January 2020 In Review

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

Why January 2020?

January 1st, 2020, marked the start of a brand new decade. This year also happens to be a Leap Year, giving it a length of 366 days as opposed to 365. As with other New Year’s Days, the day was celebrated through fireworks, parties, gatherings, or other special events. Before the 2020s decade began, many people took the time to reflect the changes , challenges, and opportunities they have been through during the 2010s. Likewise, people also expressed the excitement and things that wait in store for their lives going forward. One’s personal experience with how January 2020 went for them will vary significantly from person to person. Many may report feelings of mediocrity, excitement, sorrow, anger, or fear for a variety of reasons. Outside of people’s personal responses, January 2020 unfortunately made a lot of headlines that have either been shocking or both shocking and sad.

Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752

On January 08, 2020, a plane crashed between the Iranian cities of Parand and Shahriar. 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 11 Ukrainians, 10 Swedes, 4 Afghans, 3 Germans, and 3 Brits, bringing the total to 176 casualties. Investigators were scrambling that Wednesday to determine the cause of the crash. Iranian state media blamed it on technical issues, while Ukraine said it was a rocket attack. It has since been definitely proven to be an attack, with Iran even admitting that it fired 2 ballistic missiles at the plane. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, President of Ukraine, says leaked audio proves Iran knew what happened to flight 752 before they even shot it down.

Motive

Why did this happen in the first place? Tension. Hostilities between Tehran and Washington District of Columbia were soaring. Iran fired rockets at the Iraqi bases in retaliation for an American drone strike that killed Iran’s top commander, Qasem Soleimani, in Iraq on January 03, 2020. As a result, this put Iran into a very defensive mode, thus leading them to firing missiles at a plane, only to come out with the truth after being widely condemned for their action.

“If there were no tensions, if there was no escalation recently in the region, those Canadians would be right now home with their families. This is something that happens when you have conflict and war. Innocents bear the brunt of it and it is a reminder why all of us need to work so hard on de-escalation, moving forward to reduce tensions and find a pathway that doesn’t involve further conflict and killing”  — Justin Trudeau

Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV)

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more critical diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). The current ongoing novel coronavirus is a strain that has not been previously identified in humans. The virus was first reported from Wuhan, China on December 31, 2019. Since then, it has been wreaking havoc on China. Due to travelling or even proximity in the case of countries such as Japan and Korea, there have been a number or coronavirus cases outside of Asia as well. Despite the official report date of December 31, 2019, individuals have been reporting unusual respiratory problems since early December 2019.

Symptoms

Common signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties. In more serious cases, the infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, or kidney failure, ultimately leading to death. Standard recommendations to prevent infection spread include regular hand washing with soap, covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, and thoroughly cooking meat and eggs. Close contact with anyone showing symptoms should be avoided.

Origin

The source? It is still not absolutely certain. Officials have been trying to identify whether it were bats, snakes, civets, or seafood, but there is still not a definite agreement. The Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market has been widely considered as the main source of the outbreak of a novel coronavirus. Again, not everyone agrees, with some parties saying that it was caused from bats — a species not offered at the Huanan Market. Xinhua has confirmed that some samples from the Huanan Market were found to have the virus. This also proves that the virus is highly relevant to the trading of the wild animals.

Cure

The vaccine for 2019-nCoV is under development at this time. Medical supplies, masks, gloves, and hazmat suits have been surging in demand ever since the outbreak started making headlines. For now, proper sanitation, handling, cooking and storing of foods, as well as healthy dieting is the key to preventing and fighting the disease.

Cancellations And Deaths

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has caused many events within China to be cancelled, as well as travel to be either restricted or temporarily forbidden in the case of some countries such as the United States. At the time of this writing, the death toll stands at 492 and counting. Racist abuse towards Asians has also been on the rise, creating more problems alongside an already critical problem.

Departure Of The Sussexes

The departure of the Sussexes is not a tragic event by any means.It is, however, one that made notable headlines across the world in January. The biggest shock was to the Royal family. Despite Harry mentioning that it was something he thought about for a long time, it still brought much shock the Queen and other Royal members.

Motive

Privacy and safety. Harry openly mentioned that the death of his mother Princess Diana is a wound that still hurts. She died during an accident while desperately trying to get away from paparazzi in Paris. After watching the media harm both Meghan and himself for years, they decided to move away from the Royal life in 2020. The Queen confirmed this with a statement released on January 13, 2020.

What This Says About The Monarchy

The Sussexes have admitted trying to keep a tough face about their struggles. Meghan in an interview last year said that nobody ever asked if she was ok. This brings up numerous questions:

  1. If the Royal family members wanted them to stay, why did they do so little, if anything to look after their mental health?
  2. Why did the Sussexes feel afraid to tell at least one person in the family that they were struggling and could do for some support?
  3. Was the Royal family oblivious to the malicious media about the Sussexes? Did they not notice that all the harmful press towards the Sussexes was weighing on them?

Ultimately, the departure of the Sussexes proves that the Monarchy has much improvement to do in regards to offering better personal support for their members. Additionally, it needs to do a better job at offering more privacy, curbing racism, sexism, and other toxic attitudes. All of which are issues that have been brought up through statements in the past.

Brexit

The word “Brexit” is portmanteau of the words “British” and “Exit” referring to the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union. A referendum (also called public vote) was held back in June 2016, where 17.4 million people opted for Brexit. This resulted in 52% for Leave, 48% for remain.

European Union

The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union involving 28 European countries. The Union allows free trade, meaning goods can move between EU countries without and checks or extra charges. The Union also allows free movement for people to live and work in the countries they choose. The United Kingdom joined back in January 01, 1973.

Motive

There are many reasons behind the reason for the United Kingdom wanting to leave. Ultimately, these are the three major reasons: Immigration, economy, and sovereignty.

Immigration

The European Union allows anybody within the Union to move and work freely between EU nations. Some Leave voters cited frustration with the lack of control they have over their borders. Others expressed disdain over immigrants taking jobs and not adapting British culture. Another thing voters hated was the right of migrants to claim welfare benefits in the United Kingdom, which Brits believed was putting a strain on the National Health Services.

