You will never see your home (Tel Aviv)
They do not want to be photographed.
They do not want to tell where they come from.
A problem- they are here and thereillegally. Illegaly in Tel Aviv and illegally in their motherland.
Centre of Tel Aviv, Israel.
Tall modern skyscrapers, lovely cafes with Hebrew music, frequented by free spirits,artists, hipochondriacs, hysterics and international boheme.
Several hundreds meters away, Ethiopian and Eritrean immigrants occupy slums and streets. During the day they visit their own clubs, always darkened and filled with smoke, lit with the glimming kitschy bulps, like in Africa. To get away from the sun.
At nights they go outside to wander about, to sell sex or to run small shops and hairdressers.
They are unwanted in Israel, as they found their way there usually via human traffickers- they do not speak Hebrew. Their Jewishness is not necessarily recognized by the authorities.
Muslims and Christians from Africa do not enjoy support that Jews might get. They have to rely on already overstretched charities.
Daniel, my interlocutor, cannot come back to Eritrea. He was in the army for 7 years. He did not want to kill anymore, so decided to leave his motherland. If one does not want to serve in the army, they are sent to prison.
His friend, Tesfay, doe-eyed, beauty and body like that of sculpture, spent 3 years in the army.
We sit in a tiny, cozy cafe, wrapped in the smoke of nargila. A beautiful Imanesque girl- hostess guards the door, preparing dark coffee at the same time. She is maybe in her twenties. Her face is of a shape of a almond, her skin tone is honeyish, eyebrows remind wings of a flying bird, or, as One Thousand and One Nights authors put it, the letter Alif itself.
Her name is unpronouncable.
Tesfay does not trust us at the start. His English is very poor, so Daniel, who lives in Leeds (UK) explains that Tesfay is on the run in Israel as well. He cannot find a job, he cannot rent a flat, as he is skint (he lives along with seven other Eritreans), he is not entitled to benefits and he even cannot to become a victim of crime, as he would be sent back home. He cannot do anything. Whatever he does or whatever is done to him, might result in him being deported to Eritrea, and, as a consequence, he can be put in jail.
He will never see his family that he has left behind. He cannot contact them. In Israel, he is reluctant to make friends, as here you never know who may be your enemy. It is a matter of survival.
So- Tesfay just IS, suspended between two worlds that he cannot access.
His reality, his existence is confined to few streets in Tel Aviv that he never leaves.
Tesfay drinks and watches everybody, withdrawn. However, after some time he starts to open up- no wonder, we speak with a funny accent, do not know Hebrew (so we are not government spies) and he smiles a little, showing shiny white teeth. Then, he starts to his hands to tell his story.
Imanesque beauty directs the breeze produced with a bamboo fan towards coffee being brewed in a muddy jug. She will give us two miniscule cups of the strongest and sweetest liquid I have ever drunk in a moment.
Daniel has a British passport. He does not answer to my question how that is possible, as his English is not very basic, so we assume he is a political refugee. Daniel considers himself lucky. No, he will never come back to his country, but, contrary to those Trapped Between The Two Words, he can travel freely.
Yes, he had some bad memories. From home. Too bad to talk about.
I tell him about my Ethiopian friend from the UK. She was gang-raped. While defending herself, one of the perpetrators hit her with a machete. Her scar that she sees everyday brings the memories of not only physical pain back.
The Trapped in Tel Aviv, those who left Africa, learn to know their district very well. Also, by chance, they learn other cultures, as this part of Tel Aviv is inhabited by goldenteethed Russians, who do not speak Hebrew and sell second hand goods and Ethiopians, their historical enemies, that they have to tolerate and accept.
Tefsay wants to work. And to move out somewhere else.
On our way back to the centre of Tel Aviv to out elegant and sophisticated neighbourhood, we pass by dark-skinned prostutitutes with blond dyed frizzy hair, damaged with a cheap chemicals. They address my partner, Mariusz, even though they can see we are together.
And then, not that far, the colourful lights of banks and restaurant. It reminded me of Washington, where, in its very center, so thriving and hectic during the day, filled with click-clacks of dear high-heeled shoes and the sight of expensive suits, after six oclock in the evening the homeless gather and wait for ” Martha`s Table”, whose volunteers serve meaty soup and sandwiches.
