THREE | SEPTEMBER 2013

TIME TRAVEL TURTLE VISITS LUXEMBOURG CITY

Science & Nature · History & Culture · Geography & Travel · Politics & Society

From Belgrade to Brussels

India’s Joan of Arc

At The Roof Of The World!

A Legacy of War

Going Off-Beat in the Capital of Cool

cambodia’s

landmines

AlternativeAmsterdam

Trekking in The

HIMALAYAS

Queen Lakshmibai

Plus!

Welcome back to another issue of Terra Nova Magazine. This time we’re in Cambodia examining the legacy of a war-torn history, on the road in Croatia discovering a nation in

transition, and out and about in Amsterdam exploring some of the Dutch capital’s less-frequented attractions. We’ve also got tales from the city of Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, India, as well as from the tiny grand duchy of Luxembourg (courtesy of the Time Travel Turtle).

Remember, if you would like to become a Terra Nova contributor, you can always write to us. We’re constantly on the lookout for new writers and photographers who can add an extra dimension to our magazine. We’d love to hear from anyone who wants to be involved.

Until next time,

Adam WoodsEditor

THREE | SEPTEMBER 2013

EDITOR Adam Woodswoodscopy@gmail.com

DESIGN EDITOR Stuart Woodsstuartcwoods@gmail.com

CONTRIBUTORS

Jessica Crispjessica.crisp@hotmail.co.uk(Cambodia)

Chris PlattChrisbplatt@gmail.com(Opinion)

Luke Winterlukewinter81@gmail.com(City Guide)

Ceri Provis-Evansceri.provis@hotmail.com(Photo Essay)

Amir Kudaibergenovkudaibergenoff@gmail.com(Illustration)

Roman Birickairoman.birickai@gmail.com(Design)

Petra Rezacovapetra.rezac@gmail.com(Design)

www.terranovamag.com

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From the Editor

The Croatian Trobojnica (tri-colour), adopted not long before Croatia’s independence from Yugoslavia, sits side by side with the official Flag of Europe

POLITICS & SOCIETY

This issue’s cover story focuses on Croatia, which on 1 July became the 28th Member State of the European Union, following closely in the footsteps of its northerly neighbour Slovenia. Only 22 years ago both had been a part of another union - that of Yugoslavia, a south-Slavic confederation that included the modern states of Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia. Celebra-

tions in Zagreb culminated in a rendition of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy (the official anthem of the European Union) given by Croatia’s President, Ivo Josipović.  

HISTORY & CULTURE

In August, archaeologists in the eastern German town of Brandenburg an der Hav-el uncovered the skeletal remains of a 12th century Slavic warlord whose bones revealed evidence of multiple lance and sword wounds, proving that Slavs and Europeans haven’t always enjoyed such amity. 900 years ago this area of modern Germany was fiercely contested between Slavic tribes and Christian Germans

migrating eastward in a process known to historians as ‘Ostsiedlung’ (Eastsettling). But the discovery was not so remarkable for its historical significance as for the fact it was made by an animal: the archaeologists who unearthed the remains only became aware of their existence when a burrowing badger dug up a human pelvic bone.

SCIENCE & NATURE

While one small furry mammal was making a discovery in the woodlands around Branden-burg, another was being discovered in the cloud forests of Ecuador and Colombia. In early August, zoologist Kristofer Helgen of the Smithsonian Institute presented to the world the “olinguito”, a carnivorous, raccoon-like ani-mal indigenous to the northern regions of South America. It was the first such discovery in more

than 35 years. By comparing DNA samples with five other similar species, scientists were able to confirm the olinguito as a separate and distinct species. "This reminds us that the world is not yet explored and the age of discovery is far from over," said Dr Helgen. "The olinguito makes us think - what else is out there?"

TRAVEL & GEOGRAPHY

Staying in South America, officials in Bogota were in June able to announce a 4.6% increase in Colombian tourism for the first quarter of 2013, despite perennial security concerns. Since 1999, the country has a seen a five-fold increase in the number of foreign visitors, suggesting more of us are beginning to identify Colombia with arepas, coffee and Caribbean beaches than with guerrillas, drugs and kidnappings.

4 Issue THREE

t h e

LISTRED Terra Nova looks at three recent additions

to the IUCN Red List™ (2013, Q1), and examines their chances of survival.

White-Lipped PeccaryTayassu pecari

IUCN Status: Vulnerable Where: Central & South AmericaHabitat: Tropical forests, dry grasslands and woodlands

Threats: The white-lipped peccary is under threat throughout its biogeograph-ical range, chiefly from deforestation and hunting. Population reduction has been estimated at around 30% over the past three generations, and this is set to continue. In some areas of its range, the white-lipped peccary has been wiped out entirely (El Salvador) or reduced to critical levels (Costa Rica, Mexico, Guatemala) due to illegal hunting, habitat fragmentation and epizootic disease. In Peru, harvesting peccary populations is legal, with meat sold in local markets and pelts exported to the European leather industry.

Chances of Survival: The peccary has a wide distributional range and is found in many protected areas, giving it a good chance of survival. However, the species is rapidly disappearing from fragmented areas, and even populations found within large protected areas remain under pressure from unsustainable hunting, whether legal or illegal.

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ENDANGERED SPECIES

Issue THREE

Mountain TreeskinkEmoia campbelli

IUCN Status: EndangeredWhere: Viti Levu, FijiHabitat: Highland forests

Threats: Added to the IUCN Red List in the first quarter of 2013, the mountain treeskink of Fiji has so far only been found in the highland forests of Viti Levu’s interior. However, the presence of a similar species on Kadavu suggests that Emoia campbelli may yet be found on Fiji’s other islands. Its restricted range (estimated at 5,000km²) and decline of natural habitat puts the entire species at risk of extinction.

Chances of Survival: The absence of population data makes it difficult to assess the mountain treeskink’s chances of survival, but the species would certainly benefit from the protection of high elevation areas on Vitu Levu and possibly on other Fijian islands.

Yangtze Finless PorpoiseNeophocaena asiaeorientalis

IUCN Status: Critically Endangered Where: ChinaHabitat: Freshwater rivers, lakes and tributaries

Threats: Threats to the finless porpoise (or jiangtun) are closely associated with human overpopulation and industrialisa-tion. The growing number of boats operating on the Yangtze River has lead to an increasing number of animals being killed by propeller strike, while the continued use of unregulated and non-selective fishing gear - responsible for the probable extinction of the Baiji (or Yangtze river dolphin) – is thought to be a major factor in the species’ decline. Meanwhile, widespread sand mining of the river bed and banks has destroyed much of the finless porpoise’s natural habitat and that of its prey.

