Travel Tuesday: Siberian shaman costumes

I was asked by the owner of a shamanism website if he could use some photos of mine from an article I did on the Art of Shamanism. It's so nice when people actually ASK to reuse your online photos! Specifically the website is about Tiger Bells, an interesting aspect of Asian art. The page with my photo is here. It's an extensive site and well worth looking at!

Book Review: A Dream in Polar Fog

A Dream in Polar Fog by Yuri Rytkheu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

People often say when they enjoy a book that they're sorry when it's over. I rarely say that because I'm always anticipating the next book I'll read!
With this historical novel, however, I really was sorry when it was over because I doubt I'll ever read a book like it again.
The author, Yuri Rytkheu, grew up in a traditional Chukchi settlement in Siberia in the early 20th century when that way of life was already fast disappearing. He wrote this novel in 1968.
The story follows a Canadian sailor who is seriously injured on a voyage and left behind in a Chukchi village. He adapts to his strange surroundings and comes to accept and eventually love his new life. Rytkheu uses his outsider protagonist as a way to explain the Chukchi way of life and cosmology. We're given a sympathetic, authoritative view into a culture vastly different than our own, shown with a sympathetic but not rose-tinted view. The story is well told and there are some beautiful passages about the Arctic landscape. Anyone interested in the far north or simply a good read would do well to hunt down this book.
Sadly, as far as I can tell Rytkheu never wrote another novel. He did write a few nonfiction books on his people that have been translated and I'm planning on hunting those down.


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Preparing for two months in Ethiopia

In ten days I'll be on a flight to Ethiopia. This will be my second time in the country. Last year my wife and I did a big road trip in Ethiopia for our tenth anniversary and I also did a side trip to Somaliland.

While that last trip was more of a survey of the two countries, this time I'm focusing on just one place--Harar. This medieval walled city in eastern Ethiopia has a unique culture that's a mix of the many different societies it has interacted with in its role as a major trading center. I'll be studying its culture and history to write a long series for Gadling as well as a book proposal.

So what am I doing to get ready? Not much, actually. On this sort of trip you just have to let things happen. My contacts in Harar will help me with my research and it's such a friendly place that I know everything will work out fine, more or less. I'm doing a lot of background reading, of course, sucking up every bit of information I can on the city and region. Sadly, there's not as much in English as there should be for such an important city. That's where I come in.

I'm also not worrying about the subject matter of my book proposal. I know it's going to be about some aspect of Harari culture, but I haven't decided what. While I have dozens of ideas I'm going to follow the advice of a Harari friend and let the subject choose me. Who I meet and what they teach me will shape my book. When a writer goes into a major project, it's best not to have too strict of an idea where it should lead.

Photo Friday: Ancient cave paintings at Laas Geel, Somaliland

Welcome to Photo Friday, a series I started last week here on Midlist Writer. This week's pick is one of the 300 (!) shots I took of the painted caves of Laas Geel in Somaliland. On a rocky hill in the middle of the Somali desert are a dozen rock shelters covered with paintings of cows, hunters, giraffes, and other images. Somali archaeologists estimate the paintings to be from 5,000 to 11,000 years old. Many painted caves have come to light in recent years and an ongoing survey will almost certainly find more.

Somaliland is a breakaway region of northern Somalia. They enjoy peace, government, and the rule of law. While Somaliland has its share of problems, it's WAY better off than the rest of Somalia. I went there earlier this year and wrote a series on Somaliland travel.

In January I'm going to have a photo exhibition about Somaliland at a local cafe in Madrid. More on that later!

Websites for Writers: UNESCO's list of Intangible World Heritage

We're all familiar with UNESCO's World Heritage List, which showcases manmade and natural wonders of global importance. A lesser-known list is UNESCO's list of Intangible World Heritage, which showcases rare and unique cultural practices like the human towers of Catalonia.

Why have I picked this site for this week's Websites for Writers? Because of the incredible breadth of human experience and creativity this list encompasses. There's everything from Tibetan throat singing to New Year's celebrations in Iran, which involves jumping over fires and streams.

It's not all exotic locales either. France has five entries on the list, including traditional timber-frame construction and processions involving huge effigies of giants and dragons.

There are hundreds of practices that can inspire your next story or act as leads for nonfiction articles (like the human towers I wrote about for Gadling, link above). Novelists and short story writers will find plenty of local color to use as their characters travel the world. Perhaps your next mystery novel involves a member of a human tower plunging to his death in suspicious circumstances. Or a fantasy writer could explore the true reasons behind why the French parade around with giant paper maché dragons.

The list is searchable by country and full text, so you can easily find a weird cultural practice that fits with your story.


[Photo courtesy user Baggio via Wikimedia Commons]