Economy

The United Kingdom prefers being in control of its economy. The fact that the country uses the British Pound Sterling as its currency as opposed to the Euro, is an example of this. Some people have expressed frustration and competition over jobs caused from the free movement policy of the European Union. Criticism of the Union irresponsibly spending money has also been brought up.

Sovereignty

The United Kingdom prides itself on being a nation with a long, rich history, and having immense international influence. Over time, a number of British people began feeling disconnected with the European Union, and frustrated with its policies. By leaving the Union, they believe that Britain will have far greater independence and a better sense of British nationality.

Concerns Over Brexit

The United Kingdom has been in the European Union for 47 years. Naturally, this created shock and disappointment from other European Union countries when their Leaders heard the news. Many Remain voters are greatly concerned about the future economy of Britain, as well as ease of movement. Though Britain left the Union, there is still a lot of matters that must be dealt with during its transition period:

  • Law enforcement
  • Data sharing and security
  • Aviation standards and safety
  • Access to fishing waters
  • Supplies of electricity and gas
  • Licensing and regulation of medicines

Until December 31, 2020, the United Kingdom must abide by European Union rules.

Calabasas Helicopter Crash

On January 26, 2020, the following people died in a helicopter crash:

  • Ara Zobayan, 50
  • Kobe Bryant, 41
  • Gianna Bryant, 13
  • Sarah Chester, 45
  • Payton Chester, 13
  • John Altobelli, 56
  • Keri Altobelli, 46
  • Alyssa Altobelli, 14
  • Christina Mauser, 38

Motive

Kobe was supposed to coach a youth basketball team, the Lady Mambas, for 12:00 PM in Thousand Oaks, California. Gianna, Alyssa, and Payton were involved with the game. A Sikorsky S-76B helicopter took off from John Wayne Airport en route to Camarillo Airport. Weather conditions were not good that day, leading the pilot to seek special permission to fly through fog. The helicopter took off at 9:06 AM, only to end up striking a hill 40 minutes later, killing all 9 occupants from blunt trauma.

International Reaction

Kobe Bryant was recognized as an international basketball icon that many fans admired. As such, the annunciation of his death had millions in shock. Numerous celebrities, officials, and regular people paid various tributes to his death. Ceremonies were held for the families that lost their love ones in the crash.

Newfoundland Snow Storm 2020

Newfoundland is a province in Canada that normally snow a lot. Unfortunately, this year brought a record-breaking amount of snow. Enough snow that caused the province to declare a state of emergency for 8 days, last month. The last time the province declared a state of emergency was 35 years ago.

Details

Before the snow storm took place, Newfoundland had already been getting a lot of snow. When the storm did arrive, it only further exacerbated the situation. During the rage of the storm on January 16, 2020, winds topped speeds of up to 130 km/h on some parts of the province’s coast. The storm was large enough for it to be seen outer space. Thousands of homes and businesses lost power. On the evening of January 18, 2020, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) commenced planning and began activating forces to support the province of Newfoundland and Labrador following the unprecedented winter storm. The mission was wrapped up on the 28th of January. Snowfall totals from a Tweet shared the heights for some municipalities:

  • 93 cm (Mt. Pearl)
  • 91 cm (Paradise)
  • 82 cm (St. John’s East)
  • 77 cm (St. John’s YYT)
  • 48 cm Lethbridge
  • 35 cm (Gander West)
  • 34 cm (Gander YQX)

The Rest Of 2020?

Despite the deaths caused from fallen aircraft or disease, and the political moves that happened in the United Kingdom, a nation who many other countries trade with extensively, there is still much to be seen for the duration of 2020. The situation with the novel coronavirus serves as a reminder for the science industry to be prepared for unexpected outbreaks. Most importantly, taking early warnings more seriously, and preventing potential outbreaks by engaging in more sanitary practices across all industries — be it hospitality, culinary, health, or engineering.

Inspiration Behind This Post: Compilation And Explanation March 2018 – May 2019

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

What Happened?

Between Uropygial Gland: What is it? and up to Webpages: Laurentian Wirelessthey all originally had an “Inspiration Behind This Post” section. From Webpages: Red Maple Greater Toronto Area Home Renovation Group and onward I stopped putting it in. Now, I have decided to remove it from all of my writings. Why? As time went on, it began to look increasingly unprofessional in my eyes. This was especially true for articles. I was originally going to officially launch my services back in January or February this year, with the latest being March. I then put it off to take a little more time to properly finish the remaining parts of the portfolio project. Also, to get a few additional blog posts done.

With me planning to finally launch my services this month, I need the website to reflect the professionalism my brand touts. Having that section in articles, webpages, and other categories, detracts from the nature of the post. Maybe some might disagree, and think that it was a nice, unique touch. Either way, I have now decided to compile them all into this post from the first to the latest published on May 03, 2019. For the ones that did not have any, I will create it here. For all posts published after May 03, 2019, I will not post their inspirational sections here, but probably within another compilation. No guarantee, though. For now, enjoy my source of motivation for 40+ writings.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: Welcome to Millennium Creek!

Ah, this was my very first post on the website. The creek had been silent and lifeless for two years, before it started flowing with life. How things have changed between then and now! I posted this as a sign of interest towards developing the website, but was not exactly sure when do it. This leads right up to the next post: Rediscovering its Purpose

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: Rediscovering its Purpose

This post was created as an affirmation to turning Millennium Creek into a professional website focused on various types of write-ups. It goes into detail about why I came back to it, what I planned to do it, and more.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Uropygial Gland: What is it?

I have been aware of the basic functions of a bird’s oil gland for quite some time. However, I have not really thought much about this subtle gland. This has changed when I had handled a budgerigar some time this year (2018), and noticed that its gland looked odd for a small bird. This then prompted me to go and learn more about this seemingly simple orifice. I wanted to learn more about the function, appearance, and diseases of the uropygial gland.

Inspiration Behind This Article: 2018 All-electric Cars Canada

For this blog entry, my motivation stems from my love for vehicles, particularly all-electric ones. Electric car offerings are truly getting more exciting, as we go further into the future.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Alto Clef: Does it Have Any Real Use?

