The quintessential element of Moroccan cooking…the tajine!

Ask anyone who's never been what they know about Morocco, and it's likely that one of the first words out of their mouth will be “couscous.”  The seminal Moroccan dish is famous the world over, and to many, is synonymous with the country itself.  But Moroccan cuisine goes far beyond couscous, offering delectables both sweet and savory, meaty and vegetarian.  And this week, bloggers are tempting us with all of it!

The View from Fez digs into couscous in a post about Peace Corps volunteer Cynthia Berning (a blogger herself), who is working with Association ENNAHDA to create an eco-tourism experience around food.  The blogger writes:

Now the association has an eco-tourism project where groups of visitors are welcomed to Khoukhate to learn the secrets of a good Moroccan couscous, and at the same time experience traditional rural life. Visitors roll their own couscous from scratch with the local women, and then cook it and eat it for lunch.

(A note to tourists: Fez Food has teamed up with Association ENNAHDA to offer the experience in the city of Fez.)

Typical seven-vegetable couscous (photo by ukcider*)

Moving to American blogger 760 Days in Morocco, we learn about fast food options in the city of Rabat.  The blogger shares her favorite quick-stop restaurant, writing:

Our favorite place for roasted chicken platters is Brador Pizza Restaurant because their rice is deliciously spiked with veggies, cloves and herbs.  They also serve roasted garlic and herb potatoes, plus fries and their tomato sauce is excellent.  Any leftovers from there are promptly eaten as a snack later in the evening.  One of the best parts of this meal is the price, usually 20-25 DH at any given place which is $2.60-3.25 as of today’s exchange rate- for all that food!

The blogger also shares a tempting soup recipe accompanied by photos of the finished product.

Photo from Mint Tea & Tagine

After couscous, tajine is probably the best-known dish (or group of dishes) that comes to mind.  Named for the conical pot it's cooked in, a tajine can take many forms; some are filled with meat and eggs, while others combine sweet and savory with chicken and prunes.  The aptly-named blog Mint Tea & Tagine shares a delectable-sounding recipe for Chicken and Fennel Tajine, complete with photographs (see left).

And what would any good cuisine be without dessert?  The blogger behind The Good Life in Morocco shares some photographs of delicate Moroccan pastries in this post.  And of course, what would any dessert be without an obligatory (best obligation ever!) cup of steaming hot mint tea?  Christine Benlafquih, the About.com guide to Moroccan food, recently shared the darija vocabulary for tea:

Atay is the Moroccan Arabic word for tea. In Morocco, green tea is usually steeped in a berrad (Moroccan teapot) with lots of mint (na'na') and then sweetened with generous amounts of sugar.

The resulting drink is Morocco's famous mint tea, or atay bi na'na. The Moroccan Mint Tea Recipe tells how to make it, and you can see more Moroccan tea recipes in the glossary listing for atay.

For those do-it-yourself types following along at home, Christine's page is an excellent place to find authentic Moroccan recipes.  And for an extra-special treat, you can follow Mediterranean cooking expert (and cookbook author) Paula Wolfert on Twitter.  Happy cooking!

*Creative Commons-licensed photo by ukcider.

This "illegal alien" costume was pulled from Target's shelves

One major blogosphere controversy occurred this Halloween over a costume that poked fun at undocumented immigrants (also referred to, often degradingly, as “illegal aliens”).  The costume, dubbed “Illegal Alien,” featured an orange prison jumpsuit, alien mask, and green card, and was initially sold at major retailers, until the League of United Latin American Citizens and other groups, lobbied for its removal.  Popular blog Sociological Images broke down what was wrong with the costume, saying:

Several stores, including Target, Walgreens, and Amazon.com, offered an “Illegal Alien” costume for sale.  The costume, which includes a orange (prison?) jumpsuit, a green card, and a space alien mask, conflates undocumented immigrants with aliens from outer space.

Amalia Pallares, writing for Dissident Voice, saw the costume's appearance as a teachable moment for her children, explaining:

The truth is that I know too many faces, too many names, too many stories of detention, deportation, family separation and pain to “get” the generic illegal alien joke. Perhaps you know some too. It is time to teach our children that there is nothing laughable about the uncertain fate of 12 million people and their families in a context of increasingly restrictive immigration policy, egregious human rights violations, massive fear, annual family separation and financial devastation of hundreds of thousands who are not wearing a mask, but are in fact exposed and vulnerable every day of their lives, cannot escape their circumstances, and cannot rely on the comfort provided by slipping out of a costume.

