Google suggested that perhaps this should be spelled molaga podi idli instead, but either way, the word podi here appears to be the key, as this thing was surprisingly spicy...so much that I immediately turned around and went right back to the buffet to get more before finally getting to my seat. Yum - that was so much fun to eat, especially when it left my stomach with a pleasant residual burn. :)
And yes, this was from the SATS Lounge at Changi Terminal 3, of all places. Lately I've been avoiding going to airport lounges, in part since they've become more crowded than the public spaces at airports, but also since the food is oftentimes more interesting at outside stalls too. So I was surprised to find how much I loved these things; I would have been happy to pay money for another plate of them!
Today started well enough. Instead of having to wait for a Delta service rep to get on the line in the normal 30-40 minutes, a friendly human was on within 5 minutes. I was so happy. Well, that was 90 minutes ago. I'm on hold now, still waiting for my problem to be addressed. I won't bore you with the details because the problem really is Delta, not the details of this particular glitch. Delta-- not unlike most of the big U.S. airlines, and not unlike most of corporate America-- is populated by people who are driven by the corporate imperative: profit-über-alles. The corollary, alas, is screw customer service and even safety. Like I said, this seems to fit all the big U.S. airlines. Delta just seems a little worse than the rest.
Sometimes I wonder why Delta is worse than the already excruciatingly bad United or the egregiously horrid American or the woefully foul... etc. Maybe it's because their employees are under so much stress because they are being screwed so miserably by the corporate executives who have wrecked a once perfectly fine airline that I used to actually look forward to flying on-- instead of dreading.
So why bother flying on Delta if I dread it so much? Excellent question-- and of course, there really is no good answer. I have managed to collect many thousands or their nearly worthless and unusable Sky Miles over the years (thanks, American Express; can't you find a reputable airline partner to work with?) And on this particular flight to Spain I decided to try to use some mileage up before the whole company gets flushed down the toilet (as they should). Of course they wouldn't consider ever letting me use the miles for an actual ticket but they did offer to let me use miles for a "first class" upgrade if I bought (a very expensive) ticket. So I did and they did.
First class, LAX to Atlanta. I remember what first class used to be-- even on Delta! This "first class" doesn't even have a foot rest! I mean forget about normal first class amenities that real airlines have or things like seats that go all the way back or actual trained personnel. But even before I got to my crappy and uncomfortable seat, I had to vainly try to use the closet. When the first class passengers board a Delta flight, the crew finds the most forbidding and vicious-looking employee they can to stand in front of the closet and dare you to just try to hang something in it. In the past 3-4 years I've noticed that Delta-- and only Delta-- uses all the hanging space for crew members' bags. This is a major inconvenience if you're traveling with a suit that you would prefer to not have to press when you land. I've written at least half a dozen complaint letters to Delta about this and I've never had any kind of an answer. Once I was on some no-name local airline in India, possibly called Sahara or something unlikely like that, and not only did the crew use up all the closet space, but also all the restroom space. I kid you not-- the front-of-the-plane restroom was unusable because it was filled with big boxes of electronics the crew members were... transporting. Delta hasn't fallen that low... yet.
The second half of my trip-- Atlanta to Madrid-- was slightly better but, please take my word on this: if you woud rate British Air's front of the plane service an "A," as I certainly do, it would be impossible to rate Delta any more than a "D" in comparison-- and I'm being very generous there. Delta's transatlantic front of the plane (I shudder to remember, but I think they called it "Business Elite") service has more-- far more-- in common with a Greyhound trip than it does with the service one can safely expect from almost any European carrier-- and they even make American and United look good! If the flight attendants went to school at all, it was to learn how to piss off the customers. The closets, of course, were verboten for passengers. The food was... excruciatingly bad-- as were the seats. It did, however, almost land on time.
Do you know anyone who likes flying on Delta? I don't. Everyone I know hates it. And there was a time when Delta was the airline of choice inside the U.S. Perhaps if they just thought a little about treating their stressed out employees right and then got a grasp on what actual customer service means, they wouldn't be in bankruptcy today.
