Zambia - nature

There is a first for everything. Well this time it was my first safari on foot, in the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park. Ok, there are no big cats, but we did get so close to so many animals. An experience to repeat!
The giraffes could see us from far, whereas the rhinos did smell us. So impressive to be less than 20 meters away from this huge animal. I have to admit that our guide and our armed escort were not too worried at us coming close to this particular white rhino, but that is a story I will tell only if asked.
Another must-do is a cruise on the Zambezi. From our boat, we could see elephants grazing on one of the island. I even saw two elephants crossing the river. These animals are indeed strong.
And then we also came accross a group of hippos. So funny to see their ears emerging out of the water.

Zambia - Victoria Falls

No need to write too much about the Victoriall Falls, on the mighty Zambezi River. The local name of the falls Mosi-oa-Tunya - the water that thunders - tells it all. Fantastic to fly over the falls. At this time of the year, the waters are low and fall only on the Zimbabwe side.
As can clearly be seen from above, the erosion of the river makes it possible for us to see the Falls from the opposite side. It gets a bit wet in the edges!
To finish then two videos to enjoy - with the sound it is even better.

Central Asia

What about going on a marathon 5-country 5-day tour? Well, this is what I did in Central Asia, visiting Turkmenistan, Tadjikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kirghizstan. This was probably the best way to learn about the names of their president, their capital and their currency. First stop was Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan. It is a strange capital city, with the important builidings built by the French company Buygues and the other by Turkish firms. All this leaves a taste of modernism but without any social life. The most famous building is the one pictured below - the arch of neutrality, with a huge statue of the old president on top. And the best is that the golden statue rotates with the sun...!
The other modern capital in the region is Astana, in Kazakhstan. A town which was a little village still 15 years ago. It is the equivalent of Brazilia or Abuja. At least, the planning is well done. The highlight is this palm tree with its fruit in the middle. There one can put its hand inside an engravings of the president's hand and, facing the president's palace, make a wish.Another interesting landmark is the pyramid. The inside is particularly nice with a indoor tropical garden, a huge concert hall, and some lightplays so that the country's flag is reflected in the main hall. These cities are definitely an architect's paradise.
Still the major player in the region is Uzbekistan, with the capital city Tashkent as the hub. It is the fourth biggest city in the old Soviet area and has a well functioning underground system. The main indoor market is a lively place, where one can buy spices, dried fruits, fresh products, clothing, etc. Still we heard about a peculiar economic problem: there is not enough banknotes physically available. So people have money in their account but cannot have it available in cash...
The capital was almost totally destroyed by an earthquake in 1966. So the cultural gems are to be found to the South, in particular Samarkand. This town was a key passage point on the silk road. The town has many beautiful architectural complexes, including the Tomb of the Kings pictured below. The town has a very special structure.
The town was also a center of islamic studies, with the Registan being its most fascinating element. This owes much to Timur, who made this city a regional trade and cultural center.
We had the chance to see it both with the last sun rays and with the night lighitngs. Beautiful. Still a question remains: how easy would it have been to concentrate there on the studies with so many well decorated and designed buildings?

Serbia

Belgrade is at the confluent of the Danube and the Sava River, as pictured above. A city at the heart of the Balkans, which was occupied/freed by many forces over the centuries. This trouble past is still very much present today. In the capital, there are buildings showing visible traces of the NATO bombings a decade ago. Violence also takes the form of hooliganism and we were there the day a young French football fan died after being stabbed by Serbian supporters. A march was organised in the capital to show that part of the society is in favour of peaceful solutions. What is also special for a curious eye, is that the tramway coming up is an old specimen from Basel. We exported our trams there.
The next day, we boarded the blue train, the famous train of Yugoslavia's ex-president Tito. And we had the opportunity to meet with his impersonation. He told us everything about the train, the celebrities who spent a day or even more on the train. There are a few en-suite wagons and also a banquet room. Socialism is definitely not always equal to modesty. Today, the train has been refurbished for tourists, unlike the rest of the rail infrastructure.
The train ride led us to Sremski Karlovci, a charming and well-renovated town. It is a school town especially for the orthodox church. We went walked in, we were treated to songs by a male choir. Later on, at a school, we saw children wearing dresses of various ethnic groups perform their traditional dance. And in the evening, we enjoy a typical Serbian supper, including with violonists.

