#muslim hiker

[soon-palestine]

[shamangus]

Meet Ms. Andorra, my hetalia oc.

Meritxell Júlia Roca Serra

My Andorra’s name is Meritxell Júlia Roca Serra, almost no one calls her Meritxell and everybody calls her Júlia.

Listen, almost all of the recognized micronations we’ve seen are shown to be rich, but responsible with money, we need one who’s not. (Micronations: Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and Malta)

She appears energetic and loud, but is mostly trying to compensate for her lonely childhood.

But before she was more quiet, and shy. You could not get a word out of this girl before World War Two, and her personality was more like Liechtenstein’s. Even to this day, when not around other people, or around she trust’s, she’s a lot more quiet.

She’s close with everybody, but nobody at the same time. And she was super lonely growing up, so she tries to compensate.

She’s generally a lot more done with life than the rest of micronations, being neighbors with Spain and France will do that to you.

Definitely a party girl, and the one who’s going to give you bad advice.

Huge smoker, if she wasn’t a nation her lungs would be charcoal.

Despite this, she’s very religious.

Andorra was founded as part of the Spanish March, a military buffer zone between Muslim Spain and The Kingdom of Franks. The military zone was primarily meant to keep Muslims out of France.

Because of this she’s a very experienced fighter, even to this day she has a rifle in her house.

She originally had lots of other siblings, but they all eventually got annexed by Spain or France, so it doesn’t really matter.

She's committed a long list of crimes, most of them include smuggling.

She’s close with both France, Spain and Portugal, but she’s very introverted and shy, not talking to any other nation except the two of them until after World War II

Rich, rich asf, and spends however she likes. Being responsible with money, I never heard of it.

But before she was relatively poor and was more of an agriculture girl.

The recognized microstate gang's her go to and they all hang out whenever they can.

Switzerland doesn’t like her, he thinks she’s a bad influence on Lichtenstein, Austria doesn’t like her for the same reason.

Has a catalan sheepdog named Pol.

South Italy also doesn’t like her, but it’s more of a personality clash.

Big fan of radio, and that’s how she broke out of her shell.

Also is great at skiing, and ice skating.

As a kid she was an avid reader, she loves her country but Andorra is tiny and she never really get to experience the world until now. Reading was the only way to deal with that

Retail therapy is her therapy

Very adventurous today.

Experienced hiker.

Family is France and Spain, and these days her relationship with them is improving.

My first oc post I'm really proud of. This is the start of a very long hetalia blog

[geeoharee]

We have a device for telling you where Mecca is from the UK. It's called a compass. This is ludicrous vandalism of shared spaces.

https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/local-news/gallery/muslim-hikers-return-peak-district-8288706

[laresearchette]

Thursday, September 12, 2024 Canadian TV Listings (Times Eastern)

WHERE CAN I FIND THOSE PREMIERES?: THE TAILOR OF SIN CITY (AMC+/Sundance Now) THE OLD MAN (FX Canada) 10:00pm

WHAT IS NOT PREMIERING IN CANADA TONIGHT?: AI AND THE FUTURE OF US: AN OPRAH WINFREY SPECIAL (ABC Feed)

NEW TO AMAZON PRIME CANADA/CBC GEM/CRAVE TV/DISNEY + STAR/NETFLIX CANADA:

AMAZON PRIME CANADA BAD NEWZ POPSTARS

CRAVE TV HIGH LIFE

DISNEY + STAR MUSLIM MATCHMAKER (all episodes)

NETFLIX CANADA ANGEL DI MARÌA: BREAKING DOWN THE WALL (AR) BILLIONAIRE ISLAND (NO) EMILY IN PARIS (Season 4 Part 2) INTO THE FIRE: THE LOST DAUGHTER MIDNIGHT AT THE PERA PLACE (Season 2) (TR)

MLB BASEBALL (SN) 2:00pm: A’s vs. Astros (SN) 7:00pm: Rays vs. Guardians (TSN5) 7:00pm: Red Sox vs. Yankees (SN Now) 9:30pm: Brewers vs. Giants (SN1) 9:30pm: Rangers vs. Mariners

THE SUMMIT AUSTRALIA (Discovery Channel Canada) 8:00pm: The thrilling game of survival reaches its most emotionally charged day yet, as the hikers come face to face with their loved ones on a video call before being ordered to abandon one of their own at camp and sneak out in the dead of night.

NFL FOOTBALL (TSN/TSN3/TSN4) 8:15pm: Bills vs. Dolphins

MR. THROWBACK (Global/Showcase) 9:00pm (SERIES PREMIERE): When struggling sports memorabilia dealer Danny Grossman finds himself in a bind, he reunites with his childhood best friend, NBA superstar Stephen Curry, leading to a way bigger problem for Danny.

MECUM FULL THROTTLE (Discovery Velocity) 9:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): Taking a look at some of the highlights from the Kissimmee 2024 auction.

LEGO MASTERS AUSTRALIA (Discovery Channel Canada) 9:45pm (SEASON FINALE): The last three teams standing create a build of their choosing; 200 members of the public, along with Brickman, will determine the ultimate winners of Grand Masters 2023.

HOUSE OF ALI (HGTV Canada) 10:00pm: Ali and her team work hard to create a custom and chic home for their new client, but when some bumpy drywall in the movie theater causes major delays and threatens the homeowner move-in timeline, Ali makes a last-minute call to save her vision.

DEADMAN'S CURSE (History Channel Canada) 10:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): It's up to Adam to push forward and guide the team through the uncharted terrain of Corbold Canyon.

MAMA JUNE: FROM NOT TO HOT (Slice) 10:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): June goes missing after her arrest; a surprising homicide triggers a dangerous manhunt to rescue her; Pumpkin battles to keep the family together while Jennifer is coming to tear them apart.

CANADIAN REFLECTIONS (CBC) 11:30pm: Concealed / Bad Omen

[nyudaily-20]

Hi, long time no see!

My last post was Feb, 2022 and currently is June 2024! Wow, time flies so fast😒

How's life so far? Hmmmm, my marriage life is like roller coster. Early married stage, I'm losing my 2 children. Yes, they were miscarriage. Fun fact: 2022, 2023 and 2024 I'm a pregnant women. Yes, this is my 3rd child, me & my husband have high hopes for our kid will survive and I believe God really give us a chance to have a beautiful baby.