Tongass National Park, Alaska [click on photo to enlarge]
(Ken posted this today over at Down With Tyranny, my political blog. How could I not share it with everyone here who doesn't go there? -Howie)
"There'll be a morning 'Kaffee Klatsch' most days and panel discussions galore explaining how democracy eventually will sweep through the Middle East like wildfire, how to balance the budget and various other issues." --Al Kamen, speculating in today's Washington Post about the Weekly Standard's upcoming Cruise to Wingnuttia
[For my mother, who has managed to travel a fair amount in her life, perhaps the most memorable trip was a cruise along the Inside Passage of Alaska--the place she often says she most regrets not being able to get back to. I imagine, though, that if anything could spoil that spectacular land- and seascape, it would be traveling in this particular company, as reported by Al Kamen in his "In the Loop" column.--Ken]
In Troubling Times, Conservatives Head Out to Sea
By Al Kamen
These are obviously not the best of times for Republicans. The House is gone. Ditto the Senate. President Bush's approval ratings are around 37 percent, and ratings on his conduct of the war are closer to 30 percent. The war itself grinds on. What's a beleaguered conservative to do?
It's time to regroup! And what better way to do that than to join the folks at the Weekly Standard, one of the last great bastions of war boosters, on a fun-filled week-long cruise in Alaska?
Yes, it's a week of sightseeing, partying and deep reflection with publisher Terry Eastland and top editors William Kristol and Fred Barnes aboard Holland America Line's ms Oosterdam this June. Other featured speakers include former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson and military historian Fred Kagan.
One of the true highlights is just the chance to be "traveling with like-minded conservatives," the promo material says, and not having to listen to we-told-you-so rants from the liberals and leftists that you might find on other cruises.
There'll be a morning "Kaffee Klatsch" most days and panel discussions galore explaining how democracy eventually will sweep through the Middle East like wildfire, how to balance the budget and various other issues.
The ship's show lounge "features Las Vegas-style productions," and while the invitation doesn't mention it, the luxury ship does indeed have a fine casino.
There will probably be cakewalk contests on the Lido deck each night, and spectacular Alaska each day, including a close view of the Hubbard Glacier [right], which, contrary to what radical-environmentalist, global-warming types would say, is "marching to the beat of a different drum . . . advancing while the rest of Alaska's ice rivers are receding rapidly."
There's a day in Ketchikan "in the heart of the Tongass National Forest" [top photo]. Maybe there'll be time for an optional anti-earmark pilgrimage to the proposed site of the famed "Bridge to Nowhere"? Weather permitting, there might even be a hunt for weapons of mass destruction. (Okay, okay, that was cheap.)
All this in your "penthouse suite w/verandah" for only $6,300 per person, double occupancy, or $4,500 per person in the deluxe suite. Single rooms in the cheapo category are only $2,600.
Do not miss the "photo/autograph session," where you can have your picture taken with Kristol, Barnes and Eastland. "Photos will be available for purchase," we're told. Priceless!
But hurry! There are only two penthouse suites available.
UPDATE: MITCH McCONNELL AND MARK FOLEY AREN'T THE ONLY CRUSININ' WINGNUTS... THE NATIONAL REVIEW IS OFF TO ALASKA
If you somehow missed the Weekly Standard'scruise to Alaska and you have a hankerin' to be stuck in a small enclosed space with a shipful of delusional hatemongers, fear not. All the Weekly Standard had to offer was a gaggle of the dullest propaganda scriveners in all God's Creation: Terry Eastland, Fred Barnes, William Kristol, Fred Kagan, and, to spice it up, a former Bush speech writer, Michael Gerson.
Now the National Review... these particular Republicans really know how to put on a cruise. Theirs starts in late July-- also to Alaska-- but what a lineup. How would you like to play some shuffleboard with Robert Bork? Go for a swim with Kate O'Beirne? (Come on; it's better than swimming with sharks, isn't it?) Soak in the jacuzzi with Dick Morris? Maybe take an aerobics class alongside Ed Gillespie? Or see "a Las Vegas-style production" with the likes of Rich Lowry, Ramesh Ponnuru, Michael Steele and Arthur Laffer? Does that sound like a vacation or what? And I didn't even mention certifiably insane rightist loons like Jonah Goldberg, Richard Allen, Mac Owens John Hillen and Jay Nordlinger. They're making some mighty tempting promises:
• Moderated panel sessions featuring our esteemed guest speakers, along with plenty of passenger Q&A. • Plenty of chances to meet, schmooze and enjoy personal interaction with our special guest speakers. • Exclusive Parties and Dining with our special guest speakers. You will dine with your fellow National Review attendees, so that you have the chance to meet many of your fellow conservative cruisers. • Numerous private cocktail parties and evening smokers. • And more...
A tiny bit of investigating led us directly to some of what that "And more" means: Chocolates on your pillow AND
• Spacious, elegantly appointed staterooms, many with private verandahs • Luxurious Euro-Top beds and premium linens • Daily housekeeping to tidy belongings and keep staterooms immaculate • Large, extra-fluffy Egyptian cotton towels • Lighted magnifying mirrors; massage shower-heads; salon-quality hair dryers • Luxurious terry cloth bathrobes • Televisions with DVD and VCR players • Generous storage • Complimentary fresh fruit • Complimentary 24-hour in-room dining • Nightly turndown service • Complimentary shoeshine service • Complimentary ice service
So leave that ice-machine at home; you are covered!
