Kiwiblog

It has been interesting seeing the different “dress codes” in the countries so far. In Turkey the vast majority of people are in western dress – suits or casual clothes. A lot of women didn’t wear hijabs at all, or combined them with western clothes – think leather boots, tight jeans an a hijab! Of course Turkey is a secular country.  Almost no one in a burqa.

In Egypt, almost all women wore a hijab, and you started to notice the occassional full burqa.

Kuwait shows off its arabic heritage. Well over 20% of local men wear robes with a keffiyeh. There were very few dressed like that in Egypt.

This is where we had lunch. While Kuwait in places is very dirty and dusty, it does also have some beautiful areas.

These are the Kuwait Towers. Certain expats have given them an unofficial nickname of the Kuwait a**l beads

The towers are primarily water towers, but the large one (187 metres tall) has a viewing platform also.

They have photos up of the damage done to the towers by the Iraqi invaders in 1990. Yep, they even smashed the toilets up.

And they are labelled barbarians for attacking the air conditioning! I would have thought they were barbarians for beatings, electric shocks, burns, mock executions and sexual torture including rape that some locals were put through by the Iraqis.

Most of the photos from the tower are crap, due to the dirty windows. But this one of the water theme park below is ok. I so would have gone, if I had more time.

I had earlier on noted how funny it was that Police cars had the URL of the Police on their sides. And then noticed this car with an e-mail address on the boot. I asked ehy would you do that, and Emily explained quite a few guys do it as a way of picking girls up! The idea is the impressed girls will e-mail them!

On Wednesday night, had dinner and drinks with the netball team.Now alcohol is banned in Kuwait – no sales and no importing, but as this photos shows you can smuggle it in in small packets.

That got me thinking that selling those outside the Wellington Sevens could be a great money making opportunity!

Incidentally pork is also illegal in Kuwait. If you have it with you, it gets confiscated on arrival.

Armed Police behind these are a common sight in Cairo. They are to protect from bomb blasts primarily.Terrorist attacks are fairly regular in Egypt – around once a year.

Flew to Kuwait on Tuesday. Had a couple of hours in the Egypt Air lounge so thought I would kill the time by playing an old computer game, I hadn’t played for a few months – Desert Hawk.

It’s a typical shoot up game. You have a helicopter and blow up buildings, tanks, planes and other choppers with around a dozen different weapons. Anyway I’d never taken much notice of what I was blowing up before – you basically destroy everything.

After quarter of an hour or so playing the game, I had a nagging feeling something was not good. So I looked more closely at the buildings that show between stages. Hmmn they have those skinny tall towers on them. What I now know to be minarets. Oh so that means all those buildings are mosques. Hmmmn. Maybe playing this game in the middle of Cairo Airport is not such a good idea after all!

Flight to Kuwait was pretty ugly – packed full, and the guy next to me fell asleep in a way he was leaning into my seat. It was a very long three hours on board.

Purchased my Visa after getting some local currency. I love how you can just stick your credit card in an ATM in almost any country, and get out cash. I did miscalculate though. I just assumed the Kuwaiti currency was equal to or less than the NZ dollar, so figured 200 Kuwait dinars would be enough to cover any incidentals for a couple of days. Turns out you get five NZ dollars to every Kuwaiti dinar so that is way too much. I’ll exchange some back when I leave. I did actually note all he currency values down before I left, but didn’t have the info on hand.

Emily, whom I’m staying with, met me at the airport. She has adapted well to the local customs – especially the aggressive driving manoeuvres and assorted curses.

This isn’t the car before it rained, but afterwards. There is so much dust here, than when it rains, well it almost rains mud. Yuck. Normally I find the rain refreshing, but not in Kuwait. Have met quite a few Kiwi expats here and they do like it here, but that is one part that takes some getting used to.

Em was playing netball last night, so I went along to that. Mainly expats, but some of the local girls play also. There were five games on, and they ran short of officials, so I ended up scoring one of the games. I enjoyed twittering last night how I went to the netball and ended up scoring

I almost ending up refing also. I actually used to manage a netball team, when I was at university (long story) so do know the rules pretty well.

This is the view from the apartment, which I think is pretty damn good. So much prefer crashing with friends than hotels. Not too much to see in Kuwait, but going to some sightseeing this afternoon.

What better way to spend a Monday than looking around the sole remaining wonder of the ancient world.

The pyramids are in the desert, but at the very border of Cairo. So it is very easy to get to them.

These are the three main Giza pyramids. The one on the left is actually the largest – known as the Great Pyramid of Giza. The pyramids are far older than the tombs at the Valley of the Kings. They date back to around 2560 BC, so are around 4,550 years old.

Rather than just drive up to the pyramids, I got dropped off in the desert, and enjoyed a walk through the desert. You really soak up the atmosphere that way.

This is the Great Pyramid of Giza up close. It is estimated to have around 2.3 million blocks in total, weighing 5.9 million tonnes. You wouldn’t want someone to drop it on you!