As anyone would be able to tell from the way I went into such passionate detail with parts of this post, I am really into band instruments. So much, that it was only natural that I would create this post as part of the Millennium Creek restoration effort for this week. Why the alto clef? It is an underrated clef that it grossly misunderstood.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Will America Eventually Ban All Chinese Smartphones?

I wanted to do a post on smartphones, but could not decide what exactly I wanted to write about. The latest flagship available? iOSLG’s plummeting smartphone sales? I then thought about Huawei and ZTE with the legal troubles they are going through. I thought that this would make an excellent, interesting, informative, provocative subject matter to discuss. Do I personally think that the United States will eventually ban all Chinese smartphones? If by ban, we are talking about a total ban as in no importation, forbidding sales, and blocking them off from American cellular towers, then no.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Racism in Canada 2018: Getting Better or Worse?

This week, I knew that I wanted to do a post on racism/multiculturalism on Friday. In fact, I had that determined before I even knew which topics I precisely wanted to cover for the previous blog posts. Racism is a serious issue that must not be ignored and swept under a rug. It is a problem that prohibits prosperity and safety. We must acknowledge that it exists, talk about it, and seek to eradicate it whenever we can. Canada may fare better than many other places in the world, but there is still much work and improvement that needs to be done.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Keystroke logging

Cybersecurity is not a glamorous topic, but is very important. I felt that this article deserved to be resurfaced, since it contains enough valuable information in a manageable format.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Encrypting Your Smartphone’s MicroSD Card

Despite being originally written in 2016, microSD card slots are still a valuable component in phones that support them. This article contains a lot of valuable information, majority of which is still relevant in 2018. For this reason, it deserved to be polished, reformatted and uploaded onto Millennium Creek, giving it a far better chance to flow and get the views it deserves.

Inspiration Behind This Article: China Dress: Simply a Dress or More Than That?

Keziah Daum. Who is that you may ask? Perhaps you are well informed about this story already, but maybe not. Keziah is a regular 18-year-old, American citizen from Woods Cross High School, Utah, United States of America. She is a Caucasian person that decided to wear a qipao for her 2018 prom. Why? She personally thought it would be a beautiful, unique dress to wear for the special event. Unfortunately, after posting photographs on social media, a Twitter user tweeted, “My culture is NOT your ****amn prom dress” Now based on what you already might know, or what you have recently read from this blog post: are there any restrictions for foreigners wearing a qipao? No, none at all. There is a reason why YesStyleModern Qipao, and Chinese Clothing Online ship to plenty of non-Asian countries. Even Amazon. This story has since caused a debate on whether or not, it was really cultural appropriation. Most have sensibly agreed that it was not. Even though the criticism was uncalled for, this story inspired me to research and learn more about what I simply always called the “China dress“.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Starbucks Anti-bias Training Day

I did not have plans to write such a blog post today. But when the headlines came up about Starbuck’s official anti-bias training taking place across over 8,000 American outlets, it inspired me to do another blog post on racism. Though the incident was very unfortunate and should have never happened, the story, follow-ups behind it, and all the media surrounding it, have been very interesting. It has sparked a lot of debate over the lingering presence of racial profiling, especially towards Black people.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: Fiat Chrysler Automotobiles: June 2018 Discussion

When I heard that Fiat Chrysler was announcing a new five-year plan on June 1st, I knew that I was definitely going to do a blog post on it. I wanted to take a look at what was said, the rumors, and of course my opinions on this. The latter, not-so-surprisingly, ended up being the longest section of this entry. Which Fiat Chrysler brand is your favourite? How do you feel about their new five-year plan? The departure of Sergio Marchionne in April 2019? Comment down below and share your thoughts.

Inspiration Behind This Article: The Tokay Gecko

This post was originally supposed to be my unpublished 200-worded piece “Are Tokay Geckos Too Violent For Beginners?” But it did not happen. The original piece was not complete garbage, but was also not up to Millennium Creek standards and quality. I figured that if I were going to put up an information piece on tokay geckos, that I should expand it and include much more useful information. Why tokay geckos in particular? I wanted to do an article on an exotic animal of the sort. The tokay gecko’s stunning colours and feisty personality made it a good choice.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Indigenous Peoples of Canada

A little bit back, I created a rough notepad titled “Millennium Creek Upcoming Topics May-June 2018” There, I brainstormed a list of topics and types of writings I wanted to do over the summer. It has since been moved to a word file titled, “Ultimate Millennium Creek Writing Plan For June-July-August 2018” On this word file, I have laid out all the posts and different types of writing styles I plan to do. Since I had the topic of Indigenous Canadians in the notepad for some time, I decided to go with it. Writing about Indigenous Canadians has been an interesting, eye-opening, refresher about the people I live among. The people that have inhabited this country long before foreign settlers from other continents have arrived.

Inspiration Behind This Article: Health Benefits of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

As mentioned in the previous post, a summer plan was created for the types of writings and topics I wanted to do. While it did not explicitly state which topics or types of writing I was going to do, extra virgin olive oil was one that was planned for quite some time. Why this topic? I was searching around the Internet one day, and stumbled across a post that went into the lengthy health benefits of extra virgin olive oil. I then decided that I definitely wanted to do my own post on this topic. I wanted to add my take on it, and include information and tidbits that the others have failed to mention.

Inspiration Behind This Article: What is SaaS?

While I have been seeing the term “SaaS” for quite some time, it was not until more recently that I would do something more about it. I decided to add it to my writing plan of future topics. Now here it is on the Internet. Writing and researching it has given me a much better understanding of what it is, and more awareness of the companies that use or offer it. It probably should not come as a surprise, that I do prefer one-time purchases over subscription models when it comes onto computer software. I can see why businesses go with SaaS for the benefits discussed earlier. For me, one-time purchases suit my needs. What about you? Do you prefer subscription models or one-time purchases?

Inspiration Behind This Article: The Difference Between Nationality Versus Ethnicity

Aside from it being a planned summer article, I wanted to do this post to clarify the difference of these terms. There are many articles on the Internet that either have them mixed up, or written entirely inaccurately. This is not to say that mine is the best, and only one worth of reading. It is not. But, at the same time, it was thoughtfully and factually put together to give it credibility and quality. Found this article helpful, informative or interesting? Drop a comment below or share it with your friends and relatives.

