Paul continues his Great Journey - Rest in Peace my friend

I am deeply saddened that my dear friend Paul Forster passed away after a short sickness. My thoughts are with Claire, John and Vivien who lost their dad and life companion. Paul was deeply involved in questions of business ethics and the preservation of the environment. We had endless tea breaks to debate “the good, the bad and the evil” and philosophised about life, which now sadly ended prematurely for him. After I left Asia, we always stayed in touch, met annually in Hong Kong and constantly exchanged messages on where and how we were. Like this, Paul joined me on some of my strolls through the history of Malta or German forests by video stream. We always wanted to go out to these places together one day, once Paul has time to visit me in Europe. This would have been philosophical walks of nearly ancient Greek character. Clearly, it would have been me, who is the students in these dialogues. I was always impressed by Paul’s clarity of argument and sharpness of his questions, against the backdrop of his kindness and wisdom. We lost a true friend and his students a great Professor, a real educator, who cared passionately about preparing them for an uncertain future. Paul was often torn by injustice and truly wanted to make the world a better place. I know that, according to his Buddhist fate, he believes that he will be reborn and continue his journey. He is probably already around us again continuing his work. What a comforting thought this is. But, Paul, don’t forget to take a break - a short one at least. Rest in Peace - for a while.

Prof. Paul Forster on his staff profile at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) where he served the last 20 years (photo with kind permission)

Memento mori

Cemetraries are some of my favorite “hangouts”. They provide solitude, good perspective on many aspects of life, memories, tell stories and also say a lot about the local culture by how people treat their ancestors. Military graveyards additionally remind us of the nonsense and horrors of war. There is many of all this on the Capuccini Naval Cemetary. But what is special for me, is that here lies Henry Ernst Wild who survived the Shackleton expedition and then died of typhoid in Malta.

Capuccini Naval Cemetary, Kalkara (Malta)

Sad news from the Strasbourg Christmas Market

I am sadened to hear the reports on yesterday's terrorist attack on the Christmas Market in Strasbourg which left 3 dead and 12 injured. I was there myself on Saturday, like all others enjoying the beautiful city, the market and the peaceful Christmas time. On entrance to the city center, bags were checked on the bridges. But to my surprise, we could just go in by tramway without being checked at all. I even made a bad joke on the "Frenchness" of the security concept. Now I regret, that I only made a joke and did not act on this by reporting it to the officer in charge to close such a loophole. I hope those hurt, of which 8 are in a critical condition, recover soon and get well again, and those who lost their lives, rest in peace.

Sascha Weidner - Was übrig bleibt (What remains)

Sascha passed away on the 9th of April, 2015, aged 40. We last met a year earlier to his final day in Beijing, during his residency in the Three Shadows in Chaochangdi. The Fotografie Forum Frankfurt shows some of what remains: his photos. The exhibition will be still on until January 29th. As Sascha has put it before: "The perfect moment has to vanish. Otherwise we would just stay". Sascha was a romantic traveller with a camera.

1001 photos by Sascha Weidner.