on and about..

petrol station, mirpur road, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

cross road, nilkhet road, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

guy, dhaka university, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

i needed to go to the department for soil, water and enviroment. for an interview.

i met the guy, when i was searching for the place. dhaka university area is huge. they told me, asking for the place i should take a rickshaw. i refused. stupid, i thought, taking a rickshaw for a place which is so close by.

i met him, because he started to talk to me, on the road. it is easy for me to stand out. even my tanniest tan is not getting to a bangladeshi colour. and people in bangladesh are very interested in foreigner. so he asked me wher i wanna go. in english. so perfect and i asked him where the department was.

so he joined me, said he wants to help me. he knew the department and his library, he needed to go to,  was close by. he was studying law. he likes it he said.

in some points he asked me:"do u like hitler"
i heard this question before. i also heard before that hitler is a great leader, a great person.

i did not know what to answer and then i started to talk. talk about how bad he was and what he did and why he is bad. he listened, quietly and suddenly i stopped, asked "what do u think about hitler"

"he is a great leader. he is strong. he did good things for the nation. he took care of the nation and did everything for him."

bangladesh, aparently as people tell me, have a problem with strong leaders. they do not have one. but they love their country, would defend it for everything. that's a stereotype, i know. but a lot say that.

also history is selective. how much and what you learn in school depends on the country and its history maker.

i talk to him, confront him with question if he knew what he did. and yes he knows. but he, hitler, did also god things.

i try to convince him. the only  i actually decided to say my opinion, even so i knew it was predetermined by my past.

bookfair, nilkhet road, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

bookshop, cross road, nilkhet road, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

delivery rickshaw, mirpur road, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

mirpur road, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

adnan and the mechanics...

adnan loves his bike. it is his girlfriend. at least he said so. one time his old bike he just renewed by himself got suddenly stolen in front of his place. i don't know if he cried but i think his heart did.

now his new bike is ok. it just needs a few fixing, like the wheel, lights etc. nothing special. but it need so and he cannot do it. but the guys can do it, his mechanics.

anyway he loves to go to this place. loves the smell of oil, mixed with burned plastic. talking with the guys about his bike, other bikes. hanging around

the did not fix the bike when we came. they did not even start it before he came, even so said so. they wanted to wait for him. to fix it together.

sometimes, he says, he has to shout at the them. actually every time at the end of a 'repair session'. not because he is mad, just how it is.

adnan got it a few days later. still needed to get some things done.

on a weekend day

friday is the only day i have off. my weekend. i am still for more than 4 weeks here. nothing. ridiculous. so spending weekends inside sucks. above all teh weather is perfect. not too hot, not too cold.

that's bangdaldesh till march, then apparently it will be hot, and wet.


usually i just walk. actually i always walk, cause otherwice you do not see, smell, feel. the aim today old dhaka. the oldest place in dhaka.

dhanmondi, dhaka, 10th feb 2011

6th road, dhanmondi, dhaka, 10th feb. 2012

6th road, dhanmondi, dhaka, 10th feb. 2012

shop with ricksha,  dhanmondi, 10th feb. 2012

old dhaka is old, smelly, tiny streets, full of people, waste, ricksha, shops, more people, more food, and more smell.

oi love it, being in there you are soaked up , immidiatly, with all your senses. if not and you are somewhere else you are lost, or you dip your feed into the little canals full of pee. happens. so better get your mind frame sorted.

on our way we left sumon at his shooting place. it was a hostel for boys. just for boys, who are interested in art. in the front there houses is a volleyball court, and on it his things for the shoot. steps, covered with news paper, thats the idea: a guy walking over it.

sumon is helping his ex teamleader with a job. adnan and me coming along. just to drop him off.

motherlanguageday statue, azimpur road, dhaka, 10th feb. 2012

old dhaka, 11th feb. 2012

dhaka, 10th feb 2012

money, money, money

office chair, drik, dhaka, 31st jan 2012

my lap top broke. just one day, on an evening , after cooking for my workmates and them leaving my place.

i cried one time, for two minutes, later, when they told me that my computer has the most unqiue problem this series of lap tops have. i got it and it cannot be replaced.

so after feeling self pitty and decision making, feeling guilty and waiting for two many days i got my lap top. a new mac. i am in heaven. i can watch movies again. and i can work. but i can watch movies before going to sleep.

in order to pay for the lap top i need cash. 1 euro is roughly 100 thaka. out of the cash machine i can get per day 35 000 thaka max. in 500 or 1000 notes. at least.

yan, my chinese friend, told me that she is always walking around with s many notes. because in china people don't trust the bank. so when she went to university form home she had to take all her money for the next 6 month in her wallet.

guess now i am more relaxed about all those notes, or at least i should be.

office chair, drik, dhaka, 31st jan 2012

in bazar

in front of the dining room of the hotel, cox's basar, 3rd feb.2012

we are going on a trip. with we, i mean drik, or some people from drik. and there families. that's exciting. seeing moni with his wife, seeing habibay's kids again. his wife. and all the others. quite a lot of names, and cannot even memories all of the people's names i am working with.