This Dorothy costume portrays Dorothy (of the Wizard of Oz) as a scantily-clad adult

The alien costume wasn't the only controversy this Halloween. Frustrated by the way women are portrayed in commercial Halloween costumes, a number of bloggers remarked on this year's selection.  Lisa at Sociological Images noticed that Halloween has adult women dressing as little girls dressing as adult women, providing several photographic examples, including the one to the right.  The blogger remarks:

The fact that many women dress up as sexy little girls points to both the sexualization of female children and the infantilization of adult women.

In yet another post, Lisa points out children's costumes that promote the sexualization of young girls.

Beyond the “illegal alien” issue, there were other costumes that got bloggers talking about racism this year.  Macon D of Stuff White People Do shared a bunch of pictures on his blog of racialized and racist Halloween costumes, and also shared a suggestion for readers:

So finally, if you're white, I have a suggestion. Aside from resisting any temptation you might have to somehow dress up like a member of another race or ethnic group — and thereby perpetuating stereotypes and running the risk of hurting other people — how would the following idea work for you?

If you meet a white friend or acquaintance who's dressed up that way, you could say this to them: “Wow, what a concept! Where'd you get the idea of dressing up like a racist dipshit?”

Angry Asian Man comments on this wig, among others

Famed blogger Angry Asian Man, in a guest post for Sociological Images, pointed out wigs for sale that turned Chinese people into racial caricatures:

But hey, why stop there? There are other fun and easy ways to be Chinese. Just try on the Chinese Man wig, “an ancient style with bald front and long pigtail in the back.” But even at the low sale price of $41.48, the Chinese Man wig might just be a little outside your budget. That’s okay, because the Bargain Chinese Man wig is also available for just $22.05. Because nobody should miss out on the racist mockery.

Native American blogger Whebr Hotub may have summed up the problem best in a blog post entitled, “My identity is not a costume for you to wear!”  A quote:

As a Native American, I am utterly appalled to see my culture lump together into some stereotypical Pan-Injun image, shipped and sold for the American masses to mimic my people and culture. I find it insulting my identity and heritage as a Native American, as a Navajo, is as easily acquired with few bucks, some nasty grease paint, and a loin cloth. That history of genocide and forced assimilation of Native Americans people in the US is not even an accessory to these supposed costumes! It's not important or even a consideration!!! What a privilege it must be to take the imagery of a people or culture without the social or historical baggage that goes along with it!

I hope you can understand my frustration; that the race and ethnicity of a group of people is not an acceptable Halloween costume!?

Toussaint 2009, by Fabienne Flessel

In Guadeloupe, blogger Mycho has decided to resume her blogging activity for the occasion. Her short post highlights two important aspects of this celebration of the lost ones, which are the tradition and the family dimension:

Comme d'habitude, les Guadeloupéens vont illuminer les tombes. C'est toujours une occasion de se souvenir de ceux qui ne sont plus là, mais aussi de revoir ceux qui sont bien présents, mais que l'on n'a pas l'occasion de croiser bien souvent. Un moment de tristesse et de joie mêlées.

Toussaint 2009 in Le Moule, by Fabienne Flessel

La collectivité régionale participe à l'opération à hauteur de 20 000 euros.

This is the presentation of the above-mentioned professional integration project:

Depuis samedi [1 novembre 2009], cinquante deux jeunes procèdent au nettoyage des tombes à l'abandon dans le Sud Basse-Terre et en Côte-sous-le-vent.

Domactu also posted about the traditional celebration of “la Toussaint” in Martinique:

Un moment qui rassemble toutes les générations pour honorer la mémoire de leurs morts.

However, in this post, we also learn that the tradition has changed gradually, since families tend to discharge the maintenance of their graves:

Mais c'est aussi l'occasion pour certains de se faire un peu d'argent. Tous les services sont donc bons à prendre.