Chances of Survival: Chances of survival remain slim for the Yangtze finless porpoise while economic growth takes precedence over conservation. Despite the regulation of sand mining and the prohibition of electro-fishing and other illegal fishing activities, the law has not been adequately enforced and so populations continue to decline rapidly. Long-term survival depends on whether Yangtze fishermen can be provided with a better education and training or an alternative livelihood.

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7Issue THREE

I t’s a warm summer’s evening in north-west Croatia. The streets of Zagreb - wide, good-look-ing and reminiscent of Vienna or Budapest - are beginning to fill with doctors and lawyers, shopkeepers and factory owners, students and tram drivers. All sectors of society are here to celebrate Croatia’s accession to the European Union. The stage is set for one big party.

Later, at midnight, Croatian president Ivo Josipović gives a stirring rendition of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy as thousands of eager Croats pack into the city’s main square. Ten years after making its first application, Croatia is about to become a full EU member.

It’s a significant moment. For many Croats, president Josipović included, EU membership repre-sents the final milestone on a long and arduous road, one which has its origins in war and blood-shed. “This is the day when we open a new chapter in the thick book of our history”, suggests Josipović in his address to the nation.

But just how far has Croatia come since independence? The brutal wars that plagued its early years may be slipping into the realms of distant memory, but the state that acceded from the Fed-eral Republic of Yugoslavia in 1991 shares many of the problems that its former confederates do: economic stagnation, political corruption and social injustice.

EU membership will certainly help on the first of these counts. With unemployment at around 17 per cent (behind only Greece and Spain in European rankings) and a public deficit nearing €48bn, the Croatian economy has much to gain from access to wider markets. EU entry funds alone - said to be in the region of €14bn – are likely to stimulate a recovery of sorts.

The New-Slav LandscapeIn July, Croatia became the 28th member state of the European Union, following in the footsteps of its northerly Balkan neighbour and former confederate Slovenia. The remaining post-Yugoslav states are set to join over the coming years. But just two decades on from leaving one union, are Croatia and co. ready to join another?

Story by Adam WoodsIllustration by Amir Kudaibergenov

Yet some Croatians remain sceptical. Back in Janu-ary 2012, as thousands of voters from Zagreb in the north to Dubrovnik in the south were deciding the fate of their country in a “yes” or “no” EU referendum, large groups of anti-EU campaigners began taking to the streets to voice their concerns over the Eurozone crisis. “Twenty years after we split from Yugoslavia, why would we enter an organisation that is breaking apart?” asked Dean Golubić, a former presidential candidate and one of the government’s biggest critics.

For protestors like Gol-ubić, and the 33 per cent who voted against EU member-ship, handing over a chunk of political and adminis-trative power to Brussels is far too high a price to pay for a stake in an economic community that in any case appears to be failing. Unlike the United Kingdom, Czech Republic and Denmark, Croatia does not have an opt-out clause on adopting the Euro, which leaves it to inherit a currency in crisis. It’s a proposition that gives little cause for enthusiasm amongst Croatia’s leaders, whose hopes and promises of fiscal recovery hang in the balance. Even the president of the European Parliament Martin Schulz admits that membership offers no “mag-ic solution” for the country’s troubled economy.

Ordinary Croatians are more likely than not to gain from EU membership, but clearly not as much as the flag-waving crowds gathered in the streets of Zagreb might have hoped. What’s more, it comes at a cost of surrender-ing a certain amount of polit-

ical sovereignty, which leaves many of the older gen-eration wondering why they fought in such a bitter war for independence only to give it away again less than twenty years later.

“We’ll have to ask them for the colour of toilet pa-per”, says Franjo Jercevic, the parish priest of Kastav. “For a full half-century Croatian management was in Belgrade, and now the Croatian traitors of all col-ours and orientations have chosen Brussels”.

YUGOSLAVIAThe idea of a unified south Slavic state had been discussed as early as the 16th century, but it wasn’t until the “Illyrian Movement” of the 19th century that it really started to gather momentum. Fearing the obliteration of their language and customs, Croatian nationalists under Austro-Hungarian rule began to pursue an active campaign of cultural and linguistic revival that found support among prom-inent Serbs and fostered a relationship that would endure for more than 150 years.

The disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire after the First World War opened the door for the first manifestation of a pan-South-Slavic state, called the ‘Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes’. By 1929, this had been replaced by the Kingdom of ‘Yugoslavia’ (a word derived of jugo, meaning south, and Sloveni, meaning Slavs), ruled by the Serbian Karađorđević dynasty. The invasion of Axis powers and the onset of Second World War brought an end to the monarchy as anti-Nazi partisans instead proclaimed a Democratic Federal Yugoslavia – a movement endorsed by the Allied powers.

After the war, the Democratic Federal Republic was renamed the Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia and modelled after the Soviet Union as communists under the leadership of Josip Broz took control. “Tito”, as he was known, would remain at the helm of Yugoslav government until his death in 1980.

A strong and charismatic leader, Tito was able to preserve the unity of the six Yugoslav nations and prevent the escalation of inter-ethnic tensions which constantly threatened to destabilise the union. However, his successors lacked the same guile, and within ten years Yugoslavia was falling apart.

Slovenia declared independence in June 1991 with little resistance from Belgrade save a ten-day conflict that caused minimal casualties. Croatia and Bosnia came soon after, but theirs were not to be bloodless affairs. Over the course of the next four years, more than 350,000 people would be killed and four million displaced from their homes as newly independent nations sought to define and protect their borders. Only the intervention of foreign powers prevented the wars from escalating any further.

Peace in the region lasted just three years. In 1998, Kosovan rebels began targeting Yugoslav authorities in a bid to force their own independ-ence. The brutal response of Serb paramilitaries – including rape, murder and arson – prompted the intervention of NATO, but only in 2008 could Kosovans claim independence.

In 2003, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was officially renamed Serbia and Montenegro, bringing to an end the south-Slav ideal.

Top: Croatian President Ivo Josipov-ić (right) receives a shirt from Dalia Grybauskaite, President of Lithuania, as Croatia’s accession to the EU is celebrated in Zagreb’s Ban Jelačić Square.

Bottom: Locals and tourists alike must pass in and out of Bosnia via two border crossings in order to get to or from Dubrovnik. With tighter controls now in place, tailbacks are expected to get much worse.

A Very Brief History

9Issue THREE

On the economic front, Croatia may finally be about to leave its Balkan neighbours behind, but elsewhere pro-gress has been slow and vulnerable to drastic setbacks. Shortly after Croatia’s entry to the EU in July, I spoke to Branislav Radeljic, a leading academic in Balkan politics and society, about some of the problems the country is facing.

“With regard to its international standing, [Cro-atia’s] accession to NATO in 2009 and to the EU in 2013 mean that it has come quite far. However, at home,” he told me, “corruption, organized crime, various minority issues and the highly questiona-ble process of reconciliation are some of the areas that undoubtedly require further attention and sustainable im-provements”.