Maybe, the news about baby arrival is blessing, but this is life. this is dunya. recently, our life got stuck. as you know, we're indonesian in bad bad situation. and its make us think twice to move out from the country.

In the past few months, or maybe start the end of 2023 until now (June 2024), the bad news in all platform really make me disgusting as human. Start from "ethnic cleansing" in GAZA, PALESTINE by ISRAEL!!!!! Me as muslim had no idea for helping them, I just can send the best dua and hope Allah can punish ISRAEL immediately, and then the election in Indonesia was shit and full of CORRUPTION!! The system is bad, start with the president, all the department of ministry, the governor until the big community in religion are bastard. all of them. yes.

In our society (Instagram, Twitter & TikTok) not a day goes by without news of affair/cheating, porn, tantrums, and so on. Plus the rules that the government makes only add to the suffering of the people. I as a mother and wife am worried, I only think about how to get out of this country and can prepare a good environment for the future sustainability of my child (our life).

I'm thinking about 7 countries: Norway, Sweden, Russia, Denmark, Aussie, New Zealand and last Japan. I've research all of them like their benefit in tax, the culture, the weather, the "people", and I think the big start and possible to make it out r Aussie & New Zealand because many indonesian live there and the culture + the weather not diff so much, and they have "nature" to explore.

Me and my husband are hikers. we love tracking, camping and hiking into mountains. We feel love and secure when in nature. Its like paradise for us. Fun fact: I really have a dream for moving out from indonesia, but back then, I didn't think about what I wanted to do and why. now I have a plan and have established myself for the next 5 years. I have also discussed this with my husband, and he agrees. I don't know what path Allah gives, we believe that his decree is beautiful. we are trying to make every effort to make it happen. hopefully Allah is pleased us to continue and our dreams come true.

[shayanmotamedi]

Top Attractions for Travelers Visiting Jordan

Jordan is a land sacred to many faiths. Located east of Jerusalem, it provides religiously significant places for Christians, Muslims, and Jews. According to the Bible, Moses glimpsed the Promised Land from one of Jordan's mountains before his death. Today, pilgrims visit this same peak to honor Moses and follow in his footsteps.

Amman, Jordan's vibrant capital, showcases a fusion of antiquity and modernity. The cityscape features striking skyscrapers that contrast beautifully with traditional gold-domed mosques. Must-see attractions include the massive Roman amphitheater where grand events were once held, surviving pillars from the Temple of Hercules, and ruins from the 4th century Umayyad palace. Venturing to the so-called Rainbow Street in downtown Amman immerses visitors in the bustling cafes, restaurants, and vibrant nightlife.

Over an hour from Amman lies Jerash, home to some of the most impressive Roman ruins in the Eastern world. Once called Gerasa, this city features paved roads and treasures such as the decorative columns of the Roman Forum and Temple of Zeus, best viewed from the summit. Ongoing excavations have uncovered much of this white-stone city, giving a rare glimpse into the Roman times. Other sites include the Grand Hadrian's Arch entranceway, the Hippodrome arena for chariot races, and the Jerash Museum.

The ancient city of Petra, once the capital of the Nabataean Kingdom over 2,000 years ago, is Jordan's top attraction. Also called the Red City due to its sandstone surroundings, Petra earned UNESCO World Heritage Site status for its immense historical and archaeological value. This entire city was carved out of rose-colored cliffs, revealing stunning architecture.

Visitors pass through a narrow kilometer-long gorge with towering rust-colored walls called the Siq, which leads to the iconic treasure-inspired facade of ad-Deir, also known as The Monastery. Beyond The Monastery lies a sprawling expanse of temples, tombs, theaters, and other structures sculpted from rose-red rock.

In southern Jordan, Wadi Rum is a stunning desert valley that captivates visitors with its vast sandstone and granite cliffs, striking landscapes, and towering rock formations spanning the horizon. This unique setting offers adventurous travelers and hikers one of the top rock-climbing spots in the region. Visitors can also explore the desert expanse on camelback tours and sleep under the starry skies while camping overnight. A full day spent amidst the scenery lets guests witness the changing hues of the rust-toned rocks as the sun travels across the sky.

Nestled high in northern Jordan's hills overlooking the Sea of Galilee is the lush town of Umm Qais, also called Gadara. Its green landscape stands distinct from the surrounding desert environs. Within it lies well-preserved ruins spanning many eras, including Roman-era streets and two impressive theaters.

The town's main attractions are the hilltop vistas showcasing sweeping views of the Jordan Valley, Galilee Lake, Syria, and Israel. Biblically, Umm Qais is known as the location where Jesus once cast out demons from two men into a herd of pigs, as recounted in the passage of the "Miracle of the Gadarene Swine."

No trip to Jordan is complete without visiting the Dead Sea. As the lowest point on land globally, over 1200 feet below sea level, this geographical marvel derives its name from the lack of marine life. Its high-saline waters permit bathing visitors to float effortlessly while enjoying the scenery. Visitors can also indulge in rejuvenating experiences such as soaking in mineral-dense waters or applying its therapeutic mud, renowned for detoxifying and exfoliating properties. Leisurely boat rides across the sea's calming surface while absorbing expansive views offer visitors an even more indulgent encounter.

[snackingonculture]

Designing for common ground in the great outdoors, a space that is free to all but not always welcoming to all.

Whilst sport has historically always been a very male dominated space, the English countryside has similarity always felt like a white space. Adidas TERREX, the brand’s outdoor sports division, have recently partnered with Wiggle and Muslim Hikers to create a prayer mat designed to be taken on hikes and rambles, enabling an easier and comfier prayer experience in outdoor rural areas. The mat is purposefully designed to reflect traditional Muslim motifs and patterns, incorporating functional material features that make the mat highly portable and waterproof. Other groups challenging these biases include Flock Together – a birdwatching collective for POC and The Wanderlust Women, a collective of female hikers on a mission to normalize Muslim women taking advantage of, and being visible in, rural areas.

[toughgirlchallenges]

Zahra Rose Alazaibi - Empowering Muslim Women in the Great Outdoors. Trekking to Everest, Broad Peak, and K2 Base camps, as well as summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro.

