tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33276796777031793502011-11-27T15:39:46.595-08:00Aaron's back in Vancouver.Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.comBlogger961100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-13478328659618024912010-01-11T22:28:00.000-08:002010-01-11T22:34:59.229-08:00

I'm reviving this site only to inform people of my new website over at aaronleaf.com. Take a look.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-14304942453782736912009-07-29T12:42:00.000-07:002009-07-29T12:51:58.791-07:00

Well maybe project isn't the best word, more like obsession. I've jumped on the microblogging bandwagon and started a Tumblr site--African Media--to bookmark and document my adventures (so colonial I know) in consuming, well, African media.So far there's a lot of stuff on African literary journals, glossy magazines and the launching of high-speed internet in the east. Use it as a list of

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-6797791308442513002009-07-20T12:29:00.000-07:002009-07-20T13:15:10.234-07:00

From the VOAZambia's Government Criticized for Harassing Journalists By James Butty 20 July 2009 <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1107304683 0 0 159 0;} @

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-80554737765291205622009-07-17T22:51:00.000-07:002009-07-17T22:52:39.401-07:00

DEPORTATION from Carlos Barria on Vimeo.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-5750527624960662362009-07-13T20:02:00.000-07:002009-07-13T20:11:21.862-07:00

From ZNBC via Lusaka TimesPolice have formally arrested Post News paper Editor, Chansa Kabwela, for circulating obscene materials. Ms. Kabwela who was briefly detained has however been released on police bond. Post newspaper lawyer, Sam Mujuda, told ZNBC that Ms. Kabwela will m in court on Tuesday. The arrest of Ms. Kabwela comes barely two weeks after police recorded a warn and caution statement

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-78507151217033447742009-07-06T12:57:00.000-07:002009-07-06T14:12:04.818-07:00

For about five months I lived in a flat on Martin Luther King Road in Lusaka. I immediately associated it with the Martin Luther King Jr boulevards, streets and ways that I'd been to over the years: Seattle, Portland, Atlanta, Oakland, New Orleans. In the US, naming a street after MLK is about creating a symbolic connection between black neighbourhoods and a city; a repudiation of centuries of

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-9144497969500729572009-06-30T17:05:00.000-07:002009-06-30T17:31:48.329-07:00

Inspired by the way some newspapers are using the web to tell a story I decided to try my hand at internet video. This doesn't really have a narrative and is basically me dumping my photos into iMovie and imperfectly scoring it with a Fennesz song but I kinda like the way it turned out.The greater issue though is the arrival of the Olympics, the lack of housing in Vancouver and, in particular the

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-73705143789757629762009-06-27T13:42:00.000-07:002009-06-27T13:54:01.922-07:00

This article from the LA Times on the grape industry of Southern California shows how little it has come from the days of Cesar Chaves and the sixties' grape boycotts. Especially well done is the audio slide show that accompanies the piece.The work is hard, dirty and dangerous. It begins at dawn when the air is sweet and moist and stretches until midafternoon, when temperatures can top 120

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-60151411597899713862009-06-23T22:43:00.000-07:002009-06-23T22:57:45.883-07:00

These are cartoons from The Juba Post, South Sudan's English Language newspaper. Unsurprisingly they mostly concern Bashir. See all the cartoons,with text, at the Pulitzer Center. Unfortunately there's no mention of the artist and the Juba Post's website is currently down.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-76583372442584738252009-06-22T13:52:00.000-07:002009-06-22T13:58:11.886-07:00

Great article from the New York TimesQuote:The judge concluded that though Mr. Chiluba had a salary of only about $10,000 a year during his decade in office, he spent more than $500,000 in a single shop, Boutique Basile, in Geneva.Rumour has it he's gonna go free. I wonder.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-24319723818104742182009-06-19T15:51:00.001-07:002009-06-19T16:41:08.149-07:00

I've been attending Magazines West for the last two days as a reporter for Masthead Magazine. Despite seminars like Surviving the Great Publishing Meltdown of 2009 this year's conference seems less gloomy than last year's with more emphasis on the role magazines will play in the new media landscape.Unfortunately, people are still pretty confused about the role of social networking. "Go be a video