It is thought to have taken 20 years to build, which meant moving 800 tonnes of stone a day. And they were not just dumped down. The four sides have a mean error of only 58 mm.

The blocks have got worn over the years, but for 4,500 years of wear and tear they are holding up pretty good.

You can climb up the first few layers, but are not allowed to ascend to the top anymore.

A lone camel crossing the desert behind.

I declined to go on the camels as I had been warned that the price you negotiate is only for getting onto the camel, and that afterwards you also have to negotiate a price to be helped off, and by then you are in a weak bargaining position.

This is the smallest (but still large) of the three – the pyramid of Menkaure. The Great Pyramid is Khufu’s

And this is the Pyramid of Khafre.

At the apex of Khafre’s pyramid, its “coat” is still in place. The Pharoah’s didn’t actually want people climbing their tombs, so they smoothe rteh pyramids out. But over time much of the outer layer has disappeared, exposing the surface below.

I think most people can identify the Great Sphinx. It is within walking distance of the three main pyramids. It is 74 metres tall. There is great debate about when it as created. Most think at the time of the pyramids, but some say it pre-dates them and may be over 5,000 years old.

These shops are within 200 metres of the Sphinx. Sacrilege!

This is the Pyramid of Djoser, over at Saqqara. It was the first Egyptian pyramid and is 4,700 years old.

In the sand, you can see many fragments of pottery and other artefacts from the Pyramids.

This is the general Memphis area, famous for its palm trees. Memphis was the capital of Egypt until 2200 BC.

On the way home, went past the Saladin Citadel of Cairo. Ran out of time to look around it, so will keep for my return trip!

On Sunday took the train down from Alexandria. Only had to “tip” two police officers today. I have learnt that the worst question in the world you can hear in Egypt is “Hello Sir, what country are you from?”.

In New Zealand, you ask somewhere where they are from as a genuine conversation starter. Here it is a prelude to a mugging. You see they have craftily picked a question that is hard to avoid without being rude. You are obviously from somewhere and your instinct is to say where from.

The moment you do, it is all over. Like a limpet the person attaches to you talking about how good New Zealand (land of milk) is and how much they like New Zealanders and just for you they will tell you something about the local facility. Never mind you didn’t want to know, or already did know. You are then obliged to hand over some money for this favour.

My suggestion is to carry lots of small currency.

Anyway once I got to Cairo, checked in at the hotel, and discovered the swimming pool is one of those ones with a bar in the middle of it. Nice.

I’m not sure I have mentioned this before, but to respect local customs I have not worn shorts outside at all. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Now I have avoided the very hottest months but it has still got up to around 30 degrees, and even in shorts that is hot – especially for me who still has an internal thermostat attuned to Dunedin climate. So swimming pools are a welcome relief.

This is the view from my room.  What a great location to be staying. Met up with a friend, and we enjoyed the view from the balcony for hours.

Decided to go to the famous National Museum of Egypt. Even better learnt it was only a couple of kms away, so could walk there, avoiding a taxi driver negotiation.

The bridge over the Nile has these lion statues at each end.

The Cairo International Film Festival is very highly regarded, and a source of pride to many in Egypt.

The Cairo Tower. It is 187 metres tall and has a restaurant at the top. It is mainly used for TV signals

This is the famous Egyptian Museum. The sheer amount of artifacts is staggering, and you could easily spend days here. The treasures from King Tut’s tomb are amazing, as are his two gold coffins. The wooden outer coffin and the mummy itself remain in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.

Everyone says this is a must see, and they are right. Both the quantity and quality of material is vast.

Alexandria is a lovely city – most of all it is clean, unlike Luxor and much of Cairo. It makes such a difference not having dirt and dust everywhere.

The hotel arranged a driver and car for only NZ$12 an hour. Unlike Luxor where there are formal tours, Alexandria is more the place where you just go the places you want to. I also did not want to be a full day tour, as the reason I chose Alexandria was partly just to have a nice place to relax for at least half a day. Holidays can be very exhausting!

This is the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, which is Latin for Library of Alexandria. It is to commerorate the original Library of Alexandria whose loss is one of history’s tragedies.

The ancient library was thought to be the largest in the world, The exact size is unknown but most estimates are that it was in the hundreds of thousands. The world would be a different place today if that knowledge had survived. Knowledge is what separates us from the cavemen.

The Bibliotheca Alexandrina is near the site of the original Library, and has shelf space for eight million books. It is also unique, being the only facility that has a copy and external backup of the Internet Archive.

This is the Citadel of Qaitbay. The citadel is around 550 years old, but prior to that the site was the location of the Lighthouse of Alexandria – one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.The lighthouse was built just after 300 BC and as destroyed in earthquakes in the 1300s.

The citadel is a pretty cool fort to look around in its own right also.

A view of the harbour and Alexandria from the Citadel.

This is Pompey’s Pillar. It is so named as legend had it that Pompey’s ashes were sprinkled at the vase of the pillar. This is unlikely though as it turned out it was constructed in 293 AD for the Emperor Diocletian.