Corruption exists at all levels in Croatia. Just last year, former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for taking bribes during his time in office, and in a recent survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), 18 per cent of Croatian citizens questioned admitted to having had either direct or indirect ex-posure to a “bribery experience” with public officials. The report found that the most common recipients were doctors (59%), nurses (36%) and police officers (30%) – usually to speed up a

procedure, receive better treatment or to avoid paying a fine.

Meanwhile, nepotism in the public sector is rife and the practice of buy-ing votes or influence in government continues unabated, not just in Croa-tia but throughout the Balkan region. A report published in July by Transpar-ency International shows that Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Serbia all have similar problems. What’s worse is that the largest bribes are being paid by Mafia-like gangs whose influence in pol-itics and the judiciary becomes stronger with each brown envelope.

“Organised crime is a part of the es-tablishment”, I was told by one jour-nalist, “Power lies in the hands of the Mafia – the criminals who have become businessmen”. These “businessmen” are not afraid to revert to violence, either. In October 2008, the editor and owner of one of Croatia’s leading weekly news magazines was assassinated after he had used his publication to report on organ-ised crime throughout the Balkans. In the same month, the daughter of one of Cro-atia’s most prominent lawyers was shot dead in the stairway leading to her home in Zagreb.

Croatia’s admission to the EU had been based on the con-dition that it would clean up its act by cracking down on corrupt officials and criminal gangs. But now that member-ship has been finally realised, there is little incentive for fur-ther efforts to be made. The same applies to human rights abuses (particularly against minorities): without fear of losing out on membership or

having it delayed, what encouragement is there for politicians to deal with the widespread discrimination against Serbs, Roma and disabled people - as well as the exploitation of children - other than that offered by their moral conscience?

“By fulfilling a range of pre-accession criteria and then by becoming a full mem-ber of the EU”, explains Radeljic, “Cro-atians have committed themselves to a number of rules, closely associated

THE NEW SLAV LANDSCAPE

The Stradun, now one of the most photographed streets in Europe, lies empty after a bombing raid carried out by Yugoslav forces during the Siege of Dubrovnik in 1991.

“FOR A FULL HALF-CENTURY CROATIAN MANAGEMENT WAS IN BELGRADE, AND NOW THE CROATIAN TRAITORS OF ALL COLOURS AND ORIENTATIONS HAVE CHOSEN BRUSSELS”

10 Issue THREE

MONTENEGRO

Until 2006, Montenegro was the junior partner in a state union with Ser-bia, a political entity that had formally succeeded the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia three years prior. In many respects, its independence was the final curtain for a movement that had origins in the late 17th century (when Croat intellectuals had first begun discussing the possibility of a unified south Slavic state). In the last ten years, gross national income in Mon-tenegro has almost tre-bled, with Montenegrins enjoying the highest per capita income of all the post-Yugoslav states except Croatia.

Unemployment: 19%GDP per capita: $7,110.63Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): N/AComparison:Finland 1st, Somalia/Afghanistan 174th.

CROATIA

On 1 July 2013, Croatia became only the second post-Yugoslav state to join the EU. It followed a public referendum in which 66 per cent of voters decided in favour of their country’s accession to the Union. As things stand, the 28th member is set to receive around €14bn in funding over the next eight years, the majority of which will be spent on infrastructure projects designed to get the economy moving again.

Unemployment: 17%GDP per capita: $14,193.33Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): 62nd

SLOVENIA

Slovenia was both the first Balkan state to make the break with Belgrade (1991) and the first to be represented in Brussels (2004). Not long after becoming an EU member, unem-ployment in Slovenia dropped considerably, and since accession the country’s economy has generally remained stable (although it has suffered in the wake of the Eurozone crisis). Corruption in Slovenia has historically been low, crime is continually declining, and human rights abuses are few and far between. Unemployment: 13%GDP per capita: $24,132.03Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): 37th

YUGOSL

AVIA: TW

O DECAD

ES ON

11Issue THREE

BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA

Bosnia’s complicated war of independence was the bloodiest of all, with some 60,000 mili-tary and another 40,000 civilian casualties (many of these occured in acts of genocide). The people of Bosnia are largely made up of Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims – 48%), ethnic Serbs (37%) and ethnic Croats (14%). Simmering tensions between these three groups have at times threatened to boil over, which has been major obstacle to pro-gress. Crime, corruption and discrimination all remain high.

Unemployment: 43%GDP per capita: $4,820.67Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): 72nd

SERBIA

Of all the post-Yugoslav states not already in the EU, Serbia is the closest to gaining membership. Since signing a Stabili-sation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the Union back in 2007, Serb leaders have been routing out and handing over war crimes sus-pects to the Internation-al Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), thus removing the only major obsta-cles to accession. On 28 June, the European Council finally approved negotiations for EU en-try, though like Croatia and Slovenia before it, Serbia will have to im-prove its human rights record before anything is formally ratified.

Unemployment: 24%GDP per capita: $6,312.33Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): 80th

KOSOVO

Kosovo officially de-clared its independence from Serbia in 2008, but it wasn’t until April of this year that Serbia finally accepted that it no longer had jurisdic-tion over the region. Although it still does not formally recognise Kosovo as a sovereign state, it’s thought that recognition is not too far away (at the time of writing, Prime Ministers Hashim Thaçi and Ivica Dačić were still in nego-tiations). The agreement is expected to pave the way for the accession of both countries to the EU.

Unemployment: 45%GDP per capita: $3,579.23Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): 105th

FYR MACEDONIA

Macedonia’s independ-ence in 1991 may not have been followed by the kind of conflict experienced in Croatia and Bosnia, but the last two decades have hardly been trouble- free. No sooner had it emerged from the Yugoslav union than it became embroiled in a naming dispute with its neighbour to the south, Greece, which accused the new nation of baseless irredentism. Then, in 2001, thou-sands of ethnic Albanian refugees dislodged from Kosovo two years earlier took up arms alongside Albanian nationalists on both sides of the border to fight for an independ-ent Albanian-speaking state within Macedonia. The disturbances lasted only several months, but tensions between ethnic groups and discrimina-tion against minorities continues to this day.

Unemployment: 31%GDP per Capita: $5,057.97Position in Corruption Perception Index (CPI): 69th

12 Issue THREE

THE NEW EU BORDER ISN’T JUST A PHYSICAL BARRIER TO MUTUAL-COOPERATION IN THE REGION: IT’S ALSO A SYMBOLIC BARRIER THAT COULD THREATEN TO DERAIL EFFORTS TOWARDS RECONCILIATION

with what is generally referred to as the process of democratiza-tion and Europeanization”. The trouble is that those rules, includ-ing ones governing human rights issues, are not always enforced. Though EU institutions have a responsibility to monitor and re-spond to abuses within the bloc’s borders, the situation in Hunga-ry and Romania - where cases of human rights violations persist despite EU status - has shown that Europe’s bigwigs are not always prepared to take definitive action.