we arrived in morning. around 11 am. it was hot, but ok. quick breakfast and then off to the beach. we will play football. or better say, adnan, habibay, his two kids and some other guys ( i am so sorry, i have a terrible name memory, sometimes i even forget the names of my siblings). anyway essentially guys and me.

we are in cox's bazar. one or not the place in bangladesh tourist go to. millions of people come there every year and with 120  miles it has the longest beach in the world.

table football table, cafe, cox's bazar, 4th feb 2012

dogs, cafe, cox's bazar, 4th feb 2012

the cafe is pritty cool. we discover it n the second day. it had table football, barbeque, nice seats, life music, etc. quite unusual.

we wanted to go there in the evening, but the other were not interested. i thought they would understand, table football. how cool is that. but they did not. so we ended up on the market looking at scarves and sunglasses.

i don't know still now if they know what table football is and how it looks like. i did not ask. dare to ask.

ricksha, cox's bazar, 3rd feb. 2012

cox's bazar is designed for tourist. it has a lot of small shops. hotels are popping up in every little corner, they even imported electronic little cars from japan, whoare so quiet that it is almost irritating seeing them suddenly appearing next to you.

and they have rikshaw drivers, of course. and even so the distant between the hotel and the market is about 10 minuets quick walk, we take the rickshaw. they know there business.

 

teaplace, beach, cox's bazar, 3rd feb 2012

being a big strong guy store, beach, cox's bazar, 3rd feb 2012

the beach is full of people. of course. people from cox's bazar and people who came to cox's bazar already a few years ago, say it is really full. i, experienced italian mass tourist traveller, says it is empty.

they have little shops, one business models around.

most seen: tea or cha place, cococunat wagons
kidss' seller: softdrinks, jewellery, sweets, songs
adults' seller: chai in big thermo bottles, bananas

umbrellas and seats with people, beach, cox's bazar, 4th feb. 2012

the people in cox's bazar swim in clothes. that's in a msulimic country. you do not show your body. that's fine. and i am kind of prepared.

one thing i did not consider. texture and color of clothes and attachment to body shape. going into the water is fun, running around with wet clothes sometimes as well, sometimes not at all.

guy, beach, cox's bazar, 4th feb 2012

me: stop sorry can i take a picture of you
him: yes ok why?
me: because you look different
him: ah ok fine
me: why do you look different?
him: because i am living with my parents in australia. i was just born here and come back for a visit
me:do you like it here
him: its ok
him: finished
me: yes
him: ok bye
me: bye

people from bangaldesh love to be photographed. better say, if you do not take an image of them they are annoyed. really annoyed.

guy, beach, cox's bazar, 3rd feb 2012

he is the guy with the flyers. first when he gave it too me i wanted to refuse it. initial reaction based on upbringing and living in europe with more flyers than people in a country.

luckily he was persistent. and his dogs.

his dogs licked my legs. i like dogs but i like to watch them from a distant. i do not know them, they do not know me. also i do not lick there legs.

i get annoyed, but than he says that they were his dogs. so i am embarrassed. dog lovers don't understand people who do not like dogs. thats the same with mums and non mums.

anyway i started to talk with him, looked at the flyer closer and realized that this was an amazing material, ecological recycled brown paper. awesome. and even so the combination of life music with barbeque seemed quite tacky for me for get tourist and guest into your place standing on the cox's bazar beach that was quite cool.

he works at this place. i could come there tomorrow and yes he knos the surf club.

jafar alem, beach, cox's bazar, 4th feb. 2012

he is the surfer in bangaldesh. probably the only one. starting of 15 years ago by selling of an australian a surfboard for 2000 thaka, believing for ages to lie on the board would be the way to go, he became the most successfull surfer in bangladesh. and probably the only one.

i meet him, by incident, because of an german article about a bangladesh surfclub, about my curiousty and stubbornness to find it and adnan's old contact list.

he is nice, talks very quick. about his past, his present and above all his future. what he wants to do with surfing, why it is important, for him for the people, for cox's bazar.

he also says he is tired, he needs some help, for his surf club, for marketing, for training.

martin,  beach, cox's bazar, 4th feb 2012

sometimes he gets foreigners to come to the beach to surf. this time it is a guy from denmark, italy and then two other guys.

martin is actually volunteering in the refugee camp close by. he just discovered the place and jafar.

martin loves surfing. the waves are not the biggest one but perfect to learn, and probably much highre later, during the year, when the monsoon and the cyclone starts.

martin loves the place. being here for 2 weeks he totally feels secure. people are nice, food is good and just feels so secure. i think i can live here for longer. he says.

jafar tries to established surfing. nobody knows surfing in bangladesh. till he came. now he wants to see more people doing what he is doing.

cityscape, cox's bazar, 3rd feb. 2012

detail, market, cox's bazar, 4th feb. 2012

the market reminds me on markets we used to have at home. little jewelly and nippes in between cheep clothes in between sweets and more clothes. at least how our used to be.

