Looking Forward while thinking back

Below is an excerpt from an email I wrote the day after my birthday which was celebrated while I was in Dhaka. It was truly one of my top five and one I am looking to see if I can have a variation of while I am overseas this coming year.

...What a birthday it was... [I] went to lunch with friends of mine to a Mexican restaurant. Think Mexican food meets Bangla spices meets US (Chili's) decorations! We then crossed the street and had ice cream at Baskin' Robins. We ate it while watching the TV which was showing Free Willy. Truly bizarre.

After that we took off for a party at the apartment of a United Nations AIDS country coordinator - whose building is across from the Russian Embassy. We (Laura, Megan, and I) were invited to the event. My birthday party was extended that much longer!

The party ended at 11:30 and our group of VSO volunteers made our way, by Rickshaw, a few blocks down to catch a taxi. Two of my friends jumped onto a rickshaw and I joined them. Our driver, once he saw me getting on, said that he wanted me to peddle. So, taking the opportunity to do so, peddled my two friends and the rickshaw driver, down the street. Highlight in my book! The driver, not much older than 14, made jokes the whole time.

I made the ride just fine - accept for two moments where the rickshaw went coo coo and I almost hit a few lamp posts. Our group of six made it to the main intersection to then jump in a tiny four door cab. The floor of the cab was probably only a few inches off the ground....but, with what felt like half my body hanging out the window, I made it safely to my apartment.

As far as birthdays go - this one will for the ages.

The Flux Capacitor

The shortest distance between my new home and my old apartment in Dhaka is 12,272 kilometers. Or expressed in miles its 7625. Or by boat it's 6626 nautical miles. You choose. Either way it's far by any means of expressing distance. I could go into the emotional distance of it all but that's just not my thing.

This morning I dropped five dollars into a coin machine at my local laundry-mat. As the coins dropped down like some low budget slot machine it hit me just how far I am from Dhaka. This feeling has come over me before but for some reason it wasn't until today till I wanted to know just how far I was. My brain could connect the dots better than my eyes could so seeing it on the computer, in actual quantifiable numbers, helped pound in the last nail that I am actually back in my home country.

I left Dhaka on January 31st. It was a Saturday. With the plane racing the sun to see which one of us would hit the mark of the east coast first my mind went to autopilot as what I was experiencing felt like a dream. I still don't know why I left other than to follow a dream. I gave up one to follow another. Doing so was in the simplest terms an act of faith - the space between reaching for one wrung on the monkey bars and the other felt infinite.

But I am here now. I am home. I am taking the time to learn the craft of documentary photography to return to Bangladesh (possibly) and others like it. With this new skill set in hand I aim to photograph images of suffering, hope, destruction, and great achievement. In the act of taking a photo comes with it the possibility to change the way we all think about the world around us. In so doing we can all connect the dots between ourselves and those right next door or dozens of time zones ahead.

Time travel is quite a trip.

Home again, home again, jiggity-jig

I'm drinking freshly pressed apple cider. It's snowing outside. By this evening we're supposed to get 8-12 of snow. The radio was just playing Neil Young's Sugar Mountain. I'm home... in the sense that I am living in a rented apartment back in my beloved New England. More specifically I'm in Maine which I have long considered my second home.

It's snowing outside. The radio just switched tunes to someone I don't know but keeps my interest as I write. I've been back from Dhaka almost a month now. A month of flights, packing, unpacking, packing again and finally unpacking one last time (till I have move again).

There have been a few interesting things going on in Bangladesh since I left. Most recently a rebellion took place within the capita, Dhaka, leaving some 140 officers dead. The stand-off between the countries Bangladesh Rifles (BDR)- boarder guards, over pay and command structure lasted for two days. Some 1,000 suspected BDR attackers are currently being tracked down. To read more about this fluid situation please see: Bangladesh Manhunt for Mutineers .

It's difficult to get an accurate sense of what it is actually like to be in Dhaka now. I hope to find out more and if I do will post what I find in next weeks posting.

Moving forward, moving on

Right. Given the title of this entry one can guess, assume, or draw several conclusions all of them near, far, or right on the dot as to what has unfolded over the past few weeks.

The short version is that I left Bangladesh to attend an intensive course in photography/journalism back in my home country. The decision to do so was not easy nor one I took lightly. It was also one that was needed so that I may return to Bangladesh, and other places like it, to better document and report on global issues pertinent to both myself and the world at large.

