Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela was the anti-apartheid activist president of South Africa.
Mandela was born on July 18, 1918 in Mvezo a small village on the banks of the Mbashe River in the eastern cape of South Africa.
Born into a chief dynasty Mandela ran away from home in his college years to Johannesburg to avoid an arranged marriage.

Nelson Mandela Biography

 He attended Fort Hare University and University of Witwatersrand studying law.

Although he was only president for 5 years Mandela played a huge role in the anti-apartheid activist movement.
In August 1953 Mandela and Oliver Tambo opened the only African law firm operating in downtown Johannesburg.  This was the only law firm available to Africans at that time.

One of Mandela's main goals was to keep peace, he didn't want to start violence  Although during a protest in Sharpeville in 1960, 69 people were killed near a police station.
The protest was initially peaceful and non violent, the Africans were stating that they wouldn't carry their pass books. They didn't want to be set apart from white people, they wanted to be equal.

Mandela often traveled around the world to raise awareness about the segregation and persecution of the Africans  He also made many speeches publicly against the apartheid movement. . After illegally leaving the country several times and according to government "initiating strikes" he was arrested.
He said while in prison,
"In a way I had never quite comprehended before, I realized the role I could play in court and the possibilities before me as a defendant. I was the symbol of justice in the court of the oppressor, the representative of the great ideals of freedom, fairness and democracy in a society that dishonored those virtues. I realized then and there that I could carry on the fight even in the fortress of the enemy." - Nelson Mandela 1994

He was First imprisoned in Johannesburg's Marshall square prison in August 1962.

Imprisoned on Robben Island from 1962-1982 Mandela lived in a 8ft by 7ft concrete cell with a straw mat to sleep on. He was often harassed and was forbidden to wear sunglasses as he worked outside breaking limestone. (vision ruined) He remained in this prison for the next 18 years while working on his LLB degree (law) while being locked in solitary confinement. He was allowed to have one visitor and one letter every 6 months.

In April 1982 Mandela was transferred to Pollsmoor prison in Tokai Cape Town South Africa. Then in December 1988 he was transferred to Victor Verster Prision Near Paaral. When he moved, Mandela was recovering from tuberculosis because of the dark dank conditions of his cell. Mandela was released by the request of the south Africans in February 1990. He was certainty not forgotten during his 27 years of imprisonment.

In May 1994 Mandela won the presidential election as well as the respect of South Africa.
In 1995 Mandela encouraged all South Africans to support the hated rugby team, "the sprinkboks" as they played in the 1995 Ruby World Cup. After the Sprinboks won the game against New Zeland, Mandela himself presented the trophy to Francois Pienaar an Afrikaner. To both white and blacks this was seen world wide as a major step towards reconciliation between white and blacks. In March 1996 Mandela publicly announced that he was separating from his wife Winnie. This was his second marriage and it wasn't holding together well as a result of him being imprisoned. In 1998 Mandela married Graca Machel.
 He served as president for one term as the first black president of South Africa. He retired from active politics in 1999.

Over all I think that Mandela was a very influential and important president in South Africa and because of Mandela South Africa was changed. My favorite quote by him I will use in closing.

The poorest country on earth

Bangladesh is the poorest country in the world. The estimated population of Bangladesh is 161,083,804 as of July 2012. This small country's area is 55,598 square miles. and is the tenth most populous country in the world.  More then 49 percent of the people in Bangladesh live below the poverty line. In addition malnutrition is up 48 percent among children. In America more then 16% live below the poverty line.

Bangladesh faces many challenges such as poverty, corruption, overpopulation and the constant climate change makes it a difficult place to live. According to an article I read by "the telegraph" Dhaka Bangladesh is the worst city in the world to live.
It is also to be said as the most underdeveloped country with over 75 million people.

Dhaka in the capital city of Bangladesh and most people have migrated to Dkaha from more rural areas, therefore increasing the population density. This stresses important resources such as food, water, health care, sanitation and education. Many Bangladeshi's can't afford to live in houses very long so they're forced to live in bustees.
 A bustee is a name for a shanty town or slum in India or Bangladesh. These slums are on the outskirts of Dhaka and they lack basic needs such as, electricity, sewage disposal, and supply of clean water.
Without these needs there is a high risk of  disease leading to higher death rates.

