These photos were taken on July 12, 2011 – “The 12th” – in Belfast.
A dedication for my consideration
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
My 11 year-old niece, Olivia, sent me this modest request by email the other day. She has enthusiastically allowed me to share it here: Hey Zio it’s Olivia (Preferably Olive). How’s where ever you are? How are you? I KNOW WHAT I WANT YOU TO DO FOR MY BIRTHDAY PRESENT!!!! Can you dedicate the “walls” […]
July
11
Dividing the Dead
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
Sometimes reality offers up such easy metaphors that a writer feels cheap using them. One of these is the fact that Qalqilya, a city nearly completely caged by the West Bank wall, is also home to Palestine’s only zoo. Another is the fact that when the Belfast city cemetery was conceived centuries ago, a stone […]
July
11
In Belfast
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
I am in Belfast to write about what outsiders – but few locals – call the Peace Lines. Belfast is the eighth and last stop on my ‘walls journey.’ Most of the other walls I’ve visited have yawned across international borders, disputed or otherwise, and often tracked for hundreds of kilometres at a time. In […]
Plugged
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
When I travelled to western Africa in 1997 and 1998, the only electronic devices in my backpack were a Canon Rebel SLR camera (with real film!), a cassette recorder, and a bulky Polaroid. The latter two items didn’t last long. Sand from the harmattan winds jammed the mechanics of both the cassette recorder and the […]
June
17
Parc-Excluded?
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
“The fence is a short story,” Nick Semeniuk told me. We were in his house on the edge of Parc-Extension and across the street from the ‘famous’ l’Acadie fence. Nick lived in Parc X most of his life and remembers the day in 1970 when a battalion of Université de Montréal students tore down the […]
May
26
Subverting the walls at TEDxCalgary
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
On June 4th, I will have the pleasure of giving a presentation at TEDxCalgary, a local ‘franchise’ of the inspiring TED talks that originated in California in the 1980s and have since become a sensation online. (Those of you who’ve never heard of TED should stop reading my blog and visit the TED site immediately.) […]
Poets and Pahlevans on the Cross-Country Bookshelf
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
This morning, friend and fellow writer Will Ferguson nominated Poets and Pahlevans: A Journey Into the Heart of Iran for the Alberta edition of CBC’s Cross Country Bookshelf. I am grateful for the nod, even though most of the other writers in the running – Will among them – are friends of mine. (You can […]
May
20
Parc Extension Mural
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
The Montreal community of Parc Extension commissioned this mural to celebrate the neighbourhood’s centennial anniversary last year. The different fabrics in the image represent the diversity of cultures that make their home in Parc Ex. The mural is not without its detractors, but I think it is gorgeous.
Thinking about Walls in Montreal
posted by Marcello Di Cintio
I am in Montreal conducting research for what will likely be the last chapter of the ‘Walls’ book. I will investigate the fence, built in the 1960s, that stands between the neighbourhoods of the Town of Montreal and Parc Extension. I’ve only just begun my inquiries here and look forward to learning more. I am […]