Zahra Rose, a brand ambassador for Sports Shoes and The North Face, and has achieved incredible feats such as trekking to Everest, Broad Peak, and K2 Base camps, as well as summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. 

In addition to her love for adventure, Zahra is an active member of the Muslim Hikers Community and uses her social media platform to promote representation of Muslim women in outdoor activities. 

Zahra is a strong advocate for breaking down stereotypes of the "Hijabi woman" and inspiring the next generation to pursue their dreams.

  New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday at 7am UK time - Subscribe so you don’t miss out. 

Support the mission to increase the amount of female role models in the media. Visit www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast Thank you.

  Show notes

Who is Zahra Rose

Being raised in Hastings, South England

Having 2 younger sisters 

Feeling out of place

Struggling to make friends locally

Seeing people who looked like her for the first time

Moving to London to study fashion design

Feeling confident and knowing herself well

Being inspired by her father who was a runner

Getting involved in sports

Wearing the headscarf at 14

Feeling the need to change her personality

Feeling confident and self assured

Representing her faith and feeling a sense of responsibly 

Starting travelling after university 

Why travelling is an important part of life

Getting into hiking at 14

Her first charity trip to Snowdon

The struggle of climbing her first mountain 

Wanting to encourage other muslim women to get outdoors

Creating a vision board every year

Connecting with Haroon Mota from Muslin Hikers 

Planning to go to Everest Base Camp, Nepal 

Training and preparation for the trip

The importance of training your mind

Starting her day with yoga

The power of acceptance 

Checking in with yourself on a regular basis

Spending time in Nepal

The challenges on the hike to base camp

Dealing with the adventure blues

Planning the next challenge/adventure 

Needing something to look forward to

Climbing Kilimanjaro - the highest mountain in Africa

Summit night

Praying while on adventure

Heading to Broad Peak and K2 Base Camps

The final push to get to base camp

Being supported and encouraged at the the tough moments

Being a member o fMuslim Hikers - Inspiring Muslims to get OUTDOORS. 

How to connect with Zahra Rose

Final words of advice to motivate and inspire other women and girls to get active and spend more time in the outdoors

Why nothing is beyond your limits

Her plans to reach 40 countries 

  Social Media

Instagram: @ZahraRosea

Muslim Hikers - Inspiring Muslims to get OUTDOORS. 

Website: muslimhikers.com

Instagram: @Muslim.Hikers 

    Check out this episode!

[safereturndoubtful]

Day 40 - to Villafranca del Bierzo

After a windy night up at 1100 metres, it was just a hop into the next valley this morning, using the village of Montes de Valdueza as base. This is a much more genuine village than Peñalba, and actually has some people living here throughout the year. Very few young people it seems though, and roughly about half the houses are derelict and even falling down, most of which have rough and scribbled ‘vende’ signs up with a telephone number to call. It would be a good place to live, though I do expect that tucked in between the mountains, it will get some big numbers of rainfall.

The parking for hikers is shared by that for the Monastery of San Pedro de Montes.

It was founded in the 7th century by San Fructuoso, though few of those ruins remain. Coincidentally, this was the era of St Cuthbert, whose death and subsequent tomb founded Durham Cathedral, which I was reading about only a couple of days ago. The monastery remained active until the Muslim invasion a hundred or so years later. It was restored by San Genadio in the 12th century.

Genadio re-founded the monastery, but with 12 monks there, he became too disturbed and took himself off to live a hermitic life in a cave, which I walked past yesterday.

I found a circuit in old paths above the village that took in a mountain pass and gave excellent views of the locality. There had actually been a drop of rain early in the morning, but the wind soon blew the cloud cover away for a ‘sunny intervals’ sort of day.

Then it was time to cross the A6 and take the chance of a supermarket, actually a Carrefour, in the town of Ponferrada. I try to be as quick as possible when passing through bigger towns, and did pretty well here.

On then to Villafranca, about 15 kilometres west, a busy town on the Camino de Santiago, so with all the restaurants and accommodation that generates. This afternoon though it was quiet, and at 20C, bout as warm as I would ever want it. It will approach double that in a couple of months.

There’s an area for campervans here, as there is in most towns. I’m parked up there, and late afternoon took a walk in for a beer. Most of the bars and restaurants are still closed for the season, though it does seem next weekend, Easter, will be busy. I’ll be hidden up on a mountain somewhere hopefully..

[brainztwist]

Back in California and this time I decided to head north LA with few hours that I had to spare. I went to Malibu. Specifically, took route 1 to Escondido Canyon Park where I hiked about 3.5 miles then I went to @point_dume. What an epic path of getting there.

Where do I start? Route 1 is a route which one side gives you the ocean view where you can see the surfers riding the waves and the other side mountains that have the most amazing houses on them. This stuff just puked coolness!

On my way to point Point Dume, is stopped and did my hike at Escondido park which leads you to a waterfall. One starts walking on these private streets which reminded of where Leonardo Decaprio lives in his last movie with Brad Pitt. After walking about a mile and a half on the road, the actual hike starts towards the waterfall.

The actual trail to the waterfall is interesting because you are walking where few streams run through at the bottom of the hill so it makes its own oasis there compared to the super arid area around it. However, once you get to the waterfall that’s when danger starts. There are ropes to help you climb a steep cliff so that you can see the waterfall form a higher angle. Did I take the challenge?

Yes I did and it got really scare once the rope ended and the terrain remained equally steep but more slippery! One slip and it could be fatal. Ouch. I slowly got backdown using the ropes and it was harder of course to go down compared to going up. Lesson learned.

After that I went to point Dume and did my beach hike. What a magestic beauty.

It looks like tumbler won’t let me post more pics in one post.

[ryttu3k]

Had the Realisation that my oldest vampire character is literally only 41, so. Some actual older vampires! Below the cut - a thousand-year-old Banu Haqim nerd and a two-hundred-year-old Tzimisce who wants to be a cryptid.