Prior to leaving Dhaka I had the opportunity to have an Oped piece be published by the Christian Science Monitor. The link to that article is here. It was a great opportunity to say good-bye (for now) to a place I plan on returning to for many years.

The blog will continue on so check-in every Monday as while the location of my writing has changed the subject matter and emphasis of the blog has not.

-From my newest location to yours be well.

A (thought) Development- Part Four: All said and done

IV. The countries population continues to grow by roughly 2% each year. Under current population projections Bangladesh will see its boarders fill to an estimated 190 million people by 2025 and a larger population of 231 million people by 2050. Trying to fathom the first 150 million people already existing in this tiny country is like trying to count a sack of pennies while in the front row of Metallica concert of as 747 lands over your head. It’s just not going to happen. Dhaka is a vibrant pulsating city. The streets are filled with Rickshaws as colorful from the first days of Technicolor movies- saturated and overdone. At night, the only chance to dart around from shop to shop without gaining the attention of dozens of onlookers seeing a foreigner walk down the street, the city changes tone dramatically. Calls for the evenings last prayers from the mosques reverberate off of the buildings. Neon bulbs from the markets become beacons for last minute shopping. One is all of the sudden left with the overwhelming sensation of trying to deal with a day of never ending noises, people insistently asking you “where are you from”, “what is your name”, and dodging traffic.

A (thought) Development - Part Three

III. Dhaka is a vibrant pulsating city. The streets are filled with Rickshaws as colorful from the first days of Technicolor movies- saturated and overdone. At night, the only chance to dart around from shop to shop without gaining the attention of dozens of onlookers seeing a foreigner walk down the street, the city changes tone dramatically. Calls for the evenings last prayers from the mosques reverberate off of the buildings. Neon bulbs from the markets become beacons for last minute shopping. One is all of the sudden left with the overwhelming sensation of trying to deal with a day of never ending noises, people insistently asking you “where are you from”, “what is your name”, and dodging traffic.

A (thought) Development - Part Two

II. So too, the challenge of trying to communicate the scale of what Bangladesh is going through seems at times feeble. It is clearly one worth attempting for how can one become educated if they don’t know what is going on in the world around them? Yet, even those who are in the mix of the international development field can find it difficult at times to grasp what they are seeing is real. I suppose this effect is some sort of a fail-safe so that work in a developing country can go on with as little lapses as possible.

A (thought) Development in four parts

Starting with this post and going on for the next three weeks I will be posting a one-paragraph post focusing on one particular aspect of life as a development volunteer. While previous postings have covered this topic before the aim with this series is to frame the context of volunteering within the confines of a snapshot so to speak. Each paragraph could stand alone, but together they build an image of development work that is both complex and at times quite elusive - as nothing about development work in a foreign country is every clear or easy to understand.

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I. It is just as easy, whether in a place like Bangladesh or comfort of home, to forget that that matters of pandemic environmental degradation, food security, or regional instability are ones the affect us all. It is just too hard to comprehend isn’t? Begin to wrap the mind around such interrelationships and one has the feeling of staring at the night sky for too long – the mind wobbles at the infinity of it all and finally has to stop looking for a moment.

On the road to finding out

After holding their first successful election since 2001 Bangladesh saw instances of violence against various political parties reach the newspapers almost immediately. These acts of striking out led to the harassment and deaths of a handful of political constituents across the country. Both heads of the Awami League and BNP have made subsequent press statements admonishing the violence and demanded an end to such behavior. Bangladesh has just one more election stage to go - the local district elections on the 28th of this month.

Being able to observe a country going through such a pivotal and historic change is quite amazing. With the last stage of the election process just around the corner it will be exciting to see how the new government goes about achieving its goal of creating a more peaceful and equitable Bangladesh.

Tang still tastes good

To begin, I did not end up living in my apartment like a hermit during the elections. I did demonstrate caution though and stayed at home during what felt like appropriate times. For example I didn't go out the night before the election. Nor did I walk around to the various polling stations in my part of town - though I wanted to.

The voting over who would have control of the government and Parliament went as well as any election in a free country could go. There were minor uplifts but no bombings or shootings at any of the election events. Back in 2004 these types of events did occur hence the amount of fear and over precaution everybody felt this time around.

In a landslide victory the Awami League, lead by Sheikh Hasina, won the election. Two days after the fact the official outcome announcement was made. While there were some victory parades no major clashes occurred. Peacefully demonstrated democracy never felt so palpable. There are still a few "ifs" and "wills" floating around. Will the fundamentalists try and attack the government once the energy from the election settles down? Will either Sheikh Hasina or Khaleda Zia still be held accountable for the corruption charges they faced prior to the election? No one really knows the definitive answer to any of these questions. For now people are just happy that everything went well. The "ifs" and "wills" will have to wait for another day.