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-23573854623097727372009-06-15T11:18:00.000-07:002009-06-15T11:59:36.807-07:00

On Assignment: Hard Lessons in SomaliaBy Michael KamberI learned more about Somalia through this list of photography tips from this New York Times photographer than from most feature articles on the region. Note on anarchy: In other places, clans or religious groups have created islands of stability and progress. We passed through towns where the residents had built schools, hospitals and even a

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-17461977435996119832009-06-14T14:41:00.000-07:002009-06-14T14:46:28.612-07:00

From Many Possibilities and Zambian Economist

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-49420061109864505182009-06-13T14:28:00.000-07:002009-06-13T14:32:12.133-07:00

No, probably not. Elaisha discusses the issue along with the threat of land grabs over at The Earth Feed.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-58416835931612496782009-06-13T14:10:00.000-07:002009-06-13T14:20:42.252-07:00

I was prepared to write about the absurdity of "protecting African wildlife" when budgets for helping human beings are getting slashed but then I read the article and realised they're talking about one of my favourite NGOs: COMACO. I like them because they're quite explicitly a pro-human organization that links fighting poverty to ecology and, yes, wildlife.Norway

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-57464153281734239572009-06-13T14:02:00.000-07:002009-06-13T14:06:23.362-07:00

www.zambiaunite4change.orgNice website with an eloquent Obama-ish manifesto. I wonder why it's so secretive though. It doesn't, on first glance, seem like something that would invite repression but you never know.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-66811272729588905592009-06-10T12:56:00.000-07:002009-06-10T14:22:33.323-07:00

Short BBC piece about politics and music in Zambia (begins at 6:12) featuring reggae artist Michael Zulu. Also includes interview with Mathew Thembo. Some great messages and whatnot.That said, I don't like the majority of Zambian reggae music. Like a lot of Zambian rappers who have fake American accents and appalling flows, a lot of Zambian reggae sounds like a mockery of 80s Peter Tosh.A few

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-62450197849172363332009-06-07T17:09:00.000-07:002009-06-07T17:13:10.498-07:00

Last post I wondered about the potential of a vast worldwide collection of insipid party photos. The Onion has the answer. Thanks Chad.Police Slog Through 40,000 Insipid Party Pics To Find Cause Of Dorm Fire

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-29866569075945245332009-06-05T17:35:00.000-07:002009-06-05T19:07:21.066-07:00

Do you ever stop to think about the vast numbers of digital photographs stuck in external hard drives around the world? Is it billions or trillions of aimless travel snaps, party pics and vain self portraits looked at once never to be seen again? I currently have about eight thousand on my laptop alone, perhaps an equal amount on a hard drive and a slightly smaller number lost to a hard drive

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-56985650154274234092009-06-04T12:02:00.000-07:002009-06-04T12:34:46.356-07:00

This new mixtape from the poet laureate of Edmonton, Alberta is easily the best thing I've heard this year. I used to walk around Lusaka blasting his previous release, Afterparty Babies, on the mp3 player--some intensely local Canadiana is good for living abroad.Pay what you can download here. The video for Real Estate from Afterparty Babies:

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-88040046576762760812009-06-02T16:49:00.000-07:002009-06-02T17:48:26.540-07:00

Ghanaian blogger Koranteng Ofosu-Amaah managed to scan a years worth (1969 to be exact) of images from the Ghanaian edition of Drum magazine and post them on his blog with commentary. The mise-en-scène is of an affluent society interested in both socialism and mini skirts, traditional wear and sex education, international politics and the end of Ghanaian one party rule.But Drum was actually a

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-9373521103477028412009-06-02T16:29:00.000-07:002009-06-02T16:39:26.240-07:00

Stephen Lewis & Paul Collier vs Hernando De Soto & Dambisa MoyoNo, I did not have the pleasure of attending this and, as yet, have not watched the video. I have however read an excellent recap (with analysis!) by my good friend Louis over at Governance Village.Noticed: everyone's trying to claim they're pals with Kagame now.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-55131400713116342032009-06-01T23:29:00.001-07:002009-06-02T01:51:28.522-07:00

