Week 13/26

Santiago [de Chile]

Notice: some of you may think that I'm in Latina America now. I'm not, but was there last month. Currently, I'm across the pond -and the equator- back to the real serious life.

40 hours in Chile

After the captain announced tha we entered the chilean arirspace, over the Andes, it took us only 30 minuted to land in Santiago.

I was there for two nights only, the first night I visited Bella Vista neighbourhood, where most of the dwellers of downtown santiago spend their nights, mainly the youngsters.
After a long hesitation I decided to have dinner in a sushi bar, it may sound strange, but many restaurants in Santiago serve sushi, and salmon is a main ingredient in their makis (rolls), the salmon there was one of the best I've ever tasted.

The next day I had breakfast in the 21st floor of the hotel, over looking Santiago's skyline, then headed to Bella Vista again to explore the neighbourhood in a different state. I visited Patio Bella Vista (very touristy) then paid an homage to the great Pablo Neruda by visiting his Santiago home/museum La Chascona.

After leaving la Chascona I checked my map to know my walking route and visisted the Fine Arts Museum, Casa Colorado, the shopping district in the old town, Plaza de Armas & Santiago's Cathedral. In Plaza de Armas, while taking a picture of a comedian he asked me (in spanish then swithched to English) "where are you from?", "Kuwait" I said, he was amazed and said "Ku-white!! muy lejo!" (that's how spanish speakers pronouce Kuwait & muy lejo means: very far).

My next destination was the best part of my brief visit. My colleague's brother-in-law is a Lebanese Chilean, his father invited me to their home to spend the night.

The family was very hospitable. I was introduced to Monseñor Sergios Abad who happened to be one of the founders of the orthodox church in Kuwait in the 1960s. Also their relatives from Brasil (Lebanese as well) were there.

We talked about Latin america, Lebanon, religion, Pinochet, Chavez, Gebran, the arab intellectuals in diaspora, and the monseñor's meeting with the late Education Minister, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Jaber, to obtain a license for the church's kindergatern.
We had lebanese treats like: makdoos, bastirma (pastrami) n2oolat (nuts) and tortilla with mtabbal. I couldn't help remembering Dr Ahmed Al-Rubei when the monseñor, while talking about women, quoted Al-Mutanabbi's eulogistic poem on the mother of Saif Al-Dawla:
و لو كان النساء كمن فقدنا - لفضلت النساء على الرجال

You can check this video (youtube) where my host is reading a prayer in the Orthodox Church of Santiago, accompanied -among others- by his two sons:


The next day I returned to Buenos Aires to spend my last three nights in this fine city.

Week 12/26

Observations and remarks about Buenos Aires & Argentina:

• I'd like to thank Hanan Al-Hajri for her excellent articles about the country and its capital, published in Al-Qabas (Read: 1 - 2) there's also a third article, but I couldn't find it.

• The city looks like a mix of Paris, Italy, Spain, Cairo, Beirut, and -of course- Latin America.

• Although surrounded by greenery & bordered on the river side by an ecological reserve, the air quality in the city is bad during rush hours, mainly because of trucks and buses. During my last week there was a huge fire in the river delta, its smoke made Buenos Aires unbearable - sometimes.

• The population of Buenos Aires is slightly more than 3 million, but the population of Greater Buenos Aires is 13 million, more than one third of the country's population, from the filthy rich to poor ghettos and slums inhabitants. This may explain the socio-economic difference that reflect politically, every now and then, between those 13 million and other Argentines.

• Most of the population ancestries are from Spain (especially Galicia), in addition to Italy, Germany, Arab countries (Lebanon & Syria) and the native/indigenous population.

• Since a sizable minority of the population have italian passports, and less with spanish ones, you can see ads of candidates to the italian senate or Zapatero on buses or buildings.

• The Argentines call their compatriots from the south "penguins", even if they live somewhere else. If you see some books, comics or graffiti of two penguins, they're the current & former president Cristina & her husband Nestor Kirchner.

• Cinemas regularly show several american movies with english subtitles, not like Spain where they dub them in spanish.

• American means from the Americas (the two continents) and Americans, form the US, are called Norte Americanos (north americans) to distinguish them from other Americanos.

• The most seen ad/logo in Argentina is Quilmes, their national beer. Quilemes ads in Buenos Aires are like CCTV cameras in London.

• "En esta local hay WiFi" Wifi is every where there, mostly free and open, but not satisfactorily fast.