Eclipse-China

On July 22, 2009, it was time for another total eclipse of the sun. Actually the longest one of the century (6 min 39 sec). We went to a popular beach, some 50 km south of Shanghai. There were signs showing reserved areas for foreign tourists. But even the Swiss tourists did not respect it...Unfortunately, the sky was not too kind with us. The sun was playing hide and seek with the clouds. So it was annoying for us as we did not know if we needed to wear our special sun/moon/eclipse glasses. Some colleagues started prying to God, the spirits and whoever to make the wind blow the clouds away. But they did not succeed...

So then the sky turned dark. The camera started flasing. The carlights and the streetlights were turned on. Unfortunately we could not clearly see the moon in front of the sun. The difference between the total eclipse (100 percent) and a partial one (99 percent) is so huge. A small 1 percent matters sometimes! So enjoy the video below that starts when things are still pitch dark at 9:30 am.

Beijing

Beijing, the capital city is a true reflection of this huge country. Its longest avenue (Eternal Peace) is 40 km long; on the Tian-an-Men square, 500'000 people can assemble; inside the Parliament building sit 2987 members.
Behind the huge Tian-an-Men square, which can only be entered into after a security check, lies the Forbidden city. For this, best to watch again the movie "the last Emperor". It is obviously full of beautiful palaces - Palace of Supreme Harmony, Palace of Perfect Harmony, Palace of the Preservation of Harmony, Palace of Celeste Purity, Palace of the Union, Palace of the Terrestrial Tranquility. There are also superb statues, such as this turtle/dragon. It was built in the 15th century. In ancient China (or feudal China, like our guide used to say), the Emperor was considered as the son of Heaven. The architecture at the Temple of Heaven is then a very delicate balance between square walls with green tiles symbolising the earth and round buildings with blue tiles symbolising the sky. In the middle of one square, the acoustic is so good that whispers can be heard clearly. The Emperor would make use of this, when he would consult with his "father" about the upcoming harvest and transmit the message to his people. Unfortunetely, there were too many tourists to check if the echo was indeed working. This temple was last renovated just before the Olympic games.
The last chinese Emperor also decided they should escape the Beijing heat (I would not have - but then I am not royal material...). Around a lake, there are a variety of palaces, gardens, statues, bridges and even a marble boat! Very enjoyable excursion, except that at least a million other Chinese tourists had the same idea, so it was crowded.
Beijing is definitely modernising very quickly and one of its most famous landmark is the "Bird's Nest", the Olympic stadium. The structure is quite admirable, obviously since it was designed by Swiss architects! It is also the world largest steel structure. Unfortunately, since the Olympics, the stadium is barely used. When we were there, the "super cup" of Italy (between the Serie A winner and the Cup winner) was played. But it seems that it is mostly the daily 20000 chinese visitors that keep the stadium alive. Almost as impressive as the stadium, was the one of 7 ring roads leading to it. Hard to believe that less than 20 years ago, there were only bikes around. Indeed, there are now more bikes in my capital as in the Chinese one. Which way is development going?
We also went to the Great Wall and needed a telecabine to lift us on top of this impressive construction, the only one said to be visible from the Moon. Although our Chinese guides doubt this American declaration.
It started to be built 600 BC to protect Beijing from the Mongols. The first Emperor of China (the one with the terra-cotta army) did link and fortify the various pieces of the Wall to make it 5000 km long. Various emperors worked on it as well, so that it reached 6350 km. It looks like a giant snake running along the slopes. Fantastic achievement. Apparently it was also very efficient, since it was broken only once...
Back in the valley, we walked along the "Way of the Spirits" with statues of eminent personalities and animals. I had to take a picture next to the "Deserving Civil Servant"! Hope his wisdom will infuse in me.