I guess that I always kinda knew that Taiwanese convenience stores had this stuff sitting next to those tea eggs. But it wasn't until I had that good experience with oden at a Family Mart in Japan last month that I took notice of these here in Taipei. Yes, they had normal oden, but they also had a mala version, which was exactly the spicy soupy thing that I needed after several drinks at a cool little speakeasy called Ounce (awesome cocktails there, BTW). One of course still has to look past the rather unappealing look of this 7-Eleven stuff though, especially if the broth has developed a bit of a skin on top.
No, I wasn't intending to get hot dogs two days in a row. But I walked through Denver Airport trying to find something uniquely local to eat, and ultimately these guys won. I grabbed this Rippin Rockies dog along with some deep fried (but batterless) string beans, as well as a glass of Steve's Snappin' Ale, which interestingly was laced with chili peppers.
The sausage itself definitely wasn't anywhere as good as Biker Jim's, but I liked the funky approach to how they did things here. Next time it might be interesting to see if that Root Down place near the C Gates is any good; there was a surprisingly long line there this morning.
Dilla Djalil-Daniel is a photographer currently living in Jakarta, and attended the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Istanbul.
She participated in Andrea Bruce's class, and chose me to review one of her portfolios of the Cap Go Meh celebration in Singkawang, West Kalimantan. Naturally, this captured my undivided attention on account of her colorful images of the unusual rituals and trances.
Dilla traveled around the world for her photography, especially in Asia and has a large portfolio that ought to be shown on her own personal website, which I urged her to have.
Her project in Istanbul for Andrea's class was documenting a day in the life of a traditional silversmith in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar whose name, Kennedy, is definitely nontraditional. It seems his parents named him after the US president after he was shot in Dallas. Many of the silversmiths in Istanbul are ethnic Armenians.
Here is a selection of her images which were part of the students' projects shown during the last evening of the workshop. Somewhat of a departure for Dilla, as it was shot in a photojournalistic style and in B&W.
November is here at last which means the Antarctic adventurers are gathering in Punta Arenas, Chile and are preparing to set out for the frozen continent. The little village sees some unusual visitors this time of year as it is the launching point for the majority of skiers and climbers heading to the Antarctic for the season ahead. Some are already in town, sorting gear and waiting for a flight, while others have yet to depart. Of course, the Scott Expedition is already well under way as others seek to join them on the ice soon enough.
Ben Saunders and Tark L'Herpiniere, the two men who make up the team that is following in the footsteps of the legendary Robert Falcon Scott, have now been out on the trail for more than 11 days. Those days comprise just a fraction of the 110 that is expected to be required for a round trip journey to the South Pole and back to their starting point at Scott's hut, located on the Ross Ice Shelf. Still, the two men are starting to find a groove and covering solid distances despite pulling double-sleds filled with 400 pounds (181 kg) of gear and supplies. It has not been an easy start for the boys, who have already faced bone chilling temperatures and high winds, not to mention varying surface conditions.
In their latest dispatch, Ben reports that they ran into the dreaded sastrugi while skiing yesterday. For those who don't know, sastrugi are hard ridges that form as the wind blasts the snow across the frozen expanse. They can grow quite large at times and are usually detriment to South Pole skiers who lose time either going over or around them. On top of that, they can take their toll on the body as they put a lot of pressure on the hips and knees when skiing across them. Last year the sastrugi were particularly bad, causing all kind of problems for the skiers. Hopefully this is not a prelude of things to come once again this season and that the ice ridges won't be as common or as large as they were during the 2012 season.
While Ben and Tarka continue to press on, another South Pole skier is preparing to set out on the ice. Aussie Geoff Wilson will launch his Pink Polar Expedition as soon as the weather allows. He is currently in Cape Town, South Africa awaiting a flight to Novo Station where he will launch an solo and unassisted journey to the Pole to raise funds for the McGrath Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to place nurses specializing in breast cancer care into communities in Australia. Geoff's good friend Kate Carlyle was stricken with the disease and this is a way for him to help out. As a result, he's pulling a sled that is affectionally called the "boob sled" as it resembles a pair of rather large pink breasts (I'm not making this up people!). If nothing else, Geoff will at least make for an interesting site out on the ice.
The season is just on the edge of really exploding with more skiers soon starting out. In the days ahead we will likely have quite a steady stream of news. For now, it is the calm before the storm.