No, I'm really not a fan of K'naan, believe me, but I like this recent video. Notice the Zimbabwe currency with King Leopold superimposed over the Dzimba dza mabwe which subsequently bleeds after being shot.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-59373575774618576412009-06-01T16:26:00.000-07:002009-06-01T17:47:24.926-07:00

Devil's Bargain: A Journey into the Small Arms TradeSeen at DOXA, the Vancouver documentary film festival.If you've seen Lord of War, the largely ignored film starring Nicholas Cage as an international arms dealer, this documentary covers a lot of the same ground. In fact, Cage's character is based on the arms dealer Victor Boot who--as shown in Devils' Bargain--is simultaneously hunted by law

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-81856779106546519392009-05-31T17:04:00.000-07:002009-05-31T19:42:03.169-07:00

So there's apparently a new reality show on the History Channel where contestants reenact the infamous journey where Henry Morton Stanley goes to rescue Livingstone. This is what the website says:Twenty miles off the coast of eastern Africa, four modern-day explorers are sailing toward the unknown, the deep interior of Tanzania. They’ll travel 970 miles through African terrain that is as stunning

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-70897342261932552832009-05-31T13:27:00.000-07:002009-05-31T14:53:21.037-07:00

I woke up this morning humming the riff from this kwaito track. Funny cuz I haven't listened to it in months.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-37121641179193709352009-05-29T18:25:00.000-07:002009-05-29T18:46:30.460-07:00

A lot of people are faulting me for not posting any photos that give a sense of what Lusaka is like. This video on Africanews.com purports to show the best of Lusaka. I'm linking to it instead because I think it shows everything that's mundane and mediocre in Lusaka. Not to fault the filmmaker at all--it's well done--it just misses the point a bit. Highlight: wounded buffalo metaphor at the

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-53206890635428088002009-05-29T14:43:00.000-07:002009-05-29T18:08:10.321-07:00

Scientists identify new lethal virus in AfricaATLANTA -- Scientists have identified a lethal new virus in Africa that causes bleeding like the dreaded Ebola virus. The so-called "Lujo" virus infected five people in Zambia and South Africa last fall. Four of them died, but a fifth survived, perhaps helped by a medicine recommended by the scientists.Okay, so it's not thaaat bad. Like, it's

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-61744471571021819452009-05-27T12:52:00.000-07:002009-05-27T13:13:49.490-07:00

There's a soft feeling I get when I'm taking public transport in a foreign city where I listen to people's conversations, check out people checking out other people, and just become part of the crowd.This album cover reminds me of taking the train into central Cape Town after visiting a friend in the suburbs. It was full of people just off work: construction workers joking in Xhosa with that

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-36521016847492378592009-05-19T12:04:00.000-07:002009-05-19T12:40:09.557-07:00

One good thing about the Economist magazine is the non-ironic use of words like oligopoly, used here to describe Canada's relatively stable banking system.If Botswana is anything like Zambia then alcoholism is a major social problem. If Botswana is anything like Zambia then their new 70 per cent liquor tax is going to cause a collective organ failure from Kachasu and other styles of battery-acid

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-66210744389884780332009-05-17T13:52:00.000-07:002009-05-17T14:33:21.840-07:00

About three months ago while taking the TAZARA train to Dar es Salaam this video played on the TV in the lounge car and I was subsequently heart broken. Keep watching cuz it gets really good around the the 3:20 mark and then there's a giant pumpkin.But hey, Zambian music isn't all Autotune love songs (well mostly). There's some great Youtube videos out there of a ZNBC show from the eighties

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-5386134060724182252009-05-11T11:20:00.000-07:002009-05-11T15:04:33.732-07:00

Campbell treated like a celebrity in ethnic communitiesSometimes reading the Vancouver Sun is agonizing.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-2707384591939427632009-05-11T00:57:00.000-07:002009-05-11T01:02:05.014-07:00

"If they wanted people here to speak French, they shouldn't have helped to kill people here who spoke French." Paul Kagame on neo-colonialism and France's support of the Rwandan genocide.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-14201848776688817852009-05-08T09:51:00.000-07:002009-05-08T12:24:37.346-07:00

