After Africa

Contributing to Mambo Magazine (always happy to give something back to a place difficult to get enough of)

Recently I had a short series of photos published in the new Zanzibari Mambo Magazine: 'Up and Down the Swahili Coast.

Always happy to give something back to a place difficult to get enough of.

From the article:

My first encounter with the Swahili took place in August 2004 on a dhow crossing the Indian Ocean from Bagamoyo to Stone Town on Unguja. At low tide the dhow was loaded with watermelons, a big closet and a stack of damp mattresses. At high tide, around midnight, we set off below clear moon shine.

I had absolutely no idea of what kind of journey I embarked on, and possibly didn’t realise till I was offered a bucket to pee in when I rejected to sit over the railing. A rather stark contrast to the next morning’s view of Stone Town spread out in the distance along a palm tree dotted line imprinted between the turquoise sea, and the blue sky. The fleet of dhows, which had been invisible during night, materialised with the sunrise, and with that a definite trace of stale sweat, urine and fish.

There are at least two sides to the Swahili Coast. The impressions you get from staying in the air-conditioned hotels with fabulous interior designs which find its way into glossy coffee table books. Then there is the Swahili Coast where the Swahili people live their everyday lives. Most in poverty, many still drawing on a strong Swahili cultural heritage.

From 2007 to 2010 I travelled consistently up and down the coast from my base in Dar es Salaam. I gradually realised that the Swahili Coast is one of the places I like to be the most.

FACTS: The Swahili Coast refers to the coast or coastal area of East Africa inhabited by the Swahili people, mainly Kenya, Tanzania, and north Mozambique. The term may also include the islands such as Pate or Comoros which lie off the Swahili Coast.

Get the full version with photos here and more Swahili Flava photos here:  

 

Hibernating (in the wrong continent)

I prefer snow on the Kilimanjaro.

And ice in Konyagi.

Not outside my office.

Heavy rain seasons I do, but this is my first winther in snow and minus degrees since 2004.

It is not that I can't do it, I just don't enjoy it.

I realised today, that I only look upon this season as something to get through, over and done with, and not experience in too many dimensions. I back out of the many conversations where Danes are interpretating weather forecasts while entering speculations of what might or might not be possible today or next week.

It is what it is, and nobody knows what it will be next week or the following.

But eventually it will be over.

Till then I'm regressing to a combination of denial and hibernation, wondering what I used to do to get through it.

Soundtrack: Water by Sugarcubes (Icelandic version). English lyrics here.

 

Uganda: 'Kisanja: Burn it or Embrace it?'

 
Uganda is preparing for parliamentary and presidential elections on February 18, 2011. More facts here.

I lived in Uganda ahead of the last election in 2006.

A friend of mine bought this painting which is now hanging in her house in rural Denmark. She bought it right after the elections in February 2006 (see CMI report here), where it was exhibited at the gallery 'Design Agenda' in central Kampala as part of an exhibition organised by Elizabeth Mbabazi.

The theme of the exhibition was ´Recording History – the Current Scene’ which according to the Ugandan newspaper ‘New Vision’ on February 24, 2006 was ‘an opened expression on the controversy and tensions around elections for which Mbabazi commissioned various artists to communicate their opinions with regards to the issues around the current political situation.’

The painting ‘Kisanja: Burn it or Embrace it?’ is painted by the artist: Ahimbisibwe Ronex in 2006, and according to New Vision ‘It depicts the sense of compulsion in the present political system. The piece is mainly characterized by two central figures; one burning and the other cuddling dried banana leaves, trademark and symbol of the National Resistance Movement.’

President Museveni is from the Banyankole tribe deriving from central Uganda, where green bananas grow in abundance. In the painting one person is burning the banana leaves, and is observed from behind by a yellow object. Yellow is also the colour of Museveni's National Resistance Movement. The other person embracing the banana leaves has a glory above him/her. (My friend adds that the fire in the painting used to be bigger, but due to the fact that the canvas wasn't well mounted on the frame, part of the painting was reduced). 