Ezra ben Natan, 8th generation Banu Haqim (vizier caste)

Ezra was born in the tiny Jewish Quarter of Constantinople in 981, in a time where the Jewish population was beginning to come under pressure from both the Christian and Muslim communities. Within this instability, Ezra tried to keep up with the studies that fascinated them, eventually catching the eye of a visiting Banu Haqim vizier (a grandchilde of Tegyrius), who saw great potential for learning within the young Ezra. They were Embraced in 1006, initially refusing to return to Alamut with their sire in order to remain with their community. Eventually, their sire persuaded them to at least visit, and with some reluctance (albeit with the rapidly fraying stability of Michael the Patriarch as a fairly potent incentive to leave!), Ezra left their community in 1015.

They found they did actually fit in remarkably well in Alamut, meeting other Jewish Banu Haqim and embracing the Persian Jewish communities near the fortress, thriving amongst their fellow viziers and learning all they could, not only about the Banu Haqim but about the wider world amidst the Islamic Golden Age (while there were certainly Jewish-Islamic clashes outside of Alamut, within, they would largely consider themselves Banu Haqim first, Jewish or Muslim second). During their studies on the Baali Wars, they befriended many of the local Salubri, fascinated by their healing arts and admiring their political stance. They also became a follower of Derech Chaim, part of the Road of Heaven. When the Tremere began their persecution of the Salubri, they were appalled, and successfully petitioned for many of the local Salubri to be protected by groups of Banu Haqim warriors. This was not to last, although, for a time, they were still able to give some protection.

Following the violence of the Crusades and shortly after the condemnation of the Tremere blood curse after the Convention of Thorns and the Treaty of Tyre, Ezra, despairing at the state of their clan and the world, retreated into torpor for several centuries, eventually waking again in the early 19th century. Deciding to leave Alamut, they departed for London, a centre of great industry and change; there would be much to learn, especially everything they had missed over the past 300-odd years they had been in torpor for, and when they eventually paid a return visit to Alamut around the turn of the 20th century, they were granted the title of Distinguished Master (specialising in Jewish Banu Haqim history and with a secondary focus on the Baali Wars). They remained in England until the first World War, when they departed for the United States, settling in New York City, which was nominally Camarilla but never really siding one way or another with a specific sect and so making it relatively ideal for a member of an Independent clan to survive. Residing in Brooklyn, Ezra became the self-proclaimed protector of the Jewish community there, along with a handful of other Jewish Cainites from various clans, and were largely able to insulate them from the eventual Sabbat domination, the Battle of New York, and the Camarilla reclamation.

In modern nights, they have joined their great-grandsire Tegyrius and are nominally a part of the Camarilla (although they consider themself Jewish first, Banu Haqim second, Cainite third, and Camarilla fourth at best). Along with their studies of history and society, they have picked up an interest in technology and strive to keep up with it, and has also delighted in discovering the concept of being nonbinary, which has answered quite a few questions they've had regarding themself over the past millennium!

Personality: Studious and inquisitive, with a strong sense of duty and protection. A strong supporter of the concept of tikkun olam (lit. 'repair of the world'), which they interpret as a directive to protect and heal as much as possible, and they try to be compassionate in all they do. They do, however, have a dislike verging on hatred for the Tremere, not just for the injustices they've inflicted upon their own clan, but for their actions against the Salubri.

Disciplines: Auspex 5, Presence 3, Quietus (Minhit Dume/Hematus) 5, Obfuscate 4, Celerity 2. Possesses True Faith 1

-

Wish, 10th generation Tzimisce

Wish hails from Tennessee, born Louetta Patterson in the then-new town of Knoxville in 1804. Forever drawn to the Great Smoky Mountains, they spent a wild childhood roaming the forests and foothills, delighting in the freedom from being a girl, from being human, in the early nineteenth century. When their parents tried to reign in the borderline feral child by arranging a marriage between them and the older son of a neighbouring farmer (they were fifteen, he was in his late twenties), they ran, first to their beloved mountains, then further on, following the Appalachians all the way into Ohio, passing themself off as a boy named Louis. While trying to eke out a survival in Columbus, they had an encounter that would change - or rather end - their life, accepting an errand to deliver a parcel to a strange foreign gentleman, surprisingly late at night for visitors.

This gentleman was a Tzimisce, originally from Eastern Europe, now part of the growing Sabbat movement in America. Pleased by Wish's resourcefulness, independence, and curiosity, he offered them the opportunity to discover a newer, wilder facet to life, and Embraced them in 1822. This, frankly, suited Wish just fine, who had never really seen themself as much human anyway, and after a period of mentorship, they returned to the Great Smoky Mountains they so adored, changing their name to Wish proper (from the last syllable of ‘Louis’) and setting up their own little domain there. They wanted nothing to do with human wars and conflicts. They just wanted the mountains and the natural environment.

They didn't get many visitors. That was fine. They could pick up books and eventually records from Knoxville (carefully avoiding the presence of anyone they knew, or else using their new skill of Vicissitude to disguise themself), and eventually built up a largely underground haven in their beloved mountains. Originally satiating their thirst on animals and occasionally on humans during their odd trips to the city, the Appalachian Trail gave them not just a steady stream of hikers to take the odd slurp from, but also the attentions of arsonists and vandals, who... well, were generally not seen again. They also, quite regularly, feed on invasive boars, which compete with the native black bears; two birds (well, boars) with one stone!

In modern nights, they don't look much human any more, and there may be more than the usual number of cryptid sightings in their neck of the woods. They have, much to their dismay, been obligated to get involved with politics, and human politics, no less - learning how to send petitions and communicate with others online about the dangers of regional exploitation, to preserve the Appalachians they so love. More enjoyably, they've also taken correspondence courses on conservation, and are adept at using camera traps to record the wildlife of their domain, taking biodiversity surveys, and the like.

Personality: Introverted, generally pretty relaxed, happy for the odd visitor to show up so they can do the whole Hospitality thing but also, you know, very happy to send them away after three days. Doesn't see themself as human any more, and frankly hasn't since their mortal days; while some Tzimisce go for straight monstrosity, Wish prefers adding animal features, anything from a spectacular rack of antlers to shimmery cuttlefish chromatophores.

Considers themself a caretaker of the environment, and follows the Path of Harmony - the world is in constant flux, and the best way to adapt to it is to flux with it. Despite their Sabbat sire, pretty firmly Autarkis. Politics is for people more human than they are, frankly! Still speaks with a strong Tennessee drawl. Lover of music and words; if you happen to be in the mountains at night, hearing the sound of a record player or perhaps a fiddle, or spot someone lounging in a deck chair with a flashlight wedged in their antlers so they can read... yeah, probably them. Would much rather chill than argue; they get on well with the local Gangrel and even decently with the Fae and Garou, who recognise them as a part of the mountain community and not the larger Cainite society as a whole.

