Other countries and cultures
Other countries and cultures
Volume 1: Travel reports and impressions
Volume 2: All one world
Volume 3: Asia trip with the Queen Mary 2
Volume 4: The past is the present
Volume 5: Travel Without Borders
Volume 6: Art and culture as part of life
Texts / photos: François Maher Presley
Editor: David-A. Eschrich
Hardcover, 164 pages, 21 x 11.5 cm, 167 photos, price: 10.75 euros, Order
Marked in red: Out of print and possibly available in second-hand bookshops online.
Here you can find an excerpt from the travel book 6.
Opinions
Another kind of artistic work of yours, again more difficult to classify, also some surprises again, which, initially from the title, one does not expect, meanwhile as usual critical in all directions, where it seems appropriate, what poor or even richer people , Locals or foreigners can meet in an assessment.
The latter causes one or two surprises in the reader, at least in me. Which of course also makes reading more exciting. So it's actually not just one of tens of travel books, luckily. Because, at least for me, a “classic” travel book is only really interesting if you want to travel there soon.
It is quite different in Other countries and cultures. For example, Brussels was surprising - from a negative point of view. I would have expected that completely different. Terrifyingly interesting. I had heard very little about this, at least in these dimensions, from the media that often reported on the EU capital. The opposite example is the Oman - Muscat: life without meaning. The place name would not have been familiar to me. A ruler with a lot of ostentatiousness and political / social backwardness, also because of strong religious ties, as expected, but the successful modernization efforts came as a surprise, at least for me as a reader, also in comparison to the significantly larger (oil-less) Morocco. You have therefore succeeded in reading the book quickly and we are excited to see what specialty is now being revealed in this place. Hamburg Speicherstadt, I think I'll have to go out there in the evening when I next visit a restaurant in Hamburg, in order to let the actually eerie buildings work on me with this lighting. Been there dozens of times, but now seen again. The pictures are also very successful and make you want to learn and see more. The pictures from the chapter, Dead Sea: The hot springs of Ma'in seem most beautiful to me. Spontaneously thought of me: wanting to spend two days of idleness with a pleasant person there.
What may have worked well in other countries and cultures: Some prejudices and self-confident attitudes towards life should be handled with caution, for example Khajuraho, which I didn't know before. But the original sculptures with the sexual motifs, presented publicly and freely, would not have been expected of the social milieu then existing. Dr. Hans Peter Ickrath, director of the theater in Freiberg
Relentlessly with a pointed tongue, full of irony and wit, François M. Presley reports on his travels around the world. Volume I presents a colorful mixture, the illustrated reader's journey leads from Madrid via Morocco to Cuba ... Alster-Anzeiger, Hamburg
... You describe the interesting reports about distant countries, their sights and the mentality of the inhabitants objectively. As a tourist you have not overlooked grievances because children, animals and the environment have no lobby. They stimulate more trips through beautiful photos ... Gerda-Maria Raschke, artist
Other countries and cultures (completely): Written very charmingly. I will certainly include some aspects in the preface, namely z. For example, that despite all the admiration or devotion for the diverse cultural impressions in the countries you are visiting, you do not, like many cult (o) urists, stop at "sublime looking" and tasting the exotic, but the foreign worlds are also quite socially critical, sometimes sharp Contrasting with other illustrated books that echo mainstream taste as well as the German cuddly romanticism of the petty bourgeoisie, drawing in words in no way polemically - that challenges me to take a closer look. Dr. Matthias Rauert, editor and publisher, Hungary
Opinions
The sinking of the Concordia and the conditions previously prevailing on board have been the focus of reporting for days and show a new, for many not suspected picture of the luxury liners that are widely praised.
François Maher Presley took a trip on the Queen Mary 2 in 2010, probably the most famous luxury liner in the world. In the tape Other countries and cultures, Volume 3, which appeared at the end of 2011, he describes honestly, sometimes funny, but always interesting not only the ports and cities called, but especially the life and conditions on board, the passengers and the staff. In doing so, he does not forget to critically examine the background of the experience and to draw a picture of the time on board that certainly has little to do with the dreams of the many cruise fans.
