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Having survived the African adventures in 1989, Gertrud Steiner has settled as a lecturer for photographic studies at a college in her German home-town Bremen. Her friend and co-adventurer, Zimbabwean Lainet Musora, remained in her countrys capital Harare alas, without being able to work as a press photographer anymore. The tumble of domestic politics and economy in Zimbabwe, accelerating in the year 2000 two decades after independence combined with drastic actions by agents of Mugabes spin-doctors against the media, made it suicidal to continue in this field. Instead, Lainet and her brother Paul, a former ZBC-broadcaster, ventured into IT-business, setting up and maintaining websites as a networking tool for regional NGOs, thereby helping to empower civic society in Africa. Both women had turned 25 when they had met in Zimbabwe in 1980, both at that time somehow clue-less with regard to their personal future, but finally tapping into funds of a development agency which allowed both of them to establish a professional career by studying press photography in Germany. Both had turned almost 35 when they met again on the mighty Zambezi-river for an excursion which was supposed to become a leisure trip but sucked them into a conspiracy whose international implications did cast shadows from Africa to Europe, further to the Middle East, to Russia and to China, and then back to Zimbabwe. Both women are close to 50 now. They remained unmarried, however, Lainet had adopted Burombo, the little boy who had helped her to escape from the "Village of Doom" in the Zambezi-Valley, and Gertrud had been only too keen not to fail as a second step-mother of this foster-child ... (in Shona "Burombo" means: "child born in poverty") Introduction to the story is in German as well, and this is the background for marketing of the idea: ... an opportunity to practice English with fun ... a chance to explore the abyss of world-history ... join the WEB THRILL-CLUB as owner of the members' CD-Rom ... KJS presents another fiction-thriller for Internet-surfers What is the concept of a fiction-thriller on Internet as presented by KJS? The author is developing a plot for suggested protagonists by surfing through the virtual world of the Internet. His findings are then shuffled around, twisted and lined up until real events in history and presence appear as bits and pieces for a story not known before. And surfers worldwide will have a chance to participate in the development of each story. The unfolding plot will create a new virtual reality, allowing as it is hoped insight into the meaning of our doing. Whilst this approach is still very much dependent on virtual participation and co-operation, my latest project will provide a more classical approach for interested participants. TAZARA is the name of the famous East African rail-express connecting the copper-mines of Zambia with Tanzanias port of Dar-es-Salaam. For passengers, it is a journey of almost three days and two nights made possible by Chinese engineers and workers some 30 years ago. "TAZARA" is the name of my latest novel in the making; have a look at: http://www.radiobridge.net/tazara.html The plot will see the emergence of ordinary and famous passengers in a fictitious meeting on this train, debating history and future of African life and of foreign interference. One of the ordinary passengers we come to know is a travelling tailor from Hong Kong who used to fit African politicians with affordable diplomatic suits, now scouting for African opportunities on behalf of a Mr. Moon. One of the first "VIPs" emerging from the railways tunnels is the ghost of Dag Hammarskjöld who was the UNs Secretary General when foreign powers decided that he was inconvenient to their interests in Congo, that he should be eliminated ... His plane came down in Ndola, north of TAZARAs Zambian terminal, in Kapiri Mposhi ... I am inviting private travellers & travel agencies to join me in an unusual journey: http://www.radiobridge.net/travelg.html Travellers would experience African reality along the TAZARA-line, and at the same time would be invited to participate in the development of the story of the "TAZARA"-novel. Another idea, closely linked to my railway-research, can be viewed at: http://www.radiobridge.net/railtravel.html I present the idea for a new mode of travelling by train to be realised, step by step, through collaboration of interested parties in North and South: TOURISM ALONG RAIL-LINES IN AFRICA TRAIN-UNITS FOR HIRE And all this has been turned, as bricks & mortar, into a multimedia-construction-site from which I present from time to time and for changing audiences of German speaking communities live-shows with readings, pictures, video- & audio-snippets from 40 years of living & working on 4 continents: "STORIES FROM THE GLOBAL VILLAGE OR: HOW TO COME TO TERMS WITH ALIEN WORLDS" "GESCHICHTEN IM GLOBALEN DORF ODER VERSUCHE, DIE FREMDE ZU VERSTEHEN" http://www.radiobridge.net/showdetails.html I would very much appreciate your comments and hints how to come to a joint venture. Best regards, Klaus Juergen Schmidt |
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