Fond of furries. They’re trying so hard, bless their li’l souls. Maybe they’d make good Tzimisce or Gangrel!

Disciplines: Auspex 4, Animalism 5 (has crow famalus named, uh, Crow because corvidae are smartasses and they respect that), Vicissitude 3, Potence 2 (very useful for, you know, catching invasive boars)

Posts that are straight-out Vibes: antlers, gender, music, that whole being nonbinary/neurodiverse/aspec and also enjoying nonhuman characters and themes while also not wanting to be a stereotype but at the same time the vibes are impeccable thing, a friend

[incredibletinyhouse]

A drugs hub left to fester? How Dijon become a scene for gangland warfare

The French city of Dijon was rocked by chaotic scenes reminiscent of a war zone as rival gangs clashed following the assault on a Chechen teen – but was it more a “battle of territories” in a drugs war than simple score-settling?

For several nights, the rule of law seemed suspended in parts of the historic French tourist town, as Chechen and Maghreb gangs openly brandished weapons and took over city streets, prompting surreal scenes and leaving residents in fear of venturing outside their homes. 

Footage posted to Twitter showed a car speeding through a group of Chechens and flipping over, like a scene from a video game. The situation finally calmed on Monday, after the government deployed militarized police units to quell the unrest. Dijon Mayor François Rebsamen accused the Chechen community of attempting to “enforce its own right and law of retaliation.”

On social media, some offered the knee-jerk explanation that the violence gripping the French city was simply the inevitable result of immigration – and, indeed, the non-integration of Muslim immigrants in France has led to plenty of cultural clashes. Yet, the reality of how Dijon became the center of all-out gangland warfare is more complicated.

Also on rt.com

Speeding car FLIPS OVER amid clashes between Chechen and Arab gangs in Dijon, France (VIDEOS)

‘Sensitive neighborhoods’

The problem, it appears, boils down to the ghettoization of certain areas left to fester in crime, where many residents are terrorized and living in fear, the increasing powerlessness of local police and the subsequent ability of drugs gangs to enforce their own rules.

The exact number of Chechens in France is not known, but it’s estimated that around 15,000 refugees from the Chechen wars of the 90s and early 2000s lived in the country as of 2018. The communities are notoriously insular, with members preferring to stick to their own and have each other’s backs above all else. This, combined with the presence of North African drugs gangs, creates a tinderbox scenario – a disaster waiting to happen.

“The hardest part is the language barrier,” which “makes integration and access to work difficult,” Naourbek Chokuev, who teaches French to Russian speakers in Strasbourg told the AFP news agency in 2018. Unsurprisingly, some Chechen youths in these areas are radicalized rather than integrated into wider French society.

Reporting on the recent violence, France’s BFMTV network referred to the areas worst affected as “sensitive neighborhoods,” though French nationals often refer to them as immigrant “banlieues” or city “quarters” that are to be avoided.

© AFP / Philippe Desmazes

Drug wars and a ‘battle for territory’

One journalist, who preferred to remain anonymous, told the Le Temps news website that he finds it “difficult” to believe the recent outbreak of violence is simply reprisal for the assault on a 16-year-old Chechen teen, as most reports have suggested.

“Look at the map. Dijon is ideally placed on the route of drug trafficking. Between the drug which arrives from Turkey by the east and that which goes up from the south of France, it’s a knot,” the journalist said. He suspects that recent seizures of cannabis near Dijon in May with an estimated street value of €4.5 million ($5.1 million) could have fueled what he calls a “battle of territories,” rather than the recent mayhem being a simple retaliation for the alleged assault on the teenager.

The sudden escalation in violence was expected by some in Dijon, particularly as the Covid-19 lockdown began to wind down. “We felt that something was going to happen with the deconfinement,” one resident told Franceinfo, saying they had noticed that “the comings and goings of cars at drug outlets were much more than usual.”

Also on rt.com

Dijon’s unchecked Chechen-Algerian war shows tiptoeing around ethnic gang issues doesn’t work

Public anger

An online poll by news website Le Figaro showed nearly 90 percent of respondents, out of more than 17,000, felt the police had not responded quickly enough to the violence.

There is certainly significant public anger over the seeming inability of the authorities to control the situation. The anger is all the more sharp because French citizens had to endure a stringent lockdown that saw even homeless citizens harassed by the police and fined for the crime of not remaining indoors. So futile were the attempts to enforce social distancing in the banlieues, however, that one government official advised police that it was “not a priority to enforce closings in certain neighborhoods.”

Legalization of drugs

An op-ed in the libertarian Contrepoint newspaper argued that police spend far too much time punishing ordinary citizens for non-violent and victimless crimes, while permitting total lawlessness among others.

The state is everywhere, it “monitors and punishes motorists who drive a little too fast or dispatches helicopters to discourage hikers who do not respect” Covid-19 rules, but it “does not fulfill its mission of fundamental protection” by allowing such scenes of street violence to unfold, the author wrote.

A possible solution, he said, would be to legalize the use and trade of cannabis. That would have “the concrete result of eliminating the mafias which are enriched by its trafficking and would allow the police to focus on something other than hunting down small dealers.” This, in turn, could bring down the levels of violence, he said.

Also on rt.com

Macron’s response to Islamism leads France to cul-de-sac… again

A new normal?

While the problem of gang violence in the banlieues is hardly a new phenomenon, given that French police have been dealing with such issues for years, it certainly seems to be spinning more out of control and seeping out of the suburbs and into the cities themselves – a development that’s bound to spark fresh public debate on the situation.

“Until now,” one French columnist wrote in Le Figaro, “we imagined [this behavior] exclusively reserved for the ghettoized districts of the suburbs.”

Now these “symbolic boundaries” are disappearing, and the violence is metastasizing and out of control. Like many, she argues, this is because the powers-that-be have “turned a blind eye” to the endemic violence in these neighborhoods and given up enforcing the law.

There is a fear, she adds, that the scenes witnessed at the weekend in Dijon may not be an isolated case, “but the revealer of what awaits us in the future.”