• Prices are very cheap compared to europe, but they're rising eventually. Cigarettes are cheaper than Kuwait (3-5 pesos = 250-400 fils) and a taxi ride to the airport costs around 30-35 pesos (2.5-3 KD).

• Demonstrations and rallies are regular activities in the capital.

• Mate is their national drink, you could see anyone sipping mate... anywhere. (I had some today).

• Although Latin American Spanish is slightly different from Spanish in Spain, Argentines have their own differences in words, accent and pronunciation.

• Argentines call their president by her first name "Cristina" to distinguish her from her husband & predecessor former president Nestor Kirchner, known as "Kirchner". Cristina is the first democratically elected female president of Argentina.

• I bought a new lens there (85mm f/1.8D) and I got a good price for it, although imported products are expensive, but I think no one was interested in this lens.

Next post: 40 hours in Santiago

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حقوق الاجانب
أعتقد أن ثلثي سكان الكويت شبه غائبون عن البرامج الانتخابية لمرشحي انتخابات مجلس الأمة
أعلم أن هذين الثلثين ليسا من مواطني دولة الكويت، ولكن لا يستطيع أحد أن ينكر مساهمتهم الكبيرة في اقتصاد البلد ونهضته منذ ثلاثينيات القرن الماضي إلى اليوم وغدا

هل سبب ذلك العنصرية والفوقية واللامبالاة أم كونهم ليسوا بمواطنين وحسب؟
أعلم أن هناك مواضيع أهم بنظر البعض، ولكن تفكروا فقد تكتشفون أن حماية أجنبي من التسفير بسبب تجاوز الإشارة أهم من إسقاط القروض.. على الأقل هذه وجهة نظري

Week 11/26

I had a blast.

I arrived in Buenos Aires during a political crisis between El-Campo (the countryside) and president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, and during my first week there I had the oppurtubuty to witness the picketers (piqueteros). (youtube videos)

I was disappointed -as a tourists - not to be able to indulge myself in the infamous Argentine beef during the first week. Beef, crops and dairy products were scarce in the capital until the next week, when the president and the farmers (El-Campo) reached a deal.

Each neighborhoud of Buenos Aires (Barrio) has its own cultural, demographic, social and architectural identity. My favourites were:
San Telmo: Tango in the street.
La Boca: colourful houses and home of the Boca Juniors.
Recoleta: French architecture, quasi-posh residents and the Recoleta cemetery.
Puerto Madero: Hi-rise building, higher prices, clean streets, parks and the most secure barrio, since its security is not handled by the allegedly corrupt local police but by the coast guard.
Palermo: the equivalent of Soho NY. Low rise 70s buildings and some hi-rise ones.


One of the best tourist activities in Buenos Aires is la bicicleta naranja (the orange bicycle) where they offer two bike tours, south & north. I took the south tour to San Telmo, La Boca, La Reserva, Puerto Madero (where I was staying) and Plaza de Mayo the main square of the capital in fornt of Casa Rosada, the presidential palace and government house.

Unfortunately, I couldn't visit Teatro Colón because it was under renovations.

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Next post: Week 12/26 plus observations and remarks about Buenos Aires & Argentina.

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P.S.

حادثة في صيف ٢٠٠٦
ملاحظة: الهمزة على السطر تتحول إلى علامة استفهام، نأسف لذلك

دعاني أحد الزملاء إلى عرسه في صالة الدبوس في الفحيحيل و أعطاني العنوان، فقلت له بكل ثقة "أدل بالفحيحيل، يا ما رحت لها" وانا عند ربي صاج، لكن الخبرة لم تنفعني هذه المرة
توجهت إلى الفحيحيل و أوقفت سيارتي بين بحر السيارات الذي أحاط صالة جميلة على شاطئ الفحيحيل
اللي يدل بالفحيحيل أتوقع فهم السالفة

المهم
ترجلت من دابتي لأدخل الصالة فوجدت عند المدخل أحد زملاء الجامعة من أبناء عائلة الدبوس الكريمة، رحب بي بحرارة يشوبها الاستغراب والتفاجؤ
ثم دخلت لاصطف في طابور المهنئين الطويل لأجد النائب السابق عصام الدبوس يسير خارجا من القاعة الرئيسية يكاد أن يختفي من كثرة المصافحين له، طبعا فالفحيحيل معقله
بعد دقائق قليلة وعندما اقتربت من نهاية الطابور لم أجد معرسا، بل اثنين من الوجهاء كبار السن يرحبون بالزوار
عندها اكتشفت أني في المكان الخطأ

