Hell Bourg's Old Thermal Baths

The village of Hell Bourg started as a spa destination for the rich and famous, with a natural hot spring. Over time, the hot springs lost its mojo, and then a few failed attempts to fix and a cyclone caused landslide ended the baths permanently. Now the village is the centre for hiking and related activities and the ruins of the old baths are one more addition on the tourist stop. It's a short hike from the main village street, and can be accessed as a loop with the road around Hell Bourg.

3 Cascades

Hell-Bourg is one of the key villages along the hiking routes on Reunion, so there are a number of options for hikes ranging from under an hour all the way to full day hikes (and off course the multi day hikes). The 3 Cascades (waterfall) hike was labelled as a short, easy 90 minute return hike by the tourist office. The 90 minutes was spot on, but it was hardly easy - while not technical, the hike has a very steep ascent from the start point with very short respites all the way to the waterfall. The route itself is mostly in the shade, surrounded by large bamboo.

You can hear the waterfalls before you see them, with the main trail ending rather abruptly by a small shrine. There is a small pool, with cold fresh water - but not more than just wetting your feet. At the far end, is the main waterfall - spectacularly set against the lush vegetation. Just to the left, is a steep drop to an amazing looking pool - though I could see now way down.

We met an older French couple on the trail, who spoke a bit of English, and had a small printout of the trail. Just before the end of the trail is a small detour by a bamboo grove and behind a fence, there is a short lookout by a dam, providing a better view of the main falls. Without this information, I don't think I would have found it - haven't seen it written elsewhere in English!

The return is uneventful, although the steepness of the climb is equally difficult to go down. There are great views of Hell Bourg once you clear the trees.

Driving in Reunion and Google Maps

Reunion, like France, drives on the right. The rest of our stay in Reunion is across a number of villages/towns, with the first stop in the picturesque village of Hell Bourg. The drive up the mountains followed a twisted road from the main highway that circles the island, with amazing scenery of the mountains with many water falls along the escarpment.

But it first means getting out of St Denis, and its many one way streets - and a big fail for Google Maps, which managed to get every one way street wrong. Luckily, I had walked around the area enough to know enough of the streets - but relying on Google Maps is certainly dangerous.

Restored Mansions

The spine of the old town St Denis runs from the central park (Le Jarine de l'État) to the sea with the cannons on the boulevard, as Rue de Paris/Avenue de la Victoire. Most of the buildings along this road are restored or reconstructed mansions from the early 1800's and the architecture is itself something to see. A few are museums and galleries, some seem to be government buildings while a few seem to remain in private hands. Even the lamp posts harken back to an old era where everything needed to be ornate.

A small museum/gallery

There was almost nothing open on Christmas day - even the main city park was closed. But amongst one of the restored mansions on Rue de Paris, a small art gallery with a recently opened exhibition was open - a cool, air conditioned respite from the heat. There were very few notes (even in French), nothing I could see about the artist and I have sadly even forgotten the name of the gallery.

Roland Garros

The namesake of the tennis stadium hosting the French Open, was a famed aviator and WW1 fighter pilot. Born in Saint Denis, he is probably its most famous son, and consequently there are quite a few things bearing his name (the airport, a road and a restaurant just the ones i have come across in Saint Denis). His statue is near the canons end of Le Barachois.

Le Barachois

Surrounding the city along the coast, Le Barachois is a paved promenade punctuated by a few attractions such as statues and canons. The statue commemorating a slave uprising in the mid 1800s is poignant; and the views are awesome.

Cathedral of Saint Denis

Over 150 years old, the Cathedral of Saint Denis is one of the landmarks of the city. The cathedral is surprisingly rather plain, although the mural of Christ is quite beautiful and strange (holding a cross while blessing worshippers?) and there was also a cute nativity scene on the side.

Church of Saint Jacques

The plain and simple exterior hides a simple, but beautiful interior. The church is a located a Km or so from the town centre, so it is not featured in most travel guides etc. but is well worth a visit for its stained glass windows and statues of various Christian saints.

Air Austral's Tail Fin

One of the most beautiful tail fins I have seen ...

The Grand Tour

Take the recipe of Top Gear (before the relaunch in 2016), remove the annoying celebrity interviews, add even better production quality (I didn't think it was possible for a car show), and you have The Grand Tour. 

