Despatches
[ MIDDLE EAST ] The Red Pill Could the Red Sea prove to be the Middle East’s medicine chest? DIVERS HAVE DELIGHTED in the Red Sea bed ever since Jacques Cousteau slipped on his scuba tanks here half a century ago. Now scientists are eyeing up the undersea realm in the same manner in which [...]
[ MIDDLE EAST ]
The Red Pill
Could the Red Sea prove to be the Middle East’s medicine chest?
DIVERS HAVE DELIGHTED in the Red Sea bed ever since Jacques Cousteau slipped on his scuba tanks here half a century ago. Now scientists are eyeing up the undersea realm in the same manner in which they used to peer into the epths of the rainforest.
For this saltwater inlet has a remarkable diversity of creatures. Biologists estimate that between 10 to 20 percent of the fish species swimming here cannot be not found anywhere else in the world. Earlier this year, National Geographic reported that divers had discovered new species of sea horses nestling in the reefs.
Yet more interesting discoveries might lie with the less noteworthy beasts. Scientists in both Moscow and Southampton are employing the fluorescent properties of sea anemones, similar to those that thrive here, to tag and follow the movement of very small particles inside a living body. These could allow technicians to map everything from the development of brains through to the activity of cells in different regions of a tumour. Tread softly when you snorkel out there, because you could be treading on an array of future cures.
Net Gains
In Amsterdam, lattes and WiFi are the new, er, pot in coffee shops
NOWADAYS, AMSTERDAMERS SEEM to prefer coffee to coffee shops. The old Dutch ‘coffee shops’ – a delicate synonym for the city’s marijuana cafés – are vanishing. Their alcohol licence gone, customers can’t smoke tobacco inside them and about 50 will be soon forced to close, thanks to new zoning laws.
In the meantime, cafés where people meet, socialise, get their caffeine buzz and type away on their laptops have never been more popular.
“It’s the best cappuccino in the Netherlands,” says Jon, 41, about the creamy offer at De Koffie Salon (130 Utrechtsestraat, Amsterdam). Its comfy tables and free internet connection makes it the ideal office space for those deskless freelancers.
Local franchise Coffee Company (pictured above; 15 different locations around town) has also introduced free Wifiwith each purchase, handing you a password to log in on their network. The designer crowd still hangs out at De Balie (10 Kleine- Gartmanplantsoen, right off Leidseplein), with their Macs and mint teas, while a new entry on the coffee-and-Wifimap is the bar at the Lloyd Hotel (34 Oostelijke Handelskade), which is more for writers looking for inspiration. Though not the kind of inspiration that comes in eighth-of-an-ounce plastic bags. Massimo Benvegnù
Russian aerobatic aviatrix and ‘Best Pilot of the Century’, Svetlana Kapanina, believes there are no gender divides in the skies.
[MOSCOW ]
Eyes Down
Notes on Moscow’s underground: hidden rivers, hot water pipes and a secret railway system?
MOSCOW’S METRO IS on the move. That’s hardly revolutionary you might think, but its lines are expanding out to the city’s suburbs – five new stations are set to open by the end of this year and 37 miles of new track are to be laid by 2015.
Despite the progress, rumours of an entirely different line remain. ‘Metro 2’ is a mythical underground system built, supposedly, to provide Joseph Stalin with a secure transport network as the leader’s paranoia set in. One newspaper, Argumenty I Fakty, has even suggested turning it over to the public to ease congestion. The fabled tube remains a hot topic among Moscow’s citizens. “I’ve heard about a secret line,” said Denis Litvinov, a computer designer, “but I don’t know any details.”
Yet not as hot as the scorching water pipes which also snake their way above and below ground, warming citizens during winter months; they’re liable to burst during a cold spell, turning frozen streets into boiling swamps.
The Neglinka river runs under the streets too, flowing north to south, past the Bolshoi Theatre and towards the walls of the Kremlin. As development work continues, so city hall has become obsessed with all things subterranean; the capital’s urban planners are keen to push new building work below ground level. Preservationists warn that the rivers may have the last laugh. Yet, thanks to layers of Byzantine planning regulations and obsessive secrecy, until the foundations are laid, no one knows for sure what lies beneath. Kevin O’Flynn
[LONDON ]
Straight Shooting
SAPPHIC ROMANCE MEETS Middle Eastern politics this month, in the new British film, I Can’t Think Straight. Dubbing itself as ‘Just another British, Indian, Muslim, Christian, lesbian romantic comedy,’ the film follows a love affair between Tala, a ritzy Jordanian socialite, and Leyla, a shy British Muslim gal – who both have boyfriends at the start of the film. On paper, it couldn’t be more controversial. Yet on screen, the stars Sheetal Sheth and Lisa Ray leaven the heavyweight material into a lighter, laugh-andcry, popcorn-friendly flick. Just as attractive as the lead girls are the scenic backdrops of a wedding in Amman and Oxford spires.