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Dunmore Cave is located approximately 11km north of Kilkenny City, near Castlecomer. The cave contains around 300m of known passages and caverns. In terms of geology, Dunmore Cave is a rare example of a cave that was formed directly by glacial meltwaters.
Although not a particularly large cave system, Dunmore has a number of great examples of calcite formations like stalagmites and stalactites. However my interest in the cave comes from its dark history.
Located in the north of County Kilkenny, in a region of the ancient Irish kingdom of Ossory, Dunmore Cave was situated right in the middle of a stomping ground between the Viking powerbases of Dublin, Waterford and Limerick. The Vikings of Ireland were not one people with a united ambition and government, but were instead rival powers who regularly came into conflict with one another.
The cave at Dunmore has a chilling story to tell. The Annals record that over 1,000 people were massacred here by the Vikings. It is said that the Vikings from Dublin were en route to attack rival Vikings at Waterford circa 928 AD. They raided the surrounding land and found that a large number of people (mainly women and children) were hiding in the cave at Dunmore.
In an attempt to drive them from the cave, they lit large fires hoping that it would force those taking shelter to flee the smoke so that they could be easily captured and sold in the slave markets. However the fires were too large and burned all the oxygen in the deep cave with many suffocating to death. Antiquarians in the 18th and 19th centuries collected large quantities of human remains from within the cave, presumably those of the poor people who were massacred in that raid.
It appears that some Vikings returned to the site later to conceal their wealth. In 1999, a small hoard of silver and copper-alloy items was discovered in a cleft deep in the cave. The hoard was dated to 970 AD. It consisted of silver ingots and conical buttons woven from fine silver.
These precious objects were found with a luxurious silk garment. The dye that coloured the garment purple was reserved for the highest ranking members of society, and it was derived from the purple murex snail that can only be found on the north coast of Africa, evidence of the incredible trading network of the Vikings. Perhaps the owner of the hoard concealed it there, hoping that the cave’s dark reputation would keep it from prying eyes, but they were never able to return to retrieve it. It is also possible that they left it as an offering to chthonic (subterranean) gods or spirits.
Today Dunmore Cave is a really rewarding place to visit with a fine visitor centre. You can enjoy great guided tours that inform you about the history, archaeology and geology of this fascinating site. You can find information about opening hours and entry fees by visiting here http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/south%2Deast/dunmorecave/.
If enjoy my blog and you'd like to support us try our acclaimed series of audioguides to Ireland’s heritage sites, they are packed with original music and sound effects and a really fun and immersive way of exploring Ireland’s past. They are available from abartaheritage.ie and a number are absolutely free to download.
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Thursday I went out to Quizambougou to watch Bassekou Kouyate finish recording his second album, a follow-up to his amazing debut, Segu Blue. Like the first one, the new songs were being recorded at the famed Studio Bogolan across the way from Mali K7, Ali Farka Toure's foundation. (Ali Farka's son, in fact, played his father's guitar on Bassekou's new album.)
Bassekou isn't well known in the U.S. yet-- he's never been to our side of the Atlantic-- but he's a real star in Africa and Europe, wildly popular in Mali and recognized as the best ngoni player in the world. The ngoni is kind of a cross between a banjo and a guitar and what Bassekou does with it is pure magic. The music I heard in the studio seemlessly combined the two goals Bassekou set out to accomplish with his new album: respect for Mali's rich musical tradition in which he is steeped, and an opportunity to explore the directions his own muse is drawing him. His first album Segu Blue is pretty amazing too.
I did my best to persuade him to come play in the U.S. and made a fun suggestion to help him gain some recognition there. If he follows my advice you'll recognize it instantly when you hear the album.
I had an opportunity to meet two musical legends at the studio-- BBC presenter/musicologist/producer Lucy Duran, who is probably best known in the U.S. as the producer of President Obama's favorite album, Kulanjan by Taj Mahal and Malian kora master Toumani Diabate. (I might add that the ngoni player on that album was, of course, Bassekou.) Anyway, Lucy is the most credible producer of West Africa music anywhere, speaking the local languages and having worked on Toumani's own records as well as with Kasse Mady Diabate and with Yasmin Levy. The sound engineer she and Bassekou were working with was Jerry Boys, one of the world's best-- a guy who recorded everyone (literally) from the Beatles, Stones, Pink Floyd, and REM to Ry Cooder, Buena Vista Social Club and Ali Farka Toure! (I recall him working with Everything But the Girl when I worked at Sire.)