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[newstfionline]

Headlines

The American Dream has headed north (CNN) Individuals born into poorer families have a better chance of owning a home, getting a good education and experiencing a better life than their parents if they are born in Canada than if they are born in the United States. In other words, Canadians have a better shot at the American Dream than Americans do. That’s according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Social Mobility Index, which ranks 82 countries on their citizens’ ability to fulfill their potential regardless of their socio-economic background.

Trump touts U.S. economy, dismisses climate ‘prophets of doom’ (Reuters) U.S. President Donald Trump touted the success of the U.S. economy in Davos on Tuesday, dismissing “perennial prophets of doom” on climate change to an audience that included Greta Thunberg.

Pro-gun rally by thousands in Virginia ends peacefully (AP) Tens of thousands of gun-rights activists from around the country rallied peacefully at the Virginia Capitol on Monday to protest plans by the state’s Democratic leadership to pass gun-control legislation--a move that has become a key flash point in the national debate over gun violence. The size of the crowd and the expected participation of white supremacists and fringe militia groups raised fears that the state could see a repeat of the violence that exploded in 2017 in Charlottesville. But the rally concluded uneventfully around noon, and the mood was largely festive, with rally-goers chanting “USA!” and waving signs denouncing Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam.

Murders in Mexico hit record as Lopez Obrador seeks justice system reform (Reuters) Mexico suffered its worst year for homicides in 2019, with a record 34,582 victims, official data showed on Monday, underscoring the challenge President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador faces while waging war on drug cartels. Lopez Obrador assumed the presidency in December 2018 pledging to pacify the country with a less confrontational approach to security, but violence has continued rising, with the number of homicide victims 2.5% higher in 2019 than a year earlier, according to the security ministry data.

Norway’s government (Foreign Policy) Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg’s ruling coalition fell apart on Monday, after a right-wing party withdrew in response to a controversial decision to repatriate a suspected member of the Islamic State and her children from Syria so that one could receive urgent medical treatment. The political crisis could have ramifications for other European governments already wary of repatriating ex-ISIS fighters.

Seven still missing after Himalayan avalanche (Foreign Policy) Seven hikers and guides are still missing in Nepal after an avalanche hit a trail around Annapurna, the world’s 10th highest mountain, last Friday. Officials have already rescued 200 people, but the search for the missing was called off on Monday amid worsening weather conditions. Last year, Nepal faced a deadly climbing season on Mount Everest, leading to criticism that it had issued too many permits.

Bangladesh says island is ready for refugees (Foreign Policy) Last year, Bangladesh announced plans to move thousands of Myanmar’s Rohingya refugees from camps in Cox’s Bazar to an island in the Bay of Bengal, Bhasan Char. Now the government says that the island, which floods regularly during monsoon season, is ready to welcome around 100,000 people--with newly built houses, hospitals, mosques, and flood protection. (Foreign media have not been allowed to visit the island.)

Hong Kong on High Alert to Tackle Coronavirus Outbreak (Reuters) Hong Kong’s government is on high alert to deal with a new flu-like coronavirus that has killed nine people in mainland China, the city’s commerce secretary, Edward Yau, said on Wednesday.

Thai officials resume peace dialogue with main southern insurgents (Reuters) A senior Thai official met an envoy of the main insurgent group fighting in the country’s largely Muslim south in what both sides described as a positive step toward a peace process, the Thai government said on Tuesday.

Australia’s bush fires take their toll (Foreign Policy) As fire conditions in Australia are expected to worsen again this week, the government announced Monday that it would increase emergency funding for small businesses affected by the country’s blazes. The cost of the fires means the government may not deliver on a promised budget surplus. Australia’s tourism and insurance industries have already reported they are likely to take a hit.

Lebanon forms government with backing of Hezbollah and allies (Reuters) Lebanon formed a new government on Tuesday under Prime Minister Hassan Diab after the Shi’ite group Hezbollah and its allies agreed on a cabinet that must urgently address the economic crisis and ensuing protests that toppled its predecessor.

Saudi-Led Coalition Resumes Airstrikes Near Yemeni Capital (AP) The Saudi-led military coalition fighting in Yemen stepped up its bombing campaign Tuesday, launching airstrikes near the rebel-held capital in clashes that killed at least 35 people, Yemeni security officials said.

Militants Kill 36 People in Northern Burkina Faso (AP) Militants attacked a market in Burkina Faso’s Sanmatenga province, killing at least 36 people and wounding several others, the government said Tuesday.

[toughgirlchallenges]

Mariam Berrada - The @hijabi.hiker who is excited about sharing her journey into the outdoors #DiversifyOutdoors

Mariam is known as the @hijabi.hiker on instagram her bio reads - A hijabi hiking around the UK to be inspired and inspire. Part time writer, wannabe runner, coffee addict #DiversifyOutdoors

  Mariam in her own words:

  “I’m a hobbyist writer, avid hiker and tutor in my spare time, and work full time in Oncology research. A proud woman of colour, I’m excited about sharing my journey into the outdoors to encourage more diversity and healing from the world we all share.”

  During this podcast Mariam shares more about her childhood and growing up, and how she got interested in the outdoors. Mariam talks about the challenges she has faced and how her confidence has increased by taking on new challenges from running her first 5k race to completing her longest hike to-date -30km through the Shropshire Hills. 

  Mariam shares more about how she took her first steps into the outdoors and gives top tips and advice to inspire you to take your first step. 

  On the 1st April Mariam is starting the #BeBraveChallenge. Listen to the Tough Girl Podcast to find out how you can get involved! 

  New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 

  The Tough Girl Podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast.

    Show notes

Who is Mariam

Her childhood and growing up being active

Being the youngest of 4

Getting into hiking

Doing stuff with the Scouts and the Duke of Edinburgh Award

Her role models

Wanting to encourage more Muslim women to get into hiking

Hiking solo at the start

Feeling unsafe and scared

Barriers to getting into the outdoors

Not seeing women who looked like her

The benefits of getting in the outdoors

Feeling a sense of freedom when outside

Being able to get perspective

Feeling a sense of achievement when reaching the top

Friends and family and what they think

Building confidence in other areas of her life

Taking on a 5k running challenge

Advice for other runners

Why it’s important to enjoy it

The journey and the progression 

30km hike through the Shropshire Hills

Strive - Spring Charity Challenge 

Not having much time to plan or prepare

Concerns before the challenge

Slowing down and enjoying the time out on the hills

Magical moments from the hike

Talking about gear when you start out hiking

Looking after her feet and dealing with blisters

April Challenge…

#BeBraveChallenge 

Final words of advice

  Social Media

  Website www.hijabihiker.com 

  Instagram - @hijabi.hiker  

  Facebook - @aHijabiHiker  

  Check out this episode!