Pompey was murdered by Ptolemy XIII in 48BC. The King thought doing so would please Caesar, but in fact Caesar was appalled that such a great Roman (even if his opponent) was killed in such a way.

The Pillar is 30 meters high and weighs 396 tons. and surrounded by various other artifacts, and also the subterranean remains of a Serapeum. This was a must see.

This is a photo down in the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, one of the seven wonders of the Middle Ages. You go down a large spiral staircase to get to them.

Technically cameras are banned from the Catacombs but technically a Blackberry is not a camera

The planks are quite wobbly and trust me you don’t want to find out what the water is like!

These are horse bones – possibly killed during the razing of Alexandrina by Emperor Caracalla. The Catcombs were actually discovered by a donkey in 1900 when it disappeared down a previously unknown shaft. My guide told me that the donkey owner was very upset, and tried to get his donkey back, and only when they realized it had fallen 20 metres did they realise it was beyond help.

Also went to the Alexandrina National Museum. It isn’t a huge museum but worth checking out. This is a bust of Emperor Hadrian – one of the better Roman Emperors.

Also ran out of books to read (I’m onto book eight already) so managed to track down a bookstore that sold some English books. Like everything else, one had to haggle the prices. Managed to pick up three old Egyptian detective novels by Elizabeth Peters that kept me occupied on the train.

I left Luxor Thursday night. The Palace Nile hotel was very good value – only NZ$40 a night for a very good hotel room. Both Turkey and Egypt have cheap hotels. Interestingly though the food is not that cheap – for example the dinner would cost more than the accommodation.

I took the sleeper train to Cairo, and then a day train the remainign two hours to Alexandria.

At Luxor train stations I spent several minutes telling various touts no I did not need their assistance. But then as I get to the train track, a Police Officer politely asks what train I am on. I tell him, and he (so I thought) kindly took me down to the right carriage. Just as I am thinking how nice that was, he tells me that I can “reward” him if I am grateful.

I couldn’t believe it – even the effing Police want a tip. And yes of course I gave him one – you don’t generally say no to armed police. I’m not sure if this constitutes my first act of bribery of a public official!

This is my room. Was pretty reasonable for US$50, when you compare to the cost of flying.

A typical rural scene. The train windows were very dirty. While the train inside was actually very nice, the exterior looked like it was 50 years old and had never been washed.

Most areas though are like this. Makes you realise how lucky we are in NZ.

The hotel in Alexandria is on the Mediterranean Coast, and you can see the Mediterranean Sea in the background.

And the actual beach is only one minute away. Alexandria is not so much a tourist city (even though there is stuff to see) but a holiday destination for many in the Middle East.

As great as it was to see the sights from on high, there is nothing like getting up close and personal also, so did a tour of the West Bank also. I thought this was exceptionally good value – for NZ$100 I got a car all to myself, a driver, a guide and entry to the major attractions.

First we had a look at the Colossi of Memnon. They also date back to around 1350 BC, even though the Romans upgraded the top of the right hand one later on.

That track up there is where you go if you take the Donkey option to get over to the Valley of the Kings. I’m not kidding – you see packs of tourists on donkeys heading up that hill.

This is the reconstructed temple of Queen Hatshepsut. Up top parts of the original walls and artwork remain. Hatshepsut is viewed by historians as one of the most successful female Pharaohs. She ruled around 1500 BC.

Her step son, who was nominal co-ruler with her when alive, seemed to resent her as during his reign many pictures of her were literally scratched out – you can see the vandalism still today.

This is artwork on the original walls of the temple. You know you can see numerous pictures of this stuff, but there is nothing like seeing it in real life – knowing it is 3,500 years old. Amazingly well preserved.

This is Anubis – God of the Dead. All Stargate fans will know him 

This shows boats on the Nile. They also show many different fish and goods.

Again the quality of the artwork is superb. What a civilization it must have been back then.

And this is the house of Howard Carter – the finder of King Tut’s Tomb.

After this temple, we went to the Valley of the Kings proper. Now earlier this year they banned cameras which is a shame, so this image is from Wikipedia.

There were 62 tombs in the Valley of the Kings but in 2006 they discovered a 63rd. Don’t think archaeology is last century – there is still so much to find.

It has been a tourism site since Roman times. Sadly even by then, most of the tombs had been looted.

I went down KV57, the tomb of Horemheb. It is a relatively deep tomb – you descend a considerable way underground. This is what you see down there. Image from Theban Mapping Project.

Also went into tombs of Ramesses IV. This tomb was very shallow but very colourful.

This is from the tomb of Rameses III. You get to do three tombs in total. You have to pay extra to see KV62 or King Tut’s tomb and I decided to skip it as I have heard the tomb itself is nothing special – what was special was the contest which are now if the Egyptian Museum in Cairo – I hope to visit them on Monday.

The combination of this, plus the balloon ride has made this a great day. Now about to head north tonight.

