FIBDA 2011 - english version

english version

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Daniel Bosshart daniel_bosshart@gmx.net Winterthur (Switzerland), October 2011 english Version

Many thanks to Evelyn Schalgenhauff who helped me out of my lost in translation

Thanks to all the people at the f!bda, Algiers Madame Dalila Nadjem

The algerian minister for culture The swiss embassy in Algiers,

Mr. Christian Scherrer, Mr. Angelo Stucker and Md. Nassima Hammouda Pro Helvetia, Madame Caroline Nicod Cuno Affolter and Cla Werro

And all the people who accompanied me in thoughts

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english version

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UNTIL THEN, I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW ALGERIA

WHEN I FIRST RECEIVED THE INVITATION

AND WHAT LITTLE I KNEW WAS ALL NEGATIVE…

FOR THE COMIC FESTIVAL IN ALGERIA, I

DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO ME…

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Algeria ?!

«LEAVING IS ALWAYS A LITTLE LIKE DYING…»

the book to the publisher… prepare everything at

Algeria …

Ah yes?!

GET KILLED, I CERTAINLY WOULD BE KIDNAPPED…

ME, I HALF-JOKINGLY, HALF SERIOUS PREPARED I need to take the originals of

that Ghaddafi maybe fled to

MY FRIENDS AND I TOLD JOKES THAT IF I DIDN'T

BECAUSE I DIN'T KNOW WHAT WAS AWAITING MYSELF FOR THE WORST CASE.

Today it was told in the news

Mr. Merz* will

… pay a visit to my

come to your

parents...

rescue

cancel the newspaper… have my mail held

the office…

back…

You will paint on the walls of your prison cell and when Mr.

Merz comes for your

* Swiss Federal Council in the

…But you will say

Gaddafi-case

you definitely had to finish these

walls first...,

please come again tomorrow…

rescue …

AS THE DEPARTURE DATE CAME CLOSER, THE

MORE CONFIDENT I BECAME ABOUT THE TRIP. It they can organize a

comic festival it couldn't be that bad, could it?

Yes, exactly!

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Well....

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the t-shirts, socks and such weigh about two pounds …

the toilet bag

the pants

another two

500 grams

pounds ...

With 23kg maximum weight

the suitcase is more

oops than 3 kg….

I could carry

a circ

maybe even 5kg?

14 books

a book weighs 700g...

23 deducted by 10.3… that's about 12

divided by 700...,

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equals about 14

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Yes good morning…

I should have guessed that the changing

I wrote an e-mail last Saturday, I will

the e-mail came back…

haven't received my visa so far…but

have to change my flight because I

my reservation wouldn't work…and now

now I see that you didn't get my mail…

…and the flight

leaves in half an hour ...

myeah…

Holy moley, what a bad connection. I can

hardly understand...

What?!

You're charging me more that

the ticket!

Your colleague said it wouldn‘t cost anything..!

well, then he gave you the wrong information…

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Didn't the visa arrive yet?

Are you still

…sadly no….

here?!?

But maybe I may

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depart this evening if they manage to

organize the visa in Algiers…

What a way to start your trip...

the funny thing is that if the

…but at least now I have a story to tell…

visa came via mail today… I wouldn't get it, because my

mail is held back as of today…

Hello I have a tiny problem...

...but it the visa

certainly

should it arrive on

on week-

Saturday, why Monday?

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...they

doesn't arrive on

dont work ends…

.ah...finally an e-mail from

.mhmmm...what is she writ-

the swiss embassy… and

ing: The Problem will be

the festival...

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solved in one or the other way…well ok….

I think matters there are handled in a different way…

ABOUT 15 HOURS LATER AT AROUND 00:30 A.M., AT THE AEROPORT OF ALGIERS… Look...

you can stay here for the night …

BEFORE THAT I WAS TOLD, THAT

THEY COULD ISSUE A VISA ONLY THE

Yes indeed, here things get handled differently

NEXT MORNING…

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AT 2:00 A.M. AND LATER AT 04:00 A.M.

IT WAS GETTING COLDER BY THE MINUTE…

A FLIGHT DEPARTED…

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AFTER THE LAST DEPARTURE THERE WERE ONLY STAFF IN THE HALL AND ONLY SOME CLEANING PERSONNEL WAS TALKING...

AT AROUND 07:00 A.M. THE HALL BECAME SLOWLY MORE LIVELY AGAIN AND A NEW DAY BEGAN...

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I WAS POSITIVELY SURPRISED THAT

Are you Mr. Daniel Bosshart?

SOMEONE LOOKED INTO MY Case…

for a visa?

Yes.

…no I only have

you already had your

With the request

coffee sir?

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Allright, I

Euros to pay with…

will fetch you one

…A GOOD MOMENT LATER…

This is

...BUT THE NOTHING HAPPENED

very nice!

FOR HOURS...

Are you from

Switzerland?

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Ah finally...

Yes...

WE RETURNED TO THE PASSPORT CONTROL WHERE I GOT Come with me...

STRANDED UPON MY ENTRY ABOUT 12 HOURS BEFORE…

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Are you Stay here.

Yes…

tired…? …Yes a bit

Hello Mr. Stucker*- Yes finally

Look!

everything is fine, I just ar-

Now we can

rived and now I am accompanied

say: Welcome

to town ...

to Algeria!

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*from the embassy

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Thank Voilà the Hotel you.

Safir.

…and what‘s your name?

Hello!

Are you at the festival?

yes

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Amine

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AFTER A SHORT BREAK WE WERE TAKEN TO THE VENUE WHERE THE FESTIVAL TOOK PLACE AND WHERE THE OFFICIAL OPENING CEREMONY

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HAPPENED.