It’s released in the UK on 3 April. www.icantthinkstraightfilm.com
[KHARTOUM ]
Ice cold in Sudan
Dry country brews first beer
BREAK OUT THE salted nuts. London-based international brewer, SABMiller, is set to launch a new lager in southern Sudan – the first mass-produced beer to be manufactured in the country since it went dry 25 years ago.
Their brewery, based in the southern capital, Juba, will come into operation this month, offering both a ‘clear beer’ and carbonated soft drinks to a thirsty population. There’s been a strong demand for alcoholic beverages in the predominantly Christian region of southern Sudan since it gained autonomy in 2005. Yet locals hope the drink could be exported, placing Sudanese lager alongside the likes of German pilsner and Irish stout.
“We will not only be consuming but producing alcohol. It’s a serious political message of one country, two systems,” the south’s agriculture minister Samson Kwaje told Reuters. We’ll drink to that.
This month: CLOTHES
THE BALANCE
[ MOSCOW ]
RUSSIAN FASHION WEEK
Moscow’s clothing industry preview week (until 4 April at the Congress Hall of the World Trade Centre, Entrance 4, 12 Krasnopresnenskaya Emb.) might be invitation only, yet any visitor should be able to capture the sartorial zeitgeist on Tretyakovsky Proyezd. Prada, Armani and Ralph Lauren have boutiques here. Look out for fashionistas flitting between flagship stores at the beginning of April, counting up the zeros on the price tags. Well-funded trophy wives won’t think twice about spending upwards of 33,000 rubles (£654) for a clutch bag if it’s by the designer of the moment.
www.russianfashionweek.com
[ CAIRO ]
SOUQ AL-GOMA’A
Held under the Al-Tonssy flyover in the Khalifa district, south of the citadel, Cairo’s chaotic Souq al-Goma’a, or Friday Market, may not be the most chic place to shop. Yet this sprawling flea market is one of the few places in Egypt that casual buyers can browse second hand and vintage clothing. Just watch out for the stalls selling venomous lizards and sheep’s intestines – you’re better off seeking handembroidered tops.
[ZURICH ]
Laws of nature
Why one Swiss canton is fining nude ramblers
RECENT EVENTS IN the sleepy canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden (about an hour from Zurich) have unexpectedly pushed Switzerland’s love of neutrality to breaking point.
While residents of the picturesque mountain area are usually live and let live, they’ve taken umbrage at the canton being a target for bare bottoms. More precisely, those that belong to the German nudists who have taken to rambling around the region in nothing more than hiking boots and a rucksack. Due to the area’s lack of rules regarding nudity a German nudist organisation had recently named Appenzell as a “paradise for naked ramblers”.
But local authorities feel it’s less heaven and more hell. “Perhaps in vast mountain areas naked people would not be much of a problem but here they simply stick out,” said Markus Dörig, a spokesman for the canton government.
So from this month a new fixed fine of CHF200 (£120) will be slapped on those showing some bare bottomed cheek. Celeste Neill
Prints of Persia
IF YOU’RE CONSIDERING investing in a little Persian culture, try browsing beyond the carpet stalls. London’s Saatchi Gallery has already piqued the market with their New Art from the Middle East exhibition, which runs until 9 May. Prices for contemporary works by Syrian, Egyptian and Iranian artists are already creeping up, leading many to believe that Middle Eastern art could make for a wise investment – after all, where collector Charles Saatchi goes, others often follow.
Last month, the London auction house Sotheby’s hosted their first contemporary art sale in Doha, listing works by Iranian artists Farhad Moshiri and Mohammad Ehsai alongside works by Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst. This month the equally prestigious auctioneers Christie’s offers pieces by the Syrian painter Fateh Moudarres (above), the Egyptian sculptor Mahmoud Mokhtar and Iranian Abolghassem Saidi at their sale on 29 April in Dubai. Perhaps it’s time to cash in that Banksy print and buy Persian. www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk, www.christies.com, www.sothebys.com
