Stories about History from April, 2006
Estonia: Land and People
Giustino of Itching for Eestimaa writes about a book about Scandinavia by Joanna Kavenna and his own perception of Estonia and its people: “Kavenna continually points out that Estonians are a simple people who are connected to nature and rocks and lakes. How true. I call my in-laws pakapikud –...
Russia: Klyukva v Sakhare
Konstantin Dlutskiy of Russian Marketing Blog writes about “another nostalgia food product” – klyukva v sakhare (cranberry in sugar).
Ukraine, Belarus: Chernobyl Links
Megan Case posts links to Chernobyl-related websites and writes about her own memories of 1986.
Chinese opera in Singapore
Chinese opera came to Singapore with the early immigrants from China. They were very popular in the days before movies and television. Some troupes are still active and once in a while they stage a show. themediaslut has a photo heavy post on one such performance.
Czech Republic: Radio Transmitting Tower to Become a UNESCO Site
Jesse of Bored in Brno is wondering why “a Czech radio broadcasting tower might be added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage sites.”
Ukraine: One Man's Chernobyl 20 Years On
Stefan at Dykun writes about a Ukrainian relative who was sent to work in Chernobyl 20 years ago: he's in his 40s now but walks with a cane. “Mykhajlo wears what must count as the thickest glasses ever worn by a human being–they should definitely find a place in a...
DRC: Informal vs. Official World Order
UDPS Liege contrasts (FR) the official world order (UN and other international bodies) to the informal world order (multinational corporations and secret service agencies). According to the informal world order, the DRC is not a sovereign nation, continues the blogger.
Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica: US Army Bases
A Flickr photoset prompts Mad Bull to satisfy his curiosity – whetted years ago in Lit. class — about the presence of US army bases in Trinidad and Jamaica.
China: Today's Canton captured
Frances at Supernaut continues with the visual and textual representating of Guangzhou, one of China's largest cities, with posts on an upcoming DJ delight, the city's third modern dance festival, a photo tour through the largely undeveloped old city and the sci-fi endlessness of the south side of the Pearl...
The Lebanese Bloggers last week: Remembering The War, Plus Some Kisses
April 13 marked the day of remembrance of the Lebanese Civil War. Lebanese Bloggers have pitched in to give their personal accounts of that terrible war. But before reading their takes, we must remember that the Lebanese have learned to kiss and make up. Just ask Jamal who wrote a...
Poland: Communist Jokes
According to one Russian historian, about 200,000 people were sent to camps for telling jokes in Stalin's time. The beatroot doesn't find Communist jokes funny: according to him, “the jokes were the serious antidote to the very funny horror of reality.”
Belarus: “Public Repentance”
Iryna of TOL's Belarus Blog writes about “public repentance” taking place in Belarus now: “Students, who spent 10 to 15 days in prison after being arrested on the Square or during the March 25th demonstrations, are being forced to declare publicly that their legal participation in peaceful protests against election...
Belarus: Conference on Mass Media
Edward Lucas, the central and east European correspondent of The Economist, has been invited to an unlikely conference on “integration of Belarus into the world media landscape” in Minsk, sponsored by the Belarusian government, but he doubts he'll be granted a Belarusian visa.
Caribbean: What's going on?
“So what else is going on, this fiercely hot Thursday?” writes JT at the Caribbean Beat Weblog. He finds West Indies, the anniversary of the Bay of Pigs, and some soul-searching on the part of Caribbean heads of state.
China: Anti-Japanese sentiment analyzed
With a prediction of diplomatic repercussions carrying over well into 2006, AngryChineseBlogger looks at the root causes, location and total cost of damages incurred during violent anti-Japanese protests in many cities across China in early 2005.
Romania: Controversial Yitzhak Rabin Statue
Romer!can writes about a controversial statue of Yitzhak Rabin in Romania erected by “a known xenophobic, holocaust denier” Corneliu Vadim Tudor during the 2004 election campaign.
Ukraine, Belarus: Interview With Translator of “Voices of Chernobyl”
Languor Management links to Maud Newton's short email interview with Keith Gessen, English translator of Svetlana's Alexievich's Voices of Chernobyl, which won this year's National Book Critics Circle award for nonfiction.”
India: The last of the line
The last Mughal Emperor in India and the final legacy that remains leglected - at Indian Muslims.
Barbados, Cuba: The future of Cuba
Barbados Free Press believes that “Castro’s revolution will die with him”.
Caribbean, UK: Amerindian exhibit
At the Caribbean Beat Blog, Tracy Assing posts a short review of the “From the Amazon to the Caribbean” exhibition at the Hornmian Museum in Dulwich, England.
Trinidad & Tobago: Lloyd Best
Visual artist Chris Cozier acknowledges the role played in his personal and intellectual development by Trinidadian thinker Lloyd Best.