Inspiration Behind This Critique: Royal Bank of Canada Website Critique

A continuation of the plan summer plan to put up various categories of writings on Millennium Creek. If you read the beginning of this critique, you will know that Canadian Tire and Havelaar Canada will be appearing on Millennium Creek to join RBC as part of the portfolio for non-endorsed website critiques.

Inspiration Behind This Critique: Canadian Tire Website Critique

This write-up is the second out of the three non-endorsed website critiques, being done for a portfolio project. Why did I choose Canadian Tire of all online retailers? Well, there were a lot of other online retailers that I could have went with. For the second critique, I wanted to choose an online retail that was based in Canada, that also has a physical store. For those two reasons, it should be no surprise that Canadian Tire was one of the first places that came to mind, so I went with it. Readers, what are your impressions of these critiques so far? Comment and share your thoughts.

Inspiration Behind This Critique: Havelaar Canada Website Critique

This write-up is the third and final out of the three non-endorsed website critiques, being done for a portfolio project. If you have read my previous articles pertained to automobiles, then my inspiration behind this post should be very clear: my love all-electric cars. As such, I originally thought about doing a critique for Tesla. But then, I thought that the Tesla already has enough press and attention surrounding them, so I thought about doing Jaguar. Now Jaguar may only have one all-electric vehicle in the lineup, but the company as whole was attractive enough to make me consider it. I was then torn between Tesla and Jaguar. I then decided to do neither of those two, and went with the lesser known, Canada-based, Havelaar Canada. Turned out to be a good choice. If it does make it to production, I hope there will be a 4-door crew cab option.

Inspiration Behind This Essay: Is It Acceptable For Women To Breastfeed In Public? Yes

Upon finishing the articles and website critiques for the Summer Project, now Autumn Portfolio 2018 Project, the next part of it is argumentative essays. Seeing as though I had already done this particular topic originally on May 30, 2016, I figured that it made lots of sense to upload it as the first choice for this part of the project. For the argumentative essays I cover in this project, I do plan to cover both “For” and “Against” *insert topic*. I plan to do three topics, bringing it to six essays, or six sides depending on how you look at it. For those of you that hated doing argumentative essay in school, you would probably think this is madness. Truth is, as long as the subject matter is not complex, and you understand the format of argumentative essays, they are actually quite easy to do. Or am I just saying that because I am an experienced writer? Either way, drop a comment on this topic and let me know what you think of public nursing.

Inspiration Behind This Essay: Is it acceptable for women to breastfeed in public? No

This essay serves as the voice against public nursing. For the side that supports public nursing, click here. Now that both sides of this subject matter have been explored, I am almost certain that you must be wondering how do I, Millennium Creek, feel about women breastfeeding in public? Well, it should not come as a surprise, but it surprises me that this is even a debate in the first place. As far as I am concerned, I do not know of any mother that would flagrantly expose their entire chest with the intention of creating shock and disgust. Virtually nobody would want to put themselves and their child in unnecessary danger. A mother nursing her infant should be treated as casually as somebody drinking from a water bottle to satisfy their thirst.

Inspiration Behind This Essay: Should Canadians Be Required To Know Both French And English Upon High School Graduation? Yes

I honestly do not remember why I chose this as one of the subjects I wanted to cover for the essays part of the portfolio. I do remember going through lists of good topics to do for an argumentative essay. I do not recall specifically seeing anything titled “Should Canadians Be Required to Know Both French and English Upon High School Graduation?” I believe that I did run into something that had to do with language and bilingualism. From there, I decided to go with this one. Do you also agree that Canadians should know both languages by the time they graduate? Type your comments and let me know.

Inspiration Behind This Essay: Should Canadians Be Required To Know Both French And English Upon High School Graduation? No

This essay serves as the voice that is against forced bilingualism on high school students. For the voice that supports it, click here. Do you agree with the points in this essay? I strongly suspect that most people would side with this voice, but I might be wrong? Let me know by leaving a comment. “Should Bilingualism Be A Graduation Requirement In Canada?” Perhaps would have been a nicer sounding title for these essays.

Inspiration Behind This Essay: Is Technology Limiting Creativity? Yes

This is the 3rd and final topic for the argumentative essay part of the portfolio project of 2018. I came around to choosing this topic by browsing a list of good essay topics. Why this one in particular? Though you may very well know at this point that I am into electronics, it is also because of how interesting and thought-provocative it is. In fact, I honestly feared that I would not know how to go about writing this. Thankfully, it came through and I managed to get this side of the topic done. Do you agree that technology is limiting creativity? Comment and let me know.

Inspiration Behind This Essay: Is Technology Limiting Creativity? No

Now that the “No” voice of this essay topic is complete, this marks the completion of the essay part of my 2018 portfolio project. As explained on the “Yes” voice, my inspiration behind choosing this topic for an argument, was the result of two things:

  1. Browsing through a list of topics to do for an argumentative essay
  2. My love for technology

With that said, it is obvious that I believe technology is not limiting creativity. The problem is people themselves not knowing how to be creative, and where to draw their sources of inspiration. My own website, Millennium Creek, is a good example of creativity that would not have been possible without the appropriate technology in place. Do you also agree that technology is not limiting creativity? Or have you sided with the “Yes” voice? Comment and let me know. While some people would love a world without smartphones, computers and televisions, our lives would be significantly harder in too many ways.

Inspiration Behind This Creative Piece: Speech: Let It Become A Legal Requirement To Label Genetically Modified Organisms In Canada

I do not think I have ever written any speech of the sort before. Whether it be intended for school, work or business. The idea of writing a speech definitely brought feelings of uncertainty, but I still did not cancel the idea. The completion of this speech marks the first write-up of the Creative Writing part of my portfolio part. Why a speech? Why this topic? As to why I would want a speech, it is because I thought it would be a valuable, challenging write-up to have in my portfolio. As for my topic of choice, I simply searched around for good speech topics. Interestingly, what happens to be a good topic for persuasive essays, also happens to be an excellent topic for speeches. For that reason, it is no wonder I have seen some people go as far to call speeches “spoken essays”. What do you think? How do you feel about this topic? Comment and let me know.