In an open letter to the Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milan-ović, Hugh Williamson of the Human Rights Watch expressed his hope that the government would “use the formal accession [to the EU] as an opportunity to further strengthen the protection of human rights” – “rather”, he added in a separate interview, “than as a signal to slow down”. In many ways, this is the acid test for Croatia: will the recent progress in human rights affairs - demon-strated by the creation and consolidation of government spon-sored institutions - continue now that the EU’s financial carrot has been withdrawn? What happens next might give us a clearer indication of how far the western Balkan country has really come in the last 20 years.

On an usually cloudy morning in southern Dalmatia, I take the coastal road from Omiš (near Split) to the UNESCO World Her-itage city of Dubrovnik, which lies not far from the Montenegrin border. A similar route is taken by tens of thousands of tourists every summer, but today there are only a handful of vehicles on the road. We’re still in the month of June, and the season isn’t quite in full swing.

Not far from the city itself, I’m required to pass through two borders, exiting and re-entering Croatia by way of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It’s called the “Neum Corridor”, a geographical pe-culiarity that isolates Dubrovnik and the surrounding area from the rest of the country. I have to show my passport twice in the space of ten minutes, but otherwise getting through is quick and easy. In a few days time, that’s all set to change.

Croatia’s accession to the EU means that its borders will be-come the official frontier of Europe. With stricter controls in place, getting through the Neum Corridor will not be so easy. Naturally this could affect tourism and trade, but worse than that, it’s likely to affect Croatia’s relationship with its Balkan neighbours. Indeed, the thickening of a border that until 1991 didn’t exist has already brought about conflict with one of its former confederates. In 2007, Croatia began work on the con-struction of a bridge that would run from the tip of the Pelješac peninsula to the mainland north of Neum, bypassing the corri-dor and making it easier for traffic to get to and from Dubrovnik. Bosnian officials, however, have protested that the bridge, which is on hold due to a lack of funds, could hinder maritime trade, making Adriatic access rights granted by the United Nations in 1999 meaningless in practice.

The new EU border isn’t just a physical barrier to mutual-co-operation in the region: it’s also a symbolic barrier that could threaten to derail efforts towards reconciliation, particularly between Croatia and Serbia, who have only recently begun to recover lost political, social and economic ties. That being said,

Croatia’s position within the EU may well encourage greater di-alogue between the post-Yugoslav states, as Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina all set their sights on membership themselves. Their path to the EU inevitably leads via Zagreb, just as Croatia’s path led via Ljubljana.

Whether these countries are quite ready for EU membership is another question entirely. All of them suffer from similar levels of corruption and crime as Croatia does, and all of them have their own human rights issues. Nevertheless, the prospect of joining the European community might well prove a catalyst for change in the Balkans.

Croatia, for its part, will do what it can to help its neighbours join - though only because regional stability is in its own national interests. “There is no country in the world that wants the neigh-bourhood to have a serious problem or crisis”, points out Presi-dent Josipović. His and Prime Minister Milanovic’s efforts might not be entirely selfless, but by bringing their former Yugoslav con-federates into the European equation, they may just speed along the process of reconciliation and bring about a lasting peace to banish the memory of war.

THE NEW SLAV LANDSCAPE

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Born in 1828 to a wealthy family, Mannikarnika (as she was known as a child) had a very different upbringing to most 19th century Indian girls. Raised in the Bither court among many boys, she learned to ride horses, mastered the art of swordsmanship and became a good shot with a gun.

In 1842 Mannikarnika was married to the Maharajah of Jhansi, but by 1853 she was widowed and had lost a four-month-old son. To ensure a peaceful succession the Maharajah had, on the day before his death, adopted a boy named Anand Rao and made him his legal heir in accordance with Hindu law.

The East India Company, however, refused to recognise him as such and took control of Jhansi, applying the notorious ‘Doctrine of Lapse’ policy which permitted the annexation of any kingdom without a direct heir to the throne. Thus the queen lost her Kingdom and her treasures, despite efforts to retain them through the courts. Four years later, events of greater significance would force her into action.

Soon after the outbreak of the Indian Mutiny in 1857, the Bengal infantry and cavalry regiments stationed in central India rebelled. The uprisings, directed against the perennially overreaching East India Company, soon spread to recently annexed Jhansi, where locals reputedly hoped and prayed for the restoration of the monarchy. The British garrison in the fortress of Jhansi and the Christian citizens of the city were massacred, though whether Lakshmibai played any part in encouraging the rampaging sepoys remains a mystery.

In the wake of these events, the previously reluctant rani took the opportunity as the only remaining authority in the city to re-establish herself as ruler of Jhansi (in her adopted son’s name). Having strengthened defences and organised the manufacture of ammunition, she raised an army of 14,000 volunteers to protect Jhansi from the advancing British who now held her responsible for the massacre. Lakshmibai’s efforts were met with initial success, but after two weeks of fighting, during which the rani personally killed a number of British soldiers, the city and the kingdom fell to British forces once again.

In the ensuing chaos more than 5,000 people were killed, among them the rani’s father, who was hanged without proper trial. Lakshmibai herself managed to escape to the fortress of Kalpi (allegedly with her adopted son clinging to her back as she rode), before moving on to Gwalior where she would meet her martyrdom.

Within a few weeks, the British under Major-General Sir Hugh Rose had caught up with the rani and her rebels, and on 17 June 1858 a squadron of the 8th King’s Irish Royal Hussars finally intercepted the marauding Indian forces outside the city fortress. Tales of the battle that followed depict the armour-clad Queen of Jhansi riding on horseback, reigns between her teeth and a sword in each hand, fearlessly fighting to the end.

Many years after her death, the defiant image of the rani riding sword in hand would become a totem of Indian nationalism, her story seen as a prelude in the struggle for independence. Her legend lives on today in the fiery eyes of sun-gilt statues, in the school books of Indian children, and in the songs, literature and films that celebrate her as the national heroine who stood up to the might of British rule.

Rani Lakshmibai of JhansiHailed as India’s Joan of Arc, Rani Lakshmibai was one of the leading figures of the Indian Rebellion (1857-9), an event that would define British rule on the sub-continent for the next 90 years. Though less eminent in the Western world than her French counterpart, the fiery rani (queen) who stood up to her oppressors is revered amongst Indians as a cultural icon and an antecedent of independence luminaries Nehru and Ghandi.