It's all in Russian but read it right here anyways. I wonder what his feelings are vis a vis his parents and the emo/goth scene?Also, I'm sure just about everyone is familiar with Gigapixel photography but what if you could spy into every living room in Vancouver's Yaletown condo zoo? BTW you can zoom in.And finally, sometimes the Onion is a little too right:Nation Of Andorra Not In Africa,

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-26839975860541780232009-05-06T20:51:00.000-07:002009-05-06T21:47:26.389-07:00

I could watch Dambisa Moyo all day... no, really, there's over 40 different interview videos of her on Youtube by every possible network. I'm embedding Riz Khan's interview from Al Jazeera cuz, as a radical Salafist, it's my favourite. Well, mostly I just like his intro music. Plus this one has that Bottom Billion dude on it too.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-3954560796586356892009-05-04T15:29:00.000-07:002009-05-04T15:45:18.987-07:00

From Train Photos

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-12892483028980182232009-05-04T14:25:00.000-07:002009-05-04T15:12:18.068-07:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-47177553441122588662009-05-03T18:45:00.000-07:002009-05-03T18:55:11.858-07:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-90815496771059467542009-05-02T12:02:00.000-07:002009-05-02T13:10:39.855-07:00

One thing I've been missing while living in Zambia is the spectacle of Vancouver gang warfare. Seems like the nineties media obsession with "ethnic" gangs is over to be replaced by multicultural criminal organizations that actively celebrate and encourage diversity. The embodiment of this trend is the nefarious United Nations Gang, probably not what the architects of Canada's official

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-89656082904065759402009-05-01T17:41:00.000-07:002009-05-03T18:39:54.639-07:00

To all five of you, I'm very sorry to have let this blog lapse. Hopefully the photos from my trip will more than make up for my two months of silence.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-6646642039162589802009-02-21T06:01:00.000-08:002009-02-21T06:16:14.367-08:00

According to the little web cafe ticker I have eighteen minutes to write and post this blog. The Tazara train from Zambia was lovely and I am now in Tanzania. Dar is a large cosmopolitan city that still feels manageable. The streets are filled with young guys carting around wheelbarrows full of tropical fruit and the call to prayer is blasted every few hours. We stayed at a horrible little

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-4700361863261796752009-02-16T14:39:00.000-08:002009-02-16T14:49:22.451-08:00

I'm on the train to Dar. Next update from that side.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-42762482870496842642009-02-14T03:41:00.000-08:002009-02-14T04:09:43.165-08:00

I've been running around Lusaka trying to get stuff done before leaving on Tuesday. As Louis likes to point out, the Canadian International Development Agency only funds development between July and February leaving the rest of the year to the free market (jokes) and so I go. I'm taking the train east to Dar armed with a tent, a swim suit and Tanzanian multiple entry visa.The photo is of Soweto

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-11213204183298743792009-02-10T09:34:00.000-08:002009-02-10T09:51:07.031-08:00

The first and last two photos are courtesy of Mr. Damon van der Linde.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-17229139567323493762009-02-09T02:03:00.001-08:002009-02-09T14:01:07.098-08:00

The person who can name the city I'm in based on these photographs gets one hundred billion dollars.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-61461816692870701592009-01-28T08:07:00.000-08:002009-01-29T09:19:58.235-08:00

The New York Times Style Magazine has a story about Namibia that includes a fashion photo shoot in many of the same places I just went to in Namibia. The blog Africa is a Country rightfully points out that the article and photo shoot reinforces some of the worst colonial fantasies about Namibia and rural Africa in general as a pristine setting to view primitive cultures (see Leni Riefenstahl's

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-75303371392067661872009-01-22T08:03:00.000-08:002009-01-22T08:23:13.983-08:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-29617129691538881682009-01-21T08:23:00.000-08:002009-01-21T08:37:27.831-08:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-15286485997041398422009-01-20T06:20:00.000-08:002009-01-20T06:30:19.587-08:00