With so many people migrating to the city from rural areas this results in more traffic. More traffic results in congestion problems and exhaust fumes causes air pollution. With over population and an under developed economy the government cannot afford to improve transportation.

Due to the country's geographical location, flooding occurs often. It is a big tragedy when it does flood,  shacks are often washed away. In order to rebuild shacks they have to borrow money from moneylenders, thus putting them further into debt. Natural disasters also cause outbreaks of diseases like, cholera, diarrhea and malaria. This effects their physical health which lowers their ability to be productive and thrive under such difficult conditions.

When thinking about Bangladesh its easy to focus too much on the sickness, un-employment and illiteracy of this country and feel like there's no hope. Several articles I've read have said that the only way to help this country is to, provide access to birth control and abortifacients. Of course many articles have suggested that the solution to every third world country is to reduce the birth rate.  I think one of the best solutions would be to raise the literacy rate thus educating more women and raising their statuses. I'm not saying that education is the only way to solve Bangladesh's problems, I'm saying that if you educate everybody you'll make a difference.

I have learned so much about Bangladesh and I'd like to go and serve there someday.

Glass Making

                                                             Glass Making

The history of glass making can be traced back to 3500 BC in Mesopotamia, Rome, mid evil Europe the United States and other places. glass making has spread across the world  
There are many kinds of glass making, such as: Glass Blowing Glass pressing, glass drawing, glass casting and lamp working, but i would like to talk about glass blowing
Glass is made up of four main ingredients Sand, Limestone, Soda ( No not the kind you drink ), and Cullet (recycled glass). all the ingredients are mixed together and then poured in to a furnace which is heated to 2,550 Fahrenheit so all of the mixture will melt into a molten mass. While the glass is in a molten state, it is pulled out and shaped.
In order to perform glass blowing, the artist must have a blowpipe. The tip of the blowpipe is preheated by dipping it in the molten glass as it sits in the furnace. A “Gob” of the molten glass is formed on the blowpipe and rolled onto a tool called a marver, which is usually a thick flat sheet of steel.
The marver is important to the glass blowing process because it creates a cool layer on the glass and makes it possible to shape. The artist blows air into the blowpipe in order to form a bubble with the molten glass. If the project calls for making a large piece, the artist can add additional “Gobs” over the original. With the glass blowing process, a variety of shapes can be created. By using big tweezers, the glass blower can pull the glass or add detail. The artist can also use special paddles made of either graphite or wood to design flat areas in the glass.
In order to form the glass into various shapes, the glass blower uses tools called jacks. If the artist needs to make cuts in the piece, he or she uses straight shears. Once the artist has created a piece of the appropriate size, he or she moves the piece to a tool called a punty ( an iron rod ) Here, the glass blower can finish the top of the piece.

Glass blowing has a history dating back to approximately 200 B.C. In these early ages, the glass was formed around a core made of dung or mud. Typically, the process was used to create containers for holding liquids. Today, it is used to create art, craft projects, and to hold almost any food item in your house.

Here is a video to show you what it looks like.

Scotland

                                               Scotland

Scotland was Established in the early middle ages. The National flag of Scotland, known as the Saltire or St. Andrew's Cross, dates from the 9th century, and is the oldest national flag still in use. Since 1606 the Saltire has also formed part of the design of the Union Jack, the flag of the United Kingdom.


Scotland has been a part of the United Kingdom since 1707. Scotland occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. It shares a border with England to the south. The capital of Scotland is Edinburgh.  Glasgow is Scotland’s largest city with a population of about 589,900 people. The official language of Scotland is English. They a constitutional monarchy, the monarch being Elizabeth II.  

The Wallace Monument commemorates
 William Wallace the 13th-century Scottish hero.

An interesting character from Scotland's history is Sir William Wallace. William Wallace was born in Elderslie, Renfrewshire, Scotland. He was a Scottish patriot who led  a revolt against king Edward I of England. He has been a Big Hero of the Scots for more than 600 years. In 1296 Kind Edward booted The king of Scotland and stationed English soldiers in his place to rule the country. Wallace stepped up and became a leader and led bands of Scottish patriots who carried out a harsh war against the invading army. The English army advanced against Wallace and his troops and the English army was defeated at the battle of Sterling Bridge.  King Edward hurried back from France and led another set of heavily armed troops against the rebels and defeated them at Falkirk, Wallace escaped and carried on the fight in the mountains. Seven years later Wallace was captured and executed for Treason.  