There is not much new - and in fact, the segments that are frankly not needed. There is no need to have a chat sideline in "The Conversation Street" - the in-between segment banter is sufficient. "Celebrity Brain Crash", which replaced the celebrity interviews and instead manages to kill off interviewees in weird accidents is getting boring and nonsensical. 

The stand out is off course the cars and the fantastic test drive scenarios. Some segments - such as the Jordanian Special Forces in episode 2 or the environment cars in episode 4 have been weak; but overall the spread of cars, and the locations have been great.

Grand Tour can certainly run for the next 3 seasons - but the formula is ageing and I don't know how much longer it will make sense. But Top Gear itself, I think is now dead an buried.

Amazon Prime Video

The Grand Tour is not the most pirated show ever - but it certainly is one of the most pirated shows ever. That is not too surprising - Top Gear in the days of Clarkson was also one of the most pirated shows. Some years back, I wrote a paper on digital piracy (also related to a presentation at Indicare 2005) where I proposed that a key cause of piracy was availability of media and convenient format of media - and while factors such as price matter, digital piracy would remain an issue if availability in the right format is not solved for. The Grand Tour is the perfect example of this proposal - launching a highly popular show (well at least Top Gear was) but constrained to a few locations instead of the global reach.

Amazon's Prime Video service has now taken the leap of bridging the availability conundrum with its global launch. The key attraction - shown prominently on the web page - is off course The Grand Tour; but it does offer more than that. Amazon's own original series - Mozart in the Jungle, Man in the High Castle - are also on offer; and the price is phenomenal at USD 2.99 for the first 6 months followed by the standard price of USD 5.99. Oh, and there is a free trial also for a month.

However, the breadth of content is quite underwhelming. Starting with Amazon's own content - the content available is not all the content produced by Amazon. Furthermore, not all the seasons are there - I have access Mozart in the Jungle's first season, not the second for example (and the same with Transparent). Outside Amazon's own content - there are very few other top TV series, and the catalogue for movies is equally bare. 

Catalogue of content aside, the other big annoyance is the lack of Apple TV support. At this moment, I am downloading content to my phone and then playing via Airplay (and I am very impressed with its power efficiency). But what I would rather prefer is to queue content download on Apple TV, instead of relying on downloading when I am at home.I have tried the streaming - and have been generally quite impressed with the quality and speed. My Internet connection is flaky so prefer the download approach - but generally I have been impressed by the app.

I expect that the catalogue will grow with time - and there is enough right now to keep me interested and subscribed. I just need the Apple TV app ...

Movie: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

The book was sort of an encyclopedia, and JK Rowling has taken it to a rumoured 5-movie series expanding the Harry Potter universe. Undoubtedly, the strength of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, is the creativity in the conceptualisation of these magical beasts, although Eddie Redmayne's portrayal as a bumbling scientist magician (is there even such a thing?) is also notable. The movie plot is basic, and rather mundane - and the whole magic vs humans story-line resembles the X-Men story-line a bit too much. Undoubtedly, other fictional universes have handled the whole human vs magical worlds better - The Nightwatch Series comes to mind; and while the backstory is interesting - this seems far too much like a commercial expansion for the sake of commercialisation rather than expanding the literary world of Harry Potter universe.

Úyanga Bold

The Internet is great for stumbling across weird and wonderful music. I came across Úyanga Bold in a live performance of Hans Zimmer's Dark Knight score, where she was billed as the "Epic Mongolian Voice". She has a number of performances across Bandcamp, YouTube or featuring in other artist's spaces. Most of her performances have a mysterious spiritual effect - quite soothing, and her vocal range is most impressive. YouTube playlist

Robin Williams and Craig Ferguson

Craig Ferguson has been off late night TV for a while - with his eclectic collection of puppets and some amazing interviews. The double header with Robin Williams is one of his best!

Movie: Dr Strange

Strangely, the magical base of Dr Strange, is more realistic than most of Marvel's other long running series. I did not grow up reading comics, and my only exposure is through the various movie franchises. Dr Strange was one of the better movies - it still has the same formula; flawed character of great promise, who discovers something special, and then has to defend the world from destruction; but it was well paced, and fun - and a lot less America centric.