It's a nice time to be alive.Frankly I like living any time.Something's changing in America.As opposed to the last few hundred years of stasis.An Obama presidency will make people give their prejudiced views a second thought.I'm rethinking my membership in the Daughters of the Confederacy as I'm writing this.For Paris we'll see some more wet weather.Duh.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-34470481875200306712009-01-19T12:25:00.000-08:002009-01-19T13:01:22.417-08:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-76078266072957133402009-01-19T12:12:00.000-08:002009-01-19T12:20:17.794-08:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-1928041734450128792009-01-19T11:37:00.000-08:002009-01-19T12:11:06.481-08:00

I'm just now realising the wonders of resizing one's photos before attempting to upload them on a dodgy satellite connection. It does make them a little less pretty but saves me hours of failed upload attempts.Although my friends who've lived there will, I'm sure, call me naive, entering Namibia from Zambia felt a bit like entering the European Union. The border crossing at Katima Mulilo involves

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-49973733351255582982009-01-19T11:23:00.000-08:002009-01-19T11:36:55.164-08:00

After months of brutally slow internet it seems to be going very quickly tonight. This will allow me to post all the shameless tourist snaps that have until now been lost to the "your connection has been reset" demons. The next five photos are of my illegal tour of the edge of Victoria falls. This was probably the scariest thing I've ever done. No mom, I was never in any real danger although my

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-78485291970676854392009-01-10T05:58:00.000-08:002009-01-10T06:07:39.267-08:00

You heard it here first. Zambian Airways suspended operations today stranding hundreds of passengers, well, maybe not quite hundreds but dozens for sure. No refunds, barely even an apology. I know because I'm stuck in OR Thambo in Johannesburg. It got hot as the crowd started accusing the Zambian Airways representative of cheating them. I felt bad for the guy who having just lost his job had to

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-3993578518560171862009-01-05T10:30:00.000-08:002009-01-05T11:13:09.411-08:00

On Kloof street in Cape Town. I'm a bit stunned how hard I've fallen for South Africa. Everything from the weather, the people I've met, the landscape and even the soap operas on SABC thrill me. I really feel like I could live here. Yes, I'm aware of the social problems and that my sense of excitement might have something to do with the fact that basic goods and services here are half the price

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-64985527793420547052008-12-17T03:03:00.000-08:002008-12-17T03:58:29.042-08:00

View Larger Map

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-23280970722164999112008-12-06T05:36:00.001-08:002008-12-06T06:20:39.937-08:00

I've been in bed the last few days with a cold, or "flu" as it's called in Zambian, and I've been obsessively reading blogs. I'm also getting better at the internet; I learned how to do this thing called "bookmarking." Seriously, I've never done it before. The following are some awesome things I "bookmarked" while sick.The Places We Live is a website of photos and audio from slums across the

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-88013079490193432832008-12-04T06:16:00.000-08:002008-12-04T07:19:28.185-08:00

I don't really know how he got there but this little dude lunged at me this morning as I walked to the kitchen in the rain. He continued his assault as I took these photos. After he rain stopped he just disappeared. Everyone thought he must be a baby, including the maid's son who tried to pick him up but was too spooked by his snapping beak. My house-mate said that was the kind of bird that

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-5811034706413108352008-12-03T01:43:00.000-08:002008-12-03T10:12:52.455-08:00

I wrote this for Journalists for Human Rights' Foreign Correspondence Site.Central Lusaka is saturated with busy internet cafes. “Business centres” advertising copying, scanning and internet can be found in many of the richer neighbourhoods and shopping areas. My office has three competing wireless networks and so did my former flat. None of them were mine unfortunately but the point remains,

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-57543714580137359952008-11-29T01:50:00.000-08:002008-11-29T03:24:43.821-08:00

In an otherwise banal article from The Post about Patriotic Front MPs voting against the party line for salary increases, opposition leader Michael Sata drops a bomb.Asked if he was disappointed that members of parliament went against his position on the issue of salaries, Sata said he could only be disappointed if he was not a Christian. He said the members of parliament were depriving Zambians

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-16101920728015744712008-11-25T14:17:00.000-08:002008-11-25T14:31:22.149-08:00

As I read about the Cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe I realised I had no idea what it was except that some how water is involved. Then I came across this old New Yorker article. omfg:Cholera is a horrific illness. The onset of the disease is typically quick and spectacular; you can be healthy one moment and dead within hours. The disease, left untreated, has a fatality rate that can reach fifty per

