People

Happiness

The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best thing of everything they have.

Reverie

Thought is the labour of the intellect, reverie is its pleasure - Victor Hugo.

Looking East: The Xiangpi Players

Visitors to China can catch a glimpse of its play in parks and on street corners, with aunties and uncles absorbed in plans of attack just as their forebears were thousands of years before them. The game being played is likely none other than Xiangqi or Chinese Chess, a passtime with more than two millennia of history. Xiangqi, which means literally “elephant game” or “image game,” is a two-player strategy board game. It was first mentioned in “Chu Ci” or “Songs of Chu,” an anthology of Chinese poetry compiled in the 4th century BC. The exact origins of Xiangqi have always been contentious. Some scholars believe that Chinese Chess is a variation on International Chess, a game invented in India in the 6th Century BC. Others posit the opposite: that Xiangqi came first.

Zero Gravity

Rollerblading, the fastest growing sport in America during the 1990s, turned out to be a generational fad that failed to transform into a popular sporting pursuit. Instead of latching on to the next generation, it retreated into a niche for elite athletes. Casablanca-born, Othmane is a young enthusiast and highly skilled roller skater aspiring to participate in international aggressive inline skating competitions.

The Bookseller

Your second-hand bookseller is second to none in the worth of the treasures he dispenses - Leigh Hunt.

Fluidity

Fixation is the way to death. Fluidity is the way to life. - Miyamoto Musashi.

Candeur

I was smiling yesterday, I'm smiling today and I will smile tomorrow. Simply because life is too short to cry for anything.

Wrapped In Mystery

She is an intriguing blend of simplicity and complexity a recipe to be loved but never revealed – Dean Jackson.

Child Of Africa

I am a child of Africa – Young and wild and free I play on streets of sunny hope And feed on dusty dreams I am a child of Africa – Young and bold and bright I think a million sparkling thoughts And wish on shooting stars I do not want your pity For I am not a helpless pup I do not want your charity For I will thrive at first chance I do not want your mistrust For being young is not a crime I do no want your prejudice For that is your prison not mine You will know me Not by the colour of my skin But by the spectrum of my ideas For I am Africa’s child You will know me Not by the name of my tribe But by the poetry of my ideals For I am Africa’s child I may look young But I am older than you For I was born at the beginning of time I may look weak But I am stronger than you For I was weaned on the milk of the sun I may look simple But I am smarter than you For I was schooled at the knee of wise elders You will know me Not by the poverty of my means But by the wealth of my ends For I am Africa’s child You will know me Not by the shadows of my past But by the brilliance of my future For I am Africa’s child I do not want your visions For I have dreams of my own I do not want your fears For I have monsters enough I do not want your leftovers For I have freshly baked needs I do not want your playthings For I have imagination aplenty I am a child of Africa – Young and shy and sweet I smile to hide my nervous pride And laugh with crystal joy I am a child of Africa – Young and hip and cool I dance my way to destiny And rise on wings of change Copyright: Wayne Visser

Seuls Au Monde

The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope - John Buchan. The Ebrie Lagoon is a long narrow lagoon complex located in the south of Côte d'Ivoire linked to the Atlantic ocean by the Vridi Canal. Once a symbol of tourist attraction and proudly called the “pearl of the lagoons”, it has suffered from years of extensive chemical and organic pollution. Despite this, there is an artisanal fishery on the lagoon, employing about many thousand people with a potential annual catch of around 8,000T (according to FAO).

Smile Of Africa

Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, and sometimes your smile is the source of your joy - Thich Nhat Hanh. Smiling is a cross-cultural language that means a lot to the African. It comes natural to the African and does a lot of magic and healing. He's always smiling whether sad, happy or hungry and his smile give hope. Smile costs nothing, but worth a lot.

Feel Like Going Home

The Hmong are an ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. The original home of the Hmong is thought to have been in the Huang He (Yellow River) basin of central China. They were slowly driven southward and marginalized by the expanding population of the Han Chinese.

Catalan Cowboy

From Wikipedia: A mime or mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer would typically be referred to as a mummer. An amazing mine in the street seen in La Rambla, Barcelona.

The Photographer

Every other artist begins with a blank canvas, a piece of paper. The photographer begins with the finished product.

The Travel Photographer

I like to photograph anyone before they know what their best angles are - Ellen Von Unwerth. At the heart of Angkor Thom is the 12th-century Bayon, the mesmerising if slightly mind-bending state temple of Jayavarman VII. It epitomises the creative genius and inflated ego of Cambodia’s most celebrated king. Its 54 Gothic towers are decorated with 216 gargantuan smiling faces of Avalokiteshvara, and it is adorned with 1.2km of extraordinary bas-reliefs incorporating more than 11,000 figures. Around every corner is a chance to take yet another great photo. Bayon is the photographer's dream which comes to reality.

The Surfer

Surfing teaches patience. On land, a surfer cannot will a swell to appear. He has to wait for nature to make the call. So, the surfer waits. He keeps his eyes on the horizon and he waits.

Dreamers

Of all the books in the world, the best stories are found between the pages of a passport.

The Saxophonist

Master your instrument, master your music, then forget all that stuff and just play - Charlie Parker.

Sensual Mystery

Classy is when a woman has everything to flaunt but chooses not to show it.

A Conscientious Artist

Service With A Smile

As the sun sets and the night market sets up, the square of Jemae El-Fna comes alive with music, acrobats, snake charmers and dancers, while the rich smells of spices and street foods drift up from the stalls. On the southern edge of the food stalls, a row of vendors sell a hot, spicy galangal drink (khoudenjal), said to be an aphrodisiac, and usually taken with a portion of nutty cake. That night, one of the stallholders appears to say to anyone: "the smile on my face doesn't mean my life is perfect. It means I appreciate what I have and what God has blessed me with".

Flashback: A Military Tribute