Movie: Arrival

I have not seen a movie at the theatre for a while; and eventually we decided to just go and watch something that looked interesting; without necessarily knowing what it was about. Arrival was more than a pleasant surprise - no hype (as with Interstellar, The Martian or Gravity), the movie explores first contact with an alien species. 

And the aliens are strange - they make indecipherable noises, their space craft and environment looks out of the world, they have technology that we cannot currently fathom, and they are not green men with big heads - but are rather like giant squids. 

While the story is set around first contact - it is a lot more. It asks some deep philosophical questions - on how language and the nature of language influences thought and actions; on how mis-communication leads to bad decisions, on how humans will actually deal with the knowledge of an alien species, on how talking heads on TV can easily whip up misinformation into panic and the question for the ages: on the nature of choice and fate.

This is a stunning movie with an amazing lead performance by Amy Adams in the lead role. As far as random choices and selections go - this was hitting the jackpot!

JPO's Japanese Night

A Japanese conductor (Yasuo Shinozaki), a Japanese violinist (Kyoko Takezawa), the Japanese ambassador in attendance and a Japanese sponsor for the week - the only item missing, sadly, was a Japanese piece on the programme for the final programme for the JPO in 2016. It was a difficult year, but one that ends with promise for a better future in 2017. The programme started with the lively Dvorak's Carnival Overture, followed by the ever popular Bruch's Violin Concerto No 1, before finishing off with Brahms' Symphony No 4. 

Governance in Africa

The Economist Newspaper's podcast this week features an interview with Mo Ibrahim on governance in Africa. Given the past week's events in South Africa, there is understandably some specific focus on Jacob Zuma; but the interview as a whole brings forward some very interesting discussion points.

Firstly, there is the role of the liberation struggle parties. Across post colonial countries in general, and in Africa specifically, liberation parties have often gone on to erode the trust of the people they liberated; and in some respects become the new oppressor. Mo Ibrahim's critique centred around the recent events in South Africa; but also drew comparisons to other countries such as Zimbabwe that also failed to make transitions - and the transition was not necessarily to another party; but rather the liberation party transitioning to a proper political party that has to deliver and govern the country (and is therefore not dependent on its history of liberation).

The second related point was on institutions. South Africa can manage the discourse around state capture because there are strong institutions to support the rule of law - most other countries in Africa, do not have the luxury. He specifically noted his own homeland of Sudan (and South Sudan) as failed states amongst the many countries in Africa that is struggling.

The highlight for me however was the discussion on migration. The number of migrants that manage to even get to the European sea or land crossings are tiny in comparison to the internal displacement within Africa. He called out the xenophobia within Europe and that ultimately, without addressing the underlying problems of migration and the hypocrisy of Europe's attitude to migration; he does not see lasting development in Africa. 

The podcast is a rare occasion where the issue of migration has been tacked so eloquently and so directly. In addition, it highlights some of the real challenges to improving governance - and to paraphrase the beginning; good governance is not about democracy; it also includes whether citizens are safe, have good nutrition, have access to jobs, education and healthcare. Governance improvements in Africa has stagnated and there is a long way to go.

JPO and KZNPO's 2nd Annual Joint Concert

The JPO has been quite inactive since last year's joint concert; and the 2^nd Annual Joint Concert with the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra, was sort of a relaunch of the JPO. The recently retired Deputy Chief Justice, Justice Dikgang Moseneke was announced as the new chair of the board; and the occasion had a lot more buzz - with attendees including Herman Mashaba, the new Mayor of Johannesburg (who managed to tie inner city redevelopment to the need for culture and thus the JPO), former First Lady Zanele Mbeki and a few ambassadors. It was a packed audience also; and witnessed what I think was one of the finest solo piano concertos and one of the best concerts overall - certainly of those I have attended.

The concert started with the lively Overture to Euryanthe by Carl Maria von Weber; which I don't think has been performed by the JPO before. The musical score was mesmerising and was the perfect curtain raiser to the solo performance.

There have been a number of performances of Rachmaninoff's 2^nd Piano Concerto; and this was in my mind, the finest, thoroughly deserving the standing ovation from the near full house. Pianist Valentina Lisitsa, described in the program as the first classical music YouTube star, was a late replacement; and she delivered an absolutely stunning performance. I am not sure what makes this performance stand out over previous ones - but something just made it special.