Nettoyage de tombe, peinture, embellissement des caveaux sont autant de jobs que se partagent petits et grands…

For her part, Martinican blogger Imaniyé has decided to honor her ancestors by taking part in “An mémwa, Véyé Kont pour lézansèt” (Creole for “In memory of the ancestors, a storytelling evening”). Here is what she says about this cultural, historical and religious event:

En ces jours de Toussaint et de Fête des morts, pour la première fois, Amérindiens autochtones et Africains déportés sont honorés au cours de la même cérémonie. C’est très important. Pour les Amérindiens exterminés en 1658, comme pour les esclaves dont la dépouille git dans des cimetières inconnus, partout en Martinique. J’y participe. Je vous y invite.

In this very informative and well-documented post, Pyepimanla explores the celebration of “la Toussaint” among the descendants of the Indian immigrants in Guadeloupe as well as the impact of the recent trend of celebrating Halloween in the French West Indies. This last topic is fiercely debated in a post and comments on Bondamanjak.

From French Guiana, blogger Nuguet expresses his surprise at the fact that a guided tour of the cemetery of Cayenne on All Saints' Day is actually a historical account of immigration and politics in French Guiana. He also had a chance to discover the almost festive spirit of this family celebration.

Finally, blogger Espas Ayisyen Toulouse, a Haitian expatriate in France, republishes a post about the dual celebration of “Toussaint” and “the Guédés” in Haiti:

Le premier jour de novembre est consacré à la fête de La Toussaint. Les fidèles catholiques vénèrent en cette occasion leurs saints et entretiennent la mémoire d’un membre cher de leur famille décédé.
[…]
La fête des Guédés, commémorée le 2 novembre, est typique de la religion vaudou en Haïti. Dans la mythologie du vaudou, les Guédés représentent les esprits de la Mort.

The bloggers from HN2000 also explain the dual celebration, but emphasize the fact that it is not unanimously accepted in Haiti:

En fait, encore une fois les fidèles catholiques et les vaudouisants vont pouvoir rendre nouvellement un hommage ou une nouvelle visite à leurs proches disparus. D’autre en plus, ils vont glorifier leurs dieux, un comportement sévèrement jugé par les protestants.

The moment the helicopter exploded. Photo by Taiane Oliveira On Twitpic.

The Censurado [pt] blog criticizes the governors' attitude toward this crisis, after hearing news suggesting that the police didn't know anything about the invasion:

Vocês viram as cenas na televisão este fim de semana? Helicóptero caindo, policial morrendo queimado, inocente metralhado nas ruas e traficante invadindo a favela do outro em plena luz do dia, uma verdadeira cena de filme de guerra. Dizem no Rio que até o serviço secreto israelense sabia que um morro atacaria o outro, mas mesmo assim o governador Sérgio Cabral diz que a policia carioca não sabia de nada? Acho que ele anda passando muito tempo com o Lula. Só isso explica essa ‘ignorância' sobre o tema.

Blogger Ana Maria [pt] points out that shooting a helicopter down is not an easy task highlighting that this might be just the beginning. She says [pt]:

Mas os senhores do tráfico, donos dos morros cariocas possuem não apenas as armas capazes disso, possuem indivíduos capazes de manuseá-las e causar um desastre como o do sábado.
Isso vai ficar marcado para sempre na memória da PM e do cidadão de bem, morador do estado do Rio de Janeiro.
Se eles podem fazer isso com um helicóptero da polícia tripulado por homens treinados, que dão a vida pela segurança pública, o que podem fazer com o cidadão comum?
Não vou “tapar o sol com peneira”.
As coisas podem piorar.

Dwellers' accounts of the drug war

A woman carrying a child walks unconcerned past police officers patrolling Morro dos Macacos.

The citizen media project Viva Favela [pt] gives some dwellers' eyewitness accounts of this conflict. Their citizen journalists – all of whom live at the frontier of the cross fire – have gathered comments from residents of the slums and photos of the day on which the drug war began in Rio de Janeiro.

