Wednesday, January 11, 2006
going east to get south
Not sure what being in Paris has to do with writing about Lesotho but here goes. I am in western Europe for about a week on my way to Lesotho. Three days in London (counting jet lag and a quick flight from Amsterdam), in the middle of three days in Paris and then two nights (really only one day for sightseeing in Amsterdam). There are advantages to being a tourist at this time of year, but weather is not one of them. It has been cool and now rainy here. Prices are much lower. I have a very nice hotel in Paris in the 5th arrondisement (Left Bank) for $88Can a night which is remarkable (the price on the door was 173 euros) - it even has the best European plumbing I have ever seen - two different buttons for flushing depending on the seriousness of the event. If you know Paris, the hotel is a short block from the Cluny museum.
Observations on Europe> I cant imagine how anyone can live in London, it is so expensive. Tube fare is 3 pounds in the inner city - with the local version of a metropass it is still 1.50 for each ride. I stayed two nights at "My Club", I belong to a sailing organization called the Cruising Association and it was only 25 pounds a night including breakfast. I stayed one night in the city for 45 pounds but without my own wc, that was 20 pounds more and seemed an extravagance, until I got a bit of the runs. It was an 18th century town house in Gower St that was certainly convenient. The difference between the rich and poor is growing huge(r) in London. One bedroom apartments sell for $500,000+ but I saw more Bentleys in a couple of hours in Mayfair than I saw in my whole life. Meanwhile there seemed to be a lot of homeless people on the street - dont remember that from before.
Strangely enough, I feel more comfortable in Paris than in London. Strange because of all of the cultural links around me in London - places names, things in movies, historical references (Florence Nightingale lived and died in this building). I have no real connection to Paris but it just seems such a comfortable and human place. Makes it even harder to believe all that happened with the riots here. There really is a huge division between the white French and the north Africans. You just do not see many of the latter downtown. You do see sub-Saharan Africans though - in business suits and as guards in the Louvre for example.
I am reading an interesting book by a former Pentagon analyst about how the world is changing. He talks about those in the world who are 'includeds' and those that are not. He would suggest that the west will not end up in a war with China because the latter has become an 'included' in economic and cultural globalization and there is nothing to be gained by fighting. On the other hand, North Korea has chosen not be included and is a risk. Many in the Moslem world are also not included and this may well apply to those in the poor suburbs of Paris. There is visible evidence of an attempt to include in the city with signs about racism and a major exhibit at the Louvre about the art of Islam. In the written info (brochure for example, this exhibit is listed by its geographic area and not by the religious group. Here is a link to Lesotho - it is a not included and largely because it has not been given a chance to be included (perhaps this could be true for the Moslems in Paris who riotted). Even if they had resources to exploit (which to an extent they do not), things like protectionist trade policies in the developed world are against them being included. They cannot do much about this, because they are too far away from developed countries to even be able to sneak in (eg from North Africa and from Latin America)
There is huge evidence of security here and in London and Amsterdam. I have been frisked physically 3 times (not including the paddles like at home). There were three guys in camo uniforms with sub-machine guns wandering through the courtyard at the Louvre. Not sure what they were going to do. At St Chappelle (I am not responsible for any spelling errors in this blog) I kept making the machine go off but when the gendarme checked me with the paddle he found nothing so I guess the big machine was not working. The terrorists have been successful in making the west spend an immense amount of money for security - not to mention the inconvenience.
By the way, there is nothing at the Louvre to suggest a connection to the Da Vinci Code - I think they are missing a great marketting opportunity, but perhaps the book is not that popular here. BTW again, the Mona Lisa has been moved to a new gallery. It looks much better there.
Enough blather. I will try to get on in Johannesburg before heading into Lesotho.
Observations on Europe> I cant imagine how anyone can live in London, it is so expensive. Tube fare is 3 pounds in the inner city - with the local version of a metropass it is still 1.50 for each ride. I stayed two nights at "My Club", I belong to a sailing organization called the Cruising Association and it was only 25 pounds a night including breakfast. I stayed one night in the city for 45 pounds but without my own wc, that was 20 pounds more and seemed an extravagance, until I got a bit of the runs. It was an 18th century town house in Gower St that was certainly convenient. The difference between the rich and poor is growing huge(r) in London. One bedroom apartments sell for $500,000+ but I saw more Bentleys in a couple of hours in Mayfair than I saw in my whole life. Meanwhile there seemed to be a lot of homeless people on the street - dont remember that from before.
Strangely enough, I feel more comfortable in Paris than in London. Strange because of all of the cultural links around me in London - places names, things in movies, historical references (Florence Nightingale lived and died in this building). I have no real connection to Paris but it just seems such a comfortable and human place. Makes it even harder to believe all that happened with the riots here. There really is a huge division between the white French and the north Africans. You just do not see many of the latter downtown. You do see sub-Saharan Africans though - in business suits and as guards in the Louvre for example.
I am reading an interesting book by a former Pentagon analyst about how the world is changing. He talks about those in the world who are 'includeds' and those that are not. He would suggest that the west will not end up in a war with China because the latter has become an 'included' in economic and cultural globalization and there is nothing to be gained by fighting. On the other hand, North Korea has chosen not be included and is a risk. Many in the Moslem world are also not included and this may well apply to those in the poor suburbs of Paris. There is visible evidence of an attempt to include in the city with signs about racism and a major exhibit at the Louvre about the art of Islam. In the written info (brochure for example, this exhibit is listed by its geographic area and not by the religious group. Here is a link to Lesotho - it is a not included and largely because it has not been given a chance to be included (perhaps this could be true for the Moslems in Paris who riotted). Even if they had resources to exploit (which to an extent they do not), things like protectionist trade policies in the developed world are against them being included. They cannot do much about this, because they are too far away from developed countries to even be able to sneak in (eg from North Africa and from Latin America)
There is huge evidence of security here and in London and Amsterdam. I have been frisked physically 3 times (not including the paddles like at home). There were three guys in camo uniforms with sub-machine guns wandering through the courtyard at the Louvre. Not sure what they were going to do. At St Chappelle (I am not responsible for any spelling errors in this blog) I kept making the machine go off but when the gendarme checked me with the paddle he found nothing so I guess the big machine was not working. The terrorists have been successful in making the west spend an immense amount of money for security - not to mention the inconvenience.
By the way, there is nothing at the Louvre to suggest a connection to the Da Vinci Code - I think they are missing a great marketting opportunity, but perhaps the book is not that popular here. BTW again, the Mona Lisa has been moved to a new gallery. It looks much better there.
Enough blather. I will try to get on in Johannesburg before heading into Lesotho.