Most of my time during the election revolved around watching CNN cover the election and current situation in Israel, re-discovering that Tang still has a soft spot in my heart and stomach, and building the first step towards a larger photography/writing project I am working on. To see it click here. You can also access the site by clicking on the Photography Portfolio link under the FP Picture option on the right hand toolbar of this page. I will keep the Flickr link going as well. The aim of this new site though is to frame the images I capture in a different context. I hope to develop the ideas I talk about under the Information tab on the new site into a larger project. Another new toolbar addition I added is the option for you to follow this blog. To learn how just follow the directions the pop-up window will give you after clicking on the "Follow This Blog" option on the right hand toolbar. I set this option up in response to the feedback on how hard it was to figure out how to receive updates under the older RSS option.

Enjoy the new additions and site.

-From Dhaka-

A guest in my own home

On December 29th Bangladesh will hold it's first national election since the caretaker government took control of the country in 2006.

The official state of emergency was lifted on the 17th of December. Since then the streets have been filled with marches, bands, and loud speakers attached to rickshaws and CNGs all blasting the positions of the election candidates. The energy here is heightened further still by the large presence of military and Rapid Action Battalion patrols roaming the city ensuring that the entire election process goes smoothly.

It is an exciting time to be living in Dhaka right now. Crowds can gather at a moments notice. Peaceful demonstrations can turn heated. No one is sure how the national elections and then subsequent local elections on January 11th will go. All eyes are zeroed in on the two major political party leaders- Khaleda Zia (BNP) and Sheikh Hasina (Awami League). Dhaka has become eerily quiet at night. During the day and into the early evening the sound of marches and rallies fills the air. I have talked with a lot of Bangladeshi's from both sides of the political spectrum. Each one of them is truly excited that the national elections are going to actually take place. Each one of them has also confessed doubt as to the legitimacy and transparency of whichever party ends up winning.

Given the uncertainly and safety surrounding the election VSO has requested that all their volunteers remain at home for the next three days. I will therefore remain, safe and secure, in my own home while the process of democracy unfolds.

It will be very interesting to see what happens next.

Election Buzz

December 29th is the planned date for the coming national elections. Bangladesh has been under a caretaker government since the winter of 2007. I thought it would be good to give some give some historical context surrounding this coming event. For a comprehensive timeline please click here.

1947- Partition from India - East and West Pakistan were formed.

1952- The language movement, Bangla becomes the official language in East Pakistan.

1970- Elections take place in East Pakistan: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (Bangabandhu or "friend of Bengal"), with the Awami League, gain the majority in Parliament and this victory is then denied by West Pakistanis.

1971- War of Independence. The creation of Bangladesh is achieved at the cost of three million live.

1973- The country of Bangladesh see its worst drought since 1943. Many millions of people die. The country falls into deteriroration of law and order.

1975- Military coup. Sheikh Mujib and his family are killed. Only two of his daughters were able to escape.

1976- General Zia takes over the country and instills a autocratic rule.

1981- Military coup. General Zia is assassinated in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

1988- Devastating floods hit the country. In no time the whole country becomes flooded. Thousands of people die.

1991- Devastating cyclone. 100,000 people are killed

1991- The first democratic elections are held since 1971. The Bangladesh National Party (BNP) are elected to run the government.

1996- After five weeks of hartals (strikes) the BNP steps down. New elections are held and the Awami League win.

1998- Worst flood of the century hits Bangladesh. Water comes in gradually, the people are prepared and as a result very few people die.

2000- Opposition party walks out of the parliament. Collaboration between the government and the opposition party is not reached.

2001- Elections take place and a new BNP government comes into power.

2007- State of emergency is called amid violence occurring due to the coming elections.

2007- Cyclone Sidr hits killing thousands and leaving even more struggling to survive.

Eid Mubarak (mid-week) update!

I just posted some pictures from Eid celebrations. It was a full day of photography, eating really great food, and getting to know those in my part of town that much better. You can see all of my pictures by clicking here.

Please note that some pictures from Eid-ul-Azha or the "Festival of Sacrifice" are of animals being sacrificed around my neighborhood. Muslims throughout the world on this holiday commemorate and remember Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ibrahim as an act of obedience to God through the of slaughtering goats and cows. A large portion of the meat is then given to the needy and poor.