The concert finished off with Tchaikovsky's 5^th Symphony. In a time of economic and political turmoil in South Africa; and given the JPO's own recent turbulent past, a symphony that celebrates the idea of "ultimate victory through strife" was rather appropriate.

Sand Sculpture on the Beach

Karl Jenkins' The Armed Man

Karl Jenkins' The Armed Man is one of my favourite classical music pieces. It is a powerful anti-war statement, influenced by religious texts from a variety of religions (including Christianity, Islam and Hinduism) and secular anti-war poetry; underpinned by a stunning orchestral score. 

I have listened to it numerous times, but Sunday's performance was my first experience of hearing it live. The performance was augmented with a visual projection - which was quite impressive in how well it aligned with the themes of the music and verse; but it is the music and choral performances that really stand out. The packed Linder Auditorium clearly appreciated it; and gave a deserved standing ovation. I don't know if there are tickets left in Cape Town, but if you have the opportunity - go.

Kamasi Washington's The Epic

While I love listening to music, I am not much of a music geek, and cannot identify the various subtleties across musical genres. These days I usually listen to Beats1 in the evenings, but not much more in terms of radio - as I am usually listening to podcasts. And when I do come across interesting bands and performers, quite often through WTF with Marc Maron, I end up exploring the artist on YouTube.

Kamasi Washington's debut album, The Epic, was the exception. There are quite a few performances on YouTube, and the performance scope just drew me it. Eventually, I did the rare thing - just went and bought the digital copy of the album - and I haven't stopped listening to it. The album has an amazing scale - about 3 hours worth of music that explores a fusion of choral, orchestral and off course more recognisable forms of jazz. I can't recommend it enough.

Generous Orthodoxy: #FeesMustFall requires academic disruption

As per my last few posts, I have been really enjoying Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History podcast series. For me, the penultimate episode, Generous Orthodoxy, really resonated with the discussions around #FeesMustFall and for that matter some of the wider discussions in South Africa around land, BEE, and wider discussions around the world regarding refugees and #BlackLivesMatter.

Similar to the #RhodesMustFall movement, there has been a lesser reported movement in the US across a number of universities regarding buildings named after racist benefactors and slave owners. But unlike the success at University of Cape Town, and much like the discussions at Oxford, these movements have had very little success.

In Generous Orthodoxy, Malcolm Gladwell, argues that it is incredibly difficult to make arguments around just cause, when the balance of power and years of ingrained orthodoxy commits to keeping the status quo. The key argument Gladwell postulates is - that the arguments made for the just cause, despite being logical, coherent and articulate; are made to people who are ingrained in their orthodoxy; and arguments from the protesters do not take a position to actually acknowledge the orthodox institution's position's power and place in the world. And in that positioning, Gladwell argues the protesters come across as over bearing and entitled; and thus their arguments are not heard. Instead Gladwell argues the key success criteria for any such movement to proceed would be to show that, yes the prestige of the institution does matter and to save the very prestige of the institution, the courageous and right act is to actually to abandon the institution instead of arguing with the powers directly on logical choices.

In the podcast, Gladwell contrasts the effectiveness of two protesters - to remove the name of US President Wilson from Princeton's School of Governance (because he instituted racist policies that enforced segregation) and another by a highly decorated clergyman who decides to leave the clergy after 60 years because of his church's position on gay marriage. Gladwell argues, that the Princeton movement didn't get the results it warranted because it came across as over bearing and entitled; while the protest over gay marriage, while not yet resolved, has resulted in far more dialogue and changing in internal positions.

There are two direct parallels in South Africa today. In #FeesMustFall, many universities have proposed that academic activities should carry on instead of actually addressing the very real issues surrounding the affordability of higher education. Burying the head in the sand, stating that protests cannot disrupt academic activities; fundamentally does not acknowledge the very real problems highlighted by #FeesMustFall. This does not mean that I support destruction of property - but I very much support the notion that university education must be accessible to all that academically qualify for it.

The second parallel is off course in the ANC. I recall Gov. Mboweni talking about changing the organisation from the inside rather than the outside a number of years ago; but I think it is now very clear that it is actually external forces such as the EFF, that seem to be pushing change. But I would rather not get more into the machinations.