Inspiration Behind This Creative Piece: Beautiful Blue Creek (Haiku)

A Haiku was originally going to be the first write-up for the Creative Writing part of my portfolio project. Instead, I opted to write a speech first, making this the 2nd writing in the category. Why a Haiku? The last time I have written a Haiku probably dates back to elementary school. Yes, that is indeed a frighteningly long time!

Much of the content on Millennium Creek tends to be articles or writings that often tip 1,000 words. Doing a short Haiku on creeks, felt refreshing and very different. I am quite a fan of the simplicity and beauty of Haiku. I may create more of them in 2019. For now, I will proceed to working on the next creative piece.

For those of you that absolutely love Haiku, I recommend you have a look at Basho: The Complete Haiku, On Haiku, and maybe this mug? Have you ever written a Haiku? Perhaps you frequently write Haiku? Comment and let me know.

Inspiration Behind This Creative Piece: Walk of the Wilderness

Is this a story? Or is it a poem? A poetic story? Those are the questions that frequently came up in my mind while I was writing this. Truth be told, this is supposed to be a “long poem”. It probably might not look like it to some, but that was the intention. It is neither a fictional or non-fiction story. Now because poetry admittedly is not my specialty, there may be some debates on how good it is, or how you might personally disagree with my classification of it this work. Walk of the Wilderness marks the 3rd creation of the Creative Writing part of my portfolio project. It was supposed to be the 2nd, but if you already read the “Inspirational” section of my Haiku, you will have the answer to why it is not.

So aside from creating this as a “look what I can do” sort of thing, you must be wondering about what the actual inspiration of this particular poem is, right? It happened when I tasked myself with the objective to complete a third Creative Writing piece. It was originally going to be a write-up of one of my real dreams. I could not decide which dream to write about. I did not want to waste too much time on it, because 2018 was coming to an end very soon. I wanted to get the Creative Writings done before Christmas. I then decided to just write one massive, story-like poem about a brief dream belonging to no one, themed around walking through the wilderness. I did not plan, nor even look at other poems for inspiration. I just threw myself in front of the keyboard, brainstormed the title, and wrote whatever came to my mind.

As anyone can tell, it is advisable to plan and get inspiration when writing poetry. It makes it more organized and refined. Or at least I think so. Well, I suppose writing whatever floats up also has its perks, too. Particularly, if you are trying to really flex that originality muscle. What did you think about this long poem? Think it does not deserved to be called such? Feels more like a story?

Inspiration Behind This Creative Piece: What Love is This?

This long piece falls into the same category of my previous Walk of the Wilderness, classifying as a long poem. If you view it as a series of short poetic stories, I will not blame you for seeing it that way. Now that aside, What Love Is This? is the 4th and final creation of the Creative Writing part of my portfolio project. What you will not know about this write-up, is the fact that it was not supposed to even come into being. In fact, I was originally going to stop the Creative Writing portfolio after writing #3. But suddenly, I felt a strong desire to create just one more long poem, before calling it complete. I am quite glad I did.

Why love? I figured that if I was going to write poems, that I had to do at least one love theme. Sounds like such a cliché thing to do, but the urge was strong. Very strong. Like Walk of the Wilderness, What Love Is This? was written in the same manner: placed myself in front of the keyboard, brainstormed a little, and just let my fingers do the rest. As a result, you may either find the poem adorable or creative, or very uncool.

Inspiration Behind The Product Descriptions From an Old Portfolio

I was originally going to start the 2019 portfolio project with the following writing categories: Blog posts and copywriting. I then had a change of heart and revised it to be product descriptions and copywriting, while making the blog posts optional. The reason is because I am going to be officially selling my services in the coming weeks. Likely in February, but possibly March. While my services have already been available for some time, I have never posted them officially and openly on social media.

Back in 2018, I completed articles, website critiques, argumentative essays, creative pieces, and the occasional blog post. Blog posts are nice and all, but they have not been a focus on Millennium Creek. I believe that getting product descriptions and copywriting into my portfolio sooner, would make it look far more attractive than common, regular blogs posts.

Seeing as though  I had already completed a write-up of original descriptions a few years ago, it made sense to tidy them up, and publish them as the first for this category. And yes, I am aware that writing product descriptions is a form of copywriting. By “copywriting” I have web pages in mind for the next category.

Inspiration Behind The 2019 Product Descriptions: Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and iPhone XS Max Accessories

The completion of this makes it the 2nd write-up of the Product Descriptions part of the portfolio project. The 1st was Product Descriptions From an Old Portfolio. Creating these names and descriptions from scratch was no easy task. I took a look at Google Maps and other products to get an idea for names and certain technical details. Even then, it still took some work. Nevertheless, completing this gave me some valuable experience and insight about product copy.

Why the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and iPhone XS Max? Those two are among the most recognizable high-end devices in the world, making them a sensible choice to write portfolio descriptions for. Of course, there are many other fantastic devices out there. Some of which you can argue are even better. And finally, I would love to know what your top three picks would be if these products were real. Comment down below.

Inspiration Behind The 2019 Product Descriptions: Kaskawulsh Men’s Fashion

Fashion is a big deal because you have to wear clothes. You have to protect your body from the elements of the outdoors. And most obviously, you do not want to violate laws of indecency. Some people care greatly about looking stylish. Others value comfort, while some prefer to just buy whatever is affordable and necessary. The world of fashion is truly, very broad. I could have done men’s luxury fashion, women’s fashion, children’s fashion, ethnic fashion, and many more. For this portfolio piece, I decided to go with an imaginary, upscale brand that is not too expensive for the masses, but is not very cheap either.

Which of these products would you buy if they were real? Comment down below and share your interests.

Inspiration Behind The 2019 Product Descriptions: Cielistellati Fine Musical Instruments

My love for musical instruments. That is the driving reason behind choosing this as the 4th and final subject for the Product Descriptions category of the portfolio project. Woodwinds, brass, orchestral strings, percussion, keyboards — they all have their unique strengths and voices. If Cielistellati instruments were real, and money were no barrier, which of these instruments would you buy? I have a deep feeling that 95% of population would pick piano or violin. Prove me wrong by commenting on what your choice would be. Even if it is piano and violin, there is certainly nothing wrong with that. Both are beautiful when played by musicians who have been trained properly.