But the Washington homeless are trapped in the whole large continent. Some of them manage to save some money to spend the winter in warm California- to beg there.
Eritreans in Tel Aviv spend winters and summers in the same place – on several square kilometres in the center of Tel Aviv. Sometimes warm wind feels like a hot breath of Africa, their home.
Text: Aleksandra Lojek
F8Magazine – my Street View of Belfast.
Street View of Belfast, part of my project in new issue of F8Magazine. / Ulice Belfastu czesc mojego projektu w nowym numerze F8Magazine. Zapraszam
Occupy Belfast movement went through Belfast city center, blocking streets.
At 3 pm a march of Occupy Belfast movement went through Belfast city center, blocking streets. Members of the movement appealed to Trade Unions and their supporters to act against growing homelessness.
Qalandiya – who rules the checkpoint. Palestinian Autonomy / Israel
Qalandiya check point, leading from West Bank to Jerusalem. Watchtowers, barbwires, the Wall filled with electronics, called the Apartheid Wall (by Palestinians)l or Security Fence (by Israelis ). Palestinian kids sell colourful baloons and tea. Long lines of cars and busses.
Locals are required to leave the buses and cross the checkpoint on foot. We did it as well, howeverwe did not have to – just wanted to experience life of a privileged (sic) Palestinian. Privileged as possesing an ID card allowing him to visit Jerusalem.
A maze of grills and passages, leading to mini-terminals manned by bored Israeli kid soldiers. Cold and windy air, 8 C. Terminals are not (or were not at the particular day) heated, some of them were closed, so we crowded at the only one that was functioning. Only three persons are allowed to go through the steel automatic gate at a time.
Sometimes a fourth person, who missed the counting, gets stuck in the gate and has to wait for the gate to be released. It will not happen, however, unless the first three people get carefully checked. So, they are suspended for at leat 15 minutes between a Palestininan and Israeli world, separated from both with a steel grill. It happened to a young French girl, who was standing right before us. Nobody reacted to her pleads and protests.
If the first three are Palestinians – it takes longer that 15 minutes to unblock the gate.
There was no courtesy towards Palestinians. Everything- shouting, firm voices, countless checks of their belongings, but no courtesy. Kid soldiers made several breaks, sitting in the warm rooms behind a thick dirty glass. They chatted, texted, checked emails. In the very same time Palestinian families froze waiting for their pause to end.
There was courtly politeness towards all foreigners. Having been carefully checked, I heard a kind :”Thank you” and “have a nice day” (even though my earing got lost in the Xray mashine and nobody cared about that). When Palestinians cross the gate, thet never hear these words in any language.
Another time, a bus driver left us in a place only for Israeli ID holders. There was nobody there who could direct us, so we rushed towards a kid- soldier standing in front of the check-point.
- Lo- he shouted in Hebrew – La!- corrected himself in Arabic- NO! – added promptly in English.
The watchtower spoke to us in a litany of Hebrew exclamations. Using a gesture language I showed the kids stationed several meters above me, that I did not understand a word. The watchtower continued. We decided to ignore it and got on another bus, whose driver was not so restrictive and only informed us that it was our risk. Palestinian drivers are not particularly happy when they have passengers who might attract Israeli soldiers` attention – it might mean a significant delay in entering Israel.
After some time two kid soldiers entered a bus, aged, more or less, 18 yrs. The first one check if the bus was safe – raising his gun towards passengers, the second asked for the ID`s. Polish passport did not impress him much, but he clearly did not like the documents handed to him by an elderly Palestinian, sitting behind me. He ordered him to leave the bus.
- I am 67 years old- said the man, dressed in a very modest dirty suit- There is a new law that people at my age do not have to walk through the checkpoints. But apparently today is different. Yesterday I passed the checkpoint in the bus, today I need to stand in this long queue.
The kid-soldier asked a young Arab lady with a new-born baby to leave the bus as well. He pointed at a crowd of freezing Palestinians waiting for their turn to cross the border.
