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A Greek Tragedy
Today I met a family originally from the Kailash Valley in Northern Pakistan. They were so kind, and one girl even donned some traditional tribal dress for a photograph. These people are descended from the soldiers of Alexander the Great, who, after waging war through much of Central Asia, reached the Kailash Valley many hundreds…
Read MoreMaking Myself At Home
I visited the house of a friend this evening, and whilst I was there one or two other visits came and went. In an off-the-cuff way I commented that the house seemed to have quite a few visitors that evening. They looked at me strangely at first, afterwards explaining that tonight is unusually quiet, it…
Read MoreA Waiting Game
I have been thinking that you can tell a lot about a culture by looking at the way people queue (or don’t as the case may be!). I was in the bank today to take out some of my penultimate scholarship instalment, and everyone waiting to be served was standing in little groups around each…
Read MoreIt's All Relative…
As I sat down to write I began to think about how the meaning of the word ‘family’ here in Pakistan (and in South Asian culture in general) is rather different from how it is defined in the West. In Pakistan, if your third-cousin once removed is getting married to a girl from the same…
Read MoreThe White Rabbit
I had the opportunity to visit a Gypsy tribe only last week, and what a fantastic experience it was. The children I saw were dirty, poorly clothed and unable to read and write (probably) and yet they were so beautiful. One girl in particular carried a perfect white rabbit beneath her arms; it was the…
Read MoreAn Aural Extravaganza
Today I thought about the menagerie of sounds that one hears on an average day in Pakistan. There is the ice-cream cart that plays an electronic version of ‘fur-de-lise’ on repeat, I wonder how it doesn’t drive the poor man bonkers. There are the cats and dogs. Nobody owns them (indeed, the average Pakistani is…
Read MoreMaking Light of Things…
Today has been a fairly relaxing day. The weather is changing here, slowly but surely the temperature is rising. Although fortunately the mosquitoes have launched a full-scale invasion as yet, and the ceiling fan has not been needed as yet. Every day the citizens of this country go without electricity for between 3 and 10…
Read MoreEyes of Sadness
Our Changing World
It is now drawing closer towards the final month of my scholarship, so I want to make an effort to blog more regularly. I would like to give readers an insight into what life is like here, and the potential ways to strengthen ties between the UK and Pakistan in decades to come. A couple…
Read MoreDries Van Noten expo – Les Arts Decoratifs
A visit to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, is always rather interesting, and this time to see the life and works of Dries Van Noten, especially after his recent défilé, was great. There was an obvious progression from his first collection to his most recent, notably thanks to more advanced technology becoming available. It…
Read MoreAlors, Joyeux Noel et bon reveillon en retard!!
Rentrer chez moi pour le Noel et voir toute ma famille encore était absolument incroyable! Au début quand je suis arrivé chez moi ma maman a déjà cuisiné beaucoup de mes repas favoris pour la semaine… c’est incroyable comment des chose tel qu’un ‘vrai saucis’ me manquent!! C’était sympa. Pendant les vacances nous n’avons pas…
Read MoreParma, Italia – Febbraio 2014, Esther Bokuma
Dopo una lunga pausa in Inghilterra, sono finalmente arrivata a Parma la domenica scorsa nel pomeriggio, per iniziare la seconda parte del mio anno all’estero. Il mio alloggio era 12 minuti dall’aeroporto, quindi non ci volle molto per stabilirsi nella mia nuova casa. Vivo a Carlotta e Jessica. Carlotta è Italiana, lei è una studentessa…
Read MoreMontpellier, France – Décembre 2013
C’est ma dernière semaine à Paul Valéry et comme je commence à me préparer pour retourner en Angleterre, j’ai pensé qu’il serait bien de réfléchir un peu sur mon temps ici et aussi de parler des choses que j’ai apprises pendant mon semestre à Montpellier. Pour moi, c’était difficile pour m’habituer à mon emploi du…
Read MoreFévrier 2014- Genève
Février à Genève a été un mois de brouillards, de pluies et, au moins pour moi, d’étudier. La reprise de cours est le 17 février et j’ai dû étudier pour bien être au niveau pour le deuxième semestre. Mais, heureusement j’ai profité d’une petite pause la semaine avant la reprise de cours car ma…
Read MoreRebonjour!
Alors, février est arrivé encore une fois, cependant – il fait chaud ?! C’est tellement bizarre d’être en février portant une chemise ou un tshirt, avec peu de pluie et peu de froid – l’hiver est allé où cette année ?! Bien qu’en disant ça, je me plaignes pas du tout ! Il ressemble beaucoup l’été, et…
Read MoreMadrid en enero por Hannah Phillips
Enero fue un mes muy memorable en mi aventura española – que marcó el aniversario de un año desde que me mudé a este país y cumplí 22. O los “dos patitos”, como lo llaman en español. Tuve la oportunidad de celebrar mi cumpleaños en Salamanca durante un fin de semana con mis amigos. Para…
Read MoreDécembre 2013 L'Escalade
Qu’est-ce que je peux dire du dernier mois de semestre ? Tellement de choses se sont passées que je vais me concentrer sur un évènement qui se passe chaque année à Genève : l’Escalade. L’Escalade se fait en deux parties. La première partie est la course à l’escalade. Cette année la course s’est tenue le…
Read MoreTwo Weeks in Cordoba- January 2014
I have been staying with a friend in Cordoba for two weeks in order to improve my Spanish before starting the second semester in Geneva. I could talk about the monuments in Cordoba, Granada or Seville (as we also visited these two cities), or perhaps of the prodigious amounts of food, all delicious, which my…
Read MoreTribal Women, Sindh
Royal Mosque, Lahore
Enero – un mes importante
Enero fue un mes muy memorable en mi aventura española – que marcó el aniversario de un año desde que me mudé a este país y cumplí 22. O los “dos patitos”, como lo llaman en español. Tuve la oportunidad de celebrar mi cumpleaños en Salamanca durante un fin de semana con mis amigos. Para…
Read MorePremiere Vision 2014
Premiere Vision is a textile fair just north of Paris. This is the second time I’ve visited with my school and its really a great experience, especially studying Fashion Design. Even though I’m not yet at the stage where I’m looking to buy, its a great opportunity to see whats out there and to also…
Read MoreDecorative Arches in the Alhambra
Photo taken inside the Alhambra palace capturing the intricate decoration which covers it.
Read MorePlaza de España
A view across the fantastically decorated Plaza de España
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