Anyway, the studio was packed with TV, radio and print jounalists, as well as photographers from the record label and the media. It's like everyone in Mali who loves music-- and in Mali that means everyone-- is eagerly awaiting the new Bassekou record. The happy citizens of Bamako didn't have to wait for the release to hear some of the new material. Friday night Basselou was onstage at the French Cultural Center doing a full-fledged concert. You think I went?
It was only about a mile from my hotel so I walked over early. Bassekou had told me his sons have an ngoni band and asked me to show up in time to hear them. I'm glad I did; you can see their influences and they were pretty good.
Bassekou with his band at CCF in Dakar
But it was Bassekou's nine piece extravaganza that well could have been the best live performance I had ever seen in my whole life-- and I've been seeing concerts since the early 60's and haven't missed too many artists. The first time I was in Africa was in 1969 and I was hanging out with Jimi Hendrix in Essaouira (in Morocco). The first time I had seen Jimi play was years before that at the Cafe Au Go Go when he was the guitar player in the Night Hawks, backing up John Hammond, Jr. I don't say this lightly: Bassekou Kouyate is the Jimi Hendrix of the ngoni.
I don't know how to describe the concert without losing the essense of what the music did for everyone involved-- both on and off the stage. Let me tell you, though, as magnificent as the recorded versions of his songs are, the live show is what makes it so amazing. The concert defined hot. When those syncopated rythms get going, there is no resisting their power. Mali is the birthplace of the blues-- and the blues is still very much alive and vibrant here-- and it is the ancestral home of rock'n'roll in every imaginable way. Bassekou has that coursing through his blood and he knows exactly how to convey it to the audience.
And the dancing was as good as the music! Absolutely breathtaking! Truthfully, I can't remember the last time music compelled me to jump out of my seat and dance in the aisle. Last night it did. If Bassekou and his band wind up on Leno or Oprah, they'll open America up to its own musical roots-- and I'll bet Bassekou will become a real superstar in the U.S.
Another Japanese pasta place has opened up in town, this time at the AXA Tower (8 Shenton Way #01-21, 6222-2983). I liked Youmenya Goemon better, but at least this guy used some semi-curly noodles that was a nice break from the usual spaghetti.
Nepal's Mustang Valley is a sacred, hidden place that remains restricted to travelers even today. There is some limited access, with the right permits and guides, but it is far from the well-tread paths of the Khumbu Valley or the Annapurna Circuit. The video below takes us into Mustang, giving us a spectacular glimpse of what it is like there. The valley is a spiritual and cultural place with the dramatic backdrop of the Himalayan Mountains along the horizon. It looks like an amazing destination and I'd love to see it for myself one day.
Yeah, that thing was pretty nasty, especially with all of that tough meat. And while this was only my second time on EVA Air, my flights have so far been delayed 100% of the time. But I still like those wider seats in Elite Class. Here's to hoping that they bump out that return flight a bit later so that one doesn't have to wake up at such an awfully early hour to get to the airport.
It seems fitting that this is my 1000th post to The Adventure Blog, as announce that the blog is going to be on a two week hiatus following this post. Tomorrow, March 31st, I'll be heading off to Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro and then take in a Safari. This has been one of my dream trips for some time, and I'm greatly looking forward to the break, and the adventure.
I fully intend to take a lot of pictures, and blog the whole experience when I get back, but in the mean time, I'll have very limited Internet access so you'll just have to wait until my return on April 14th to resume my regular blog schedule. I promise to share the fun when I get home though. :)
I'm doing both the climb and the safari with Duma Explorer and I can highly recommend them so far. Through every step of the process they have been very helpful and patient, answering all kinds of questions, and responding to my needs when called upon. I expect that same level of service will continue when I arrive in Tanzania, as they have been a joy to work with so far. If you're planning a trip to Africa soon, you'll definitely want to give them a look.
Wish me luck on my climb. I hope to report back with a successful summit. This will be the highest altitude that I've ever been, and while we talk about 8000m peaks around here quite regularly, this will be a nice challenge and personal goal for me. I'll be back soon. Everyone be safe!
Update evening of 4.25.2010: Both Marco Vernaschi and the Pulitzer Center For Crisis Reporting responded to the critics.
I was pleased to read this final paragraph of the response (my emphasis):
We do not suggest that the decisions involved in this reporting project are anything but difficult, as we hope was apparent in our statement accepting responsibility for what we believe was a mistaken decision to exhume the body of Babirye and to publish the image on our site. It is our hope that these issues can be discussed without malice, distortions and groundless attacks on the personal motivations of others.-- Jon Sawyer, Pulitzer Center Executive Director
My morning's post follows:
Along with many others, I wrote a post a few days ago on a story being discussed in photojournalism circles and blogs, involving Marco Vernaschi, an Italian photographer/photojournalist who worked on a project documenting the phenomenon of child witches, human sacrifice and organ trafficking in Africa, and the Pultizer Center For Crisis Reporting. The story as it evolved during the past week hinged on the veracity of Vernaschi as to the circumstances behind the exhumation of a Ugandan girl, and the Pultizer Center's publication of the photograph(s) and its subsequent apologies for doing so.