we do not have them anymore. we have amazon.

they have it and it is full of people wandering around, looking at the different stales and comparing same things in quality and prize (at least for me) at different places.

i am a bit bored, just a bit after seeing the 10th scarf shop. but the girls and guys love it. that's ok. i guess also a result from amazon: the inability to enjoy wandering around and loooking.

photostudio, market, cox's bazar, 4th feb 2012

dried fishes, market, cox's bazar, 4th feb 2012

net, fishing boat, cox's bazar, 5th feb 2012

they are stretching the net out. to make sure it is not detangled. this is what i think they are doing with it. but i did not talk with them.

stupid foreigness. hate it sometimes. above all in combination with having the huge camera and snapping helplessly smiling away. smiling is the best i can do.

it is sunday 6 am. the guys, fisherman, are getting ready for the water. and the fishes.

guys on car, between cox's bazar and dhaka, 5th feb 2012

girl looking outside the window, between cox's bazar and dhaka, 5th feb 2012

guy on the street, between cox's bazar and dhaka, 5th feb 2012

in the city

parliament, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

parliament, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

parliament, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

i am on my way for an interview. i chose, of course, to walk, cause i walk, i have to legs. etc. i said this already. earlier times.

so way is dhanmondi to barc university. takes about 1, 5 hours, 5 km. that's ok.

guys reading paper, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

bangladesh has a ridiculous amount of newspapers. far too many, but obviously needed and bought.

and it is good, in a country which is claimed for its corruption within their media.

one time i asked a journalist: do u think the media are here corrupt?

journalist: no i don't think so. i never faced corruption.

a few weeks later 2 journalist, who are investigating criminal cases within their work got stabbed in their home. their child in the little room next by survived. gossip says it is because of money.

journalist, the same one: you know if you wanna earn good money and become rich you have to become a journalist

me: why?

journalist just smiles.

museum, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

roundabout, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

roofs, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

dhaka has slums. yes we know. bangladesh is one of the poorest country in the world. yes we know.

i was walking a long to my meeting. on the bridge, looking at the train tracks i can see them. living in between the tracks, next to them, having business there. chatting away, bidding for a good prize, cooking lunch, living.

there was a photographer. i think he worked for national geographic, i think. something important. i can remember the image, of a guy, with his family, in the middle of the train tracks, spendig time there. i think he did not have any legs. the image is in black and white, dramatic contrast. that is waht i can remember.

i take images, and while i take images i get annoyed. about me. about this photographer and about photography.

what i am doing is slum tourism. i am here because i saw images, because photography tells me too, and because i wanna proof myself.

anyway i do not proof myself by standing on top of the bridge looking down. first of all. then second. what do i have to prrof myself. that i am hard? a photographer who can deal with difficult subjects. who says that they are difficult? who says anyway what is difficult?

and why do i care?

in photography there is the fashion around certain subjects, scary, tragegy, lower class, poverty, so called unnormal life circumstances. and everything under the secure umbrella of support and help.

really? helping with a scary images of them, creatinga bubble of pittyness around them.

would i like to be pittied at?

one time i explained adnan. imagine somebody would coem to dhaka , lets say me. i am doing a story on you. see your clothes, your room, your life. it is different. i have more clothes, more rooms, a proper shower. then i write a story: 'the poor bangaldeshi photography' think would be good story. that's why i wrote it. you see it and then you think either i am poor i need more money, get unsatisfied with yourself and aspire more or you just get angree, in the best case, cause you never saw your self like that, loose your prite and honor.

traintracks with train, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

cityscape of traintracks, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

election paper, busstop, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

it is election time in dhaka. as far as i know 2 parties, against each other and there members. even so the goal, being in charge, is in my eyes not the most aspiring goal, for the it is. it must be.

cause according to a lot of people's knowledge around me they fight against each other. the main goal, the victory. i guess.

busstop, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

view from brac university, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

lake view, dhaka, 30th jan. 2012

behind of me is the brac university, one of the most important in dhaka. i was there, talking to
Ainun Nishat, specialist for climate issue questions.

and it was successfull, considering the fact that he talked and i listened and at the end was ot sure which informations i got and which i need. guess a terrible mistake as a journalist.

on the other sides are the slums. dhake belongs to the most crowdest cities in the world. at the moment official number say 13 million are living here, inofficial i don't wanna know. a lot. and 40 percent of dhaka population lives in the slums. on an area which is probably a 10th from whole dhaka. maybe less. i don't know. but very little.

guys painting on the wall advertisment, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

this is the way advertisment is done. an idea, a few words, some guys and paint. oh an a wall. seems a bit like streetart. can be. for them. i am wondering.

building work, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

these guys are crazy. high up, no security and just on bambussticks. god luck. and that's all for just getting some festival decoration ready. i am looking, taking images. they must think i am crazy. i am smiling.

now i am feeling not disrespectful. they better know they are doing something exciting. interesting. something i cannot do. i smile at the them. they smile back.

building work, dhaka, 30th jan 2012

window cleaner, dhaka, 30th jan 2012