Everest 2009: An Interview with IMG's Eric Simonson

Alan Arnette stays on a roll, kicking off the week with a good interview on his Everest 2009 page with Eric Simonson, the man behind International Mountain Guides, one of the top guide services on the South Side of Everest.

In the interview, Eric talks about the challenges of running a mountaineering company like IMG, where he has to balance guiding with customer service, and more. He also shares his thoughts on "green" climbing on Everest, saying that it's difficult to call anything about climbing the mountain "green", but steps are being taken to improve that where ever it can be done. He even touches very briefly on what he expects out of the Discovery Channel crew that will be joining the team to film the next edition of Everest: Beyond The Limit.

All told, another good interview with one of the key players on climbing on the South Side, if not the entire mountain itself. As Alan notes, IMG has an impeccable safety record, not only on Everest, but plenty of other mountains as well, including all of the Seven Summits. Good luck to the IMG team once again this year, and I can't wait to see you on Discovery in the Fall.

On a different note, in yesterday's post to his Everest page, Alan wrote that many of the climbers will be setting off on March 25th for Kathmandu, which is just a bit over two weeks off. It's hard to imagine that another year has nearly come and gone, and we're ready for a new Everest season to begin. To all those climbers who will be finishing up their packing and final preparations over the next few weeks, don't forget to pack your toothbrush!

Trip to Florence

Phew... It took us no time to reach Florence (Firenze Santa Maria Novella) from Naples.There was a sea change in the two cities. Not only the sea, but everything else was also, quite different. A far smaller city than Naples, it's more European (than Italian) too. One could easily touch the prosperity here. Unlike its southern cousin Naples, there is a herculean meticulousness that is associated with Florence. Not only does Michelangelo live here through his eternal creations, but also its heritage, physical infrastructure of Firenze, the cleanliness, upkeep of the monuments etc. can hold your senses. Florence is the cradle for modern day Opera, a breeding ground for a unique architecture style of its own, and definitively the renaissance. By all means Florence is a different city at day, and yes an altogether a different city at night.

Historical Center, Florence

Hotel Embassy where we stayed was near to the station, and should say, it was fantastic. The room was comfortable, staff helpful, and the breakfast was good with a lot of variety.

The beautiful squares or piazzas that compellingly invites the white pigeons to throng for feed, compliment the artistic architecture that can take your breath away. On our way, we found many academicians on their study tours with local guides. Step after step, the beauty of the city sinks in deep, with the heritage the city carries with itself. At times, the entire city looks like an art gallery minus the formal settings plus the shining overhead sun. All the tourist places can easily be covering by walking around (Yes, walking is highly recommended).

Light Drizzle add to the Florence magic

Within few feet, we could reach the restaurant that was a few blocks away to gulp our favorite Cappuccino. Within our sight, we had the famed church of Santa Maria Novella. Its grandeur spoke loud about its emphatic class. We began our trip by taking small walk to reach the historical center through Piazza Del Signora, Piazza Del Giovanni among others. We finally reached Duomo. The grand Duomo and its surroundings can hold forever by their charm and magnificence, and as stars lit the sky, the city of Florence adores a totally different look altogether. It drizzled in the evening and by eight at night, everything was 'morning dew' fresh.

Arno at Night

The lights across the tourist places in the city were optimal and sufficient.The beautiful ponte or bridges that dot river Arno makes the picturesque landscape even more special. There were a lot of bicycle riders in the city.

We left our Hotel to catch a regional train to Pisa so that we were in time to reach back to Florence, the very same evening.

Florence is indeed a feast of culture and can come in courses that would,for sure, stay with you forever.

Shop What

• Avoid shopping in Florence, if travelling on a Budget trip. You'll find some good bargains in Pisa.

Bottom Line

• Yes, Many people speak English and the happy trend continues as we go further north in Italy.
• Food is expensive and make your choice judiciously about the restaurant. Historical center is a better place for meals.
• Walk your way through.
• You could save on your lodging if you choose a Hotel bit far, because being a smaller city, that 'bit' will never be too far.

Travel Facts

• Stayed : 2 days.
• Stayed at : Hotel Embassy - Definite Yes, Recommended.
• Traveled with my better half and the journey could be easily divided in two parts Florence at Day and at Night. 
• Traveled in TrenItalia from Naples in January 2013.

The Birth of Color | When Krishna Met Radhe

I'm pleased to feature my photo essay titled The Birth of Color-When Krishna Met Radhe with more than 20 "full-bleed" color photographs of the festival of Holi in Vrindavan and Mathura. I chose to publish this 'sampling' of photographs on Exposure, one of the photo-narrative portals that is designed to give photographers space to publish photo essays. Some of these images and others will also be published on my website.