A short quote can well reflect the writing style of the Wellingsbüttler, who previously worked for many years as the manager of the Forum Alstertal: The passers-by hardly have time to take a seat, while the staff already begins to hand over the menus and immediately ask for drinks. For that reason alone, relaxed dining is not possible, at the latest it fails because of the quality of the dishes. It is hardly possible to serve a dish that is expected hot or warm, most main courses are served lukewarm or cold on the guest's table, which is justified by the distance from the kitchen, if a waiter is still struggling for a friendly explanation.Alster-Anzeiger, Hamburg, January 2nd, 2012
The author describes personal perceptions on various trips to the new federal states, to Italy, France, Morocco, Ghana, India and does not neglect to include an artist portrait. He does this in his entertaining way and opens up new insights and views to the reader. What makes the book unusual is the first-class photos it contains from various locations, which were taken by the author himself. He not only proves that he is a good writer but also that he is a stylish photographer. The book is both a reminder and a challenge.Erich Braun-Egidius
The articles are well put together and up-to-date, the texts and photos highly informative. The article about Beijing hits the nail on the head.Sincerely yours, Arno Weinert
It is downright exciting, informative and funny to read how the myth built up by clever PR is demystified.
I have always wondered how the concentrated power of illusion in the media, starting with NDR 2 and the Hamburger Abendblatt, managed to convince hundreds of thousands that they weren't living properly if they didn't stuff themselves with sausages and pour beer in the face of QM2 , if possible in front of the NDR 2 stage.
Outwardly, the ship is reminiscent of the tradition of the Cunard Line and is impressive in its size and shape. Inside, however, it was designed according to the philosophy of the American Caribbean Line from the start. Small to sparse and also poorly colored cabins. Like the cruisers of the Sovereign of the Seas class etc. The - mostly American - target group of tourists shouldn't feel too comfortable in the cabins, but gamble away the money left after paying for the passage between Louis Armstrong, Marilyn Monroe and plastic palms , get drunk and buy the usual donkeys from the destination ports without going ashore in the - expensive - on-board shops.
As an enthusiastic freighter driver, I of course represent all the prejudices that one can have against the mass crusaders. That's why I never went with them, but I had the opportunity to take a closer look at some of them. Horrible. It may be that the service and organization have gotten even worse in the past two years. But the really big moments were the run-in maneuvers, in which one, standing and waving at Relig, could be admired and envious by gullible spectators or relatives and friends of fellow travelers were elitist by lifting up greeting banners from the mass of unprivileged spectators could take off ...
But not only the pointed description of everyday ship life, but also that of the ports and regions visited is convincing. A highly successful and intelligent book.
Legibility would, however, be significantly improved if the author could decide to break up his sentences, some of which are endless. Sentences eight to ten lines long, crammed with subordinate clauses, gerunds and gerundives, complicated nested clauses instead of simple main clauses with one or two subordinate clauses have sometimes even made the author lose the thread.
For each statement a main clause, if necessary one or two subordinate clauses to explain it. Then new main clause. Comprehensibility goal: S-Bahn 2nd class, read while standing and understood straight away.
No offense. But this delightful book also deserves linguistic perfection, or rather simplification, in order to bring it closer to those readers who - unfortunately - are somewhat weaned from reading. The witty and sharp-tongued description should be kept in any case, just divided into shorter sentences.
The book is so exciting that when I just wanted to leaf through it, I read my way to Dubai. Then I had an appointment. But in some places I had to read several times in order to break up the sentences and fully grasp the content, which I definitely didn't want to do without.
Thank you once again for the book, which is extremely well worth reading, and best regards, I wish you a merry Christmas, a merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year Dr. Arno Weinert, former Attorney General Hamburg