The game is afoot

I am constantly mystified by trash. Not by why it exists, but why it can be found in all sorts of places other than where it has historically been placed - the dump. I have never been able to fully understand why we continue to place whatever we deem we no longer need almost immediately on the street, ground, or in our water systems. No matter how much we place in our dumps there is always an infinite amount that ends up everywhere else.

It is easy to see the effects of this phenomenon all over Dhaka. The same can be said for every roadside, town, and village I have passed through or visited here. Trash is everywhere. But why? This isn't just in Bangladesh either. I have seen trash everywhere I have visited on this planet. We are a littering species. We have always been and always will be littering fanatics.

Over the years I have talked with many people about a disconnect some of us have with our planet. Chicken comes from the grocery store, pencils from an office supply store, and gas from a pump. End results are how most of us see the many steps and cycles both natural and man-made products go through to reach our hands. We are thus removed (disconnected) from seeing how much actual time and resources go into to keeping us alive, healthy, and happy. It would be quite difficult for us to see all of these steps. Impossible really.

A clue now arises. Perhaps we litter because we are so far removed from everything. And so in turn don't see a connection between ourselves and our planet. If we did we might not treat every possible space as a trash bin. There are some that can argue this last point quite eloquently. But that lets us off the hook to quickly. There over 6 billion people on this planet and not all of us live with any sort of aforementioned disconnect. Yet littering still occurs.

We have always created waste. It is simply a part of living. Some of it can be broken down naturally and some not. Both are typically stockpiled in large depositories near and sometimes far from our sight. So enters the cycle of producing, consuming, and wasting (ad infinitum). Still, the answer of "why" we litter is not answered. Perhaps there is no why. Perhaps we simply just do.

This does not take away the importance of cleaning up our beaches, oceans, mountains, towns or cities. Nor does it release us of the responsibility to lessen future generations dealing with the environmental and social consequences of our present consuming and wasting— the ripples of our choices and behaviors move far beyond our sight.

Still, look around and you will find more and more of what we waste just sitting there. Perhaps we are simply not capable of seeing littering as a problem. Or, we are unable to truly do anything about it. Or any other complex combination you can think of.

Go back far enough in time and you will find the trash of those that were here before us. Evidence then falls to a hardwired pattern. Yet, even that reasoning let’s us go all too easily.

The mystery continues.

Diggin' In

My fingers are still stained yellow from lunch yesterday. I have forgotten how much of a challenge it is to eat with just my right hand. Currently my ability to eat rice and dhal is that of a refined mess. As my colleagues and I sat around a large table eating lunch my section was the only one with rice all over the place. Awesome.

I am excited to finally be working with the NGO Uttaran (Uplift). My role, to be further defined by Uttaran and myself, will be that of working on good governance advocacy strategies. This work is focused on the larger context of bringing attention and elevation to two of the countries southwestern districts social in-equality, poverty, and environmental troubles.

To be a part of this type of work is exciting. There will most certainly be infinite opportunities to learn. There will also be even more chances to be challenged, share what I know, and simply take in all that is Bangladesh. For now my fingers are still stained yellow from the curry. Perhaps I need a lesson in how to properly use soap. Or, perhaps it is a sign that Bangladesh is finally getting under my skin.

Last summer I helped out a few times weeding for a local urban farm. I used to love coming home with my hands covered in dirt. Trading dirt for dhal this is one volunteer grateful for the chance to dig in and figure out the rest as I go.

Alphabet Soup

I have been in Bangladesh for a month now! And while I have learned a lot - what types of programs VSO Bangladesh is running, the location of key places (grocery stores, etc), how to negotiate for a taxi, and an introduction to the language, there remains a certain level of uncertainty. This is of course natural. Only here there a few added opportunities for learning.

I like to think of what I am taking on in terms of alphabet soup. Partly because it is 5:30 pm and I am getting hungry. And partly because I also find it a good analogy for what I am experiencing. I am in fact in Dhaka (the soup so to speak). I know that I will be starting my assignment soon and that it will be rewarding. Yet, still unknown (in the form of floating alphabet letters) is what is going to actually happen next. I am glad that I don't know. That sounds funny to say but it is true. For now it is good enough that I am swimming in the soup.

Here, no matter how I feel, Dhaka moves forward...constantly forward. I have begun to see that it is best to simply live each day comfortably in the not-knowing. Comfortable in the soup.

I am hungry. It's time for dinner. Be well.

Rain in October?