Sir William Wallace

The later Sterling Bridge

Scottish Music is a significant aspect of the nation's culture with both traditional and modern influences. A famous traditional Scottish instrument is the Great Highland Bagpipe, a wind instrument consisting of three drones and a melody pipe called the chanter, which are fed continuously by a reservoir of air in a bag.  

Scottish Bagpipe Man

Highland Bagpipe

 Here is a video that shows some bagpipers playing "Scotland The Brave"

The Emerald Isle

What comes to your mind when you think of Ireland? I think of Shamrocks, The movie “Leap Year” and green beauty. Let me tell you some basic facts about Ireland. Ireland is the 3^rd largest Island in Europe and  approximately 6 million people live in Ireland.The Vikings founded Dublin as the capital of Ireland in 988.  The Republic of Ireland gained it's Independence from the United Kingdom on April 24th 1916. Then in 1973 Ireland joined the European Union. Ireland is divided between the republic of Ireland, which is one country and Northern Ireland  which is part of the United Kingdom. I'll be talking about the Republic of Ireland but I'll refer to it as Ireland.

Irish people enjoy futbol (soccer), rugby, horse racing and golf. Rugby in Ireland has become increasingly intense and competitive. Ireland has played in every Rugby World Cup game and made it to the quarter finals in four of them. The Irish rugby league team is made up mostly of players from Ireland, England and Australia Ireland is also known for breeding and training of race horses and is also a large training ground for racing dogs. Golf is very popular and golf tourism is a major industry attracting more than 240,000 people a year.

Golf

Rugby

Horse Racing

Like America, Ireland is very ethnically diverse.  As a result these ethnic groups have shaped the culture of Ireland today. The Celts long ago brought in the development of Christianity in Ireland and Britain brought an early medieval renaissance of Celtic art between 390 and 1200 AD.  Many of the styles of music and art now thought of as typically "Celtic" developed in this period, and are found throughout much of Ireland and Britain.

Ireland is a dynamic and lively modern country with a young population. It is a country where music, conversation, culture, traditions, time to relax and listen and to make friends is important.  Irish society is friendly and chatty. Irish people won’t mind if you talk to them even if they don’t know you, but they might not start a conversation with you first. In the Republic of Ireland people often touch each other’s arms while talking and there’s lots of hugging.

Extended family remains the basis of social structure. Even when family members emigrate they keep strong ties to their family and return for regular visits. Many customs and traditions, for example, names, recipes or holiday celebrations are handed down from generation to generation. Sometimes so far back no one really remembers where or how they came from.

Extended Irish Family 

Irish Home

Traditional Irish Breakfast

 Religion has played a huge role in Irish cultural life since ancient times. Ireland’s pre-Christian heritage was made up of the Celtic church following the work of Saint Columba an Irish missionary (521-596 AD).
Saint Columba's goal was to spread Christianity to pagan places like England and the Frankish empire. This brought written language to the illiterate population of Europe during the “Dark ages” that came after the fall of Rome. Because of this Ireland was known as “the island of saints and scholars”.

Romans Catholics have played a major role in Irish social life. Almost every town has a catholic church. 95% of Irish people are Roman Catholics. The Republic of Ireland is Roman Catholic and Northern Ireland which is part of the United Kingdom is more protestant. This has caused much conflict and strife between the republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. During the 1800s the Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland grew farther apart due to economic differences. In the North life flourished and in the South unequal distribution of land and resources was an issue. Anglican Protestants owned most of the land as a result the standard of living was lower for  the large catholic population. The Protestants and Catholics divided into two republics. Most Irish Catholics desired complete independence from Britain, but Irish Protestants feared living in a country ruled by a Catholics.