HEROES OF HISTORY

Rani Lakshmibai

Born19.11.1828Varanasi, India

Died18.6.1858Gwalior, India

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PHOTO ESSAY

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April 2013

As I rose to the irritating hiss of sweeping in the courtyard of a neigh-bouring late night rock bar, I realised the morning I had been antic-ipating for months was upon me. In a couple of hours I was due to embark on a 12-day trek to the southern base camp on the Nepalese side of Mount Everest, sitting proudly at 5,364 metres above sea level.

Ambling at 5am down the cramped, cobbled Kathmandu street to meet my tour guide, I noticed a stout, ruddy faced man racing towards me, wearing one of the broadest grins I had ever seen, “We’re taking the chopper!” It transpired that a group of trekkers were being evacu-ated from the airport town of Lukla, and we could take the helicopter one-way across the Himalayas to the starting point of our trek.

The thin air became dense with anticipation; my trekking group and I waited for our tour guide to reveal the helicopter was one big joke. Upon arrival at Kathmandu airport, we were escorted through secu-rity by a giant of Nepalese man, bundled into the back of an SUV and were soon racing across the tarmac towards the helicopter hangars. It was no joke.

TREKKING IN THE HIGH HIMALAYA

Kathmandu to Everest Base Camp

By Ceri Provis-Evans

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Namche BazaarEver since Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay passed through it en route to Everest’s summit in 1953, the village of Namche Bazaar has attracted a cascade of climbers and trekkers. Often referred to as the gateway to the high Himalaya, and resting precariously on a crescent shaped mountain 3,440 metres above sea level, it’s the first settlement above the altitude sickness threshold, and thus most tourists spend two nights here to acclimatise – that and to make the most of the hot water and electricity!

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Prayer FlagsOn almost every trail in Nepal, you’ll notice a tangle of these vibrantly coloured flags, an image that has become synonymous with Nepalese culture. The flags are prevalent in both the Buddhist and Hindu faiths, and are often hung to bless the surrounding countryside. They can be seen frequently along many trekking routes, adding a highly photogenic element to the breathtaking vistas.

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The Fledging PorterOver the rocky and at times very loose mountain terrain, the herculean Nepalese porters often wear no more than simple sandals, and they rarely carry any water (opting instead to stop at springs and rivers en route). The porters are hired to transport goods to villages along the trek, and often carry loads of between 50kg and 90kg. It is common for the porters to begin work at a young age, graduating to heavier loads as they grow in strength. They are paid per kilo delivered, and rely on superhuman balance, stamina and strength to take them to their destination, moving at a pace almost twice that of an average trekker.

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YaksIn the high Himalaya, the dull ringing of bells signals the arrival of a yak herd, and on numerous occasions during our trek we were forced to make way for these large, long-haired bovines as they trampled by. The people of Nepal have long relied on yaks to transport goods in the extremely high altitudes encountered in the Himalayan range. They are beautiful, versatile animals, being naturally able to live and work at altitudes up to and even beyond 6,000 metres.

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Everest Base CampRocks well-etched by trekkers and a plethora of prayer flags greeted us at the entrance to Everest’s southern base camp as we arrived victorious yet utterly drained. The camp was a mess of yellow and blue tents in the middle of the heavily fractured Khumbu Glacier, dusted by the remnants of recent rock falls and shaded by the looming presence that is the Khumbu Icefall, regarded as one of the most dangerous stages of the South Col route to the summit.

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Mount EverestAt dawn the ominous black mountain loomed threateningly over me like a mighty beast in my delirious, frozen state. I enthusiastically welcomed the emergence of the sun from behind the peak, whilst marvelling at the view from the summit of what is widely accepted as the finest viewpoint; Kala Patthar, which marked the highest point of our trek, standing at 5,643 metres. During the climbing window in May, when the jet stream on the summit calms, many come here to watch their team progress up the ridge of the highest moun-tain in the world - Everest, dominating the Himalayan land-scape at 8,848 metres above sea level.

Ceri Provis-Evans is a freelance photographer, writer and designer. He recently spent two weeks trekking to Everest’s south base camp; now he shares the view through his lens.

www.cezza.co.uk

Have a great photo story worth sharing? We’d love to hear from you!

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Amsterdam Alternative

Prostitutes, drugs and canals. Amsterdam has garnered a reputation down the years as being the easy going, liberal capital of Western Europe, with hookers as window dressing and marijuana, not petit fours, served with your coffee. Of course, there’s a lot more to the Dutch capital than this easy stereotype: it’s a city packed with culture, art and history, from the world-class Rijksmuseum showcasing the works of Dutch masters like Van Gogh and Rembrandt to the poignant attic of Anne Frank, where the diarist and her family spent two years in hiding before discovery. Rarely, however, can you appreciate Amsterdam’s main attractions without having to bat away snap-happy tourists or wait your turn to get an all-too-brief glimpse at a post-impressionist masterpiece. So if you hate the crowds or you’ve seen one ominous oil painting too many, why not check out one of these less-frequented alternatives?

House of BolsJust a short walk down Paulus Potterstraat from the world famous Rijksmuseum and directly facing the Van Gogh Museum is the House of Bols, home to the museum of Lucas

Bols - a company that has been producing fine spirits in the city of Amsterdam for nearly 450 years.

Though the Bols family had been concocting various alcoholic drinks from as early as 1575 (making their distillery the oldest in the world), it wasn’t until the mid-17th century that Lucas Bols first distilled the now world-famous Bols Genever, a brand of gin that has the same regional pro-tection as champagne and which at one point in the 19th century outsold competing brands by six bottles to one.

After learning about the history of Bols (including how Rembrandt paid off an outstanding bill to neighbour Lucas Bols with a painting that hangs in this very museum), visitors are ushered into a room where 38 fla-vours (from coffee to peach) of Bols Genever are lined up in perfume-style

bottles. You then have to guess which is which through smell alone.

At last you get to sample some of the distillery’s spirits with your tongue (much to the relief of some bleary-eyed visitors) in a bar lined with mirrors. Museums ought not to be this fun, so make sure this one’s on your itinerary when you visit the ‘Dam.

Olympisch StadionIf you don’t mind venturing a little further out of the city centre then the stadium built for the 1928 Olympic Games is well worth a visit, especially with the tour priced at a very reason-able €6.

Amsterdam’s Olympisch Stadion hosted the 9th Olympiad and was the first sporting arena in modern times to light and mount an Olympic flame,

an innovation that has become one of the Games’ most iconic features. Just as it did in ancient times, the flame burned for the entire duration of the event. The “Marathon Tower” that held the flame is still in place outside the main entrance of the stadium.