The first person heard by Viva Favela was Hugo Mattos, who lives on the street that gives access to the slum in which all the events took place (Morro dos Macacos). He said that the dealers used high-caliber weapons and added that there is a kind of collective fear that if the police retake territory occupied by the traffickers, there will be a violent reaction from the faction that controls Morro dos Macacos:

O tiroteio começou por volta das duas da manhã e só terminou às oito horas, quando a policia chegou. Muita gente teve que dormir fora de casa nesse dia.

As pessoas dizem que ninguém deve sair de casa depois das 10 horas, porque algo pode acontecer.

According to Viva Favela, information like this comes all the time from the neighborhood dwellers, unable to react. On the evening of Tuesday October 20th, residents of Morro São João took to the streets afraid of a possible retaliation invasion, a fear which was classified as unfounded by the General-Chief of the police corporation, Colonel Mário Sérgio Duarte. Nevertheless, fear had already struck the population. Another resident of Morro dos Macacos, Karen Carolina Nascimento says that the shooting between dealers and the police has actually been happening for two months. She fears a new conflict:

Já era praticamente uma rotina, mas no último sábado foi diferente. O confronto aconteceu por causa de uma tentativa de invasão e não foi a primeira vez que os traficantes do Morro São João tentam. O comentário que se escuta no morro é que a facção rival deu uma ordem para tomar o Morro dos Macacos até dezembro e que esses bandidos tiveram ajuda de policiais para tentar invadir.

O policiamento não está reforçado e os moradores estão muito apreensivos com medo de uma outra invasão. Eu trabalho no pé do Morro São João e vou para a minha casa andando. Ontem só havia um único carro com dois policiais dentro parado em uma esquina. Em cima do morro não existe policiamento nenhum. Uma vez ou outra um carro blindado sobe e faz uma ronda. Estamos com muito medo porque com certeza a facção rival vai tentar tomar novamente.

Viva Favela [pt] also offers the opinion of Wagner da Silva de Barros, a 29-year-old resident of Vila Pinheiro from Complexo da Maré, saying that the repercussions of the conflict in Morro dos Macacos have only reached this far because of the downed helicopter and adds that this war will spread to many other communities:

A queda do helicóptero e a morte dos três policiais chocou parte da população, mas na Maré, durante cinco meses, nós vivemos um confronto entre facções que matou muita gente, inclusive moradores que nada tinham a ver com o tráfico, e não teve nem metade da divulgação que esse tiroteio dos Macacos está tendo.

Esses tiroteios reforçam de que na favela só existe bandido e violência, mas o que muitas pessoas ignoram é que trabalhadores morrem durante os conflitos e são logo identificados como traficantes pela polícia.

According to Viva Favela [pt] , in the case of Morro dos Macacos, three innocent shot down young men were included on the list of deceased bandits. The secretary of Security José Mariano Beltrame stepped back and apologized to the families of Marcelo Costa Gomes, 26, Leonardo Fernandes Paulino, 27, and Francisco Haílton Vieira Silva, 24. The men were going back home from a party at the time of the invasion. A fourth man, waiter Francisco Alaílton Vieira da Silva, 22, was saved by residents but is now hospitalized in intensive care. His girlfriend is 3-months pregnant.

Walter Mesquista from Viva Favela also provides photos of the conflict taken by the photographer Guillermo Planel during the day to which people are referring as “Drugs War”.

There are around 6,000 homicides a year in the whole state of Rio, which has a population of 14 million. A police ‘pacification’ operation with permanent patrols has been underway for a year in five slums. With their increased presence in the slums, the police force gangs to fight over other areas.

Viva Favela is a citizen media project that works with special bloggers and photographers who live in the shantytowns of Rio de Janeiro. The project is under the guidance of Content Editor Rodrigo Nogueira. You may find more information on their official Twitter account [pt] and in their Orkut community [pt].

Packed venue for Indonesia Blogger Festival

Scenes from the bloggers festival.

This was the third time the annual event was being held and it is nice to see the number of participants increase every year.

Indonesian bloggers tend to be a varied bunch, not just in geography but also in terms of age and profession.

A breakout session on blogging ethics

A breakout session on citizen journalism

A citizen journalist shares his experience with bloggers

A breakout session on bridging the divide within Indonesia via blogging. The participants also discussed the ways in which blogs can be used to connect Indonesia with the outside world.