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-4496894523088747522008-11-20T07:03:00.000-08:002008-11-20T08:04:10.338-08:00

This keeps on getting weirder. Rose Kabuye, Rwanda's chief of protocol (no idea but it sounds important), is in front of a French judge now facing charges of inciting genocide. The thing is, this Tutsi and former Rwandan Patriotic Front member is widely regarded as having ended the genocide against her people. She, along with president Kagame and anyone else in the former RPF leadership is

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-17616816505676218892008-11-14T02:44:00.000-08:002008-11-14T03:13:25.715-08:00

From the Watchdog:Father Bwalya likely to be charged with seditionBy Lloyd Himaambo-Despite the riots that broke out early on Thursday in protest of the arrest of Catholic Priest, station manager for radio Ichengelo on the Copperbelt, the police will go ahead and charge the priest. The Watchdog has leant that Father Bwalya will be charged with sedition.The Zambian penal code prohibits what it

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-35834907794203234042008-11-11T00:18:00.000-08:002008-11-13T06:44:43.818-08:00

Tutsi rebel leader Laurent Nkunda is telling the BBC reporter that he plans to march on Kinshasa claiming that he's not an agent of Rawanda and is in fact a proud Congolese. I'd been listening to Nkunda speak for weeks on the BBC. The radio gave me the impression that he could only be reached by smuggled audio recorder in some damp jungle camp. I was surprised then when I moved into my new house,

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-43178677058176896352008-11-10T04:39:00.000-08:002008-11-10T05:30:09.636-08:00

Scarlett Lion is a very good blog (with photos) that I found through the Walrus website. The author takes her role as a Western journalist living in Africa very seriously; something I do not do. Maybe I should start.A bumptious guide to book writing is an article mentioned on Scarlett Lion describing the pretentious flock of young men who aspire to write books about Africa and end up with "a

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-56118083896367114792008-11-09T09:47:00.000-08:002008-11-09T10:19:08.791-08:00

The lion is from a conservation/breeding place near Livingstone. The baboon is part of a pack that harasses tourists near Victoria falls. Minutes before he had stolen an ice cream off a girl, no joke.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-48820548457518201842008-11-08T13:02:00.000-08:002008-11-08T13:21:10.864-08:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-32219104964227573362008-10-31T03:44:00.000-07:002008-10-31T03:58:57.944-07:00

As you're all trasfixed by Obama's million dollar ads I'm watching the Zambian chief of police on state television warning the electorate not to riot while images of policemen doing kung fu appear on screen and creepy music plays.I attended a massive Patriotic Front rally on Wednesday which despite the warnings all that happened to me was having shake-shake spilled on my camera bag and later

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-43315841617664303292008-10-28T02:06:00.001-07:002008-10-28T02:18:56.917-07:00

The perils of Zambian press junkets.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-32260254642737039182008-10-27T02:34:00.001-07:002008-10-27T03:15:26.181-07:00

So yeah, I read Stephanie Nolan's blog. She's the Globe and Mail's Africa correspondent. The mainstream press considers this guy a nut for his claim that 50,000 native children were murdered under the residential school system. IMHO that makes him worth checking out. With all the news about mass graves and church complicity lately Hidden From History is a pretty good starting point for

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-4556861299734592692008-10-27T02:13:00.000-07:002008-10-27T02:25:09.310-07:00

Did you know it hails in Zambia?

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-42258012124302706902008-10-23T08:28:00.000-07:002008-10-23T08:53:40.132-07:00

Michael Sata of the Patriotic Front is incredibly funny in person. He kept riffing on the idea of MMD members handing out condoms to their own kids. I understand why everyone on my corner loves him so much. Hakainde Hichilema of the UPND party has a real burdened superhero look about him. If he wasn't so subdued all the time I could really see him wining. I got caught in a press scrum outside the

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-7135938935451305152008-10-21T02:35:00.000-07:002008-10-21T02:49:33.122-07:00

nope nothing here

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-84816063531129114542008-10-09T06:17:00.002-07:002008-10-09T06:30:13.359-07:00

