Aberdeen International Youth Festival - Colorful Parade Gets the City into the Mood

Aberdeen was as busy as bees and colourful on Saturday the 27th of July as the International Youth Festival entered its third day with various performing artists showcasing their unique performances.

The mood in the granite city of Aberdeen was eclectic and exciting and the weather was exceptionally friendly – temperatures rising up to 24 degrees celcius. 

A vibrant street parade and party took centre stage yesterday as all local, national and international groups joined together to bring a celebratory vibrancy to the city centre. 

Elbrus Circassian Dance Troupe

Elbrus Circassian Dance Troupe showing off their traditional clothes

Majestic performance by the Circassian Dance Troupe

Elbrus Circassian Dance Tropue from Jordan performed in their impressive costumes which are the traditional clothing of the Circassian people. The group has the aim to promote a message of peace, love and harmony to the world.

Beijing 57 High School Jinfan Marching Band

Also part of the parade was a popular band to the festival, the Beijing 57 High School Jinfan Marching band which has won among other accolades the Orchestral Music Golden Award. They out-did themselves  with their bold drumming, marching and eloquent costumes. The band which comprises of students aged from 14 to 20 years was an inspiration to many. 

Project Y

Scotland's dance group, Project Y, captivated audiences with their contemporary dance styles which include street dance, ballet and break dancing. The group with members aged between 16 and 21 is an initiative from Y-Dance (Scottish Youth Dance) the National Youth Dance Agency for Scotland. Y Dance’s aim is to encourage young people to get active and realise their potential through dance.

Beijing Jingshan School Music Theatre Group

Sweet and melodious voices from the Beijing Jingshan School music theatre group echoed the Bon Accord shopping centre, leaving the audience wowed by their bright and unique costumes.

Here are some of the acts that showcased at the festival.

                               

       

     

As the festival celebrates 42 years of existence this year, about 900 young performers from 16 different countries including Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Czech Republic, Azerbaijan, USA and Zimbabwe will be performing. Dance, theatre, world music, choirs, orchestras, opera and jazz are all packed in this creative and culturally diverse event which will run from the 25^th of July to the 2^nd of August.

Website: www.aiyf.org

Algeria Plane Wreckage Found In Mali

Algerian Plane Wreckage Found

The wreckage of a missing Air Algerie passenger plane that disappeared from radar on Thursday has been found in Mali, officials say.

Burkina Faso’s commander-in-chief Gilbert Diendere said the wreckage of flight AH5017 was found south of the Mali town of Gao.

According to Gen. Gilbert, the plane was totally burnt-out and the remains were scattered on the ground. No survivors have yet been discovered. The plane which was carrying 110 passengers and 6 crew members was travelling from Burkina Faso’s capital city Ouagadougou to the Algerian capital Algiers. It was recorded to have left Ouagadougou at 1:17am GMT and disappeared just 50 minutes into the flight.

Shortly after take-off around 1:30am GMT the AH5017 pilot had contacted Niger’s control tower in Niamey to change course because of a sandstorm, authorities say.

The plane’s passenger list according to Burkina Faso’s transport minister Jean Bertin Ouedrago included 51 French citizens, 27 people from Burkina Faso, eight Lebanese, six Algerians, five Canadians, and four Germans, two from Luxemburg, one Cameroonian, 1 Belgian, one Egyptian, one Ukrainian, one Swiss, one Nigerian and one Malian.

The Algerian plane crush affirms a week of aviation disasters with two other crashes having taken place. The 23^rd of July saw the Taiwan domestic flight GE222 TransAsia Airways crash in Taiwan’s Penghu archipelago, after a failed attempt to land at Magong airport due to stormy weather caused by Typhoon Matmo. The death toll has risen to 48 and 10 other people injured. No crew members survived.

The genesis of the week’s air disasters was eight days ago, the 17^th of July when Malaysian Airline MH17 was struck down by a war missile in Ukraine killing all 298 passengers and crew on board. Different nationals were on-board including the Netherlands, Malaysia, Australia and the UK. Investigations are still underway as to who was responsible for the strike-down in an area that has been a war zone between Russia and Ukraine in the last few months.

In a related incident, a Malaysian airline MH370 which was travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on the 8^th of March this year disappeared from radar on the South China Sea.Despite the multi-national search effort which became the largest and most expensive in history, no wreckage or bodies have yet been found. The Boeing 777-200ER was carrying 12 Malaysian crew members and 227 passengers from 15 nations.

The Cut Souls

The evening had gone on like any other we've had previously. A sumptuous dinner while on the side I fed my two year old toddler. Soon after, he drifted off to sleep as my hubby rented a movie which we watched downing a glass or two of red wine. Cuddling up on the living room sofa on the cold winter night, I could have thought too soon of anything that could spoil such a perfect moment.

In the coziness, I drifted and drifted and drifted.

Suddenly there was a loud bang on the door, I jumped, startled and released that the room was pitch black. I could hardly see anything.

“Achukwu, Achukwu,” I screamed out my husband’s name. I scrambled about frantically in the dark still screaming his name but alas, the only sound I could hear were the repeated thuds on the door. My heart was pounding harder than the drum in an African church and racing as if it were competing at the Grand Prix. Just outside the door seemed to be a big lorry raving angrily and blood curdling screams coming from women and some men.

All of a sudden, there was a flood of light that illuminated my house. The armed men had broken down the door and were scuffling their way in.

The world started to spin around and around as I almost lost consciousness with fear. As they advanced towards me I trembled like a lone reed in a cold swamp as I curled and hug my thighs so tight like a cocoon. At that time I was wailing not knowing what was happening. My wails were coded with in-explainable fear and heavy questions, “where are you Achukwu, where is my sonnn?” Just then I felt a heavy rough hand pound on my now already scattered braided hair and I started gasping for air. He vigorously pulled my head up with the braids and there he was, I couldn't believe it. The fear was too intense such that I felt my soul drift and drifting in space like a feather further and further away to nowhere.

A second man approached me with an arm long machete which shinned like new silver. I could only stare at him directly in his left eye because where his right eye was supposed to be, there were stitches that were still healing. He grinned to expose his grime filled semi-carnivorous rotten teeth and uttered a nauseating laugh. He bent down getting closer to my face and all of a sudden I heard the words…..

“Cut, Cut, Take 2.”