Tristam(representing a sponsoring organisation), Chip (tech enthusist from Vietnam) and Retty (Indonesian blogger) in a discussion. Indonesian event do not see the level of outside participation that Cambodian or Thai events do. Still, curious people are trickling in and we hope to have more people from the wider South East Asian region the next time.

A batik artist making the blogger fest t-shirt.

Blogger take a break from their discussions to enjoy some music.

The causes of the explosion are still under investigation.

Video of the explosion posted on YouTube by ZuperJ.

In Haciendo punto en otro blog [ES], journalist and blogger Carmel Ruiz comments:

On Thursday night the Gulf Oil refinery in the nearby town of Cataño blew up. The blast and shock waves were felt twenty miles away. It was a sound like nothing I had ever heard in my life (the shock wave actually opened my bedroom door). In the four or five seconds after the explosion, the fireball was as bright as the three o'clock sun The fire is still burning, the plume of smoke is like nothing ever seen in Puerto Rico.

View of the tunnel of smoke caused by the explosion. Photo by Alberto Marty.

Historian and blogger Ivone Acosta was also affected by the blast, as she expresses in Sin mordazas [ES]:

No me atrevo salir. Ya dos amigas que conocen mis alergias me llamaron para advertirme eso mismo, que no salga porque el aire contiene demasiados particulados peligrosos y que cierre todas las ventanas. Como quiera, no me interesa ver la histeria de la gente que por menos que eso se paniquean. Ya he visto comentarios en el periódico en línea acusando a “los socialistas de siempre”.

I dare not venture out. Already two friends who know about my allergies have called me to warn me that I should not leave the house because the air has too many dangerous particulates. They said I should close the windows. Anyway, I am not in the least interested in seeing people in hysteria who enter in panic with even less important things. I have already seen comments in the newspapers accusing the “same old socialists” of the explosion.

To understand Acosta's comments, some context is necessary. Just as recently as last October 15 there was a national strike in Puerto Rico. Government officials have accused demonstrators of being terrorists.

In Observations from the “Island of Enchantment”, blogger Adriana remembers how she felt when she heard the explosion:

Yesterday, when I woke up, I heard the distant sounds of helicopters flying. I though to myself, well, maybe something's going on in the housing projects (caseríos). A short while later, I found out about the explosion. Although it had occurred in Cataño, which is just outside of San Juan, I saw the black clouds from my house. The magnitude of the explosion registered a 2.8 on the richter scale. Thousands of people had to be evacuated. Law enforcement officials are currently investigating the causes of the explosion. I can't imagine what the environmental, health and economic consequences will amount to. Luckily, no deaths have been reported.

The conversation in Twitter is running under the the hashtag #explosionpr. For photos you can check El Difusor. Alternative media outlets Diálogo and Prensa Comunitaria are offering minute-by-minute coverage, as are mainstream media Primera Hora, El Nuevo Día and El Vocero.

*First video by Luis Andrei Muñoz posted on Flickr. Republished under a Creative Commons License.

The last 10 years has seen an explosion of sorts in sports coverage across the continent. The now famous SuperSport is an African powerhouse in pay TV for satellite users and subscribers. This has given Africa and indeed most states a platform to be able to showcase their best.

With recent developments of social media, the sports world is bound to take another leap beyond the current rut it seems to be attracting in terms of growth and expansion to the rest of the world. Fibre optic landing and other developments such as social networks and mobile telephony will be the leads.

There has been a rather unseen force in the name of blogs in the aforementioned social networks. These forums have been stealthily making in-roads as alternatives to sports coverage and offering opinions and news about sports.

Kenya is not unique to this and has seen its share of budding blogging enthusiasts. They range from the best of football to general sports with the highest sport being for obvious reasons rugby (thanks largely to the sevens success in recent years).

Say we also have a blog on the Grand Prix (Formula One) which has seen a growing fan-base in the country and the region too. I am one of those falling into the trap of running around the local joints looking for screens showing the GP on a Sunday morning or afternoon.

Starting with the rugby scene, there are more than 3 blogs including a club blog for one of the teams playing in the rugby league. The major blog on this is Rugby Kenya, which has more than one contributor. The blog is updated regularly especially after the weekend fixtures.