I really enjoyed this and I'm not usually into these things. Thank you Zambian ministry of tourism.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-50042382979070193632008-10-01T00:56:00.000-07:002008-10-01T01:24:07.459-07:00

I've had some trouble uploading photos lately. Hopefully this makes up for it. I just returned from a weekend in Livingstone sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism. I'm pretty impressed with the place and was surprised how non-touristy this supposed tourist-town felt. That might have something to do with the dry season state of Victoria Falls or the general lack of development in Zambia overall.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-56269067172461273002008-09-19T01:49:00.000-07:002008-09-19T02:11:48.707-07:00

So this just made my week. From The Georgia Straight's Best of Vancouver.Best Downsizing Of An Asian Canadian MagazineRicepaperDuring the past year, this locally based Asian Canadian arts and culture magazine went from the standard 8.5-by-11-inch magazine size to a literary-journal format of 6.5 by 9 inches. It also received an arty make-over to better suit its content. Now that it's easier to

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-64103878590288566622008-09-18T02:04:00.000-07:002008-09-18T02:13:28.112-07:00

No, not the picture. That's from Mwanawasa's funeral as we stood dejected after being told we couldn't enter the inner security perimeter and all of sudden the body whizzed past.The breaking news is from a site called The Watchdog that monitors Zambian politics and stuff. The current top story has controversial (read violent populist) opposition leader Michael Sata challenging UPND leader

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-68626183006471862262008-09-16T04:33:00.000-07:002008-09-17T04:14:35.163-07:00

The first thing I noticed about Lusaka was the advertising. I hadn't been expecting so many images everywhere. Although there are some Clear Channel billboards around town, most ads are beautiful hand paintings one the miles of security wall that surround most homes and offices. I like this one for its scale, colours and of course the name: Eagle Pat Pat.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-79321600724488532008-09-13T05:54:00.000-07:002008-09-14T06:08:55.338-07:00

Take a look at my photo essay which I regretfully titled Food Security in the Luangwa Valley. I promise, it's more interesting than it sounds. In other news, I'm pretty awestruck by Melita's Toronto Film Festival blog and of course Carley for helping create the site. I've spent about twenty thousand kwacha on internet time reading the thing.On that note, I saw Taken last night and it was

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-85558612166224018622008-09-11T03:34:00.000-07:002008-09-11T04:21:37.186-07:00

Fishermen on the edge of South Luangwa National Park in eastern province Zambia.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-2369867894780066082008-09-10T04:22:00.000-07:002008-09-10T04:29:32.060-07:00

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-89867508634956200722008-09-09T04:57:00.001-07:002008-09-09T05:12:16.794-07:00

I've been told it helps to do things in small steps, so from now on I'll be updating my blog with one photo a day. It'll be mostly cuddly animals from my trip to Mfue but also some hard hitting political stuff too. Today, a photo from Levy's funeral. No, I wasn't invited but somehow the ornery security staff disappeared about 2/3 of the way through the program and we just walked in. These

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-31179698681069296972008-08-19T04:52:00.000-07:002008-08-19T05:07:31.363-07:00

Levy Mwanawasa September 3, 1948-August 19, 2008

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-19684190978761453902008-08-14T04:57:00.001-07:002008-08-14T04:57:56.817-07:00

I'll be posting articles, journals and photo essays on the JHR website from time to time. There's plenty of other great stuff there as well. Right now, I have photos and a journal entry about going to rural Zambia to look at some development projects.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-9259314569076741822008-08-14T04:54:00.000-07:002008-08-14T04:55:40.736-07:00

One of the rules of Feng Shui is that bad spirits travel in straight lines and anything in their path is prone to misfortune. That's why, for example, many Chinese restaurants will put a barrier in front of the door forcing you to go left or right as you enter and thereby neutralizing the bad luck. A manifestation of this ancient principle happened last Friday, when a car driving down Martin

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-26951349454056384102008-08-09T05:48:00.000-07:002008-08-09T06:42:23.079-07:00

No pictures today as my flash drive was stolen. This isn't a reflection on Zambian society, however, as I was the one that stupidly left it in the computer. Actually I'm starting to feel really comfortable here. I no longer grab my wallet as I walk down Cairo road and today I went tramping through the narrow alleys of Kamwala market by myself.I made a friend named Joseph who runs a small clothing