[emmashappylittleworld]

HERITAGE // AMIRA THE WANDERLUST

HERITAGE // AMIRA THE WANDERLUST

I am so excited to be sharing this interview with you. Amira is a beautiful, kind and strong woman who is not only speaking up for the BAME community but is taking incredible steps to represent a hugely underrepresented community including “Wonderlust Women” a group for women from the BAME community to hike together. Like a lot of people at the moment, I am trying to educate myself in racism, I…

[donnasaufley-blog]

Public Accountability For Donna Saufley; Or, Why I Quit Working At Hiker Heaven (2019)

In March of last year, I was sitting in the southern California desert trying to find direction after years of travel and exhaustion from studying communal spaces. I decided I would take on a simpler spiritual pursuit of walking across the country and rather than walking on the shoulder of highways, I decided it would likely be more scenic to hike the Pacific Crest Trail. I had about $20 in my pocket, an ILBE marine bag, and had a sharpie made sign up in a public counter-culture tourist location known as Slab City seeking donated gear for a PCT attempt. The hike in itself is a different story of its own and I invite you to follow me on social media if travel for greater meaning without allowing money to prevent it interests you, but the contents of this article surrounds how I ended up working at a famous hiker spot known as Hiker Heaven during the last couple seasons.

Hiking the PCT without finances took a great deal of creativity and ethical approaches in being honest with trail angels as I made my way up the trail. I tripled my money working at Carmen’s Garden, did worktrade for StillHouse Hostel, moved firewood for Trail Angels in Big Bear, etc. I dumpster dived and hiker boxed scored most of my calories. I had written an email and planned to stay a week volunteering at Hiker Heaven, in order to rest before continuing on was the original plan. When I finally did reach Agua Dulce, my perspective of the trail had changed a great deal. I found the rugged desolate nature I once read about on the trail was nowhere to be found in this new boom of thru-hiking popularity where every 15 minutes another person in a puffy is passing by asking how many miles you walked so far for the day. Being someone who decided to hike for solitude and ecological connection, I found the time alone rare and felt more like I was contributing to a form of unsustainable eco-tourism that made me feel ashamed. When Donna Saufley invited me to stay and offered to pay me for my help, I saw my safest route to exit the thru-hike attempt. I ended up staying for a month and a half, which turned out to be profitable to me at a rate of $100 a week for more than full-time work and access to lots of hiking gear.

I decided as Hiker Heaven closed its doors to northbound hikers on the 30th, I would take a train to Portland to work with radicals at OccupyICEPDX protesting the recent family separations and militarization of the border. When that ended, I combined my skills of frugal travel mixed with the endurance of long distance hiking to attempt bike touring down the coast. At the end of my trip, I went a route that put me through Agua Dulce on my way to visit friends in Tucson. While there I was invited to return for hiker season. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to work out as well as the year before, but had nothing better to do and no other prospects for replenishing my supplies. I kinda went out of my way to get a train ticket back from Tucson a month later, but had high hopes the season would make up for the loss.

It turned out upon returning the Pacific Crest Trail was facing very high snow levels at elevation in southern California due to the polar vortex, which pushed back the arrival of hikers by over a month. This is an uncontrollable thing for all parties involved, but meant for me I had a whole month of draining resources to take care of myself in the expensive nowhere mountain town of Agua Dulce. By the time the first groups of hikers began to show up, I’d already drained more resources than Donna was going to pay for the whole season. In a way, it began to feel like an entrapment to work anywhere from 30-60 hours a week just to make up for the net loss of getting into the situation in the first place. I began to notice more details than my short time at Hiker Heaven the year before. Suddenly the comments by Donna about supposedly “barely scraping by financially” became entangled (sometimes within hours) with talk of selling their house at a market value of $500k to move to the pacific northwest, increasing the workers’ of Saufley Electric’s pay, the possible $10-30k in donations from PCT hikers that would be flowing in, and their incessant shopping began to grate. Especially when said to someone who has been living out of backpacks (and now a bike) for nearly a decade of their life. It would be nothing for her to pay all their volunteers a stipend, but she chooses not to for her own benefit. It’s also not hard to imagine when draining resources just for the chance to listen to Donna’s opinions and finally learning some semblance of the economy behind everything, how my bohemian work gig I once thought great to avoid contributing to military violence by doing “volunteer work” for a possible $100 a week “gift” began to feel more like exploitation than the cheat code to avoid taxes to a murderous government it once was.

To make matters worse, those endless opinions from Donna were more politically fueled this year. As last year they had a “no talking politics” rule, most likely because they were an employing a hiker at the time with anti-Muslim and transphobic prejudices than for herself. An example of new frustrations began when Donna started to interrupt and point out my using gender neutral terms for everyone as “wrong.” When explained to her grammatically they/them has existed longer than he or she as a pronoun, with suggestions to learn this by googling some things her response was, “Well, at least I’m only going to be doing this one more year.” This alongside my constantly being referenced as a he/him was one of many annoyances (though it was something I was expecting to suffer for a couple months in exchange for the resources I thought I would get). It seemed I was just nodding my head at whatever the daily opinions were to get it over with, rather than debate a business owning white lady in a $500k house who gets all her news from nightly viewings of MSNBC that she might not have any clue what is happening in the streets or around the world (let alone gender theory).

Things finally came to a head when a group of rightwing hikers came through. Prior to this season you should know, I had discovered a great organization known as Indigenous Women Hike who had a campaign to bring the racism of John Muir into conversations among outdoors culture and industry. I had even been sponsored a Rethink The Wild shirt from them via an individual to wear for hiker season in order to start the conversation with people hiking across indigenous lands via the Pacific Crest Trail. Indigenous sovereignty is a very important issue for me is the reason why I would quit. I quickly began to feel uncomfortable by this group of hikers as they camped by the RV I was staying in and had late night campfire discussions where I overhead bits of Fox News-like dialogue-isms such as: “It’s not racist if it’s a fact, man” in reference to some statistics they were claiming about black people.