Xian

Xian is one of the most important town in China, since it means "capital of the west". It was the first capital of the reunified Empire in 221 BC. But it is only in 1974 that local farmers rediscovered the tomb of the first Chinese Emperor while digging for a borehole. Sometimes drought can have fantastic side-effects...
Xian is then most famous for its terra-cotta army. The first Emperor built a huge tomb 35 kilometers out of town in a place most favorable according to Chinese mythology. He forced
700'000 people to build is tomb and the army able to defend him. Ranges of soldiers, captains and horses were built and placed around is tomb. It should be noted that the size of these sculptures (1.78 - 1.87 m) is higher than the height of Chinese people at the time. The Emperor needed to impress his ennemies!
The main hall contains not less than 6000 statues! Each of them are different with their own facial expression, dress and position.
The town is also rich of many other highlights, such as the biggest mosque in China - although it does not look like one, or rather I could not have distinguished it from any other temple, various Pagods and Towers. It also has one old library, at a time when books looked like huge stones. This is the memory of China.

Guilin

The south-eastern region of Guangxi corresponds more to the cliches one has about Asia and China. Rice fields are all around and people still make use of animals to help them.
Guilin is mostly known for its fantastic landscapes of karst peaks along the river Li. The scenery is unbeliavable and the cruise on the river was a highlight of the trip.
It is also one of the last place in China where fishermen still use cormorans to fish. At night, I must say it is quite feeric to watch these birds dive and catch fish. I might have even found it romantic, where I not thinking in economics terms. And indeed, this way of fishing is only kept alive thanks to the tourists.And then there is the local market, where one can buy many live things. The most frightening though is that doctors and dentists have stands! So patients open their mouth and get treated at the market. Good luck to them!

Hong Kong

First landing in Asia, as long as Hong Kong can still be called "Asian". They have this "one country - two system" with China, meaning that they use their own currency (the Hong Kong dollar), they drive on the other side of the road, there is a real border with a sanitary control (fear of the swine flu).
There is an interesting mix between a world city very much involved in global trade and some signs of asian culture, such as Buddhas, tiny markets and well-keeped parks.But the main trademark of Hong Kong is its 7500 skyscapers best viewed at night.

New York

The main purpose to go to New York was to attend a Conference at the United Nations. The member countries had agreed to a declaration just before the start of the conference, so the atmosphere was pretty relaxed.
There were many speeches, mostly delivered by officials, which means not made by Presidents nor Ministers. The only president who decided to attend, the one from Ecuador, use 10 times his allocated time. He thought he really had much to say.
So with these long speeches, there was not much time to explore. Still I went to visit the area around "Ground Zero", where the two towers of the World Trade Centre collapsed after the terrorist attack of 11 september 2001. The most striking is the huge empty space in this neighbourhood of skyscrapers. There is an audio guided tour and an information center.
Further in this area, there is Wall Street. It seems that neither the terrorist attacks nor the financial crisis did damage it at the core. It is most certainly right that they system has to be retained but there is indeed potential to improve it.
Further south, the "bull" as symbol of optimism on the stock market. In the four days I was there, the stock market climbed by 2.1 percent. Is this a causality or just a correlation? The best way to know would be for shareholders to invite me time and again to New York!

Mont Blanc

Another must see in the vicinity of Geneva: the Mont Blanc! the highest mountain in Europe. What best way to climb is on foot. Can you spot me there...? Look carefully.
OK, fine. I did take the cable car...
Finally, a close-up view of the top. Not even chilly there.

real tennis

Another year, another pilgrimage to Roland Garros. There are old faces and new ones. As every year, there are surprises and confirmations. Will Federer finally come into the light? We will know shortly. Will the swiss "number 2" - Wawrinka - manage to win a big match?


Will Del Potro be the next main challenger?Or will it be Verdasco?

tennis

With the long week-end of Ascension, the temperature reached record levels here in Geneva with 33.8 degrees. At the club, we got some tough games and a lot of sweat. The tournaments so far went really well for me with a semi-final and a quarter-final. Am I ready for Roland Garros?

I am certainly ready to watch it. It started today on TV. And then on Friday, I am off to Paris. Hopefully, I will carry high the swiss flag. More about this in my next entry. And hold your thumbs!