A few days ago a tropical storm Rasmi, building strength in the Bay of Bengal, hit landfall in the southern region of Bangladesh. According to Reuters some 15 people were killed and roughly 300 injured. Power and phone lines were disrupted, cropland damaged, and houses left in disarray. River siltation, continual loss of coastline, and overpopulation are already norms in one of world’s most beautiful countries. Now add to the list tropical storms.

Often terms like climate change are attributed for such growing occurrences. Debates are constantly going on around such heated topics. In response, policies are being globally created – some implemented, some just on the books. The biggest fight is over whether or not human beings are adding to this impartial force. If people, such as the ones that live in Bangladesh, are directly suffering because of such forces does it really matter who or what caused global climate change?

Here in the city of Dhaka, hours to the north, it was four days of unusual rain. Many a rickshaw driver was found to be wearing an assortment of plastic bags for hats and rider tarps for covers. Traffic was still jammed; students were still going to class, and shopkeepers selling their goods. Life got on as usual – whatever usual means.

Down a drain (of sorts)

Here in Dhaka, like most of Southeast Asia, the most of toilets are of the squat variety. This takes some getting used to as most travelers from the Western world use the seating/bowl style. Now, normally such matters of preference and comfort levels, and well taking care of personal relief, is best not to be talked about aloud. Why then for such openness?

The other night I was preparing my kitchen to have dinner with some friends of mine that arrived as well to start their life with VSO in Bangladesh. The kitchen ready, plates out, cutting boards, and knife ready, I thought I would take a moment to have a bit of well- relief.

At this point in the story I should mention that I have been keeping the habit of leaving my local, brand new, mobile phone in my shirt pocket. As I stood over my squat toilet something quite serendipitous happened-- my mobile phone slipped out my shirt pocket and fell straight into the drain of the toilet. And no, before you ask, I didn't take care of my private matter after the phone went plunk. Now, unlike a western bowl toilet there was no final safety net of a pool of water to catch my phone, no, no, no, there was nothing to stop my slick plastic phone from making a dive bomb straight down the drain. Swoosh! Gone. It took about 1/2 of a 1/2 of a second for my brain to realize what just happened. I then ran into my room, grabbed my flashlight, and walked back into the bathroom to see just how far the "rabbit hole" went. Yes, before you ask, there was the idea of sticking my hand down there too. Then as suddenly as that not so smart idea entered my brain it left.

I took the most responsible approach and walked downstairs (just one flight) to talk with my buildings security guard. Most apartments have them here in Dhaka. In my broken Bangla and English I explained to him, using hand gestures as well, that my phone fell down the toilet. He then followed me back to my apartment, walked into the bathroom with me, and in his most fluent Bangla and also using hand gestures, told me "mobile shesh" or finished. He then guided me back out of the apartment, around the back of the building and showed me just where the pipes lead to-- the sewer system. Again, "mobile shesh" he said. He then went into asking me if I wanted the mechanics to come tomorrow and take apart the pipes. I said no thank you (in broken Bangla) and proceeded to meet my friends at the head of the road to pick them up for dinner. Very kind of him though.

10 minutes later, and my ego still bruised, I then explained to my friends why they were unable to reach me for the past 1/2 hour. They all seemed quite shocked and a general mood of consoling went over them. Dinner prep went off without a hitch despite my head bobbing down a few times in utter shame and laughter. Being the great friends they are each one told a story equally if not even more embarrassing. Only good friends would do such a thing.

Of all the events to have happened during ones first week in a new country this one wins the prize for me. Fortunately I put aside some extra money for such an "oh, didn't see that happening" event, and better yet, my friend Oliver, who was also at dinner that night, just happened to have new phone he was trying to get rid of as he needed a different one to use to connect to the internet with.

All in all everything worked itself out just fine.

Post-note: From time to time it's fun to play the game with my friends "just where in Dhaka is my phone".

Dhaka, taka, and the maze

I arrived to Dhaka four days ago- safe and sound with all my bags too. My first day consisted of meeting the rest of the new in-coming volunteers, getting lost at night tying to find my apartment (quite funny and at the same time not), and partaking of the VSO Bangladesh training course.

How can I begin to explain Dhaka? The maze of my neighborhood, and the entire city for that matter, is not for the uninhibited or shy. The good thing is that the locals are beyond willing to help give directions when I walk up to them with the blank look of a lost sheep.

I would like to write more but I am still a bit turned around from my twenty hour journey. That, and well, I just arrived and am barely able to take it all in let alone write it down. More later I promise.