In the years that followed, Amster-dam’s Olympisch Stadion was used to host various sports, including hockey, cycling and football. The Dutch national football team used it as their home ground for many internationals, and in the 1994-5 season it witnessed Ajax knocking out Bayern Munich en route to winning the European Cup.Thanks to renovations over the past two decades, the Olympisch Stadion is still in use today, primarily as an athletics arena. In 2016 it will host the European Athletics Champion-ships - quite remarkable for a venue that will be 88 years old in three years time.

As well as joining a guided tour of the stadium, visitors can take in the “Olympic Experience Amsterdam”, an exhibit chronicling the history of the stadium and of Dutch Olympic feats through the years.

Blue CafeAt the far end of Kalverstraat (the bustling main shopping area of the city) you’ll find a fairly ordinary shop-ping centre by the name of Kalver-toren, which at first sight has little to offer tourists. But step inside, climb the metal staircase to the top tower and you’ll soon realise just what a hidden gem this place is.

At the tower’s summit you’ll find Blue, a contemporary café with large glass windows offering panoramic views across the city – views that are impossible to find elsewhere in the

Dutch capital. Over a traditional lunch of pea soup and Kroketten (a cheese and meat croquette served with fresh bread) you can look out on Amster-dam’s tiled roofs, gabled facades and its network of canals knowing there’s nowhere better to appreciate the city’s stunning skyline.

Artis Zoo & Horticus BotanicusCentral Amsterdam is a compact, bustling metropolis with little green space to be found inside its ring of canals. However, just to the east of the city centre you’ll find Artis Zoo and the Botanical Gardens, both nat-ural havens in the heart of an urban city.

Dating back to 1638, Horticus Bo-tanicus is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world. Though it only encompasses 1.2 hectares on the banks of the Nieuwe Herengracht canal, there is plenty packed within its relatively small circumference. A stroll through the tranquil greenery offers up 4,000 species of plants from around the world, including a wide selection of palms.

After a morning spent in the botan-ical gardens, take a right turn down Plantage Middenlaan and on the left hand side you’ll find the entrance to Artis Zoo. Artis contains the usual collection of exotic animals, but it differs from most modern zoos in that it was built within a pre-existing city park laid out and paid for by the wealthy residents of Amsterdam some 175 years ago. Consequent-ly, Artis’s gardens have reached full maturity, and between the lofty boughs of sycamore and extremely rare Wollemia pine you’ll stumble

across some of the finest examples of 19th Century Dutch architecture the capital has to offer.

De Negen StraatjesSandwiched between the Singel and Prinsengracht canals and just a few minutes’ walk from the bustling Dam Square are nine streets collectively known as, conveniently enough, “The Nine Streets” (De Negen Straatjes). Unlike Kalverstraat, which has all the well-known high street brands and fast food eateries, De Negen Straatjes are home to a series of independent shops, boutiques, cafés and galleries.

These mainly pedestrianised cob-bled alleyways (delivery vans and of course bicycles are permitted) allow visitors to enjoy Amsterdam at a far more relaxed pace. Rarely will you have to sidestep a throng of bum-bling tourists led by an overzealous, umbrella-wielding guide. Plus, once you’ve made your artisanal purchase or supped at a coffee in quirky café you can stand on the bridge at the end of each street and admire the unique Dutch architecture that Am-sterdam is so famous for.

The buildings in this section of the city date mainly from the 17th century and have changed very little since then. At the time of their construc-tion the city was rapidly expanding thanks to its increasingly important role in the world’s sea trade. The canals that run perpendicular to De Negen Straatjes were a key part of the city’s growth in an era when the Netherlands was becoming a force to be reckoned with on the international stage.

C ambodia has a troubled history. For much of the latter half of the 20th century it struggled in the throes of war, rebellion and revolution.

Armed conflicts took the lives of nearly half a million people, genocide another 1.7 million, and untold num-bers perished in spells of prolonged famine that dev-astated rural communities. Those days may be gone but they cannot yet be forgotten – because Cambodia’s history has left a violent legacy, one which continues to create fear and suffering among its people. That legacy is landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO).

As a result of an almost permanent state of conflict, Cambodia has become one of the most landmine con-taminated countries in the world. They appeared first in the eastern provinces of Mondulkiri and Ratana-kiri during the Vietnam War; fighting had spilled out across the border when U.S. and South Vietnamese forces discovered that National Liberation Front guer-rillas (‘Viet Cong’) were using the Cambodian coun-tryside as a refuge for logistical operations (part of the Ho Chi Minh Trail). Over the next five years an esti-mated 540,000 tons of ordnance were dropped on the re-gion by U.S. forces alone. The Cambodian Civil War and Khmer Rouge regime that followed these cross-border conflicts only exacerbated the situation, with the pres-ence of mines spreading to other parts of the country and becoming ever more concentrated.

Once laid, mines can remain active for up to 50 years. Consequently, almost 20,000 people have

CAMBODIA IS HEALINGA war-crippled Cambodia is scourged by landmines and has one of the highest rates of disability in the world. But it’s tackling the problem and leading the way for other South East Asian nations to follow.

been killed over the last three decades (since Khmer Rouge’s downfall) and those who survive are often left with permanent injuries. In 2012, the Cambodian Mine and Explosive Remnants of War Victim Infor-mation System recorded 142 injuries or amputations, adding to the two per cent of the population already disabled as a result of landmines. One in five casual-ties will lose at least one limb – as such, it’s estimated that Cambodia could have the highest number of am-putees in the world.

 DISABILITY

In a population of 14.7 million, it is thought that around 700,000 people are living with disabilities, many of which are inflicted by landmines. These people struggle with poverty and discrimination. They lack access to education and employment and receive no welfare from the severely under-resourced state support system. Often they are shunned by their community and suffer from a stigma which sees them regarded with fear and mistrust.

Part of the problem is belief. Buddhists make up over 90 per cent of the Cambodian population, and while community support is practically doctrine (indeed, many Buddhists make charitable donations because they believe doing so will bring them luck), the pre-vailing view is that disabilities are the consequence of a personal failing in either a previous life or this one.

Story by Jessica Crisp

31Issue THREE

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It is because of this attitude that the vast majority of disabled people live in poverty and isolation and are among the most vul-nerable groups in Cambodia, according to a report by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in 2009. The report stated disabled people “lack equal access to education, training and employment. While many workers with disabilities have considerable skills, many have not had the opportunity to develop their potential.”

 An extract from a letter composed by Han Loeuth and sent to  Campaign for Peace and Reconciliation (CPR), a volun-tary agency working to aid war victims in Cambodia, illustrates the emotional suf-fering of the disabled:

 “I lost all my sense of being and self-es-teem and filled myself instead with cow-ardice, fear, and despair. I did not want to live. The heart of the amputee is filled with nothing but sorrow and shame. That is the gift of war and land mines to the am-

putee.    Now so-called peace has arrived, but my legs and arms have still not grown back. How come? When will they grow back? I will be chided and reproached and looked down on by others who don't care.”