These photographs were made during my recent The Sacred Cities Photo Expedition-Workshop to Varanasi and Vrindavan. We spent around a week photographing the festivities of Holi in Mathura and Vrindavan and in retrospect, it was one of the most difficult photo expeditions-workshops to operate due to the chaotic nature of the festival, and other factors which I address in more details here.

Part of the title to this photo essay is obviously inspired by the movie When Harry Met Sally...an iconic movie if there was ever one. There's no direct link with the movie's story, but I thought it was a catchy title. In fact, the festival of Holi is based on a number of legends; only one of which is based on the love story between Krishna and Radhe.

Producing an audio-slideshow of Holi is quite difficult because of the disparate events that took place whilst we were there. Particularly difficult is the editing that will have to go into producing a coherent audio track.

Photo © Charlotte Rush-Bailey-All Rights Reserved

Seeing the imagery I returned with, I now think whatever happened to me: getting whacked on the elbow by stick-wielding out-women during one of Holi's 'rituals', getting smothered with color powder or doused with colored water, was really worth the trouble.

Dan Eckstein | Horn Please

Photo © Dan Eckstein-All Rights Reserved

The first time I traveled in India I had the rather unnerving experience of riding in a bus from Jaipur to Jodhpur in pitch darkness. I shall never forget my growing terror in watching an incoming truck blinking its signal light which I thought meant it intended to turn right into the path of my bus.

It was an enormous relief to realize the truckers were doing so to indicate their presence (and the limits of their carriages) to other incoming vehicles.

The Indian truckers usually belong to a certain caste, and are generally treated with contempt by their employers. Their trucks are often decorated with beautiful artwork, colorful gewgaws, religious icons and slogans, making a convoy of such vehicles look like a circus is moving to town. These long-distance lorry drivers transport cargos of freight across the whole of India; tea from Assam, computer parts from Bangalore and exotic flowers and vegetables from the southern states of the country.

Dan Eckstein's project Horn Please documents the trucks, drivers and roadside culture of India.  Having driven 10,000 kilometers over two years to document these truckers, Dan produced "Horn Please: The Decorated Trucks of India"; a book that is to be published by powerHouse Books on December 2nd, 2014.

Dan is is a photographer based in Los Angeles and Brooklyn, who spent four years studying photography at Skidmore College. He assisted Magnum photographer Bruno Barbey in Paris. His work has been widely published and exhibited and he was included in The Collector's Guide to Emerging Art Photography. He was awarded Best Photo Essay in PDN's World In Focus photo contest and included in American Photography 30.

Selvaprakash L. | Vanishing Tribes

Photo © Selva Prakash-All Rights Reserved

On every single trip to India, I am amazed at the Indians' ingenuity in creating and crafting employment and occupational opportunities for themselves...whether it's the punkawallahs waving their flag at Sufi shrines for a few paisas to the young boys who peer in the waters of Haridwar in search of coins donated by the visiting pilgrims.

Most of these "jobs"are slowly disappearing, largely because of India's rapid modernization and socio-economic progress, its modern generation prefers not to follow ancestral trade practices, and the desire to escape caste restrictions. Many ancient practices are fading or have already faded out, while others are currently on their way to become a quaint relic of the past.

What prevents the punkawallah at the Nizzam Uddin shrine being replaced by electric fans? Tradition perhaps...but that too might well change.

Vanishing Tribes by photographer Selva Prakash is a collection of 8 color environmental portraits depicting such transitory trades, ranging from the milkman who delivers milk to homes to the roving knife grinder.

As for the man holding a sort of doll at the end of a pole in the above photograph...I really have no idea what he sells. He seems to have been photographed against the backdrop of a Ferris wheel...so perhaps he's involved in a carnival.

Note: Through the photographers Selvaprakash and Subrata Bose, I learned that this man is a 'Jow Mittai" or candy seller. The red, white, green and yellow strips seen on the pole are gelatinous candy strips popular among rural and semi urban children of India.

I recall the occasional cry of "robabekyah" in the streets of the Cairo suburb of my youth. Most probably extinct now, it announced the man who bought one's old clothes and miscellaneous junk such as empty glass bottles, cans, old shoes, etc. Probably the cry was derived from the Spanish (or Ladino) ropa vieja. Ladino of course, was originally spoken in the former territories of the Ottoman Empire, as Egypt was.

But I digressed.

Selvaprakash L. started his career in photography as a staff photographer for a leading Tamil newspaper. He was Chief Photographer with Dinakaran and DNA, and is now Chief photographer with TIMEOUT, Bangalore. He participated in a number of international photo workshops such as ingapore International Photo Festival 2008 (SIPF), Angkor Photo festival( Projection) 2010 and Photovisa International Photo festival, Russia 2010, Noorderlicht International Photo festival 2011, Delhi Photo Festival 2011 and Lagos Photo Festival 2011 and won numerous international awards.

His photographs have been published in Asian Geo, New Internationalist, and several leading newspapers and magazines in India.