yesterday night (while standing on my balcony listening to the radio) i realized that my neighbours must have a rather strange idea about my identity: dutschlandfunk (the german national news/culture radio station) has the annoying habit of playing the german national anthem at the end of every single day (and now during the german EU […]

Looks like someone has finally figured out how the world works. Hamza Mustafa, General Manager, The World, said: This is a big step forward in the evolution of The World. […] I think few people understand how The World will actually work in reality Unfortunately the website which records this bold statement does not go […]

i have just finished uploading my pictures from last weeks trip to lebanon to my flickr account. among them are five or so that show massive energy saving light-bulbs (or CFLs as they are officially known) used for outdoor lighting of shops and a gas station. this is a trend that i had already noticed […]

patrice has unearthed another nice little article for me (the fact that he has send it by email this time makes me think that he actually reads what i write here). it gives a nice little insight into the ethnic and religious underpinnings of Senegalese migrants that work as street hawkers in italian cities. apparently […]

is the PR campaign by the march 14 camp against the ongoing demonstration by the opposition in downtown beirut. they argue that the ongoing protests are strangling Lebanon’s economy to death and because of that those who love life should rally behind them (the slogan also is a reference to the martyrdom culture entertained by […]

while the german government advises against trips to lebanon unless you have important business or family matters to attend and recommends to stay well clear of political gatherings and the south of the country. seems a bit exaggerated especially as the ongoing protest by hezbollah and their allies in downtown is about the most peaceful […]

we spend all day today in south lebanon, which is not as badly destroyed as i had thought (sometimes it is a bit difficult to tell if a ruin is the result of the local culture of leaving lots of buildings unfinished or of an israeli air raid). some of the villages seem more or […]