Of all the podcasts in the series, Generous Orthodoxy, gave me the most food for thought. As Galdwell states in the last episode, ultimately change requires courage and sacrifice.

Free Sunday Times

For the past few weekends, there has been a pile of free Sunday Times by the gate of the complex. It seems that it was part of a promotion, which has now sadly ended. But despite the generous offer for a discounted subscription, I am unlikely to take it up.

Although I enjoyed reading the newspaper, and it's wide variety of articles - I was not really reading the paper for news. That is because, most of the articles were not new, and already well covered in other outlets. The cover stories and opinion pieces were excellent however.

Ultimately, I may consider getting a digital only subscription. The cost of R80 a month is actually not that high considering the general high quality of the articles. But I am probably too lazy to actually get one.

Challenges in Education

I discovered Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History Podcast accidentally - not because it was difficult to find; but rather because I wasn't even looking for new podcasts. The series (or season 1) is over; and I am only halfway through - but the middle episodes on education has been fascinating.

So far, the podcasts have all been very US centric - but the US does have quite a few similarities with South Africa: historic racial inequality, history of segregation, high inequality and high disparity in education levels. Education in South Africa, specifically higher education, has been a hot topic in South Africa - and the three podcasts on education leave a lot of food for thought.

Episode 4, Carlos Doesn't Remember, traces the wider impact of inequality and social problems associated with inequality on the "smart kids". The compelling argument is not that the distribution of clever people is bound to race or wealth - that is obvious; but rather that they do not have the actual tools at hand to really take advantage of their talents. It is not just a matter of do well in school; and the world will open up - the wider support structure is an inherent part of making it happen. In the context of transformation targets in South Africa; this is an important point - it will be difficult to change the face of sport and business without the wider socio-economic support; not just waiting for talent to rise to the top.

Episode 5, Food Fight, traces the decisions of two different private colleges in the US to funding poorer students; and makes the case that there is a moral issue at stake when a college decides to focus on better food or on better facilities rather than funding poorer students for education. In the context of #feesmustfall, I wonder how many South African institutions have made these type of calls. 

Finally, episode 6, My Little Hundred Million, traces the huge endowments of US universities; and the absurdity of philanthropic donations of education institutions that already have endowments bigger than some countries' GDP. And for that matter, the fact that most of these elite universities remain closed to many underprivileged students; despite the fact that they can actually afford to financially support many more such students. There is however a take way for South African universities - ultimately, the success of institutions such as Harvard, Princeton and the like is due to their endowments. South African universities, and universities in general across the developing world, will need to build similar endowment funds to be able to compete and thrive.

I have really enjoyed the series so far, and would highly recommend the podcast to all.

Buskaid 2016

M is away this weekend, and for various other reasons; I only got round to buying Buskaid tickets yesterday morning. While it was not a full house, there were very few seats left. And once again Buskaid put on a stunning show - with quite a lot of variances from previous years in its pop/kwela arrangements. As is almost traditional, the concert began with Chaconne from Rameau's opera Dardanus. I am not much of a fan of Rameau, so I will move along. 

I recall in my first Buskaid concert, a young boy whose violin seemed to be bigger than him. Mzwandile Twala has now grown up; and was the first featured soloist playing Angela Morley's Reverie. It's a peaceful, contemplative piece for the violin; and a great introduction to Ralph Vaughn Williams' stunning "The Lark Ascending" performed with great virtuosity by Kabelo Monnathebe. It is certainly one of the great Buskaid performances; and my favourite performance of the evening. It's a piece I have heard before on radio; and clearly showcased how much more in depth a live performance can be. Due to some rather loud coughing in the audience, some parts of it was replayed after the interval - and I wished that it was performed in its entirity! Before the interval though, harpist Jude van der Wat made a reappearance with the Buskaid, this time performing Debussy's Danse sacrée et danse profane - a great showcase for both the harp and the orchestra. 

After the interval, Buskaid performed the full Holberg Suite. I like the fact that Buskaid has, in the recent past, performed full pieces instead of just excerpts. After the re-recording of a few excerpts for The Lark Ascending, the rest of the concert featured more contemporary music including the kwela arrangements. This part of the concert has been revitalised with newer arrangements - and as always led me to think, that the Buskaid could easily partner with contemporary South African musicians and singers to widen their appeal (and resulting financial well being).