I am listing the links to these blogs/websites all through this post.
Asim Rafiqui in his always insightful (and frequently provocative) blog The Spinning Head asks:
"Why did Marco Vernaschi do it?"
An important and pertinent question, but mine is different. I don't really care why Vernaschi did it. Perhaps he rationalized that exhuming a child's corpse and photographing it was the right thing to do...that it would bring this issue to the West's "consciousness" (as if we really would and could do something about it)...that it would win him more photojournalism awards...that it would make him the best photojournalist in the world...that it would justify his grant from the Pulitzer Center...that it would put bread on his table or pay his mortgage or pay his children's school fees...whatever. I believe he was wrong, and that's the end of it.
I ask the same question but of The Pulitzer Center For Crisis Reporting's Executive Director and his staff . It was The Pulitzer Center which published Vernaschi's photographs and his essays. So here's the real nub of the matter: why did they do it and why didn't they check the details' veracity before publishing? Had they done what in banking circles is called "due diligence", they may have realized what the incomparable Benjamin Chesterton of A Developing Story did. Had they investigated the story a little more seriously, they may have realized what the courageous Anne Holmes of The Vigilante Journalist did.
As I expressed in my POV: And The Outrage Continues involving the publication of a photo essay on a young girl in Kurdistan being circumcised, photographers and photojournalists operate under intense competition and pressure to submit cutting-edge work, and frequently lose sight of what is right. Exhuming the body of a young girl for a photograph is beyond the pale, but the decision for its publication wasn't Vernaschi's...it's the Pulitzer Center's. I'm not at all exonerating the photographer for what he did, but I'm more critical of those who agreed to publish these photographs.
Let's get real. If most publishers (especially those of Pulitzer's repute) refused to publish photographic tripe of dubious ethical provenance, photographers would toe the line....but because sensationalism has pervaded our media, they cut corners and lose sight of what is right..especially when it involves poverty-stricken Africans or Arabs, who have no or little legal recourse to protect their privacy rights.
Let's all remember how aghast we were when photographer Adnan Hajj was accused to have digitally manipulated photographs (ie cloning thicker plumes of smoke from IDF missiles already raining on Beirut), and we kept tut-tutting about it until Reuters fired Hajj and a photo editor, and subsequently issued new policy guidelines for its photographers. Adding some smoke plumes or exhuming a body for a photograph...which is worse?
Yes, the Pulitzer Center apologized, and promised to "redouble (its) efforts to authenticate every claim and to insure the privacy rights of individual victims."
Algeria's War of Independence from France officially lasted almost a decade, but its genesis goes back to the early 40s. It was one the bloodiest struggles against a brutal colonial power with over a million Algerians killed, with thousands interned in concentration camps. To this day, the French have not accepted responsibility for these crimes.
Growing up in my native Egypt and full of nationalistic fervor against colonialism, I remember quite well the admiration we had for the Algerian resistance...the names of Ben Bella, Boumedienne, Djamila Bouhired still easily roll off my tongue.
So it was with much interest that I saw recent coverage from photo websites and newsmedia on Marc Garanger, who was stationed against his will in Algeria, and managed to avoid combat by becoming a photographer in the French army. His job was to produce images for new mandatory ID cards, and villagers were forced to sit for him.
Less than a year later, Garanger's photographs of shamed and angry Algerian women would become a symbol of French oppression over its Northern African colony.
I left a comment of the New York Lens Blog which featured Garanger's work:
"the French colonialism/occupation of Algeria was one of the most brutal in history, and the Algerians' independence war cost over a million of their lives. in my view, the expressions of these women are principally of defiance, hatred of their oppressors, and rebellion. the women were combatants as well, as has been mentioned in the article. perhaps there's an inkling of truth in that they were ashamed to show their faces, but what i sense from these expressions is that they're telling the French "you'll soon be gone"...and they were right."
Garanger received today a Lifetime Achievement Award at the New York Photo Festival for Les Femmes Algeriennes.
For further photographs, go to Algeria.com which has a number of large images of these Algerian women; some ashamed, some scared but many defiant.
