The MeetingLife Journal Project Brings Together Cultures Through A Notebook

by Jessica Festa on



You don’t always need to leave the country to connect with others from around the world. The MeetingLife Journal, a leather-bound book full of stories from people all over the world, began in Rome, Italy, on November 11, 2011. For the past three months, it has traveled to 11 countries, being sent to various YouTube personalities who have been writing their stories down in the book, as well as creating video responses to let others know where the journal is. Nobody is sure when the process will stop, or if it ever will.

After making its way through Europe, the journal is set to travel the United States. Who receives the notebook next is not pre-determined, so those who do are always surprised. While at the basic level it’s an art project – with Post-it notes, drawings and text – though on a grander scale the journal is a tool that connects people and cultures from all over the world.

Want to be a part of the project? Write a blog post or upload a video on the MeetingLife blog, for a chance to be voted for by the blog’s followers. To get a better idea of the project, check out the video above.

Africa’s Tallest Statue: The Monument To The African Renaissance

by Sean McLachlan on

Flying or driving into Dakar, the capital of Senegal, it’s impossible to miss this imposing statue.

That’s deliberate. The Monument to the African Renaissance is supposed to make a statement. At 49 meters (161 feet), it’s the tallest statue in Africa. In fact, it’s one of the tallest statues anywhere, beating the Statue of Liberty by several feet.

When it was completed in 2010, this giant statue caused a giant controversy. Feminists complained about the secondary status given to the female figure. Imams complained about her scanty clothing. Some complained about its Soviet artistic style, seemingly out of place in Africa, and the fact that it was built by a North Korean company. Lots of people, especially in the West, complained about its $27 million price tag.

Yeah, like the West never wastes money.

Sure, it’s brash, it’s bold, and it’s more than a little out of proportion, but it makes its point: Africa has a big future ahead of it. You see it in everything from Africa’s towering skyscrapers to its lively cafe culture, from its newly paved roads to its growing middle class. As a recent editorial by Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina stated, Africa isn’t like its international image, and big projects like this help the world see Africa differently.

Love it or hate it, this statue has become a major tourist site in Dakar. You can take an elevator up to the top of the guy’s head and look out over the city. People are even photographing it as they fly into town, or by flying a camera on a kite like Jeff Attaway did to take the photo below.

Hopefully the next major statement by an African government will be built by an African company.

Top photo courtesy Laurence Thielemans.

Video: Bones And Art In The Paris Catacombs

by Sean McLachlan on

You’ve probably seen videos or photos of the famous Paris Catacombs, with their miles of ossuaries holding the bones of some six million Parisians. The catacombs were created in the 18th century from existing underground quarries, and these quarries, tunnels, and other mysterious underground spaces create a network under Paris measuring more than 180 miles. It’s truly a city under the city, with its own secret life.

This video, created by some intrepid urban explorers, shows parts of the Paris Catacombs you won’t see on the official tour: rooms filled with graffiti and giant murals, even a large stone model of a castle. Despite their reputation as burial places, the tunnels and rooms beneath Paris seem to have a lot of life in them.

The Parisians who make these works of art, called cataphiles, also sponsor underground parties, meetings, even a cinema. To learn more about these interesting folks, check out this article.

Overlooked London: Saint Bartholomew The Great Church

by Sean McLachlan on

London is a city full of historic churches. Some can be a bit hard to find and get missed by the casual visitor. One of these is Saint Bartholomew the Great in West Smithfield.

Built by a courtier of King Henry I, it has been open for worship since 1143 and was the center of a large complex of church buildings before the Dissolution of Henry VIII took away most of its lands and two-thirds of the church itself.

What remains, however, is grandiose. After passing through the narrow gate shown here, you enter a church with high Gothic vaulting, a semicircular aisle going around the nave, and numerous old graves.

A brown marble tomb shows the busts of Percival and Agnes Smallpace (died 1558 and 1588), complete with frilled collars and period costume along with the inscription, “Behowlde youre selves by us sutche once were we as you and you in tyme shalbe even duste as we are now.”

Food for thought.

“Overlooked London” is a new, occasional series on lesser-known but still cool sights of London. Stay tuned!

[Both photos courtesy Christine McIntosh]

Safari Destination: Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

by Kraig Becker on

For decades Tanzania has been one of the top destinations for travelers looking for a classic African safari experience. After all, the country’s Serengeti National Park is home to hundreds of thousands of animals and is one of the few places where you can witness the amazing spectacle that is the Great Migration. But anyone who has ever visited the Serengeti knows that during the peak season it can get rather crowded, which can certainly diminish the mystique of the place.

Travelers looking for an alternative destination may want to consider visiting Ruaha National Park instead. Located in central Tanzania, Ruaha is the country’s second largest park and a spectacular natural environment in its own right. Named for the Great Ruaha River that passes along its eastern border, the park marks the transition from forests in the south to the more arid grasslands of the north.

Covering more than 13,000 square miles of wilderness, Ruaha is home to a dizzying array of wildlife including the largest population of elephants in East Africa. With an estimated 10,000 elephants living within its borders, Ruaha is one of the best places on the continent to spot those enormous creatures. The park is also home to a large number of predators, including hyena, leopard, cheetah and several very healthy prides of lions. There are even a few packs of the increasingly rare and endangered African wild dogs too.

Even though it is located in a remote area of Tanzania, there are no less than six lodges to stay at when visiting Ruaha. Those lodges include places like the Tandala Tented Camps, Ruaha River Lodge and Jongomero Camp, each of which offer rustic, yet still luxurious, accommodations for adventurous travelers.

It may be a bit more challenging to get to but for those looking for a unique and decidedly uncrowded African safari, Ruaha is well worth the journey.