Life in Black

Blablabla. I want a room, somewhere in the world, to put all my books and my pictures. A room with a mattress on the floor and bookshelves. Even if I am never there.19 July 2011: Amina Usman, 18 years old, in Zamzam IDP camp, North Darfur. Amina sells charcoal everyday in El Fasher. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].

In a Geek World

Tonight, I'm buying music on iTune using my iPod touch connected to an anonymous network (TOR, a second-generation onion routing) through a protected wifi connection shared by my Macbook Pro and its 3G modem. Yeah... I am a bit geek sometime.05 July 2011: Darfurian workers preparing cole bags in Zamzam internally displaced person (IDP) camp, North Darfur. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].Speaking about geek, I strongly recommend Dropbox and Chrome. If you have or work on more than one computer, Dropox will allow you to share your files automatically . And as they are kept both online and locally, you won't have problems working if you don't have an internet access. Regarding Chrome, it provides the same functionalities than any browser like Safari, Firefox or IE but allow you to automatically synchronized your bookmark, saved passwords and other auto-fill. Again, if you work with more than one computer... it's really neat.

Merry Easter

I wish you and all your family a merry Easter and hope to see you very soon, wherever you are in the world.24 April 2011: Following the referendum on South Sudan independence, many South Sudanese left Darfur and returned to their hometown. Consequently, El Fasher's Christian community, mostly composed of South Sudanese, lost many of its members. Those who remain gathered today to celebrate Easter in El Fasher's church. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].

Internally Displaced Persons in Darfur

15 March 2011: Tens of thousand of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) fled their village, following clashes between the Government of Sudan and rebel movements, and sought protection at Zamzam IDP camp, North Darfur. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].

Women's Day

08 March 2011: March organized by UNAMID, through El Fasher city, North Darfur, to celebrate the International Women's Day. Darfurian women, boyscouts and UNAMID staff were present. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].

2nd day of the Referendum

10 January 2011: A South Sudanese vote, assisted by a local staff, at the 2nd day of the referendum over South Sudan's independence, at El Fasher polling center, North Darfur. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].10 January 2011: A polling staff member control registration cards during the 2nd day of the referendum on South Sudan's independence, at El-Fasher polling center, North Darfur. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].10 January 2011: A staff member of the El Fasher polling center close a ballot at the end of the 2nd day of the referendum on South Sudan's independence. [Click on the picture to enlarge it].

Close your Eyes

I am facing a serious lack of inspiration and creativity. The contrast with my excitation while taking pictures in Vietnam is a bit too important.19 December 2010: Christian South Sudanese at El Fasher church, North Darfur, Sudan.[Click on the picture to enlarge it].

UN Day

24 October 2010: UNAMID Rwandese soldiers performing a traditional dance during UN Day celebrations in El-Fasher, North Darfur [Click on the picture to enlarge it].

And although I don't think my work can be compared with his, just a friendly thought for Joao Silva

Henna 2: The Return

I received a few emails requesting for more pictures of the henna painter. And as I have been stuck all week with admin stuff... I don't have any new pictures to show. So:23 September 2010: Fatima Bahit (also know as Tata) is one of the most famous henna specialists in El Fasher, North Darfur, Sudan. Self-taught and with more than 15 years experience, she frequently goes to Khartoum or even to Dubai to provide her services to women for weddings or Eid celebrations. [Click on the picture to enlarge it]Just a quick reminder. Wordpress compresses my pictures to create a thumbnail, leading sometimes to an impression of blurred picture. If you want to see the original version, just click on the picture.

Henna and Music

23 September 2010: Fatima Bahit (also know as Tata) is one of the most famous henna specialists in El Fasher, North Darfur, Sudan. Self-taught and with more than 15 years experience, she frequently goes to Khartoum or even to Dubai to provide her services to women for weddings or Eid celebrations. [Click on the picture to enlarge it]And by the way, being a big fan of music and traveling very frequently in airplanes, I just bought some Noise Canceling Headphones,  the Bose Quiet Comfort 15. It's not exactly inexpensive but I strongly recommend them. This technology really works, drastically reducing the ambient noise (AC, fan, airplane, etc...) and I now even use them at work when I particularly need to stay concentrated. Just one last advice, do not buy them in Europe but try to get them in the US, it's really cheaper there.