Going up in a hot air balloon was never something on my list of must dos – partly because I always wondered why they don’t catch fire more often, but when I saw a balloon tour over parts of the ruins on the West Bank of Luxor, I figured that would be a view worth paying for.

Cost is around NZ$200 which I thought was reasonable value for 90 minutes actually up in the air. The only hassle was having to meet the driver at 4.55 am to get me there!

This is the view we had as we got to the takeoff strip. It was still well before 6 am, and we had crossed the Nile by boat by then. Ou pilot told us that group was being reckless going up while dark as if there is an emergency it helps to be able to see the ground. I agree!

This is our balloon having the air heated up

This is taken inside the basket as we rise up. Yes you stand close to the flame and yes it is bloody hot.

This is the Temple of Queen Hatshsesut.

A view of the crops on the side nearer to the Nile.

I just love this photo (and the view). The sun rising in the East over the Nile, with a balloon in the foreground. Magnificent.

These are some of the Tombs of the Nobles.

You get some idea of how high up we were at this stage. You don’t even notice until you look down, as you move so fluidly.

In ancient times the Nile meant life or death. You can see why with this photo – the areas that get water from a high Nile flourish, while areas further away do not. Almost all of Egypt lives near the Nile or on the coast in more recent times.

Some other balloons starting to rise after us.

I’m sure the safety briefing said nothing about leaning out of the basket so someone can get a better shot of you!

Again we went pretty damn high up.

This is taken on the maximum zoom lens. You couldn’t even see these guys working away except for the moving crops that alerted us.

And as we came back down to land, the support crew ready to hold us down. We were told how to brace ourselves for the landing but one could have remained standing it was so gentle.

This was an absolute highlight. I recommend it to anyone who visits Egypt.

On Tuesday flew into Cairo and then did a domestic transfer to Luxor. Landing at Cairo was spectacular as you can see the desert and pyramids all around Cairo as the plane goes low.

The taxi drivers in Luxor were marginally less dishonest than those in Istanbul. In Istanbul I had one driver try to charge me 90 Turkish Lira (around NZ$80) for a 10 km trip which had cost me only 20 TL in reverse. I simply refused to pay and told him I wanted the Police as he was trying to rip me off. I finally gave him 40 TL. The next day I made a point of watching the meter every few minutes. But then another driver added 50 Lira on at the end of the trip. Again I refused and said I saw it at 30 Lira just two minutes ago so am not paying 80. The thieving bastard then said I had given him a 50 Lira note when I gave him 100.

Don’t get me wrong – loved Istanbul, but the taxi drivers are criminals.

Luxor was marginally better. The airport has a sign up telling you the cost into Luxor – around 30 Egyptian Pounds or NZ$7. The driver tried to tell me the sign meant US$30. Again I refused and we settled on US$15.

Later when heading into Luxor Temple from the hotel, I negotiated the fare in advance. He started at 50 EP and I started at 10 EP and we settled for 35 EP which was reasonable. I don’t mind a robust negotiation in advance- but I do detest meter fiddling.

Anyway staying at the Nile Palace Luxor. It is a very nice hotel, and one I would recommend.

There is a large courtyard in the middle of the hotel where you can dien and drink, and every night they have entertainment. This is a photo of the dancing girls from my balcony.

Some remains from the Temple of Luxor, which is in the main town. It was built over 3,000 years ago.

The hotel swimming pool, and that is the Nile behind it. It was 30 degrees today so the water was just lovely. My only problem has been I have already read all the books I brought with me, so had to buy some more books to read while sun bathing.

The Nile. The river is the longest in the world, going from Southern Rwanda to Egypt stretching just over 6,500 kms.

The central courtyard area during the day.

The sun chairs at the edge of the Nile. Very relaxing to see the many boats go past.

On Monday did a cruise on the Bosphorous. It is often called a river, but in fact is a strait connecting the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara. More significantly it is the boundary between Europe and Asia, and the strait is of such strategic importance, it is why Constantine I founded Constantinople there. Many a war has been fought over it.

This is the Bosphorus Bridge, constructed in 1973 to link Asia and Europe. It is 1.5 km long. Being a suspension bridge, it sags when vehicles go over it. The sag is 90 cm when fully laden.

That coast guard boat was there for a reason. Meeting in that hotel (the most expensive in Istanbul) were the Presidents of Iran, Syria and Turkey along with many other local heads of governments.

Now that is what I call a waterside view.  I’d love to be able to dive into the water from your balcony, let alone having a boat instead of a car out front!

Also did a bus tour around the city. This is Taksim Square, and is the Times Square equivalent. The monument is the Cumhuriyet Aniti to mark the formation of the republic in 1923.

It features the founder of the republic – Kemal Ataturk. On Tuesday it was the 71st anniversary of his death and at 9.05 am the entire city comes to a stop as a sign of respect. Every car stops driving. Every pedestrian stops walking. It was awesome to see, and also well deserved. I am a huge fan of his legacy.

A view of the city from above.

I just love the blend of architecture.