 THE PROBLEM Landmines were a particular favourite of the Khmer Rouge regime – one general went as far as to call them the perfect type of soldier, “ever courageous, never sleeps, never misses” – and were laid prolifically in Cambodia’s rural borderlands before, during and after the communist faction’s time in power. Often, minefields would be laid much denser than they needed to be, and in areas where communities lived by the land. In most cases, the locations of the mines were not recorded, and even if they had been, the mines would have like-ly moved or been buried deeper in mud-slides brought about by the monsoon. As

CAMBODIA IS HEALING

Left: Poverty often comes hand in hand with deformity. Young mothers like Srey Ny are forced to beg on the streets of Battambang – a city with the highest rate of amputees in the country - in order to feed their children.

Opposite: Throughout Cambodia, efforts are being made to clear landmines and other UXO. It’s estimated that up to three million mines have been removed in the last 20 years, and that the rest will be cleared within the next decade.

33Issue THREE

time goes by, landmines and UXO will become increasingly unstable and more difficult to locate.

It’s a real concern for Cambodia’s farm-ing communities, who now live in fear of death or mutilation and the social isola-tion it brings, and for whom fertile lands are now totally off-bounds to cultivation. Reduced farming opportunities have led to increased poverty, which in turn has led to extreme measures being taken. Some of the poorest people have resorted to disas-sembling live mines and selling them for scrap metal.

The blame for Cambodia’s landmine problem extends beyond Khmer Rouge and the warring factions. According to a report by the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC), mines in Cambodia have come from all over the world, in-cluding the USA, China, India, the former USSR, Hungary and Chile. With a long history of arms dealing and little regard to where their munitions end up, many of these countries and others have come un-der pressure to sign the Mine Ban Treaty.

  The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) was awarded the No-bel Peace Prize in recognition for its ef-forts to bring about the 1997 Mine Ban

Treaty, which aims to eliminate anti-per-sonnel mines across the world. However, Vietnam, Laos, Burma, the USA, Russia and China are among the nations yet to sign it.

 Cambodia’s most recent border conflict with Thailand only serves to illustrate how hard it is to enforce these treaties without support from the world’s biggest powers. As recently as 2011, the Thai Army admit-ted to using cluster munitions along the border at Preah Vihear, putting thousands more people at risk from UXO. With in-ternational cooperation lacking, clearly it will be difficult to impose tighter controls and ensure the responsible handling of weapons sales, particularly in such a vul-nerable area.

 TACKLING THE ISSUES

In order to address the intertwined issues of landmines and disability, recent gov-ernments have taken a double-pronged approach, enlisting the help of NGOs to remove unexploded ordnance whilst introducing new initiatives aimed at im-proving opportunities and welfare for those already affected by it.

Back in 2002, an investigation by the Japan International Cooperation Agen-cy Planning and Evaluation Department found that public awareness and mass education campaigns designed to eradi-cate discrimination were “almost non-ex-istent”. Now, however, there are not just campaigns but laws.

In 2009, a National Plan of Action for Persons with Disabilities was enacted with the aim of addressing the needs of and services available to the disabled. In the same year, the National Assembly passed the Law on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, promoting equal opportunities in em-ployment. The government has been sup-ported in its endeavours by organisations such as Lom Orng, which has put over 15,000 disabled people through vocation-al training so that they can earn a living as mechanics, hairdressers, tailors and tel-evision repairers.

A chief proponent of these initiatives and others has been Cambodia’s current Prime Minister Hun Sen, whose own

POLITICS & SOCIETY

“THE HEART OF THE AMPUTEE IS FILLED WITH NOTHING BUT SORROW AND SHAME. THAT IS THE GIFT OF WAR AND LAND MINES TO THE AMPUTEE”

34 Issue THREE

disability - a visual impairment caused by the loss of his left eye – reveals the physi-cal legacy of war. In 2008 he made a mem-orable appeal to the public: “Stop such words like, ‘you, blind,’ or ‘no-legged man,’ because it hurts. If you see someone who is blind, crippled, or has amputations, please don’t talk about them based on their ap-pearance.” The continued influence of Sen will almost certainly aid progress.

 NGOs are playing a significant part in the action too, especially in removing the UXO that creates social inequality in the first place. The Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) is the country’s leading demining organisation which works in surveying and land release. It has reported that up to three million mines have been removed in the last 20 years and predicts that the rest will be cleared within the next decade, at a cost of around $30 million. Preah Vihear is a particular area of focus.

 The Mines Advisory Group (MAG) has contributed to this by destroying more than 250,000 landmines, in the process re-leasing more than 560 square kilometres of land back to communities and directly benefitting over 200,000 families. Their Mine Risk Education scheme furthers that work by making local people aware of the risks of landmines and UXO; they are taught how to recognise and report dan-gerous items, where the known risk areas are, and how to keep others safe.

 Cambodia is starting to make progress, but it remains a country with one of the highest rates of disability in the world. Removing the landmines and UXO which play a considerable role in this issue is an arduous and costly task, and it will only make a difference if fundamental attitudes towards the disabled improve. Landmines are destructive, but their legacy no longer need be. And Cambodia knows it.

Left: With no state pensions to rely on, farmers like Ang Nua must continue to make a living in landmine contaminated areas – despite having already lost a leg to one.

35Issue THREE

UXO IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA

VIETNAM

It is estimated that up to 20 per cent of Vietnam remains contaminated with mines and that they

have been the cause of over 100,000 casualties. Landmines are a significant hindrance to devel-opment in the country, including the construction of housing and expansion of infrastructure. The Vietnamese Ministry of Defence estimates that there are 16.3 million acres still to clear. So far, the U.S. government has provided $46 million since 1989 to help with mine clearing efforts. However, the country has yet to adopt a national mine strategy like Cambodia.

LAOS

Laos is the most bombed country in the world; more than 2 million tons were dropped on the country

during the Second Indochina War alone. The government has reported that over 25 per cent of Lao villages are still affected by mine con-tamination with over 50,000 people having been killed or injured since 1964. Collecting scrap metal is a big issue in Laos. Maligna Saigna-vongs, the director of the National Regulatory Authority for UXO, has said: “If the government would like to prevent the search for scrap met-al, it’s difficult because we have no substitute for them for how to alleviate poverty [sic].”

BURMA (MYANMAR)

Burma has yet to sign the Mine Ban Treaty and has come under much criticism for its handling

of mine contamination. There are no official figures but it’s thought there were 381 land-mine casualties in 2011 – however, the number could be higher and it’s rising all the time. As of May 2013, mine warfare continues to take place, tempering the work of the government’s Myanmar Mince Action Centre. A 2012 Land-mine Monitor Report added there is no policy to support victims during treatment and rehabili-tation, and emergency services in conflict areas were “extremely limited.”