لقد كنت في ديوان الدبوس عندما أقام النائب السابق عصام الدبوس استقبالا ووليمة عشاء عرفانا لأهالي الدائرة٢٤ بعد خسارته في انتخابات٢٠٠٦

تمنيت لحظتها أن تبتلعني الأرض، فسلمت على الوجهاء بابتسامة المرتبك وخرجت مسرعا
ولكن، ولله الحمد، وصلت إلى عرس زميلي وهنأته لأجد عصام الدبوس مرة أخرى هناك

تذكرت الحادثة مع تكرار الاخبار حول مندوبي المرشح ع د

Weeks 8/26, 9/26 & 10/26

Week 8/26

It was the last week of the term, a hectic one. ¿Do I need to say more? That's why this week's picture is of my room's board.

Two important developments on that week were:

- Cooking M7ammar the right way

- Buying the Nikon D80

Week 9/26

My colleagues and I, accompanied by our programme's director and administrator, embarked on a 12 days study tour to [continental] Europe.

Most of our time was spent visiting organisations and attending briefings and receptions.

In Brussels we visited the European Commission & the NATO. Then we left to Strasbourg, via Luxembourg, to visit the Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights.

The last day in Strasbourg we had some free time before heading to Geneva at noon, so I took advantage of it and visited the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Strasbourg. Unfortunately, the photography exhibition I intended to visit at the Museum had ended days before my visit, so I ended up in the museum's bookshop and then exploring the streets of this beautiful city.

One funny incident in Strasbourg was when we were looking for a cinema that shows movies in English (most of the cinemas show movies dubbed in French). Among all the people in Strasbourg I asked a gentleman, in broken French "il y a du cinéma anglais...." and before ending my question he said "Sorry, I don't speak French" in an unmistakably american accent. At that moment I forgot all the English I know and couldn't switch my brain/tongue to ask him the same question in English.

Our journey to Geneva was beautiful, the scenery was so 'inviting' and mind-relieving. The highways to Geneva were packed, because there was a renowned Car Show in Geneva that I luckily attended, hence my week picture.

Week 10/26

We started this week with a visit to the Palais des Nations (the UN office at Geneva aka UNOG), where we had briefings on the UNCTAD, UNECE, OHCHR and the WTO. We had a short tour around the UNOG, which is bigger than the main one in New York. We also visited the UNHCR, the ICRC and the Museum of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent.

The picture of this week is of the State of Kuwait's gift to the UN office at Geneva, which is, obviously, a Kuwaiti dhow.

I think we are very lucky when it comes to the locations of our gifts to the UN.

Each member-country presents a gift to the UN that represents its history, heritage, art and/or culture, those gifts are arranged around the corridors of each UN office in an alphabetical order.

In Geneva our gift is situated in front of one of the main plenary rooms.

In New York, Kuwait's gift, a dhow as well, is placed next to the escalators that lead to the General Assembly, the delegates lounge and the committees meeting rooms. It is, as well, in a very visible and -relatively- spacious place, which had hosted, and will always host, the signing of milestone UN treaties, declarations and other international agreements.

The last destination of our visit was Paris, where we visited the OECD.

On our way there, it rained, hailed and snowed. There was a strange analogy between this disarrayed weather and the political situation in Kuwait... why? because I heard of the dissolving of our parliament during that journey.

My luck with art in Paris wasn't different from Strasbourg. When I went to visit Centre Pompidou, there was a sign on the door that says "The centre is closed today due to a demonstration", it didn't say anything about the demonstration, and I didn't see one around, but some of my colleagues had seen a demonstration in a different neighbourhood of Paris.

So I decided, after having my Panini Chevre lunch, to visit the Museum of European Photography. When I arrived safe and sound to the museum I found a long queue waiting with their tickets, I headed to the counter only to know that this group of 40 is waiting for another group of 80 wandering all over the museum, and I have to wait for 1 hour to get in. I opted to go back to the hotel and get ready for our last reception.

On our way back from the reception, we took the metro from Bir Hakeim station (such a strange name, check the link, its not the Jeleeb Shyookh of Paris),where there was a lady in her early forties singing Killing me softly in the metro, and changing cars (wagons) in each station to continue her hobby without further disturbing the french, who were asleep, reading or, typically, kissing each other.

