And why should they give him a chance (though the slimest it is). I think in the real world, such criminals will end your life without hesitation. And this James Bond’s luck does happen to Neil Watanabe.
NEXT ISSUE
The next issue, February 2009 Issue 20 Volume 2, will be on sale from 15th January 2009. I expected it will available in Brunei on the first or second week of February 2009.
The next issue.
(Photos: Abdul Rashid Haji Tahir. Taken on 25th December 2008)
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