It linksup the rugby fraternity with both the local and international circuit. It is currently ranked as the top sports blog from Kenya and 24^th among top blogs from Kenya on the African blog aggregator, Afrigator.

SportsKenya for which yours truly is a contributor covers general sports from anything relating to current events to offering opinions on sports issues as well as a lashing or two every so often to the sports associations. This blog has quite a number of followers and is ranked 2^nd among Kenyan sports blogs on the African blogs aggregator.

Another blogger closely related to this is Cricket Kenya whose main focus is the cricket world and samplings of other sporting disciplines. This blogger is not located in the country most the time but somehow manages to stay and keep tabs with the cricket and sports scene.

One most interesting blog is Gitau Grand Prix. This blogger has dedicated his blog to Formula One exclusively to be able to appeal to the fan-base which follows this sport. It has very incisive and well-researched articles. It has few graphics making it a hard sell to most sports enthusiasts’ but all the same has its fair share of followers.

Compared with the region, Kenya has most of the Internet users and thus by default has more bloggers. It is because of such forums as the Bloggers Camp that has seen the blogging world grow in good numbers in the country.

Developments in sport and coverage of live events as well as updates have seen the use of blogs become a must even for mainstream media which has sought to converge their offering on their websites and web portals. It is almost a given that most if not all the editors and writers of newspapers or magazines have a blog they write to or contribute.

There are other sports blogs which include Daily Running Tips, which offers tips on jogging and is currently involved in offering free tips for marathon runners both amateur and professional. This is particularly helpful given the fact that there is the Nairobi Marathon (sponsored by Standard Chartered) which has become an annual event in the Kenyan city circles.

The impact of blogs in bringing sanity to sports has started being felt with a vocal voice in Kenya Football. The main contributor and administrator, Francis Gaitho admits that this forum has brought much prominence to issues which were not previously featured in other media.

In fact, it was used by SuperSport to research about Kenya football. The impact that SuperSport has had on the Kenyan game is enormous and the games on the pitch are evident to the pedigree we can get and are looking to develop (if one our football administrators were a little more concerned and focused on developing the game rather than satisfying their insatiable appetites).

The forum has also become a source of information for FM radio stations, most of which have sports segments and the Kenya Premier League features prominently. But of course, it is no bed of roses as it would seem. Gaitho laments the way Kenya football officials especially clubs with shadowy management boards have tried besmirching his work.

Quoting from one of the Agenda issue in one of Kenya Premier League meeting’s minutes;

3^rd Minute: Governance and Policies …on www.kenyafootball.com and its owner Managing Editor, Francis Gaitho, the directors noted

“…that Francis Gaitho…started a malicious campaign on his www.kenyafootball.com website in which he repeatedly made unsubstantied allegations and accusations on embezzled funds, bribery, match-fixing and other corrupt practices against the KPL and its Board and staff…”

On most counts though, sports blogs have helped their administrators learn better and understand their world of sport. It has also meant interaction with sports personalities, administrators and gets more first-hand accounts from those mentioned.

It has also seen mainstream media start appreciating different opinions and not necessarily leaving to their own machinations. The audience is the biggest beneficiary since most of the blogs are easy to read and language that makes them relate to the writers and sport alike. The impact of this will eventually expand into the greater East African and African region as a whole. With the 2010 World Cup around the corner, this is our time sports bloggers. Stand up and let’s hold our own!

]]> http://globalvoicesonline.org/2009/10/22/kenya-transfroming-sports-coverage-through-blogs/feed/ 5 http://globalvoicesonline.org/2009/10/22/trinidad-tobago-no-hope-2/ http://globalvoicesonline.org/2009/10/22/trinidad-tobago-no-hope-2/#comments Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:07:52 +0000 Janine Mendes-Franco http://globalvoicesonline.org/?p=102510 As a legendary Trinidadian artist's sculpture is given a coat of paint to “spruce it up”, Nicholas Laughlin says: “This…is a telling symptom. It tells me how unaware we are, as citizens, of the civic spaces we live and work in, and how irresponsibly we behave towards them. It tells me how little respect we have for the work of our artists and thinkers, and how eagerly the powers-that-be package that work in more palatable forms. It tells me we're far too fond of quick, superficial solutions to our problems.”