For those of you who are Italian, or at least understand the language, Cielistellati comes from the Italian words “cieli stellati” meaning starry skies. Your eyes would indeed be starry with the craftsmanship and sound quality of these instruments, if they were real.

Inspiration Behind The Webpages Of Laurentian Wireless

Every website obviously has webpages. Does every website have good pages? Unfortunately, they do not. I wanted to have a knack at writing webpages. I went ahead to test my webpage content writing skills with this category of the portfolio project. The reason why I chose a wireless carrier, will not be a surprise to any readers who have read most of my write-ups. (Love for smartphones and other electronics!)

Now finally, if Laurentian Wireless were a real company, would you subscribe to them? Or would you prefer to stick to Telus, Koodo, Rogers, Fido, Bell, Virgin Mobile or Freedom Mobile? Comment down below and let me know. I would also like to know what you think of this write-up. Should I have included certain details within pages that I missed? Your constructive feedback is very important to me.

Inspiration Behind The Webpages Red Maple Greater Toronto Area Home Renovation Group

Red Maple Greater Toronto Area Home Renovation Group (Red Maple GTA HRG) is the second write-up within the webpages category of the portfolio project. We all need a good, clean, peaceful house to dwell in. Therefore, this makes home renovation an extremely big industry. So big, that it was only natural that I would include it as one of the 5 webpage topics to go with. And because I am based in Ontario, I chose to go with an Ontarian-themed, imaginary example company.

Inspiration Behind The Webpages Of Wonder Food of 6 Worlds Restaurant

Wonder Food of 6 Worlds Restaurant (WF6WR) is the third write-up within the webpages category of the portfolio project. Not only is the hospitality and tourism industry interesting, it is a huge sector of commerce. When coming up with an imaginary example company, I knew I wanted to include a restaurant, but was not too sure of which theme to go with. Thinking of all the ethnic restaurants around me, I decided to go with a unique, multi-ethnic theme. A little challenging, but I like how it turned out.

Inspiration Behind The Webpages Of Seaforth Serpents

Seaforth Serpents is the fourth write-up within the webpages category of the portfolio project. People love their pets, particularly cats and dogs. While cats and dogs are popular and all, I wanted to go with something a little more niche for the 4th write-up of this area: reptiles, particularly snakes. I originally expected this piece to be quick and easy to type, but it proved me wrong. Animal shop websites actually have a lot of important text that needs to be on their webpages, or you risk numerous complications. Still, I personally love reptiles, so writing this was not uninteresting.

Inspiration Behind The Webpages Of Thunder Things Automotive Group

Thunder Things Automotive Group (TTAG) is the fifth and final write-up within the webpages category of the portfolio project. As mentioned in earlier automotive writings, I love all-electric vehicles, making this a very alluring choice to go with. TTAG may be an imaginary example company, but I really would like to see Canada create its own home-grown brand soon.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: “Maseromeo” What If Maserati And Alfa Romeo Merged Into One Brand?

As mentioned within the first paragraph of this post, this was originally intended to be a blog post written shortly after completing Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: June 2018 Discussion. Why did I still bother with it? Because it was too interesting of a discussion to throw off. Both Maserati and Alfa Romeo are internationally recognized brands that can stir up a variety of emotions.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: The Truth About Alfa Romeo’s Logo Surprised Me Greatly

My inspiration for this blog post is summed up perfectly within the first paragraph of this post: stumbled across an image with text about the logo, thus leading to me creating an entry all about it.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: Do I Believe There Is Life On Other Planets?

Without a doubt, the other celestial bodies around us are extremely fascinating. Some believe there is, or was life at some point on them. Others, such as myself, believe they never had or will ever be capable of supporting life. As such, I wanted to create a blog post entirely dedicated to this, and why they cannot support life.

Inspiration Behind This Blog Post: Remote Work Is Not Nonsense; It Is The Way

This blog post may very well be the most passionate-driven entry posted on Millennium Creek. Being someone who believes strongly in remote work, I felt as though I was called to do this when I saw someone write remote work off as nonsense on Twitter. Within the post, I go into plenty of detail about what remote work is and is not.

Feeling Inspired?

This was a ton of text to go through, but I do hope that you managed to read it all. And most importantly, I hope it left you feeling inspired to take some action of the sort. Whether it be reading the write-ups they link to, or creating a write-up inspired from them.

Webpages: Wonder Food Of 6 Worlds Restaurant

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored. Wonder Food Of 6 Worlds Restaurant is an original, imaginary website.

About Us

What does Mexican, Jamaican, French, Italian, Greek, Indian, Chinese, Thai and Japanese food have in common? “They are all incredibly tasty!” is what you might say. And that is because the average Canadian has eaten something from most, or all of those nationalities mentioned. As a result of their popularity, the cuisine from these countries can be found very easily in most major, urban centres. Awesome! This means that international food is not a rarity. But, what about those other lesser known dishes from around the world? This is where we come in hand at Wonder Food of 6 Worlds Restaurant, Here, we serve Canadian indigenous, Bolivian, Cameroonian, Estonian, Laotian, and Fijian cuisine.

Founding Story

Wonder Food Of 6 Worlds was founded by its present owner, Waaseyaa Clérisseau in 2010. Being born to an Ojibwe mother, and French Canadian father in a multicultural city like Ottawa, Clérisseau has been exposed through a variety of cultures throughout his life. Being a hands-on person, Clérisseau particularly enjoyed cooking. This made it a  natural choice for him to enroll in and graduate from the School of Hospitality and Tourism at Algonquin College. He did not let it just stop there. He did not want to just simply work at any “regular” restaurant; he wanted to start his own. Being a cultural person, Clérisseau decided to go with a theme that focused on a variety ethnic dishes. Knowing that there are already several restaurants in Ottawa that cater to ethnic cuisine, he wanted to stand out from the pack. He did this by focusing on dishes from the lesser known parts of world.

Canadian indigenous, Bolivian, Cameroonian, Estonian, Laotian, and Fijian were the choices he went with. Due to both the facts that all those nations have little to no existence in the Canadian restaurant scene, and that they all hail from different continents, it led to the title Wonder Food of 6 Worlds Restaurant. A brilliant way to reference the fact they come from all the continents (minus Antarctica!), and are rare or non-existent in Canada.