 Education interests me because I’d like to be a teacher. In Ireland it is a required thing for children ages 6-16 or until students have completed 3 years of second level education. Irish education is made up of primary, second, third-level education and further education. State funded education is available at all levels, unless you choose to send your child to a private school. Ireland has a long and noted tradition in education. Ireland has the highest education participation rates in the world. 81% of students in Ireland complete second-level and approx 60% go on to higher education. Ireland is known for excellence in education from traditions, cultural and literary, learning to leading-edge 21^st science and technology

Irish Boarding School

I hope that you enjoyed reading my blog about Ireland. I enjoyed re-searching and writing it. Someday I'd like to visit Ireland and see it's beauty and culture.

~Tina

A Quick Trip Across Liechtenstein

Here's an interesting article we found.  Andrew Evans is National Geographic's Digital Nomad - traveling the world, taking pictures and blogging along the way - what a job!!

 Andrew, who is not really a runner, decided that it would be a good challenge to run across a country.  He picked his country carefully, and ran across Liechtenstein, the sixth smallest nation in the world.  To be fair, her ran the long way - from top to bottom - Austria to Switzerland - a total of 16.6 miles.  His article is well written and includes several videos that are fun if not photographically inspiring.

http://digitalnomad.nationalgeographic.com/2012/10/08/cross-country/#more-30597


Andrew is about to begin a journey around the world in a private plane.  You can follow him on Facebook or by connecting to his National Geographic blog.  If the journey proves to be as interesting as we expect, we will post some additional articles right here!!

North America, Latin America, and Oceania

North America 

The continent of North America includes 3 countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Together they cover over 9,450,000 square miles of land. North America is made up of two cultural regions: Canada and the United States. Culturally speaking, Mexico is part of Latin America which will be discussed below.

Here are the flags for the United States and Canada.

The United States of America

  

Canada

Each cultural area of North America has many different ethnic groups.

The United States is a melting pot of culture groups. Our family represents some of those groups. Mom is of Italian and British heritage mixed with a little Swedish and Norwegian; Dad's family roots are French Canadian. My sister, two brothers and I are of Hispanic heritage. My new brother in law is of Taiwanese descent.

Historically there have been three main cultures in Canada.  The Inuit people are sometimes called Canada's "First Nation" because they lived in Canada long before settlers came from Europe.  Most Canadians are of British and French descent, arriving as immigrants in the last 400 years.  

Latin America

Latin American is made up of four sub-regions, The Caribbean, South America, Mexico and Central America. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² (7,880,000 sq mi). As of 2010, its population was estimated at more than 590 million. Latin America is divided into 33 independent nations. Here are some of the flags for the countries of Latin America

Mexico

Puerto Rico

Argentina

Latin Americans include people of American Indian, European, and African ancestry. Those of mixed Indian and white descent are called mestizos. Those of mixed black and white descent are called mulattoes.

Ecuadorian 

Bolivian Baby

   Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Latin America.

Our church family supports Layo and Luchy Leiva as missionaries to Latin America and the Caribbean. The focus of their mission is to reach the leaders of Latin America, helping them to spread the gospel and impact their society

Layo and Luchy Leiva

Oceania 

Oceania is another cultural region, centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean Approximately 25,000 islands make up the pacific islands (Oceania). These islands include places like Australia, Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, and Fiji. Here is a picture of an island in Oceania

Early settlers from southeast Asia came and settled themselves in the Pacific Islands.  Later, settlers came from Great Britain which used Australia as a prison colony.  Now people all over the world come and settle in Australia and the surrounding islands, making the area culturally diverse.  Australia is the least densely populated continent with only eight people per square mile. Many of the Pacific islands are more densely populated since large numbers of people live together on relatively small pieces of land.

In some parts of the Pacific Islands the culture is based on tribal traditions.  These people depend on subsistence farming and fishing to provide for their community.  Other parts of Oceania are more modern and industrial.  People in these areas manufacture and export many products including diamonds, copper, and automobiles.  Fruit farming and sheep farming are also sources of income in the region. 

 Viti Levu is the fifth largest island in Oceania     
                                                                                 

Australian Miners 

Aboriginal People

Rugby is a popular sport throughout Oceania, and is the national sport of Papua New Guinea. It is also very popular in Australia and attracts the attention of crowds across New Zealand and the Pacific Islands

Pacific Islanders Rugby Team