IT'S NICE TO MEET SO MANY PEOPLE HERE THAT SHARE THE SAME INTERESTS, WE GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER QUICKLY…

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IT'S NICE THAT PEOPLE WERE DRAWING ALL THE TIME AND THAT WAS JUST NORMAL

have a seat!

THE VISITORS WERE VERY CURIOUS AND LIKED TO HAVE A PEAK OVER OUR SHOULDERS Can I have

AROUND THERE…

a look?

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Ah yes…

IN THE MORNING AT 09:00AM WE LEFT

…AND ARRIVED BACK AT AROUND 08:30 P.M

THE HOTEL FOR THE FESTIVAL…

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…BECAUSE I DIDN'T SEE MUCH OF THE CITY, I TOOK THE CHANCE…

Who wants to Me!

see the Basilika?

*

*-it‘s a little bit like in Brasil- ah yes…

Look

his! at t

No Litter ing! (Don 't throw garbage in the landsc ape)

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… I WAS FASCINATED AT HOW ALL THE BUILDINGS WERE WHITE AND THEIR WINDOWS AND SHUTTERS WERE ALL BLUE ...

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this wouldn't be possible in Switzerland…

MOST PEOPLE WERE SPEAKING ENGLISH AND FRENCH OF COURSE...

WITH EDUARDO PINTO BARBIER I COULD EVEN PRACTICE MY PORTUGUESE...

SOMETIMES I GOT CONFUSED BETWEEN THE DIFFERENT LANGUAGES...

…SO I WAS HAPPY, WHEN I WAS ABLE TO SPEAK GERMAN FOR A CHANGE...

Viktoria

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Lavaso, lavaso...?

A coffee please

sounds oriental…

Lavaso or american?

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hmm, that's proba-

bly gonna be nice.

But the change I

50 Dinar

wanna see it later

Ok…

…ähm

in my cash register

I'm sorry, but I have only a

Sua gr wi spo th on a

1000 Dinar bill

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Lavaso… but it‘s a

Lavazzo!!

BEFORE I CAME TO ALGERIA, I ASKED MYSELF IT THE PEOPLE HERE WOULD UNDERSTAND MY STORIES, EVEN THOUGH I DON'T USE WORDS. BUT I THOUGH THE DIFFERENCES IN CULTURE AND

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SOCIETY WOULD BE SO HUGE, THAT THE PEOPLE WOULD NOT UNDERSTAND MY IMAGES…

… I WAS REALLY SURPRISED BY THE OPPOSITE. IT SEEMED TO ME THAT THE STORIES DID OPEN

THE HEARTS OF THE READERS, REGARDLESS OF WHICH CORNER OF THE WORLD THEY CAME FROM…

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ON FRIDAY THE STREETS LOOKED A BIT DIFFERENT...

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Friday here is like Sunday in Europe, the weekend is on Friday

now something became

and Saturday…

clear to me….!

… I thought: «Wow, the people

on the embassy worked especially for me on sunday »

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ON THURSDAY WE WERE NOT TAKEN BACK TO THE HOTEL FOR DINNER…

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THE DINNER WAS IN A VERY NOBLE HOTEL WITH MADAME MINISTER OF CULTURE OF ALGERIA…

What?

WE DIDN'T REALLY FIT IN AT THAT PLACE…

… IT HAD ALMOST AS MANY WAITERS AS GUESTS...

?

What‘s up

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Delegation!

ON FRIDAY A WEDDING TOOK PLACE IN THE ROOM JUST NEXT TO OURS AT OUR HOTEL…

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This is tradit

AFTER THE DINNER WE WENT TO THE TERRACE FOR A LITTLE DRINK… Hello!

Bye!

DURING THE NIGHT A THUNDERSTORM CAME UP…

THE RAIN FALLING ON THE WINDOW PANE IN THE BATH-

What

a pity!

Hello!

ROOM SOUNDED LIKE SOMEBODY WAS TAKING A SHOWER…

*

* THUNDER!

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THE NEXT DAY I SHOWED MRS. HAMMOUDA* THE SWISS EXPOSITION… …and here

some artists…

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…like Zep, Cosey…

* FROM THE EMBASSY

…right!

…what‘s here? …a lighthouse

…Iii…

…right!

…dont speak french…

She‘s the best in our school

Ah look!

A WOMAN, WHOM I DIDN'T KNOW

HAD MERCY ON ME AND HELPED ME WITH THE TRANSLATION …

Thanks for your help

that‘s

nothing…

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DURING THE DISCUSSION ABOUT SUPERHEROS THE GROUP RAN INTO SOME TRANSLATING DIFFICULTIES…

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THE GROUP ALSO SUMMARIZED THE WEEK, WHICH I COULD ONLY AGREE WITH… … well we saw that every student here is equal to every student in the U.S. there is no difference! And so over all the differences, the social, political and religion… the art of comic is equal I guess all over the world…

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IN THE EVENING OF THE CLOSURE OF THE FESTIVAL, WE WERE TREATED TO A SPECIAL DINNER OF A WHOLE SHEEP ON A SPIT…

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AND SOON WE HAD TO SAY OUR GOODBYES AND BE ON OUR WAY HOME… Thank you for all!

AND SOON AFTER…

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AFTER THE ADVENTURE DURING MY ENTRY I HOPED THAT THE DEPARTURE WOULD BE WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS…

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Ok.

STILL A LAST CONTROL OF THE PASSPORT AT THE GATE…

Yes

I REALLY NEVER EXPECTED THAT THEY HAD THAT KIND OF HUMOR… od…

That‘s go

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4-ème

Festival Inernational de la Bande dessiné Alger, bulles sans frontières http://www.bdalger.net

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