Hblog

Tokyo

I've just returned from an incredible trip to Tokyo. My first time in Japan, I was pretty much wowed by this amazing culture that has creativity at its heart. My favourite: Harajuku fashions, late nights at karaoke bars, early morning sushi market, listening to Tantek talking about microformats (and understanding what he was talking about!), hearing John talk about how music licencing is where the money is - and hanging with Dominick, Yuko and Yonnie. The New Context Conference organised by Digital Garage and the ccJP salon gave me a glimpse of the incredible technology and tech communities being developed here - from willustrator.org, an online illustration tool, to loftwork.com, a showcase for local artists with a commissioning service.  At the ccJP event, Larry said that 'it's an insult to call this web 2.0 - this is more like web 3.0/web 4.0 because you're making technology that doesn't lock people into your service like UTube does'.

Mushy like matoke

I've just returned from an inspiring 10 days on the Ugandan island of Kalangala. The Tacticaltech folks have pulled it off again - bringing together about 140 people from around Africa and world to share their experience of free software and open content. As with my Tajikistan trip, I made some very special friends in those 10 days - possibly lubricated by the large helpings of Ugandan beer I was forced to drink. Most nights were spent listening to Ugandan music on the beach, watching the local troupe of dancers shaking their booties in a very interesting display that left me in agony the next day when I realised that I'd practiced just a little too hard. I learned so much - about the fact that I hate birdwatching and trekking with those bloody twitchers who find the flutterings of even the most pathetic looking creature facinating. I learned about the many ways that you can serve talapia and about the longest that you can go without bathing before people notice. More importantly, I learned that I have so much more to learn about people - that they can pleasantly surprise you, and that if you throw out a couple of love bombs, there's no end to what you will get back. Yes, that's my mushy moment, but I'm feeling surprisingly mushy. Mushy mushy like those great helpings of green bananas that Charles, Peace and Skola served us every day. What a great start to the year.

An epic journey

Well, I am at last home after a truly epic journey that started in Palo Alto, California at 4am on Friday morning and ended yesterday (Monday morning) in Johannesburg. I was stuck in New York for 3 days - luckier to be stuck in New York, I suppose, than in Bapsfontein. After travelling across the US the whole day Friday, we eventually arrived in New York in the midst of a snowstorm. I ran to my plane and managed to just make the 6pm departure time. I then proceeded to wait another 8 hours as the plane progressed about 50 m across the runway. Grumpy and exhausted, we were eventually filed out of the plane at 2am, as the captain told us to take the skinny blankets and pillows from the plane with us because we would be sleeping on the airport floor. I was luckier than most - two angels, disguised as Alison and Leo, took me back to their apartment in Lower Manhattan and let me sleep on their sleeper couch. Refreshed, we went back to the airport the next day and felt pretty guilty when the captain annouced to the irate passengers that the plane would only be leaving the next day. Alison, Leo and I proceeded directly to a lovely French restaurant in Manhattan and went on to drink copious amounts of alcohol to soothe our troubled minds. At the end of the night we were doing impressions of French actresses, with strainers as hats, spoons as wands and newly-purchased underwear over our jeans. It was an epic journey but I think that I have gained two wonderful friends :)