Location

Wonder Food Of 6 Worlds Restaurant is located at 412 River Road Gloucester, Ontario K1V 1C9 45.310288, -75.693559. While the location seems a bit off from the city centre, it is strategically located on undeveloped land that allowed for a spacious restaurant to be built. It is also located directly east of the Rideau river, yet also close to the Ottawa International Airport.

Reservations

Want to get a table reserved? Limited reservations are accepted. Please call for availability.

Food

Authenticity is key to ethnic food. And though anyone can be trained to cook food from backgrounds outside of their cultural background, those that have been born and brought up in a specific culture, will always have a unique advantage over somebody that has been trained outside that culture. They have been exposed to the ways, sounds, tastes, and sights extensively of [culture name]. This gives them extensive knowledge of the ins and outs of not only their food, but a better and deeper understanding of it. At Wonder Food of 6 Worlds Restaurantchefs Dakaasin Gichigami, Asiru Mamani, Nzo Midoukna, Jürgen Võigemast, Dao Sayakumane, and Uciwai Niumataiwalu are employed as the leading chefs for each the “6 worlds” to ensure you get the best of these worlds. Even when they are off duty, the other chefs employed for the department of their world, will ensure that you get that specific taste you crave!

Indigenous Canadian Cuisine

It is all too easy to get caught up into trying everyone’s food but your own. That is not the case here. Enjoy aboriginal dishes that can include Ontario-grown pumpkins, corn, squash, potatoes, roots, wildflowers and other tasty Ontarian greens. And of course, deer, elk and plenty of fish are options that can be combined added as well. Desert? Hardened maple syrup goods, various berries or other fruits are your refreshing options.

Bolivian Cuisine

Bolivian cuisine is interesting in that it is a blend of Spanish and Indigenous Aymara ingredients. This makes for an exotic blend of two worlds. Corn, potatoes, beans, and quinoa are often combined with staples introduced from the Spaniards such as rice, wheat, chicken, and beef. Plato paceño, majadito, salteñas and Pique a lo Macho are some of the things served here.

Cameroonian Cuisine

Due to Cameroon’s “cross roads” geographic location, 250+ ethnic groups, as well as influence from the English and French, Cameroonian cuisine can be some of most variable on the African continent. Nevertheless, yams, plantain, potatoes, maize, sweet potatoes, beans, millet and various other vegetables remain the staples of Cameroonian food. At 6 Worlds, you can expect to enjoy the famous ndolé, as well as ekwang, sese plaintains, kati kati, koki corn, scotch eggs, and many other savory Cameroonian goodness.

Estonian Cuisine

Most of world’s recognized and well-loved dishes come from Europe. Primarily the west and Mediterranean that is. Estonian food is rarity that you almost certainly will not ever try. That is unless you go out of your way to seek such niche shops or recipes that specialize in it. Rye bread, potatoes, dairy products, fish and other meat are the staples of this Baltic nation’s cuisine. Not exciting? Just try kiluvõileib, mulgipuder, Estonian-style potato salad, and then you will have a better appreciation for it. Oh, and their desserts! Kama desserts are the most iconic and possibly tastiest desserts of Estonia.

Laotian Cuisine

Say Hellao to Lao food! No, not Vietnamese, not Thai, Lao. Laos is a landlocked country that happens to be located between the two countries just mentioned. Both of which have well-loved and recognized food from all other. Lao food is thankfully not ultra rare, but certainly not as popular as other Eastern Asian countries either. Now what makes Lao food so special? Two words: sticky rice. While you might be thinking that it is not a surprise that rice plays a big role in this region of Asia, it is particularly their high usage of sticky rice that sets them apart from all the other countries. As prominent as it is though, you also enjoy various other Lao dishes at 6 Worlds, such as laap, jeow bong, khao piak sen, tam mak and other lovely Lao goodies.

Fijian Cuisine

Fiji is likely an island seen more as a tropical Pacific getaway, rather than a food hub. Truth is, it offers both great food and scenery! Fiji’s traditional cuisine consists largely of produce grown on their island. As you can expect, their appetizing dishes are often made from seafood, coconuts, root vegetables like cassava and taro, citrus fruits and local meats. At 6 worlds, we offer kokoda, palusami, taro, nama and various other Fijian dishes involving rice, coconut, fish, seaweeds and other combinations.

Social Media

Do you love the Wonder Food Of 6 Worlds Restaurant? Want to get even more out of it? Why not follow the restaurant on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram? You will get to see various photographs of dishes prepared, the preparation shots, food-related Tweets, and even photographs of the Rideau river. The restaurant is very close to it after all. You can also subscribe to our electronic newsletter to get the latest news and special promotions delivered right to your mailbox.

Delivery & Take-out

We serve the entire city of Ottawa. Delivery charges range from $5 – $25 depending on how far your address is located from the restaurant. You can calculate the cost in advance be entering your address and postal code on our delivery calculator.

Privacy Policy

Wonder Food Of 6 Worlds Restaurant (WF6WR) is committed to respecting your privacy. When your sign up for our newsletter or download and use our application, WF6WR collects names, addresses, device type, and operating system used. Your data is never sold or released to third parties, and remains confidentially within the WF6WR system. The data collected is used to serve, understand and improve WF6WR itself and its customers.

The Tokay Gecko

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

Introduction

The description of a lizard that is 40cm long, has blue scales, orange spots, and large yellow-green or yellow-brown eyes, will likely sound like describing something out of children’s book. At least to those that are not familiar with its existence: the tokay gecko.

Description 

As mentioned above, the tokay gecko’s signature appearance is its combination of blue scales with orange spots. The skin is soft, granular and feels similar to velvet. They have large, circular, reticulate-patterned eyes that range between greens, yellows, reds, oranges, or a combination of these colours. Their vertical pupils are typically restricted, often resembling a jagged line. Sizes appear to vary, though the usual for males ranges anywhere between 28cm – 51cm. Females are slightly smaller, coming out to about 18cm – 48cm. This makes the tokay gecko the second largest gecko in the world, with only the New Caledonian giant gecko being larger. Tokay gecko tails are long and can be thick, while their bodies have a flattened appearance to it. The feet have five thumb-like toes covered in millions of tiny microscopic hairs known as setae. In turn, the setae have their own microscopic hair-like structure that come off from their tips. These structures allow the gecko to adhere to a variety of hard surfaces. This includes going upside down on a ceiling.