I had never really known if Luxembourg actually existed. For me, growing up on the other side of the world, European geography always consisted of the beer country, the wine country, the pasta country, the tapas country and ‘the other ones’.

Luxembourg, if it was ever mentioned, was spoken about in the same way that Narnia was – a magical fictional land that is virtually impossible to find.

Even if you were to know what to look for, you would have to squint and zoom on a map to find Luxembourg. Eventually, it’s located, squeezed in between Germany, France and Belgium. It kind of looks like the gap that’s left when you haven’t fit together two jigsaw pieces quite right.

And, as it turns out, visiting the capital (also called Luxembourg) is a bit like going to that magical land I had always imagined. The city feels like it is built to be enjoyed more than lived in. The valleys with the rivers have charming little houses built along the banks; castles and churches line the clifftops; palaces and grand government buildings dominate the structure of the historic part of town; and even the busiest of streets have a pleasant mix of offices, shopping and recreation.

It has a population of less than 100,000 people but feels much more like a city than the town the size would suggest. It spreads out – never too crowded, never too hectic, always scenic from every angle.

In terms of history, Luxembourg survived the cycles of European conquests mainly because of its fortifications. It’s considered to be one of the best examples of military architecture on the continent. Having walked up and

down its hills a few times now, I can assure you that its location is protection enough. The steep cliffs and ravines that snake through and around the city make it a very strategic position.

The valleys are also one of the main reasons why it’s such a pleasure to visit Luxembourg. Walking through the town – particularly the old quarters – is a pleasure on the eyes. The lack of the tourist hordes, who are presumably busy in the more famous neighbouring countries, makes it even more enjoyable.

There aren’t lots of ‘sights’ to visit in Luxembourg’s capital. There are quite a few interesting buildings but there’s a similarity to many of them and, remember, the city is quite small so it doesn’t take long to see them all.

As far as food and drink go, there are lots of good options around the squares in the medieval part of the city but things become a bit bare if you wander too far away. I was a bit surprised at first at how long it took me to find a decent area for dinner.

It seems that I am not the only one who has at some point wondered whether Luxembourg really exists. The foreign crowds just don’t exist here, but the locals don’t seem to mind. As a city, it’s extremely strong econom-ically but appears content and self-assured, with no grand ambitions to be more than it is. I guess that’s eas-ier to do when you’re already the capital of the world’s only ‘grand duchy’.

Read more from Turtle’s travels at:

www.timetravelturtle.com

Our guest blogger Michael Turtle heads for one of Europe’s least familiar capitals.

38 Issue THREE

The advantages are inexhaustible. We can now re-turn weary from our overseas adventures and re-gale our family and friends with fantastical stories coloured by hi-res pictures of ancient ruins and weather-beaten locals. In addition we can now store these memories across a variety of mediums, order high quality, low cost prints to frame on our walls, store them digitally on portable hard drives for future reference – we can even create DVD slide-shows to sit back and reminisce in front of in years to come.

This evidence clearly points to a golden age of amateur photography.

There is, however, a downside. What was once a pleasant stroll through time on a balmy afternoon in Rome becomes a stress-ridden quest to find that perfect shot. Where once we might have sat in slack-jawed amazement at the architectural prow-ess of the ancients, we now set ourselves, one knee to the floor, camera in hand, impatiently waiting for the over-50s tour group to shuffle off and leave us with a clear panorama of the vestiges of ancient civilisation.

It would be fair to say we are all guilty of this from time to time. Whether we are presented with

CANDID CAMERACameras and photography are as much a part of our holidays today as shouting at bemused locals in the hope of being understood was thirty years ago. Whether it be a smartphone’s built-in camera, a pocket sized point-and-shoot, or a bulky SLR with telescopic lens and it’s very own carry bag, everyone travels with a camera.

one of the wonders of the modern world, one of the world's biggest pop acts or a particularly handsome plate of Penne All'Arrabbiata, we often get a Pavlo-vian impulse to reach for our camera and preserve the image before us in perpetuity.

But why do we do this?How often have we shared one of these master-

pieces of which we are so proud with friends or family for them to be met with gasps of astonish-ment and genuine, persisting enthusiasm?

Not often, one wagers. Whilst this is what our egos crave, our photographic endeavours are in fact

By Chris Platt

39Issue THREE

OPINION

much more likely to attain an approving raised eye-brow, a casual nod or, if we've taken the necessary routes, a 'Like' or 'Retweet'. Slim pickings indeed.

But this is losing sight of why we are in the position to take these snaps in the first instance. Not one of us looks at brochures of Athens thinking that we'd love to take our own photograph of the Parthenon. No right-minded music lover would buy tickets to see the Rolling Stones with the express hope of capturing a grainy shot of Mick Jagger's gyrating hips, and surely no eager diner decides on a visit to a particular restaurant with the direct motive of gaining the endorsement of their Instagram followers.

Not only do the means by which we capture these images often prove to outweigh the satisfaction and acclaim the final product achieves, but often they can distress those whose homes we visit.

The congregants of the Church of the Holy Sepul-chre, Jerusalem (one of the holiest and most impor-tant sites in the Christian world) cut sombre, disap-pointed and at times downright dismayed figures as tourists from all four corners of the world point cam-eras at everything and anything in the building.

As worshippers solemnly kneel before the Altar of the Crucifixion and utter their thanks they are lit harshly and intermittently by the flashes of dozens of visiting cameras. In some cases these cameras are thrust beyond the rope boundary of the altar and into the unexpecting congregant's face as they attempt to speak to their God.

A complete photography amnesty within holy buildings and even historic sites would possibly be a rather heavy handed approach, but it would at least afford the respect these monuments and their patrons are entitled to. In lieu of these measures one would en-courage a casual policy of dignified deference, where before taking up our cameras on these hallowed grounds we take a moment to think whether that shot is worth the disruption it will cause.

It is natural to wish to share our experiences with those we care about, but there are times when it is better to allow yourself to enjoy the moment. Sit back and gaze up at the 2nd century stonework, feel your feet stepping on the very cobbles those 16th century merchants would have rushed over and feel overcome by the rich atmosphere that can wash over one in such rich surroundings. Life is for living, not 'liking'.

HOW OFTEN HAVE WE SHARED ONE OF THESE MASTER PIECES OF WHICH WE ARE SO PROUD WITH FRIENDS OR FAMILY FOR THEM TO BE MET WITH GASPS OF ASTONISH MENT AND GENUINE, PERSISTING ENTHUSIASM?

Have an opinion of your own? If you’d like to express it in Terra Nova Magazine, just get in touch!

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