We left undisturbed. We are not Palestinians, after all…
Text: Aleksandra Lojek-Magdziarz
more pictures from Palestinian Autonomy and Israel available on my website: http://www.mariuszsmiejek.com
National Geographic Traveler – My picture from Lisbon
Where you went in National Geographic Traveler – My picture from Lisbon
Some of my travel Photos. Venzone, Italy.
I also take pictures of my trip, sometimes 
just in case. From series of Italian places.
Venzone was almost entirely destroyed by the earthquake that struck in 1976.
This is also kingdom of lavender (photos from lavender palace) in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia-Giulia.
Country of Fado music – Portugal
From my archives, some tourist pictures from a trip to Portugal.
A beautiful coast scattered with antique windmills, a great sacred art in all over Portugal, Fatima (a place of the pilgrimage for Christians from around the world), Lisbon with its quiet streets, around the castle and the panoramic old elevator, in the heart of the city, where you can hear one of the most beautiful melodies of this continent.
It’s just a small part of what I discovered in this wonderful country.
Kids demonstration in Belfast / Demonstracja dzieci w Belfaście
Demonstracja dzieci w Belfaście
W sercu Belfastu, na terenie tzw. Golden Mile odbyła się w piatek 25 lutego demonstracja dzieci, które sprzeciwiały się osiedlaniu przestępców seksualnych, a zwłaszcza pedofilów w tej dzielnicy. Dzieci i nastolatki biegały po ulicy z transparentami, na których napisane było: “Użyj klaksonu” (na znak solidarności z ich postulatami) oraz “Pedofile won z naszej dzielnicy”. Mijający dzieci kierowcy w samochodach trąbili bardzo entuzjastycznie.
Golden Mile leży tuż przy południowej części Belfastu, w której mieszka 115 przestępców seksualnych oraz gdzie znajduje się hostel specjalnie dla nich. Sytuacja ta od dawna budzi kontrowersje, chociaż specjaliści uważają, że przestępcy seksualni rzadko popadają w recydywę w Irlandii Pólnocnej, ponieważ są monitorowani przez władze i każdy ich krok musi byc raportowany policji.
Mieszkańcy południowego Belfastu są jednak zaniepokojeni, nazywając swój teren “śmietniskiem dla zboczeńców”. Protesty trwaja już od dluższego czasu.
W półtoramilionowej Irlandii Pólnconej przebywa na stałe 900 przestępców seksualnych.
Aleksandra Łojek-Magdziarz
National Geographic selection of favorite photos of England
And one more time NGM in USA presents my pictures, this time from England, and two pictures from this country.
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/your-england-photos/#/travel-england-united-kingdom-pictures-26_33502_600x450.jpg
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/your-england-photos/#/travel-england-united-kingdom-pictures-48_33524_600x450.jpg
Perfect w Shepherd’s Bush Empire, Londyn.
W sobotni wieczór przy londyńskim Shepherd’s Bush Empire, tłum ludzi czekał przed wejściem do sali, w której grały wcześniej światowej sławy zespoły, stojąc w kolejce po odbiór wejściówek, ze smutkiem w głosach mówiono, że bilety zostały już dawno wyprzedane.
Spora grupa ludzi pozostała więc przed teatrem z nadzieją, że jakimś cudem uda się im dostać do środka, gdzie sala zapełniona była po brzegi w oczekiwaniu na jedną z najbardziej znanych grup muzycznych w Polsce.
Wrzawa tysięcy osób wypełniających wnętrze auli powitała na scenie Grzegorza Markowskiego wraz z jak zwykle wyśmienicie brzmiącymi muzykami grupy Perfect.
Repertuar artystów jest chyba dobrze znany już trzem pokoleniom fanów, „Autobiografia”, „Niepokonani” czy „Nie płacz Ewka” to tylko niektóre z utworów, które można było usłyszeć podczas koncertu.
Euforia i krzyki przy każdym kolejnym utworze po kilku zaledwie nutach podgrzewała atmosferę, ale też i muzycy mimo swego wieku dali z siebie wszystko przez trwający ponad półtorej godziny koncert.
Przypominając sobie mój pierwszy koncert z przed 16 laty, widzę, że entuzjazm, z jakim Perfect jest przyjmowany przez tak wiele lat w ogóle nie uległ zmianie.