Distribution

The tokay gecko can be found in India, Bhutan, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and throughout much of south and southeast Asia. This arboreal, nocturnal lizard prefers the humid rainforests and cliff habitats of these areas, but has also adapted to urban environments. It has been introduced to Florida, Texas, Hawaii, some Caribbean islands and Belize during the 1980s – 1990s period. It is considered an invasive species in these areas.

Behaviour

Being a nocturnal animal, the tokay gecko is most active during the nighttime. They are also very territorial and defensive, especially males. They are famous for lunging, biting and barking at anything that invades their personal space. For this reason, they are solitary creatures that live alone when it is not the mating season. The males make a sound that is described as “Tok-kay” or “Gek-ko” during the mating season. Both of these onomatopoeic descriptions are where the inspiration for its common name and Latin name came from. It should also be mentioned that American soldiers during the Vietnam War have nicknamed it the “F*** you lizard” due to what the vocalization sounded like to them. The tokay gecko is an opportunistic feeder that will eat whatever it can overpower. This is usually various insects and sometimes even small birds, mice and smaller lizards. The tokay gecko does not have many natural predators, aside from large poisonous snakes that dwell in the Asian rainforests. Aside from habitat destruction, traditional medicinal use and illegal captures are the biggest threat to its survival. Despite this, the species is not classified as endangered. Their numbers are high.

In Captivity

Due to their large size, feisty temperament, live food diet, and potential to close live to 20 years, they are not suitable for the inexperienced. A tokay gecko should only be kept by those who have spent adequate amounts of time learning about their husbandry.

For tank sizes, 37 litres should be the minimum for a single male. For a female and male being housed together, no less than 75 litres is to be used. Since they are arboreal, tanks should have enough branches, hides and decorations that allow them to climb or hide in. It should not be cluttered though, as it there needs to be enough space for them to chase their insects given to them. For substrate, they can be given newspaper, cypress mulch, orchid bark, coco peat or sphagnum moss.

A tank temperature of around 29 °C during the day, and 24 °C at night is ideal for them. There are a variety of heating materials that can be used: heat mats, heat ropeshalogen bulbs and red bulbs. It is recommended to use daylight heat bulbs in the morning, but not the night to avoid disrupting the sleep cycle of the lizard. Instead, red bulbs or ceramic bulbs should be used for heat, since they emit little to zero light. Having a thermostat is an absolute must to monitor the temperature.

A humidity gauge is required to make sure that it is kept between 60% – 80%. Too much humidity will breed harmful microorganisms. A breathable screen cover allows them to stay humid and comfortable.

Captive tokay geckos can be fed crickets, locusts, mealworms, or wax worms. Feeders should be either gut-loaded or dusted with calcium. If going the calcium route, this needs to be done at least once a week.

Tokay geckos are not difficult to breed. If a male and female are kept together, and are healthy and comfortable, they will breed corresponding to the wet season. This can be imitated in captivity by increasing the humidity and lighting period for an hour or two. Providing additional food and calcium is important, especially to make sure the female gets enough minerals for laying her eggs. Females will lay a clutch of two eggs at a time, with up to 3-4 clutches per year. The eggs typically hatch between 90-120 days. Eggs must not be removed from their surface, or they can be destroyed. It will also make the animal defensive.

China Dress: Simply a Dress or More Than That?

Disclosure: Millennium River is an independent website that uses hyperlinks. Some of these links are affiliate links. When you click and purchase a product(s) through these links, I may earn a commission on qualifying sales. This is done at no extra expense to you. You may also support this website via PayPal. Unless it is clearly stated, the content is not sponsored.

What is it?

The China dress, as most English speakers often call it, is also known the cheongsam (長衫) in Cantonese, pronounced “chang-shen” or qipao (旗袍) in Mandarin, pronounced “chee-pow”. It is a one-piece, close-fitting dress for women that originates from China.

History

During the time when the Manchu ruled China, in the period of the Qing dynasty (1636 – 1912), a man named Nurhachi set up the Eight Banner System. This was an administrative and military system for organizing all Manchu families into administrative divisions. The Banner system was made up of Manchus, Mongols and Han, who were collectively known as Banner people. Under the Manchu influence, the women wore the traditional dress that Manchu women wore, which eventually became known as the qipao. This garment was originally loose-fitting, covering most of a woman’s body with only the head, hands and feet shown. Under Qing dynastic laws after 1636, all Han Chinese men in the Banner System had to wear the male equivalent of the qipao, called the chángpáo (長袍), pronounced “chang-pow”. In addition to this, they also had to adopt the male Manchurian hairstyle. As time moved on, laws changed, and several other aspects of Chinese culture changed, including the qipao. Its current iconic appearance today, was fashioned in Shanghai during the 1920s. During the course of its development, two different styles have come into being: Beijing and Shanghai style qipao. The Shanghai style has much more Western influences in its design, while the Beijing style focuses on traditional patterns and colourful decorations. The Shanghai style, with its close-fitting, Western influenced nature, is the more popular of the two styles.

When Do People Wear Qipaos?

During the 17th century, women wore a qipao almost every day. In Shanghai and Hong Kong, during the 1920s and again in the 1950s, the qipao was worn informally quite often. After this period, it was regarded as a work dress, meaning that it was rarely worn as an everyday casual garment, until the 1980s. Today, Chinese now wear the qipao mainly on formal occasions such as weddings or festivals, with Chinese New Year being an excellent prominent example. They are also commonly worn as uniforms in some restaurants, hotels and on airplanes in Asia, as well as some restaurants tied to the culture outside of Asia. Though the qipao generally has a formal or work related image, they can be worn outside of these scenarios. Similarly to Japan’s kimono, the qipao has garnered much international attention over the years, and has been worn by many non-Asian women, who admire the beauty and elegancy of it.