Kisanja is a lugandan word for 'presidential term’, which in the painting also is symbolized by the number 3 in the middle of the painting, referring to the fact that Museveni in 2006 was running for a 3rd term - a 3rd kisanja. In 2006 Uganda allowed multi-party system, however, Museveni was behind the change ahead of the elections allowing a president to run for more than the two terms which for instance both Kenya and Tanzania stick to.

I think this is an amazing piece of art, both in terms of texture, colour, composition, but also due to the rich symbolism, which really isn't that complex after all. The painting is also a very inspirational example of how artists can contribute to debate on democracy and politics. It is a reminder of the fact that the Ugandan art scene shouldn't be ignored!

Not the least, the painting is still relevant here four years later, and the question is no longer if Museveni runs for a 4th term, but what happens if he wins?

Look out for Uchaguzi Uganda.

Read the full article portraying the artist here.

The view from my office

Why did you return from Africa?, people ask.

I'm still struggling with finding an answer which makes sense, but I can assure you that the view from my office covered in snow is not high on that list.

(Though, it is one of the better views from a Danish office).

Nairobi Flowers

   

Nigerian Creativity

The Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN), working in relationship with
HSBC London has concluded that our working
partner has helped us to send you first payment of US$7,500 to you as
instructed by Mr. David Cameron and will
keep sending you $5000 twice a week until
the payment of (US$820,000) is completed
within six months and here is the information

MONEY TRANSFER REFRENCE:2116-3297
SENDER'S NAME: Mike Marx
AMOUNT: US$5000

To track your funds forward money gram
Transfer agent your Full Names and
Mobile Number via Email to:

Mr Allen Davis
E-mail:moneygramservices@algish.com
D/L: Tel:+44 702 407 3631
          +234-816-311-8957

Please direct all enquiring to:
moneygramservices@algish.com

Best Regards,
Mr Allen Davis



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Oriental Architecture (as long as the Danish People's Party allows it)

 

It isn't just me who changed while I was in Africa.

Denmark changed, too, and I'm not sure I like what I see when I read the headlines in the papers or listen to the TV.

Here, I am not referring to the weather forecasts, or the fact that Danish TV stations supply entertainment based on the lowest of the low.

I refer to politics, and the way (according to the political parties voted for, the majority of) the Danes interact with foreigners, and the concepts of issues related to foreigners which Danes fear or tend to deny to understand.

I strongly believe that we have the politicians we deserve.

Now, we are stuck with the politicians we voted for when we practised our democratical right at the latest election and the one before that.

There is no other way I can explain what is taking place in Denmark at the moment.

I live in a country which has celebrated free and fair elections dating back to a point in time where a country like Tanzania wasn't even an independent nation.

Our media is diverse and outspoken, journalists are skilled and critical, and we have the right to demonstrate dressed in any colour we like.

However, I live in a democracy,which I believe less and less in.

My main problem is not that we have politicians who have been elected on values based on ignorance.

The real problem is that enough Danes have voted for these.

The photo is taken in Tivoli, a popular entertainment park in central Copenhagen, one of the few places in Denmark where Oriental architecture is celebrated.

How ironic is that?

We will rock you

 
In a few hours I'm picking up Iceland's biggest (7-year-old) Queen fan, my nephew, Baltasar.

Souvenirs from Zanzibar ready.

The Swahili Coast

 
Arriving to Dar es Salaam from the north.

Leasing fertile chunks of land in Tanzania: Who benefit?

'Tanzania expects South Korea to begin farming 15,000 hectares of land in the east African country early next year for food production and processing, a senior official said on Thursday'....and 'Tanzania is blessed with millions of hectares of fertile farm land, but most of this land has been under-utilised for a long time'

The words 'blessed with' stick out in this article from Reuters Africa, and makes me think that the line between a blessing and a curse could be a thin one.

• Will this deal make Tanzanians more capable of utilising other hectares of under-utilised land?
• Will this create employment for ordinary Tanzanians?
• Will it accumulate another kind of profit which will be for the good of Tanzania?
• Will it affect any one living on it, and will they be compensated by what and whom?
• Or will they be watching from the sidelines of villages bordering the 15,000 hectares of blessed land?

What exactly is in it for the watanzania?