All around the city (literally) are remains of the Walls of Constantinople. The walls, first constructed 1500 years ago, stretched for 21 kms. The wall was five metres thick and 12 metres high.

The Bosporus is packed full of ships. At anyone time I could normally see a couple of score.

Near the Spice Bazaar, it is pigeon city.

This is the covered area of the Spice Bazaar. The smells here are just divine, and enough Turkish Delight that Edmund Pevensie would never have to be nice to Jadis again!

An external part of the Bazaar.

I think the cat thinks it must be Christmas!

Topkapi Palace has been the highlight of the sights in Istanbul – not so much the Palace itself, but also the collection of relics and treasures.

The Sultans of the Ottoman Empire lived here for around 400 years. Istanbul is unique in having been home to three empires – the (eastern) Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman.

The palace was built for Sultan Mehmed II, who conquered Constantinople at the age of 21.

This is the main entrance into Guilhane Park, leading into the Palace.

A view from the cafe at the Palace. Worth eating there just for the view, but be warned the prices are outraegous.

The highlight was the relics and treasures. You can’t take photos of them but you can slobber as you gaze on the Spoonmaker’s Diamond – an 86 carat diamond, surrounded by 49 smaller diamonds. In terms of relics, they don’t get much more holy (for Muslims) than the sword and cloak of Muhammed. For Christians there is the (claimed) forearm and hand of John the Baptist.

They also have a general arms collection, with around 400 weapons. The total amount of wealth in the treasures is probably incalculable. There are also two golden candleholders. Each weighs 48 kgs and has 6,666 cut diamonds. They’d look good in my apartment I concluded – definitely impress the girls

This is from inside the Circumcision Room. This is where the Princes had it happen!

Photo from Wikimedia showing part of the Palace.

You can easily spend half a day looking around. I did.

This is the Hagia Sophia shot from outside the Blue Mosque. It is a magnificent building.  It is also 1500 years old, originally constructed as a cathedral, serving as the centre of the Eastern Orthodox Church for 1000 years. In 1453 it was converted into a Mosque, and was the principal mosque of Istanbul.

A shot of the interior.

There are cats everywhere in Istanbul, including this one which has made the Sophia his home. He’s found a nice perch and just sits there happily. I suspect he is the most patted cat of all time – almost every visitor gives him a rub.

One of the images in the upstairs gallery.

This was a must see for me. Not the beauty of the palaces or the mosques, but a real link to the past.

The Basilica Cistern was constructed in the time of Emperor Justinian I, around 1500 years ago. It is quite huge – over 100,000 square feet, and has 336 marble columns. It is dimly lit and very very slippery. So tread carefully. Photo from Wikipedia.

The highlight are the two columns with a Medusa head at their base. One is upside down, and one is on its side. They were only discovered in 1987 when a metre of mud was cleared out. As a long time fan of Greek mythology, I loved seeing an ancient carving. Photo from Wikipedia.

There is also a cafe in the cistern for those who want to dine underground and watch the fish swim about.

The first place to see was the Blue Mosque, or more formally the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. Now sadly the photos are crappy one from the Blackberry as I left my camera in the taxi. Doh. I got a new camera on Day 2, so the photos will be better.

A photo from across the park.

This photo (from Wikimedia Commons) far better captures its majesty.

A local insisted on showing me how to enter the Mosque (it is around the back) and he was quite helpful. He could tell I was suspicious though, as he kept saying he did not have a gun. As I suspected he met me when I came out and insisted I visit his shop one minute away. They sell carpets and had a nice silk carpet for just 1600 Euros for me.

Luckily I used my (not feigned) distress over my missing camera to escape sans purchase.

A very bad photo of inside, from the Blackberry.

And again a far better photo from Wikimedia Commons.

There isn’t a huge amount to see in the Mosque, compared to other attractions. You tend to be in and out in well under an hour. It was an impressive sight to see, but not as spectacular as some of the others.

I’m going to be in the Middle East for some of November – specifically in Turkey, Egypt, Kuwait and Dubai.

If any readers have travelled there and have suggestions as to the best places to go, and things to see, feel free to comment below. I don’t have a lot of time in each place, except Egypt.

Also if any readers are currently living in those countries, and want to catch up when I am there, just let me know.

Sadly it looks like things will get worse in the Middle East:

The anti-Arab politician who emerged as a kingmaker after Israel’s election endorsed Benjamin Netanyahu, virtually ensuring he will once again become prime minister.

The big question is whether the hawkish Netanyahu will be able to build the broad coalition he will likely need to stay in power and avoid clashing with the Obama administration and much of the world.

With his top rival, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, signalling on Thursday that she would enter the opposition, Netanyahu’s prospects do not look good.

He will probably have little choice but to forge a coalition with nationalist and religious parties opposed to peacemaking with the Palestinians and Israel’s other Arab neighbours.

Sad, but possibly inevitable.

The NZ Herald is concerned with the swing to the right in the Israeli election. It may surprise some, that I am also.

