Adventures of Isabel http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog Thu, 18 Aug 2011 15:40:26 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 Tahrir Square cleared http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/08/tahrir-square-cleared.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/08/tahrir-square-cleared.html#comments Thu, 18 Aug 2011 15:39:52 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=507 Tahrir Square Cleared by Military August 1
These photos are from August 1, but better late than never, right? It was quite difficult to photograph on this day, with foreigners particularly singled out for confiscation of cameras/memory cards. In fact, I myself nearly had my camera taken from me by soldiers—fortunately, a decade of violin lessons left me with an unusually strong grip, so let it never be said that music is a waste of time.

The new Red Line

The conditions left me shooting on the fly or from the hip, so none of these photos are great. But for the sake of posterity, they can be found here.

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/08/tahrir-square-cleared.html/feed 0 Sinai http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/08/sinai.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/08/sinai.html#comments Thu, 18 Aug 2011 15:22:23 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=504 Sinai

I returned to Cairo Tuesday night, after a few days rest on the beach in Sinai. I won’t even pretend to have the background necessary to comment usefully on the recent attacks along the Israeli border. One observation though: during my brief visit, I was struck by both how heavily militarized the region is, and by how completely ineffective that militarization appeared to me to be.

Taking the bus from Cairo to the Red Sea and back, one passes through numerous military checkpoints. However, the only object of these checkpoints, at least that I could discern, was to single out all non-Arab passengers for a passport check. (Which, in my case, consisted of thumbing ineptly through my documents for a minute or two, finding an Egyptian visa from three years ago, and then tossing them back.) I was tempted to ask what they were actually looking for: Dangerous visa-overstayers? Israeli operatives too unsophisticated to travel on false documents?

Like so many things (the US’s TSA, for example, or the fake metal detectors in my Jakarta office), this strikes me as typical security-state mentality—A big show of weaponry and personnel, a flexing of muscles, but no discernible strategy.

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/08/sinai.html/feed 0 Casualties http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/casualties.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/casualties.html#comments Mon, 25 Jul 2011 23:23:11 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=500
A protestor injured in Abbaseya gets an IV in a makeshift clinic in the Tahrir Square tent city, on the night of July 23–24.


Another injured protestor convalesces in Tahrir Square. Throughout the night, more and more injured people were carried into the tent city.

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/casualties.html/feed 0 Talaat Harb Street Brawl http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/talaat-harb-street-brawl.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/talaat-harb-street-brawl.html#comments Sat, 23 Jul 2011 21:10:08 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=493 This happened simultaneously with the attack on protestors in Abbaseya, but as far as I know was just a disagreement among street vendors that got out of hand.

All in all, a hot night in Cairo.

If I get the chance, I will upload more, and with better resolution, but it’s a slow and painful process.

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/talaat-harb-street-brawl.html/feed 0 Hisham http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/hisham.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/hisham.html#comments Fri, 22 Jul 2011 10:19:41 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=491 Hisham by Isabel

Hisham by Isabel
Hisham is one of many street children who finds some degree of safety and care sleeping in Tahrir Square

Isabel by Hisham

Isabel by Hisham

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/hisham.html/feed 0 More Scenes from Tahrir http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/more-scenes-from-tahrir.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/more-scenes-from-tahrir.html#comments Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:11:48 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=488 Tahrir
A woman sleeps beneath revolutionary graffiti on the Mogamma building.

Revolutionary Graffiti, Tahrir Square
I’ve been told the green lettering reads “revolution,” growing out of the red lettering for “martyrs”

Vendor in Tahrir Square

I really have no idea what to say about this particular fashion statement

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/more-scenes-from-tahrir.html/feed 1 Night in Tahrir Square http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/night-in-tahrir-square.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/night-in-tahrir-square.html#comments Sat, 16 Jul 2011 21:48:53 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=486 Neither nightfall, the start of the work week tomorrow, nor stuffy ideas about appropriate children’s bedtimes seem to put a damper on the carnival spirit in Tahrir Square.

 
Night in Tahrir Square

Night in Tahrir Square

Night in Tahrir Square

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/night-in-tahrir-square.html/feed 2 Faces from Tahrir http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/faces-from-tahrir.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/faces-from-tahrir.html#comments Fri, 15 Jul 2011 17:35:33 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=483 Tahrir Square

Face painting, Tahrir

Vendor in Tahrir

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/faces-from-tahrir.html/feed 0 Tahrir Square http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/tahrir-square.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/tahrir-square.html#comments Fri, 15 Jul 2011 10:07:04 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=478

Tea Seller in Tahrir

Tahrir Square Sit In

]]> http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/07/tahrir-square.html/feed 0 Changes Around Here http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/06/changes-around-here.html http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/2011/06/changes-around-here.html#comments Sun, 12 Jun 2011 09:03:15 +0000 Isabel Esterman http://www.isabelesterman.net/blog/?p=476 I’m trying to integrate this blog a bit more with my main portfolio site, which means some changes to the layout, and to the navigational structure. I’m still working out some of the kinks, and in the meantime, there may be a few hiccups.

On the plus side, I hope this’ll mean that I’m spending a bit more time over here. For the past year, I’ve been in a full-time magazine position that doesn’t allow me to freelance. I haven’t had any legal restrictions against maintaining a personal blog, but it’s been hard to find the time or motivation, especially since so much of what I blog about has always stemmed from research or travels connected to freelance projects.

I’m happy to report that my current contract will be ending July 4 (appropriate, nu?) and with it restrictions against freelancing. So I hope to be around here a bit more.

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