The Adventure Race World Championship officially gets underway on Saturday in in the Lochaber region of Scotland, a remote area along the countries West Coast. The race will run through June 2nd, as co-ed teams of four will run, bike, paddle, and climb their way through forests and valleys, over ridges and down rivers for the right to proclaim themselves World Champs.
You can get a full list of teams here. You'll see it's full of the usual suspects, with tops teams from all over the World showing up to compete. There are a few interesting storylines that will be fun to watch. For instance, Team Nike's shadow has fallen across the AR landscape for a number of years, but with Ian Adamson retiring, and Richard Ussher forming his own new team, it'll be interesting to see if Nike can maintain it's dominance. Team Captain Mike Kloser is tough to beat though, and he'll have his team ready to go. Speaking of Ussher, he's put together a great team to compete as well, with AR legend Nathan Fa'avae returning to action. That was a short retirement Nathan! Richard himself is seen as one of the strongest young racers to come along in years, and his Balance Vector team will be one to watch.
Of course, there will be others to reckon with as well. Team Merrell/Wigwam, captained by Robyn Benincasa are always a threat. As are Salomon/Crested Butte, Team Feed the Machine, and wilsa hellyhansen.
With Primal Quest on the shelf for the year, and The Raid changing formats, this will be THE big race of the year. I can't wait to see how it plays out, as the future of several teams will be on display over the coming week. I'll bring updates once the race gets underway and we can get word on what's happening on the course.
I'm not sure how the heck one is supposed to pronounce the name of a restaurant that starts with an ampersand and then follows it in caps (and yes, I'm wondering about &MADE at Pacific Plaza too). Somehow it didn't even occur to me to just ask them when we were there...or maybe just call their reception and see how they answer the phone. Anyway, we finally came over after trying out that delicious tagliolini at the Savour festival a couple of weeks ago (20 Cross Street #01-19, 6221-3937).
I was looking forward to it. After all, it was supposed to be some kind of Venetian pub serving small plates called cicchetti, complete with homemade pasta and salumi done on site. And this was all coming from the guy behind Il Lido and Latteria Mozzarella Bar, the latter of which I'm rather fond of. The good thing was that we ended up with a number of very enjoyable things, including the capocollo cured pork neck, which was surprisingly fun to eat, as well as of course the aforementioned tagliolini, all washed down by a few delicious cocktails from the bar.
Still, some of it was a bit hit-and-miss. I wasn't as big of a fan of the asparagus nor the soppressata, neither of which had anything wrong with them, but just weren't that interesting in the grand scheme of things. We also hit a wall when we got their gigantic paccheri, which ended up being more meat than pasta. Nonetheless, I'll come back here to try out some of the other stuff; somehow we completely missed the sea urchin carbonara that this guy is apparently well known for.
Recently our friends at EpicTV caught up with Ueli Steck and had a chance to sit down with him to talk about his amazing solo summit of Annapurna. Last week part 1 of the video interview was released and today we get part 2. This time out we get to hear Ueli, who is for my money the best alpinist in the world today, talk about how easy it is to solo big mountains. I imagine this is the same way that Michael Jordan thought it was easy to score points in a basketball game. It just comes so naturally to them that they don't even consider that us mere mortals have a hard time comprehending how they can accomplish the things they do.
Here's an introduction to David Lazar, a photographer and musician hailing all the way from Brisbane, Australia. With a long roster of awards under his belt, David was the Overall Winner in the 2009 Intrepid Photography Competition, won the Best Wildlife 2008 category and the Best Culture and Portrait 2007 category in the Peregrine Photography of the World Competition. He also won the Best Landscape 2007 category in the Intrepid Adventure Photo Competition, and was published in JPGMag, Intrepid Travel Magazines, Digital Camera, and Digital Photo of the UK.
He recently traveled to Burma, and returned with lovely images of this wonderful country and of its people. These images are grouped under a gallery he titled "Myanmar, Say A Little Prayer". Also explore David's other galleries of the Middle East and India.
David tells us that he was drawn to the designs of the Thanaka paste on the women and children’s faces. This is the traditional Burmese paste made the bark of trees and applied to the skin each day to keep it moisturized and protected from the sun. Thanaka has been used by Burmese women for over 2000 years.
Ten years ago Roland and I arrived in Egypt just as everyone was leaving. The airport was packed with tourists and they were all headed out. Sixty or so tourists had been slaughtered at the temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor by some Islamic extremists from al-Gamaa al-Islamiya. Not only did we have the temple of Hatshepsut to ourselves, and not only did we have the Luxor region to ourselves, we pretty much had all of touristic Egypt to ourselves. We also had an entire luxury ship cruising the Nile to ourselves... well it was Roland and I plus 2 elderly Brits on their way home to England after a lifetime of foreign service on the Arabian Peninsula. Four of us. It was the best. Not for the 60 dead tourists who were chased through the ruins and chopped up with scimitars... but for us, the following weeks.