Generally I am fairly tribal, and support the centre-right party in most countries. In fact have enjoyed close relations with many in the Australian Libs, US Republicans, UK Conservatives, French UMP, Canadian Conservatives, Taiwanese KMT etc etc.

If I was a voter in Israel though, I would vote for Kadima, not Likud. The Likud policy of actually building more settlements on disputed territory is provocative, and unhelpful in my opinion. And the nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu wants to have a loyalty oath, or you lose your citizenship. Yuck.

The result is not totally surprising though. In previous elections Israelis voted for parties that promoted sacrificing land for peace. And when they unilaterally give up land, and it results in not peace, but thousands of rocket attacks from the very land they unilaterally gave up. Well it explains why they have flocked to those promising a harder line. I think it is the wrong call they have made, but I understand why they have made it.

It is not quite certain what sort of Government will be formed, but as the Herald says, it will be a test for President Obama to keep the peace process moving forward.

The Herald reports on Iran’s space programme.

Hmmn, so Iran is developing a space programme and a nuclear programme. No, nothing to worry about here – just move on.

Reuters reports on the Iraqi local elections:

Iraqis held their most peaceful election since the fall of Saddam Hussein, voting for provincial councils without a single major attack reported anywhere in the country.

Amazing, considering past elections.

There was something of a holiday atmosphere in many parts of the country. In normally traffic-choked Baghdad, children took advantage of a ban on cars to play soccer in the streets.

“How can we not vote? All of us here have always complained about being oppressed and not having a leader who represented us. Now is our chance,” said Basra voter Abdul Hussein Nuri.

Also great. Of course it is still not like local body elections in NZ:

In addition, five candidates were assassinated in the run-up to Saturday’s election – three just two days before the vote.

But more positively:

Around 14,400 candidates competed for 440 council seats after exuberant campaigning. Brightly coloured campaign posters cover the blast walls that divide Iraqi neighbourhoods.

Around 30 candidates per seat – spoilt for choice.

The death toll in Iraq has been horrendous, and for so long it looked like the withdrawal of coalition forces would lead to disaster and a failed state. It is encouraging that things are looking better – something everyone should be happy about.

From the SST:

ISRAELIS AND Palestinians in and around Gaza are picking up the pieces after 22 days of fighting, but an Auckland cafe is showing, with shared values and a love of food, they can work together. Ima an Ibn cafe in Shortland St is owned by Israeli Yael Shochat and Palestinian Khaled Masroujeh and politics play no part in their working day. …

She opened a cafe on Shortland St, Ima’s Kitchen, and hired Masroujeh, a young chef, who impressed her with his “intelligence and passion for food”.

When Shochat closed Ima’s Kitchen last year, she and Masroujeh decided to go into partnership. They opened Ima and Ibn, which means mother (in Hebrew) and son (in Arabic).

People have raised eyebrows about an Israeli and a Palestinian working together, but “the truth is that we are the same people from the same part of the world and have so much in common, especially our love of food”, says Shochat.

The cafe is popular among Middle Eastern customers; at night the backgammon and hookah are brought out. Shochat keeps the customers happy playing Israeli and Arabic music.

“We have basic values in common, like food and family,” she says, “You know, one-on-one, people probably get along really well. They just want to get on with their lives; to raise their families and make money and live well.”

An all too rare expression of common sense and decency.

The ODT reports further on the controversy over the Invercargill cafe that refused to serve two women of Israeli origin.

“Mrs Bennie, of Makarewa, a New Zealand citizen who has lived here for seven years including five years in Waikouaiti, said she was shocked when she and her sister, visiting from Israel, were told to leave the cafe.

“I felt the kind of racism people were exposed to in the 1940s and ’50s,” she said.

I didn’t catch on to this detail yesterday, but one of the sisters is a NZ citizen. So those who tried to excuse the action as not being racist because it was about nationality not ethnicity are wrong. Her nationality is New Zealand.She basically got refused because she was Jewish. Does anyone think an Israeli Arab would have been refused service?

Big kudos though to Javed Khan, President of the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand who said:

“I can understand where they are coming from,” FIANZ president Javed Khan said.

“But if their action constitutes a breach of the Human Rights Act . . . then we shouldn’t breach the law of the country.

Also pleasing:

Dunedin Turkish cafe owners are not taking the same stance as Mr Tekinkaya.

Galata Turkish Cafe owner Ali Akman, himself a Turkish Muslim, said he believed what the Invercargill restaurateurs had done was wrong.

“He shouldn’t have. Any food premises is for eating and having fun. It is not for political discussions or arguments. This is wrong.”

He hoped the incident would not reflect badly on the Turkish community.

Ozan Turkish Cafe owner Murat Bay also feared the effect the incident would have on people’s view of the Turkish community.

He did not think the same would happen in any of Dunedin’s Turkish restaurants.

“We do not have such fanatics here.”

And here is the final irony:

“Obviously, he doesn’t like Israel, and I don’t blame him. I’m not a big supporter of Israel at the moment.

But he didn’t even bother finding out what my opinion was,” she said.