Koncert zespołu został zorganizowany przez Tygodnik Cooltura z okazji dorocznego festiwalu muzycznego, podczas którego występowali również laureaci konkursu Cooltura Music Awards.
Materiały umieszczone na stronie pochodzą
- Cooltura weekly magazine, Londyn
- www.wapnet.co.uk (portal polonijny w Irlandi Północnej)
- www.elondyn.co.uk (portal polonijny w Londynie)
- www.perfect.art.pl (oficjalna strona zespołu)
International Day in Support of Victims of Torture – London 26 June 2011
In 1998, the United Nations made the 26th June each year “International Day in Support of Victims of Torture”, a “day to focus on helping torture victims and ending torture”.
Today event in London, organised by the London Guantánamo Campaign and Kingston CND
Speakers include:
Andy Worthington, journalist
Ilyas Townsend, Justice for Aafia Coalition
Maria Gallestegui, Peace Strike
Naomi Colvin, UK Friends of Bradley Manning
Maya Evans, Justice Not Vengeance
and speakers from Amnesty International, Stop The War, International
Committee Against Disappearances and the Save Shaker Aamer Campaign
and others.
http://londonguantanamocampaign.blogspot.com/2011/05/26-june-public-rally-in-support-of.html
Second night of riots in Belfast, Ardoyne area 12.07.2011
BBC published a some of my photographs:
BBC week in pictures 16.07.2011
Belfast’s streets – everyday life
Everyday Belfast- one can find everything here: a movie being made (of course, it has to touch upon the times of The Troubles), poverty rubbing shoulders with wealthiness and, last but not least,- political murals, up-dated regularly by local artists.
Suicide Prevention march in Belfast.
On Saturday morning, on World Suicide Prevention Day hundreds of people from all parts of Belfast marched silently to commemorate the loved ones that had taken their lives.
Lashed by strong winds and rain, they set off from East, West, North and South of Belfast shortly after 5 o`clock am.
Mothers, brothers, sisters, relatives and friends gathered at 6 o’clock am in front of the City Hall, greeted by Lord Mayor Niall Ó Donnghaile, who stressed the importance of understanding the problem of suicides affecting Belfast.
Aleksandra Lojek-Magdziarz
Other worlds
These two brothers, Chris and Simon are autistic. They do not relate to the outside world easily, but have an intimate and very strong connection to each other , their own universe, in which they function perfectly well. When I saw this picture, taken by Mariusz Smiejek, I was mesmerized with the intensity of their contact with each other. Who knows, maybe their world is much more exciting than ours? Maybe it is us who are trapped in predictability and regularity of our actions in our so boringly obvious lives? No wonder Autism fascinates not only professionals but also laymen.
Text: Aleksandra Lojek-Magdziarz
Ci dwaj bracia, Chris i Simon, mają autyzm. Są w pewien sposób odizolowani od świata zewnętrznego, ale ze sobą porozumiewają się na niezwykłym intymnie bliskim poziomie, dzielą swój mały autystyczny wszechświat, w którym funkcjonują idealnie. Kiedy zobaczyłam to zdjęcie, zrobione przez Mariusza Śmiejka, byłam porażona intensywnością kontaktu między Chrisem i Simonem. Kto wie, może ich świat jest ciekawszy od naszego? Może to my jesteśmy uwikłanie w pułapkę przewidywalności naszego w sumie nudnego życia? Nic dziwnego, ze autyzm fascynuje nie tylko ekspertów, ale i laików.
Tekst: Aleksandra Lojek-Magdziarz
My photo in National Geographic Daily Dozen.
One more time my photo in National Geographic, editor’s selections.
Download wallpaper on your desktop: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/your-shot/weekly-wrapper
This picture was captured in Blackpool, England. This view is from a very tall wooden pier, and to me it looks like a tree.
Public sector strike action – Belfast
Pictures of Public sector strike action – Belfast, 30′th November 2011
Pro Memoria Witold Hulanicki.
Pro Memoria Witold Hulanicki. The seminar organized by the Embassy of Poland in Israel and the Israel Council on Foreign Relations to commemorate Polish Consul General Mr. Witold Hulanicki assasinated in Jerusalem by Lehi organization.
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