Alive & Kicking in Africa!

Email from me:

Hiyas- im Alive in Africa!

i am now in Kampala, Uganda Africa!
I have survived a 14hr flight to dubai, 2hour stopover and another 6 hour journey to Entebbe airport Uganda, via Ethiopia!
I was tempted to try the 'McArabia' meal but decided against, it, but i will admit, i couldnt help but eat a cheeseburger in Dubai airport- ok, i was bored and buying 'Arabia Dance Hot100' really was not my thing...
I worked at the Watoto 'Bulrushes' Baby's home today, got puked on- projectile vomit style, but loved seeing these beautiful orphaned, abandoned babies get a 2nd chance at life... there are over 56 kids in this centre-- and funnily enough, all very well behaved! there are some fighting for their lives (either being thrown out of a window after childbirth, or left out in the bush to die...)... so sad! But these kids are adorable.. ranging from premature/ newborns to 2 year olds.
Will be heading to the 'Suubi' Watoto school village tomorrow to build/ paint the kitchen facility for the school. Should be an amazing experience.

Uganda is an interesting place to say the least... and of course of its 'developing nature'... has so much potential. Funny story though-- the Queen (Elizabeth II) is meant to be visiting Uganda in Nov for a commonwealth conference. They only just started building the special 'hotel' facility a month ago apparently? drove past it today... looks like a construction site!!

ok. missing you all and enjoying this interesting experience. Going on a safari this weekend for 3 days... i hope to see a hippo-- or a giraffe or two? and will be building for the next few days and back at the babies home on friday... next week will be a mix of other community activities with Watoto programs (btw, Watoto means Children in Ugandan)

ok. and if for some strange reason you have no idea why you have received this email from me... woops! Dudes, if you've gotten this far in reading this email-- Van is in AFRICA! visit www.watoto.com to find out more about the program i am participating in here!

ciao for now!
xo Van :D
ps. staying here. its pretty darn good for Africa i say! http://www.emmausguesthouse.com/

Interesting article about a photojournalist. I like the quote from Oscar Wilde near the bottom.

Dispatches from the front
By Beryl Wajsman, Editor, The Suburban
Robert J. Galbraith

Montrealer Robert J. Galbraith is one of the leading war photojournalists of this generation. Galbraith’s career in journalism spans 20 years. He has written and/or photographed for numerous publications in North America and Europe including The New York Times. His reputation reached new heights when he published Iraq: Eyewitness to War — A$">Photojournalist’s Diary. $">$">Galbraith refused to be an embedded reporter with the American forces and he did not want to sit through orchestrated press conferences at the press centre. He wanted total freedom to cover the war. At great personal peril, he managed to cover the war in a way that has rarely been seen.$">$">Unlike many in the media, despite the human toll and tragedy he documented, his is a compelling and authentic voice on the importance of a heightened Canadian military and diplomatic engagement in democratic development and nation-building worldwide.$">$">Iraq was not his first tour in a war zone. That came in Israel during the scud missle attacks. Then Galbraith covered the rest of the first Gulf War. He returned to Iraq to cover the current war and then he went to Afghanistan in 2005. He has been in the process of planning a new mission to Afghanistan for the better part of the year. Robert feels it is vital to record the critical role Canadian troops are playing in the Kandahar operation. There are untold stories of heroism and valour amidst the service and sacrifice that have literally saved the allied mission. Robert means to tell those stories. He left yesterday for his latest rendezvous with destiny.$">$">We at The Suburban are honoured that many of the freelance reports and photos that Robert will be filing will be published in our pages. $">$">Robert’s decision to include this newspaper among the recipients of his dispatches attests to the success of the broader scope we have taken and the heightened relevance of our impact. $">$">During a conference on Iraq organized by my Institute for Public Affairs of Montreal, Robert told me this about his work: “During the compilation of my book, many of my friends said that the cover was too shocking, and might turn off prospective buyers. But to me it was perhaps the most powerful image to come out of my journey, and the symbolism it reflected. Photojournalism is not just documentation. It is also about advancing art.

Oscar Wilde said that art should affront, should repulse, otherwise it will never advance.

There are many war books out there with neutral or boring covers. I wanted people to have a finger stuck in their eye when they saw my book, and to realize that this is the real thing, this is the real account of the misery of war. “

“ This is the kind of hard-hitting journalism you can expect from Robert Galbraith’s dispatches from the front”

In our talks over the past few weeks I asked what motivated him to pursue this latest adventure. Hadn’t he proven his courage? Hadn’t he done enough to raise conscience and consciousness? His answer was poignant and instructive for us all.

“We should always be willing and fearless to challenge the darkness,” he said. “Whatever that darkness is. Be it subjugation of another people or the ghosts in our own closets. You are never more alive as when you challenge your worst fears. This is why I am a war photojournalist, and will ever continue to be.”

To learn more about this extraordinary man and his remarkable work, visit his website at www.robertgalbraith.com and look for his stories and pictures in the weeks to come.

2007-10-03 10:14:41