Unwinding & Recharging

Gradually unwinding after being wedged into a tiny Air France seat between Cotonou and Paris on Sunday night. Actually the foot space was OK. It was the fact that the people infront reclined their seats for the whole flight that made it so uncomfortable to try and eat something and totally impossible to sleep.

Paris CDG airport is also an experience in itself. The distances between the terminals is so large that they bus you around, checking passports at almost every entrance. The handluggage screening process is woefully slow compared to Schiphol, so even though I had 2 hours between flights, I needed every second. You also need the time to allow your luggage to follow you on the same flight. Ten years ago I went to Benin for a few days and my luggage remained 3 days behind where I was. In short, avoid CDG if you can help it.

Soldering the audio cables to the transmitter

Soldering the audio cables to the transmitter
Originally uploaded by Jonathan Marks

Connecting stuff together with colleagues in Benin. Internet connection due here in a couple of months!

Component Shop Cotonou

Component Shop Cotonou
Originally uploaded by Jonathan Marks

They have everything - except the plug we're looking for.

Breakfast in Accra, Lunch in Togo

Currently on a media fact finding tour of West Africa as well as helping to organise debates in West Africa for Radio Nederland Wereldomroep. Internet connectivity is variable so I will wait until later to upload the photos (1000+) to Flickr. Left
Accra at 9 am, had lunch in Togo (photo at the Mercure hotel) then on to Cotonou in time for tea. Three very different countries. Best food is in Benin. Always ask for real coffee. Ghana seems to hooked on Nescafe which is truly tastless.

View of the Lake

DSC01379
Originally uploaded by Jonathan Marks

well sort of...more like a view of the inlet. Great hotel though, and much improved since I was here last year. Hotel du Lac in Cotonou Benin.

iPhone Contradictions

You don't need me to review the iPhone for you. Some very strange people have spent all weekend breaking into the thing, dismantling it, even trying to break the firmware so the SIM lock can be broken. I conclude it's a great but very expensive media player, they have sorted out how to browse the web on the small screen and totally compromised on the phone itself. The network is too slow, and the phone doesn't work as a phone when its in a docking station. But I think the biggest message this phone is sending is to the radio guys. No FM folks. Hello? Ask Apple why not, and you get the answer "Why would we?". Be great if I could use my Sony Hifi headphones on the iPhone, but sadly the socket is designed so that only the Apple iPod style headphones will work properly. Unless you buy an adapter.

Price of Picnic

The price of the Amsterdam Cross Media week just went up to 950 Euro for the three day event...or rather 1130.50 Euro including the VAT that most of us have to pay as citizens. Frankly, I think they're starting to price themselves out of the market. Look at the talent that came to reboot for a 1/3 of the price.