Mrs Bennie worked at Turkish restaurant Paasha while studying at the University of Otago. She missed Dunedin culture.

It was a “bit more tolerant” than Invercargill, she said.

So this cafe banned a NZ citizen who actually agrees with him, in relation to the Gaza conflict it seems. But hey she speaks Hebrew so she gets banned.

The Southland Times reports:

Two women were shocked after being kicked out of an Invercargill cafe yesterday because they come from Israel.

Sisters Natalie Bennie and Tamara Shefa were upset after being booted out of the Mevlana Cafe in Esk St by owner Mustafa Tekinkaya.

They chose to eat at Mevlana Cafe because it had a play area for Mrs Bennie’s two children, but they were told to leave before they had ordered any food, Mrs Bennie said.

“He heard us speaking Hebrew and he asked us where we were from. I said Israel and he said `get out, I am not serving you’. It was shocking.”

Mr Tekinkaya, who is Muslim and from Turkey, said he was making his own protest against Israel because it was killing innocent babies and women in the Gaza Strip.

“I have decided as a protest not to serve Israelis until the war stops.”

He said he had nothing against Israeli people but if any more came into his shop they would also be told to leave, and he was not concerned if he lost business.

I wonder if he would refuse to serve Israeli Arabs?

I wonder how he would like it if a shop refused to serve Turks until Turkey apologises for the Armenian genocide (or even accepts ot happened) or if after 9/11 a shop refused to serve Muslims because the 9/11 hijackers were Muslim?

It is absolutely legitimate to protest against the Israeli Government if you disagree with what they do. But it is quite wrong to target individual citizens.

First we have some nice photos from the Auckland protest, equating Israel with Nazi Germany.

Oh a nice professional sign comparing Israel’s response to 10,000 rockets to Nazi death camps where Jews were gassed, and their possessions looted.

While this protester gets marks for his home made sign.

Ironically I suspect that if WWII was occuring today, they would be demanding Churchill be placed on trial, for an unacceptably high civilian death toll in Germany.

Anyway once again I am pleased to quote Chris Trotter. Chris explains why so many on the left support liberation movements:

A fairly substantial chunk of the New Zealand Left would echo Keith’s view. In part this is because a great many leftists see Israel as the primary instrument of “US imperialism” in the Middle East – making the Palestinian cause one of the World’s last great unresolved struggles for national liberation.

For leftists of Keith’s generation, people who came of age in the early-1960s, when the empires of the European powers were being challenged by a multitude of national liberation movements, the anti-colonial struggle was something to be supported wholeheartedly and unequivocally.

Even more exciting for these young leftists was the fact that most liberation movements espoused some variant of the socialist ideology, and many enjoyed the backing (overt or covert) of the Soviet Union and/or the Peoples Republic of China.

National liberation struggles and the socialist revolution seemed inextricably linked.

Hamas is anything but secular and quasi-socialist, and its dedication to the elimination not only of Israel, but of the entire Jewish people, is unequivocal. In the words of its own charter:

“The Hamas has been looking forward to implement Allah’s promise whatever time it might take. The prophet, prayer and peace be upon him, said: The time will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews (and kill them); until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! there is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him! This will not apply to the Gharqad, which is a Jewish tree.”

The last time people talked about the Jews in this way, they were wearing brown shirts and jackboots. And the fate they had planned for the Jewish people gave new meaning to the word “disproportionate”.

Which is why I find it so hard to respond with any degree of positivity to Keith Locke’s call for New Zealand to stand up and be counted among the outspoken opponents of what is happening in Gaza.

Were Hamas a secular and socialist organisation dedicated to the creation of a secular and socialist state of Palestine: a state where all those with an historical and/or religious attachment to the Holy Land; Jews and Arabs, the followers of Judaism, Islam and Christianity – all the people of the Book – could live together in peace and harmony; well, then I might feel differently.

But it isn’t.

There was twit-nit Catholic priest Gerard Burns daubing his blood over a peace monument, bizarro MP Keith Locke accusing Israel of war crimes, and sundry radio commentators giving full voice to anti-Semitic outrage.

All followed a simple maxim, straight out of Animal Farm: Israel wrong, Palestinians right.

Indeed.

Almost without exception, liberals accept that the Israelis are the baddies. They are the ones with the fighter planes, helicopter gunships and tanks tearing through the ghettoes of Gaza. As John Minto opined this past week they are the primary aggressor. Ipso facto, they are morally inferior.

The truth is considerably different. The Gaza Strip is a territory controlled by an Islamic fundamentalist faction that has sworn to wipe Israel from the planet. It has been doing its best by launching rockets at Jewish settlements, arming and directing suicide bombers, and ending the uneasy ceasefire.

Yep, they are delighted that they finally got Israel to respond.

The only problem is that Hamas are not freedom fighters. In fact, they are not even sane. They are religious fanatics. Fundamentalist nutters armed with guns, rocket-propelled grenades and rockets. Their idea of a Palestinian state is one that eradicates Israel. They emerged victors after a bloody civil war with the Fatah party in 2006 killing plenty of innocent civilians themselves and now consider that Hamas is the frontline in the fight against the infidel.