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-11177131928020146672008-07-30T05:17:00.000-07:002008-07-30T05:47:49.700-07:00

I took these in a rural area outside Lusaka while on a field trip with some German geogrpahy students. More on that trip later.This kid calmly jumped into the back of the pickup with us. Zambians dress pretty well, but I think he just might be the best dressed kid in Zambia. Look how he rocks that yellow tartan and the two t-shirts, amazing. Unfortunately, I forgot his name.This is the greatest

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-80171197272193653992008-07-30T04:41:00.000-07:002008-07-30T05:34:07.876-07:00

If some of these photos look like they were taken from the back of a moving pickup truck on a gray day it's because they were.Many of the stores here have wicked paint jobs featuring all the great stuff you'll find inside. Also, I love that font. Zambian women have a superhuman ability to carry massive weights on their heads for great distances. Notice the busted cars in the background. Not sure

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-78178213563827947432008-07-29T03:45:00.000-07:002008-07-29T03:55:27.521-07:00

I saw a fifty billion dollar Zimbabwean note yesterday. No, that isn't a mistake: 50,000,000,000 Zimbabwean dollars. A five and ten zeros. I thought I had a pretty good idea of what inflation was, but this completely baffles me. Something that cost one Zimbabwean dollar before is now fifty billion times more expensive? What does that mean? Are Zimbabweans fifty billion times poorer than they were

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-5444712034241204022008-07-28T08:01:00.001-07:002008-07-30T05:17:20.159-07:00

I know you've all been wondering what I've been up to since arriving in Zambia and I think it's only appropriate that I get through all the clichés in the first few posts. We were booked for the first week into a place south of Lusaka that had wild animals on the property. Kinda like a national park but smaller with a bunch of little huts and a bar that played the Euro top 40 music videos. Here's

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-15287575671066656922008-07-01T13:06:00.000-07:002008-07-01T13:39:39.922-07:00

I watched the documentary Ring of Fire: East of Krakatoa as a young child. I was at an age where everything was mysterious and possible, especially after having lived in a country like Indonesia where, as clichéd as this is, traditional beliefs still had a prominent place in people's minds.At that time I could accept the idea of a man burning things with only his hands as just another new thing

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-64644392531093741522008-06-29T11:57:00.000-07:002008-06-29T12:42:03.546-07:00

The highlight of my time at the Ryerson Review of Journalism were a couple of articles analyzing Vancouver's media.The most substantial was a 4000 word behemoth on the Globe & Mail's attempts to establish themselves as a truly national newspaper (Canada isn't Ontario FYI) by looking at their somewhat futile efforts to woo Vancouver readers. It took months to research and write and, in the end,

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-66907877751574391392008-06-29T11:44:00.000-07:002008-06-29T11:56:59.613-07:00

I originally wrote this review for Streethawk Magazine but since that's not really around for much longer I thought I'd preserve it perpetuity right here on my totally for profit blog. At the time, this was the first Police live review since the mid eighties.The Police - Secret Fan Club ShowMay 27 @ GM PlaceIf you're like me, born after the Police released their last album, Sting's solo career

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-21448020573757110592008-06-29T11:36:00.000-07:002008-06-29T11:57:12.440-07:00

The second article I wrote from the conference was about better business practices for freelancers. I'm pretty sure I'm hopeless as a freelancer. Doing my taxes is painful enough without having to figure out GST or saving receipts.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-62522492803807083142008-06-29T11:30:00.000-07:002008-06-29T11:57:25.143-07:00

Apparently I'm also a freelance photographer. See my photos from the Western Magazine Awards reception on the Masthead Magazine site.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3327679677703179350.post-25644131236308382232008-06-26T17:07:00.000-07:002008-06-29T11:57:39.329-07:00

Here's my latest service piece for Masthead Magazine where I regurgitate some of the lessons I learned at Magazines West, the conference component of the Western Magazine Awards. I go step by step on how to attract more visitors to your site.

Aaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917851782506869144noreply@blogger.com0