Ghost Landscapes,
Native
Dance
Peoples
&
The
Bruce Parry Yvon Chouinard Kaja Sajovic Vanessa J Richards Nicholas Gill Paul Steele Paola Miglio Vinay Maurya Ben Mervis David J Constable Norbert Niederkofler Andrew Bell Jennifer Anton Jamie Lafferty
Great
Outdoors
Levison Wood Liam Collens Valeria Mosca Rosalind Yunibandhu Grace Askew 01
£8.00
TABLE OF
Contents LANDSCAPES
02
UK NATIONAL PARK INDEX CONDUCTED BY CRAIG MANOR
08
FELLS & VALLEYS: A LAKE DISTRICT TOUR BY VANESSA J RICHARDS
16
EVERYTHING ALONG THE WAY: OUT OF GLASGOW BY BEN MERVIS
23
UNDER THE LIGHT OF THE ITALIAN MOON BY JENNIFER ANTON
32
MYTHICAL MYANMAR BY ANDREW BELL
46
THE INDIAN MOTORCYCLIST: SOLO RIDING ACROSS INDIA BY VINAY MAURYA
52
ZANZIBAR IN THE AGE OF CORONA BY KAJA SAJOVIC
67
TUMBLEWEED WOMAN: AN INTERVIEW WITH GRACE ASKEW BY DAVID J CONSTABLE
NATIVE PEOPLES
66
POWER & HEALING: THE ROLE OF THE MBENDJELE WOMEN BY BRUCE PARRY
76
NILDA CALLAÑAUPA: A PERUVIAN WEAVER'S MISSION BY PAOLA MIGLIO
82
CASSAVA AND THE TICUNA OF AMAZONIA BY NICHOLAS GILL
88
"HERITAGE" TAKEN FROM "ENCOUNTERS": INCREDIBLE STORIES OF SOME OF THE WORLD'S MOST REMOTE PLACES AND THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE THERE BY LEVISON WOOD
101
HEIVA I TAHITI: COMPETING AGAINST THE INDIGENOUS TRIBES OF POLYNESIA BY DAVID J CONSTABLE
113
PETALS OF THE CHAMPAKA: THE LIFE AND CULINARY LEGACY OF THAN PHU YING KLEEB MAHIDORN BY ROSALIND YUNIBANDHU
120
FRANK A. RINEHART AND THE 1898 INDIAN CONGRESS BY DAVID J CONSTABLE
THE GREAT OUTDOORS
131
MY LIFE OUTDOORS & DOING OUR BIT FOR THE PLANET BY YVON CHOUINARD
145
COOK THE MOUNTAIN: NORBERT NIEDERKOFLER'S WILD WAY OF LIFE BY DAVID J CONSTABLE
156
BEYOND REYKJAVIK AND THE GOLDEN CIRCLE BY LIAM COLLENS
163
GOING NATIVE | REVIEW: NATIVE, OSEA ISLAND BY DAVID J CONSTABLE
171
DOG WALKS ON THE BEACH: THE GOOD & THE DANGEROUS BY PAUL STEELE
177
GAUCHO CATTLE IN CABAÑA LOS MURMULLOS BY PAOLA MIGLIO
185
AN ODE TO BEEF BY RUPERT PONSONBY
186
LIFE BETWEEN VOLCANOES AND THE SEA BY JAMIE LAFFERTY
194
CONSERVATIONAL FORAGING BY VALERIA MOSCA
Front cover: tribal woman smoking cheroot cigar, Nyaungshwe, Myanmar / Andrew Bell
MASTHEAD
Founder and Editor
David J Constable
Design and Layout
David J Constable, powered by Canva
Contributors
Craig Manor, Bowness on Windermere Vanessa J Richards Ben Mervis Jennifer Anton Andrew Bell Vinay Maurya Kaja Sajovic Bruce Parry Paola Miglio Nicholas Gill Rosalind Yunibandhu Levison Wood Yvon Chouinard Liam Collens Paul Steele Rupert Ponsonby Jamie Lafferty Valeria Mosca
EDITOR'S NOTE
Hello, Welcome to the first issue of Ghost Dance. What it is, I’m still not sure? A digital magazine, perhaps. A journal or newsletter, kinda. What it is now may well even change. I can tell you that it is a collection of stories, features and photography from global voices, delving into topics that get little coverage or attention elsewhere. The idea for such a publication had been percolating for a long time, and then upon the announcement of yet another UK lockdown, I began speaking to friends and collating ideas. Soon, I was commissioning from diverse people and attempting to set their words to photography – a new and labour-intensive skill, as I would quickly discover. I approached people I consider to have a unique voice, who write truthfully and detail their experiences with knowledge, an aptitude for exploration and not just describing beaches and luxury retreats. I have no interest in lazy, lackadaisical holidays, the manufactured exhibitionist experiences that clog blogs and social media. Too many wannabe travellers and Instagram obsessives pass for travellers and writers these days – the air is noisy with their shouting. The best travel for me is off the grid; it’s the under-the-radar exploration and the crossing of borders. The best travel writing reflects this, not blogs, listicles or single-paragraph descriptions. The travel narrative should be evocative, its descriptions authentic and written directly from experience. I believe this collection of writing is just that, a journey with people who see and feel the authentic travel experience – via food, overground travel and through their interactions with locals. I hope the content inspires and sends you somewhere far, far away.
