· December, 2009

Stories from Quick Reads from December, 2009

Bangladesh: Celebrating New Year Twice

  31 December 2009

Saad Hammadi at Of Diaries And Experiences reminds that Bangladesh is reversing the clock by an hour to go back to Bangladesh’s geographic timing: “Thus, the 31st will last for 25 hours. For the party goers, how better could it be than celebrating the new year twice!”

Bhutan: Snowfall And Holiday

  31 December 2009

“Nobody seems to know when it started or how it started, but tradition dictates that Thimphu residents – especially public servants – avoid going to office on the day the city receives its first snowfall of the season,” informs Tshering Tobgay from Bhutan.

Zimbabwe: Politics of condemnation

  31 December 2009

Amanda blogs about the “politics of condemnation” in Zimbabwe: The Congress [Zanu PF] resolved that “the Party’s national strategic objective for the next five years shall be the checking, containment and ultimate defeat of the West’s neo-colonial regime change agenda.”

Ghana:Visiting Cape Coast Castle

  31 December 2009

Beautiful photos and a post about a tour to the Cape Coast Castle in Ghana: “We followed a guided tour into the slave dungeons. There were several African-Americans in the group. We were all quiet, reduced to silence by the ghosts and the sadness thick in the musty air.”

Dominica: OECS

  31 December 2009

Chris at Dominica Weekly shares his thoughts on the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States’ Economic Union.

Trinidad & Tobago: Do the Math

  31 December 2009

Jumbie's Watch does the math on Trinidad and Tobago's murder rate: “While the CoP was bleating in public about the 3.65% murder solve rate (for last year), he neglected to mention that for the ‘known’ 508 victims of this year, there is a further 904 still missing!!!”

Cuba: History & Hope

  31 December 2009

“Hopefully, 2010 will bring, finally, an end to this sad, torturous chapter of Cuban history”: Uncommon Sense remembers Cuba's past and expresses his hopes for its future.

Bangladesh: Knighthood For Fazle Hasan Abed

  31 December 2009

Unheard Voice informs that Fazle Hasan Abed, the founder and chairperson of the largest NGO of the world, BRAC, has been awarded with knighthood for his endeavors towards eradicating poverty and empowering the poor in Bangladesh and many countries of the world.

Armenia: Culture vulture

  31 December 2009

Ianyan interviews Anush Babajanyan, an Armenian photographer who particularly focuses on issues such as gender in Armenia and the homeless in the country's second largest city, Gyumri.

Azerbaijan: Business as usual

  31 December 2009

Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines comments on new charges made against imprisoned journalist Eynulla Fatullayev, 2009 recipient of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) International Press Freedom award. The blog says that some things don't change, but nonetheless encourages its readers to speak out in 2010.

Japan: 2009 Tokyo Art Scene

  31 December 2009

William Andrews at the Tokyo Art Beat blog reviews the Tokyo art scene for the past year: “It was a nervous year, with the world-wide economic crisis always lurking.”

Japan: Things just got worse

  31 December 2009

“Japanese OO got worse in 2009″. Umeten gives a list [ja] of all the things that got worse in Japan this year, from economy to music magazines to baseball … A link to other blogs or websites for each item.

The Balkans: Sarajevo-Belgrade Train

  31 December 2009

Balkanology Blog reports on the recent launch of a direct Sarajevo-Belgrade train, the first one “in almost two decades.” CAFÉ TURCO recalls Serbia's recent history in a post titled “Serbia through the eyes of a train traveller (me).”