Madagascar

I will just let the pictures of one of the most fantastic and bizarre do the talking for todays column.




Countryside in the highlands of Madagascar Photo: Jean-Louis Vandevivère


View on the Betsiboka river and Bombetoka bay. Photo: Oledoe

Antananarivo, Madagascar 2007. Photo: Bernard Gagnon



Village in Central Highlands, south of Antananarivo in Madagascar  2007. Photo: Bernard Gagnon.



Majahilo River at Miandrivazo, Madagascar 2007. Photo: Bernard Gagnon.



Adansonia grandidieri, baobab from Madagascar, picture taken near Morondava 2007. Photo: Bernard Gagnon.
 

The "canyon of rats" and the "canyon of monkeys" in Isalo National Park, Madagascar.

Allée des Baobabs near Morondava, Madagascar 2010. Photo: Frank Vassen.



Rainforest, East of Madagascar, near Manakara 2007. Photo: Mauro Didier.
 

Spiny forest at Ifaty, Madagascar, featuring various adansonia (baobao) species, alluaudia procera (Madagascar ocotillo) and other vegetations 2007. Photo: Jialiang Gao.
 

Antananarivo



City Profile 006: Minneapolis, Minnesota

CITY PROFILE 006: MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA

Coordinates: 44°59′N 93°16′W
Elevation: 830 ft (264 m)
Daily Mean Temp: 45.3 Fahrenheit, 7.388 Celsius
Metro Population: 3,269,814
Estimated 2050 Metro Population: ?
Risks: Extreme cold (lowest average temp. of any major United States city), occasional extreme heat.
Advantages: Named top tech city in 2005, 2nd smart city to live in in 2006, one of the top cities for young professionals, liveable city, clean city, good economy, low unemployement  (relative to the rest of the country) scenery within a short drive.
Resources: Immediate: abundant water Regional: water, farmland, Iron ore, taconite, coal, titaniumoxied
Other: 16th largest city in the United States in 1940, 48th currently (16th metro population). Strong Scandinavian culture.

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe's physical geography knows nothing of the political opression of the people who live there. For the most part, Zimbabwe is at a high elevation, which moderates the climate.





Mount Nyangani from the west. The falls in the middle ground are on the upper Nyamuziwa River and the Tourist Path ascends to their right. The start of the Tourist Path is in the lower right of the picture. Photo: Babakathy


 Nyama Falls, Mount Nyangani, Zimbabwe Photo: Babakathy.


Mtshabezi River, Gwanda, Zimbabwe Photo: Babakathy.


 The Thuli River exits Thuli Gorge, south of Gwanda, Zimbabwe Photo: Babakathy.


Thuli Makwe Dam , Zimbabwe Photo: Babakathy.


Jacaranda trees in Montague Ave, Salisbury, Rhodesia 1975



Bulawayo CBD Photo: Prince Phumulani Nyoni



Bulawayo City Hall (2007) Photo: Scott Wheeler


Nyala Tree Manyuchi Photo: Macvivo



Swimuwini Rest Camp, Gonarezhou National Park, Zimbabwe (2007) Photo: Babakathy


Bridal Veils Falls, a waterfall in the hills outside Chimanimani in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe.

Book: 'The Sumerians' by Leonard Wooley

I have had the book 'The Sumerians' by Leonard Wooley for some time now but have not gotten much of a chance to read it. Currently, I am gaining an interest in Sumerian and Akkadian history (as well as Canaanite and Semitic) and determined to finally start reading the book.

Wooly was born in 1880 and died in 1960 and was best known for his excavations at Ur. His book, despite it's age, is a very easy yet informative read. The copy I have was printed by Barnes and Nobles in 1995 with a minimal design (which I prefer). Nevertheless, several simple yet powerful illustrations are contained in book.

'Sumerians' starts with a chapter on the begginings of the Sumerian peoples settlement of Mesopotamia. The author argues the Sumerians might have been Caucasian and not ancestors of modern day Arabs. Next, Wooley covers the early history of the Sumerian civilization. Civil wars are covered next. He then outlines Sumerian society, has a chapter on the third dynasty of Ur and wraps up the book with a chapter on Isin and Larsa and finishes with the chapter "the claim of Sumer".

The Sumerians are very relevant today. Mesopotamian history, language, legends and religion are of interest and importance today and form the foundation for the Western World.

City Profile 005: Stockholm, Sweden

CITY PROFILE 005: STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN


Coordinates: 59°21′N 18°04′E
Elevation: 20 meters
Daily Mean Temp: 44.25 fahrenheit
Metro Population: 2,054,343
Estimated 2050 Metro Population: 2.8 million 
Risks: High cost of living, growing high risk immigrant population, somewhat frigid winters.
Advantages:  Abundant water, relatively low crime, clean city, liveable city, traditionally safe region of the world.
Resources: Immediate: Port. Regional: Water, timber, farmland, ore, fish. 
Other:

 
Photo: Johannes Akkach

Ireland

Well, first of all, I posted a city profile on Stockholm yesterday and it was subsequently erased during a massive blogger outage. I will rewrite it soon.

Here are a few pictures from Ireland for today:


Trim Castle, Co Meath, Ireland, at sunrise Photo: Andrew Parnell


Summit of Carrantuohill, the highest mountain in Ireland Photo: Anthony Patterson


Newgrange, Ireland Photo: Richard Gallagher

 
Giant's Causeway, Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland Photo: Code Poet.


 as seen from Torr Head Photo: Van Helsing

Oklahoma City Skyline

I found these pictures I took last fall when looking for a backround for a youtube video of my remix of Guy J - Azimuth (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JN3_l1Al2Kw) . I like OKC a lot, more than Dallas I think. The crisp cool/cold late fall days with blue afternoon skies are the best. The sky doesn't get much bluer than in Oklahoma. The last one is my favorite and the one I used for Guy J - Azimuth (Caleb Golston Bangin' Big Room Trance Remix)