David J Constable Founder and Editor ghostdancemag@gmail.com
L A N D S C A P E S
Ambleside, Lake District, UK / Jonny Gios
UK National Park Index conducted by Craig Manor, Bowness on Windermere Fells & Valleys: a Lake District Tour by Vanessa J Richards Everything Along the Way: Out of Glasgow by Ben Mervis Under the Light of the Italian Moon by Jennifer Anton Mythical Mynamar and its uncertain future by Andrew Bell The Indian Motorcyclist: solo riding across India by Vinay Maurya Zanzibar in the Age of Corona: it’s a state of mind by Kaja Sajovic Tumbleweed Woman: an interview with Grace Askew by David J Constable
LANDSCAPES
UK NATIONAL PARK INDEX Conducted by Craig Manor, Bowness on Windermere Photo by Annie Spratt, New Forest National Park, United Kingdom The coronavirus has meant that we’ve all had to look a little bit closer to home when it comes to booking a trip away. The UK is blessed with some stunning areas of natural beauty, especially within the borders of the Lake District's fifteen national parks. From the moorlands of Dartmoor and North Yorkshire to the spectacular summits of the Peak District, there’s a great mix of national parks to explore, each with its own unique charms.
02 | LANDSCAPES: UK NATIONAL PARK INDEX
LANDSCAPES
The team at Craig Manor have attempted to rank each of the country’s national parks on a range of factors. Third, second and first places are detailed further in the following pages. 10. Dartmoor 9. Exmoor 8. South Downs 7. Peak District 6. Northumberland 5. Pembrokeshire Coast 4. New Forest
LANDSCAPES: UK NATIONAL PARK INDEX | 03
LANDSCAPES
3. SNOWDONIA The Snowdonia National Park in northwest Wales boasts vast areas of natural beauty and is known as Eryri in Welsh, a name that can be translated as “the place of the eagles.” Founded in 1951, it is the oldest national park in Wales and is home to the tallest mountain in Wales and England, Mount Snowdon, known or Yr Wyddfa in Welsh, at an elevation of 1,085 metres (3,560 feet). If mountain climbing isn't your thing, then it's possible to take the Snowdon Mountain Railway to the top, Britain's only public track and pinion mountain railway, which runs from Llanberis to the summit of Snowdon. Photo by Nighthawk Shoots, Snowdonia National Park, United Kingdom
2. THE BROADS The Broads is a network of mostly navigable rivers and lakes in the English counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. They consist of a fragile wetland of international importance, with rare wildlife like the huge swallowtail butterfly, the booming bittern, frolicking otters and beautiful white water lilies. The countryside is undulating and mostly agricultural, with sandy beaches, stunning coastline and glorious inland waterways and rivers. The area is 303 square kilometres (117 square miles), most of which is in Norfolk, with over 200 kilometres (120 miles) of navigable waterways. Although the terms Norfolk Broads and Suffolk Broads are used to identify specific areas within the two counties, respectively, the whole area is frequently referred to as the "Norfolk Broads". Photo by David Irvine, Lost WW2 Bunker, Norfolk Broads, United Kingdom
04 | LANDSCAPES: UK NATIONAL PARK INDEX
1. LAKE DISTRICT Area (sq miles): 884.9 Lakes: 29 Walking routes: 194 Photos by James Kemp Not only is it the most visited of the UK national parks, and recently made a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but the stunning Lake District also came top for three of the factors Craig Manor were looking at - attractions, walking routes and Instagrammability - while also scoring highly for outdoor activities and its abundance of beautiful lakes which give it its name. While you might have to put up with the odd rain shower, the Lakes are a special destination whether you want to explore the fells and lakes on one of the famous Wainwright Walks or the indoor visitor attractions such as the World of Beatrix Potter. First published in the Westmorland Gazette in the 1950s, Alfred Wainwright's Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells comprises seven volumes listing 214 mountains and tops, each with its own chapter. Although he wasn't a native of the region - born in Blackburn, Lancashire in 1907 Wainwright enjoyed long walks as a young man, venturing out from his hometown and across the hills of the Lancashire countryside. He showed great interest in drawing and cartography as a child, producing his own maps of England and the local area - it was not uncommon for the young boy to walk 20 miles in a day. When an accountancy job became available at the Town Hall in Kendal, Wainwright didn't hesitate to move to Cumbria. From then on, instead of having to organise expeditions to Lakeland from fifty or sixty miles, he was right there on the spot. Weekends could be spent in his beloved mountains, documenting fells, routes and his love affair with the Lake District. In 1955 he published the first volume of his Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells and, as they say, 'the rest is history.'
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