Yet these are the people that Minto, the Greens, the Catholic fringe and Kiwi liberals seek to embrace.

The UN has got it right (this time). They have called for both sides to stop fighting. But the Greens and Minto want Israel to unilaterally stop, and nothing to be done about the rocket attacks from Hamas.

This is not to suggest that Israeli actions over these past 60 years meet any antipodean morality test either. There have been inhumane actions and outrageous abuses. But not this time: not in Gaza in 2009. Israel is responding as any nation would were it under continual military harassment.

This is quite right. Israel bashers can’t tell the difference between the times when their actions have been outrageous, and legitimately responding to Hamas and their rocket attacks.

The death of innocents in Gaza is regrettable it is sad and it is wrong. But all the more so for being orchestrated by Hamas, in pursuit of their despicable ends.

And this could all end is Hamas will agree to cease the rocket attacks.

Hamish McBrearty at Sports After Dark blogs on the protest against the Israeli tennis player. He says:

I don’t usually cover political events as it is my firm belief that sports should be apolitical. However, this particular protest is so intellectually dishonest and morally bankrupt that I just have to point out a few things.

Veteran protestor John Minto and a few of his followers protested outside the ASB Tennis Centre in Auckland today, as is their right, and called for Israeli tennis player Shahar Peer to pull out of the tournament.

Minto had already indicated that his group, Global Peace and Justice would do so in this press release and a letter to Peer herself. The reason I find this protest so disgusting, apart from the hate in his press release, is that Peer is just a person going about her normal business. I can understand people protesting the 1981 Springbok Tour, as that team represented South Africa, was chosen along racial lines and gave some legitimacy to the regime, but Peer is a professional tennis player representing herself, she just happens to be Israeli. …

I’m not sure where these calls for a comprehensive boycott of Israel are coming from, but is he seriously suggesting that she should be unable to earn a living internationally based solely on where she was born?

The answer is yes.

Fran O’Sullivan writes in today’s Herald, criticising Israel:

The reality is Israeli excesses helped pave the way for Hamas to become a power in the first place. Israel is not alone in facing provocations from “terrorists”. But the extent of its retaliation will simply empower its enemies further as Palestinians react against the loss of life. At the end of the day, the moral arguments used by both sides to promote their excesses will not have much currency.

Israel does often over-react but it is easy to criticise imperfect reactions from the “armchair” so to speak.  But when the Red Cross is concerned, we should be also:

Even the International Committee of the Red Cross says: “The Israeli military [has] failed to meet its obligation under international humanitarian law to care for and evacuate the wounded.”

That is not good.

What will matter is the consequences that result from the Gaza War. If Israel’s onslaught destabilises the Middle East further how much longer will it be able to count on the United States for unwavering support?

In this case though, there has been considerable support for Israel’s right to try and stop the rocket attacks. Russia and China have been muted – not just blaming Israel. The EU and most western states have been careful not to just blame Israel or call on them to stop unless Hamas will agree to stop also.

Even in Canada, the new Liberal (centre-left) party leader is taking a balanced view:

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff says Israel is justified in taking military action to defend itself against attacks by Hamas from the Gaza Strip.

“Canada has to support the right of a democratic country to defend itself,” he told reporters in Halifax on Thursday after speaking to a forum of business leaders on the economy.

“Israel has been attacked from Gaza, not just last year, but for almost 10 years. They evacuated from Gaza so there is no occupation in Gaza.”

And I can only quote approvingly from Chris Trotter:

To the Israelis, however, a more persuasive precedent might well be found in their own history. After all, in ancient Judea, wasn’t it the Jews who found themselves in exactly the same position as present-day Palestinians: under the heel of a brutal army of occupation? Was not the Great Jewish Revolt of 66-73AD, and the second, far more destructive Jewish-Roman War of 132-35, the intifada of their time?

And what was the outcome of those revolts? Massive retaliation: countless deaths, towns destroyed, lands seized, and, in the wake of that final, cataclysmic defeat, the “ethnic cleansing” of Judea – the 1,900-year Jewish Diaspora.

“Impossibel!” you say. “Unthinkable!” Not really. What, after all, was the policy of the Allied Powers regarding the German speakers of Eastern Europe at the end of World War II – if not “ethnic cleansing”? The intractability of the problems caused by ethnic Germans living amongst Poles, Czechs, Hungarians and Rumanians led to the wholesale uprooting of entire communities. Families which had lived in the same towns, farmed the same land, for hundreds of years were simply put on trains and “resettled” in the West. Under the auspices of the “Big Three” – the USA, the USSR and the British Empire – Eastern Europe was ruthlessly, and very effectively, “cleansed” of its German-speaking population.

The Germans, of course, had sent six million of Europe’s Jews in the opposite direction, to an altogether more permanent kind of “resettlement”.

And can anyone seriously doubt that, should Hamas “win”, their “final solution” would be any different?