Anyway, when the military regime in Myanmar started responding to peaceful protests from monks in Yangon by wholesale slaughter Roland suggested that this might be a perfect opportunity to visit. I mean not that week but after the troubles died down. We were planning on spending most of December in Thailand anyway.
The only really great hotel in Yangon is The Strand, an old colonial Victorian palace in the heart of the city. It's a small, opulent hotel with only 32 suites, all with lavish, up-to-date amenities. And prices to match. But they're not fools either and when I pointed out that foreign tourists would probably be passing on Myanmar this season, I was able to get a drastically reduced rate. (According to today's NY Times "up to 90 percent of bookings by tourists have been canceled," since the unrest. And Reuters is reporting that "the military junta's ruthless and bloody crackdown have hit tourism hard, with some hotels slashing prices by 80 percent to try to attract visitors," which are still largely empty.)
I got a little nervous yesterday when I saw that Bush had slapped more sanctions on the military dictatorship there, but this morning I saw that the regime (theirs) has lifted the curfew and the ban on public gatherings. The regime (ours) is still grousing about this and that but it doesn't look like they will do anything to ruin our trip-- or do as much damage to the already damaged country as they have to Pakistan with their misguided, DC-centric, foolish policies.
That isn't to say that the whole enterprise-- for Roland and I-- isn't a little hairy. Every other day one of us asks the other if we're making a mistake going.
An ominous calm has settled here, less than a month after the military junta crushed an uprising for democracy led by the nation’s revered monks. People have quietly returned to the squalor and inflation that brought them to the streets in protest. There are even suggestions of peace: young couples embracing under trees around scenic Kandawgyi Lake; music from a restaurant drifting across the placid water.
But beneath the surface, anger, uncertainty, hopelessness-- and above all, fear of the junta-- prevail.
...After the government shut down Internet access and denied visas for outside journalists, keeping much of the world at bay, terror continued to rage through Yangon, the main city, for days, according to witnesses and dissidents here. Soldiers raided homes and monasteries to arrest demonstrators, witnesses said, using pictures taken by government informers during the protests.
Even back when the Times Travel Section did a big feature on Myanmar in 2006, tourists were grappling with the morality of traveling to the country. On the one hand, "As Southeast Asia modernizes rapidly-- Starbucks appears to be colonizing Thailand-- Myanmar, as Burma is now called, remains the last country in the region preserved in amber... Western influences are almost nowhere to be found." On the other hand, the reasons aren't because the people are charmed by the quaintness of yesteryear.
There's a reason for this sensation of being stuck in time, of course. Decades of rule by one of the world's harshest military regimes have left the country isolated and its economy a shambles, discouraging tourist arrivals, putting modern amenities out of many people's reach, and keeping the Burmese wedded to traditional life. (In 2005, Myanmar received some 660,000 foreign visitors, according to the government, compared with the more than 11 million in Thailand in 2004, as reported by the Tourism Authority of Thailand.) "There's only one destination where we won't market holidays, and that's Burma," said Justin Francis of Responsible Travel, a British travel agent promoting socially responsible trips. "We'll market trips anywhere else where we think it'll benefit local people-- even Zimbabwe."
...Like Responsible Travel, and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the pro-democracy opposition leader, many Myanmar-oriented human rights groups support a boycott of tourism, which they see as endorsing the government. The groups draw up "dirty" lists of travel agencies that send tourists there, blast publishers of Myanmar guidebooks, and try to shame celebrities who visit, like Mick Jagger. "It's naïve to say you can help as a tourist," said Tricia Barnett, director of Tourism Concern, a British group advocating responsible tourism, who believes that most of the tourist infrastructure remains closely linked to the regime.
For other travelers, convinced their tourism dollars will help average Burmese, the appeal of the last truly Asian place in Southeast Asia is exactly the reason to come. "When I was in Burma, I've never met anyone who said that I shouldn't be there," said Andrew Gray, founder of Voices for Burma, another advocacy group. Mr. Gray argues that educated tourists can spend money on local businesses without government links and help average people in one of Asia's poorest nations.
The call for a boycott has sparked fierce debate on Web sites and in hotels across the Asian backpacker trail. "I don't know of any debate that's as vocal as this one," said Brice Gosnell, a regional publisher at Lonely Planet. That's not necessarily bad. The debate educates potential visitors, and many independent travelers I've encountered have waded through political tomes before choosing to go.