As for the political situation in Kuwait, I'll keep it to another post to further develop a better understanding for the upcoming elections.... that I'm not voting in, since I can't vote in absentia.

Good Luck :)

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Recommendations

Book: A year in the MERDE, by Stephen Clarke

Movie: La vie en rose

Blog: Face Hunter

ثلثنا و غدا الشر

It´s really sad to hear about what´s happening in Kuwait.
But the funny thing is that it has something similar to what´s happening here, and the so-called ¨faz3a¨ applies to the latter as well.

You will ask this officer one day to protect you, shame on you.

As for the delay in my Project (XXVI), I sincerely apologise, and once I found an Internet cafe that allows me to upload files, the updates will be on line.

BTW, the title says that my blog is 3 years old.

Week 7/26

I upgraded my laptop's RAM from 1GB to 2GB.  I was scared to death while installing the new chips myself, I feared losing my dear Gibran with a spark of static electricity
بس عدت على خير


I know that I'm falling behind schedule and didn't post my 'week 8/26' pictures yet, but I'm really having hectic and busy days.  So, for the following 2 weeks my cyber existence will depend on internet & time availability in the places I'm visiting on a semi-formal road trip.

As for you,
Please dear bloggers, I don't want to check back on you to found some of you quitting or waging 'wars' among yourselves. You are grown-ups, don't you think so!?
and if you fail to pass this provocative period of "Sectarians, [supposedly] patriots, traitors" ...etc, I don't know what are you going to be able to pass.

و إليكم أبيات متفرقة من قصيدة للشاعر فهد بورسلي، عسى أن يعي معناها العقلاء

آسف على الطيب تردى حاله
ولّا الردِي، ما مِن عليه حْسافة
..
..
حِنّا تقاطعنا وشِلنا نفوسنا
والزود خلانا على مهيافة
..
..
من داخل الداخل وبار بجنسه
كِلٍ على اكتافه يشيل احتافه

As for Week 7 updates:
- I had a writing exam in french (level: false beginners)
- Upgraded my laptop's RAM
and It was a relatively boring and tiring week

Wednesdays won't be the same again

Source: Al-Qabas

لم أعتقد في تلك الساعة المتأخرة من الليل أن أفاجأ بخبر وفاة الدكتور أحمد الربعي، لوهلة لم أصدق الخبر وحاولت تكذيب عيني ولم أفلح

لا!؟... كانت ردة فعلي الأولى بعد أن فشلت كل محاولات إنكار المصاب الجلل

لماذا أبا قتيبة؟ لماذا رحلت ونحن في حاجة إليك، إلى صوتك إلى قلمك وتفاؤلك؟

فأصبحت أجاوب نفسي: ليس هذا ما عملنا إياه أبو قتيبة

فالناس صفحات في كتاب الدنيا، صفحة تُقلب لتطل من بعدها أخرى تكملها

وها نحن بحزننا الكبير على فقيدنا، حزن بفقد جسده لا روحه، نتقاسم ما خلفه فينا من حب وانتصار على مصاعب الحياة، في صحة ومرض، واصرار على هزم التشاؤم مهما كانت قوته

بوركت أبا قتيبة حيا وميتا

وعظم الله أجور أهليك ومحبيك

ومني إلى روحك الطيبة خاطرة أحتسبها تواصلا بين عالمين، واحد فوق التراب وآخر تحته

نحتضنك كحبات الرمل.. وترفعنا بها

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إيه يا قلب أين الحبيب

 أين المريض أين الطبيب؟

أين من بكلماته سقى قلوبا؟

كيف عنا يغيب؟

بل... أنّا يغيب

لا... أبا قتيبة

كلماتي ليست برثاء

ولا تحديا لما عجز عنه الدواء

بل رسالة حب وغناء

دقاتها... نبضات قلبي

نقاطها... دموع عيني

سطورها... شوق ووفاء

دمت أرضا نحن فيها الربوع

دمت لشجرة الكويت جذعا

نحن منك الفروع 

لا... لن أقول ودعا

ولا إلى اللقاء

بل صباحك خير والمساء

نم بروح سعيدة

فما مثلك أبا قتيبة بحق من يُعبد

بعيد... قريب إذ يُنشد

نم بعين مطمئنة

وأخرى قريرة

فكلنا أحمد