Sophiatown: The Mix

Together with District Six, the forced removal and relocation of Sophiatown during Apartheid is well known. Sophiatown's cultural legacy remains highly influential, especially in music with stars such as Miriam Makeba and Hugh Masekela tracing their roots to Sophiatown. 

Given the rich history, it is sad that the museum celebrating Sophiatown is not as well known; and is actually a fairly recent addition. The Mix combines one of the few undemolished houses during 1955 and a new building to serve as a space for music and conferences.

The house belonged to Dr Alfred Xuma, an ex-President of the ANC and a medical doctor for the community; and traces the political and social forces of Sophiatown through photographs and artefacts (mainly belonging to Dr Xuma).

This is a simple museum that manages to effectively chronicle Sophiatown and the wider impact on South Africa. It is effectively hidden away in the suburbs of Johannesburg without the spotlight of Lilliesleaf or Apartheid Museum and lacks many of the draw cards of modern museums - the multimedia showcases; immersive and interactive displays and stunning architectural features. Sophiatown has an important place in South Africa's narative - and The Mix is an important part of telling that narrative. It is a must visit for that reason alone.

Movie: Where to Invade Next

Michael Moore's latest documentary is a sarcastic take on US invasions - instead of military conquests; how about implementing ideas that expand the social good - such as universal healthcare, universal higher education, maternal leave etc. As Michael states at the beginning, the documentary is about picking flowers and leaving out the weeds; and in many ways it mirrors the leftist agendas of Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Corbyn and in many respects the South Africa's EFF. It doesn't present any political propositions - just that other countries have managed to do a lot more to achieve equality; and that these should be ideals to pursue.

Top Gear

I think I have watched every episode of Top Gear since it was relaunched in 2002 - even the ones that features reviews of second hand cars, or the ineffectual Top Gear Stuntman and the lesser seen Top Gear Dog. I have watched many episodes of Top Gear before the relaunch - during repeats of BBC World in the late 1990s. Needless to say, I am a Top Gear fan. 

And yes, I did watch the most recent Top Gear series - and also agree with most reviews and other commentary on the general weakness of the series in comparison to the previous series. Series 23 retained the amazing production values in terms of cinematography and video production; but almost everything else was below par. 

But to be fair, Season 23 was actually 2 parts - the hour long TV show that tried to be like the previous 22 seasons, and the online Extra Gear. Extra gear was the car nerd special - the one that features car guys talking about cars and motoring - something similar to what the previous 22 seasons of Clarkson, Hammond and May. 

Top Gear's previous 21 seasons (leaving aside the first season of the reboot) was more than just a show about cars - it was really a show about 3 guys doing things with cars that other people may have considered; but didn't have the money, time or just creativity to pull off. Be it building hovercrafts, or racing across countries; or playing large scale games with caravans as pieces; it was entertainment that pushed boundaries of what cars could do.

Season 23 on the TV had plenty of car reviews - and on their own; they were quite good. But put them together as a show it seemed to fall flat. There was a race against a train - and the cars lost. There was a race with SUVs; but it wasn't that memorable. There was a race with reliable robins; that just didn't seem to have a point. 

There was some madness (both featured Matt LeBlanc - the Ariel Nomad and the Tour of London) but it just wasn't the same. Maybe next season will be better; I will wait one more season out. But if it is the same as this season; there are other better things to watch.

Westminster Cathedral

I have walked past the cathedral a number of times in my visits to London, but Saturday was my first entry into the cathedral. While the architecture is impressive with regards to scale and th volume of the main hall; it's rather plain and ordinary.

St Paul's Cathedral

Ever since I did the MIT course on the history of architecture (on edX); I have been interested in the buildings covered in the course. St. Paul's cathedral is the first such building since completing the course; and it is really great to spot some of the course elements. The late afternoon mass was about to start; so the cathedral was largely inaccessible. Inside, it is fairly ornate and far more interesting than Westminster Cathedral.

The Battle of Britain War Monument

Manchester

It was my first visit to Manchester this past week; and given it was for business I didn't have much time to see the town in general. It's a bit of strange environment - a mix of old and new; that sometimes really work and other time feels out of step with the first world.