Impressions: Bangladesh
As a child I was taken several times to Bangladesh by my parents (they were born in India, which then became East Pakistan and eventually Bangladesh) and the trips usually involved a very, very long journey starting with an overnight bus from North Wales to Heathrow, endless stopovers (as these were probably the cheapest flights!) …
Stilettoes in the Snow
One assignment took me to Astana in Kazakhstan – the first peace talks held by Russia to try and combat the Syrian conflict. I’d already experienced difficulties trying to negotiate sliding pavements covered in white dust hiding solid ice and I was struggling even with enormous grips on my knee high boots. I watched the …
First Impressions: Moscow
My journey to living here in Moscow is most certainly an unusual story, which I’ll expand on at a later date, but in brief, having worked my way up and across the media industry mainly in the UK, I found myself accepting a position at an international news channel based in Moscow. It was an …
“Try walking in my shoes for a day. Please.”
Four names in the news this week, Dr Alfa Saadu, Amged el-Hawrani, Adil El Tayar, and GP Dr Habib Zaidi, who had ancestry in regions including Asia, the Middle East and Africa and the first frontline NHS workers to die from Covid-19 found me re-questioning the core of my identity quite dramatically and brought back …
Grandmothers: Be Kind to a Babushka
Names of Grandmas around the world: Lola / Inang (Philippines), Grandmere / Mémé (France), Oma (German), YaYa(Greek), Tutu (Hawaii ), Nona (Italy), Nai Nai / Ma Ma (China), Bomma / Bommi (Belgiun), Mórai(Ireland), Sobo/Soba(Japan), Babula (Polish), Avo (Portugal), Tatick (Armenia), Baka (Croatia), Bibi (Swahali), Nenek (Malaya), Amma (Iceland), Thakurma / Dida (Bangladesh), Babushka (Russia), Jadda …