“I was never called a Nazi until Trump was in office and I told people I voted for him.”

And references to, “those antifa fucks” and “race wars.”

Originally I thought I would just wait out their leaving, as in all traveling it is a common occurrence to just have to put up with someone repeating Fox News rhetoric. The following day, however, Donna was taking one of them grocery shopping and I had to go along to get my own groceries. On the way back I was in the backseat listening to their discussion. It turned out this hiker (with a name I cannot recall) was an ex-military white South African and he began talking about his country/ politics. This began by Donna mentioning their liberal centrist views of not being proud of Donald Trump, in which he responded that in his country Donald Trump is considered an international hero. This he said was because he demanded white farmers stop being murdered in South Africa or the USA would intervene. The white genocide myth in South Africa is statistically inaccurate and is a story being spun by white nationalist groups around the world. He began talking about how in South Africa white people are the minority and black people would like to kill him just for his skin color. An example he had of this is how in America people consider Nelson Mandela to be a great leader, but his people call Nelson Mandela a terrorist. He lauded Fox News as the only accurate news representation, said journalists could never be trusted anywhere else and how in growing up surrounded by race wars he had a better understanding of what was happening in the world. Donna didn’t have much to say or counter any of this, other than a statement of maybe she would see things differently if she had lived his life and that, “maybe the South Africa stuff is like how everyone gets upset when Israel fires at Palestine, but never when Palestine shoots at Israel.”

The talk about all this dissipated as he spoke of his bodyguard work for figures such as Sean Connery, which seemed to delight Donna.

Back at Hiker Heaven the discussions with the rightwing hikers didn’t cease, and they seemed to get wide-eyed or talk of preparation for the future in the face of the race war stories this man had to tell them. The moment I knew I could no longer work for Donna Saufley was later that evening, while standing in the garage doing laundry. I described the kinds of things I heard these people talking about and called them white nationalists, with which Donna responded, “it makes my stomach churn to know there are people with those opinions here, but there is nothing I can do to change them.” She then followed this by describing how there are “some people” in this world who want to remove monuments or change the names of things, but they can’t change the past. Much like she can’t change their so-called opinions on race. This struck my last chord and so I brought up John Muir directly as a historical figure on the PCT and his anti-indigenous work with the Indian Removal Act that led to countless deaths. When she told me this was just the way things are and it’s silly to change it, I asked how returning the name to something as it was for thousands of years before Europeans invaded and put the name of someone responsible for their relatives' deaths as little as a couple hundred years ago was wrong? She became flustered and said it’s just the way it is, “and there’s nothing anyone can do to change it other than accept it.”

I walked back to the RV I was staying in and didn’t leave it for the night. I halfway packed my stuff up in the realization I had to leave. The next afternoon, Donna came by and asked if I was ready to start working for the day. I told her I planned to leave in a couple days and no longer wished to work for her due to her racist views toward indigenous people and her centrism to (the money of) white nationalists/ supremacists. She then got angry and told me I had ONE HOUR to get off her property. This caught me off guard, as I expected her to at least give me the couple days to get my things in order and be civil about it. I told her no, I’ll leave in a couple days. She demanded I leave or she would call the sheriff. I told her to call the sheriff, as they would have to give me an eviction notice. She stomped off and I began packing to leave within an hour anyways, expecting her to escalate the situation. Within ten minutes she had cut off the power to the RV and turned off the Hiker Heaven WiFi. I’d began separating what could be carried on my bike and tossing useless/ trash items out the door due to the space being small. She then stood in front of the RV and called all the male hikers to gather around, where she then asked them to remove me from the property. Gaslighting and twisting the things I’d said around, such as saying I referred to ALL hikers as “white supremacists” (which thankfully the actual white supremacist and white nationalists had hiked out that morning) and how I had become anti-hiker (in reference to discussions I had with her about the environmental strain of thru-hiking culture over the last years). This is when I pulled out my phone and began to record in case it took a violent direction, as I knew my legal right to be there and how they didn’t have any right to lay a hand on me. I was honestly prepared to defend myself with mace in one pocket and a knife in the other. I hoped making them understand my position in some fashion, my legal right to defend myself in the scenario, warning them of my intention to do so, and the presence of a camera would deescalate the situation. Which thankfully, at some level it did! A few of them asked me if they could help me pack and I said no, plus demanded they not come near me. As I had no idea who these people were or what they might be preparing to do. One became aggressive (older man in back of photo below) demanding I be gone within an hour or he’d make me, alongside the oldest of the men being the most hostile. He even sat in a chair outside the RV while I packed my things telling me how I should be ashamed to insult such a “well-respected” lady of the hiking community. Only one of the hikers (wearing sunglasses in picture below) came up to me before I left and apologized for what was happening, then handed me $15. The rest made themselves scarce. Donna informed me as I was leaving if I shared what happened she would leave a “bad review” of me on my WarmShowers account (an app for cyclists to host bike tourists for free) so I would never have places to stay during my bike tours. As there doesn’t seem to be a depth Donna Saufley isn’t willing to sink to.

After leaving Hiker Heaven, I had to pedal two days to the nearest REI to return some hiking bags I got in order to have some money on the road. All in all, I am traveling again with several hundred dollars less than expected, lost $90 in groceries purchased the day before, and hundreds in equipment I wasn’t given the time to mail off. Not only did Donna prove to be their own kind of racist in the end, exploited labor out of people like me for years, but also ripped off someone with very little in the world for nearly half they own. I’m writing this about a month from the incident, because it’s the first time I’ve had enough of a break to do so. As pedaling 40-80 miles a day and trying to figure out what direction to go in takes up a great deal of time. My hope in sharing this is to encourage people not to support Hiker Heaven if they have any trace of ethics in their decisions, and simply not let such a privileged person get away with doing what they did without it following her legacy.

In the future, I intend to write more about my observations over two years around the thru-hiking industry and subsequent culture. My time spent interacting with such large amounts of hikers and history I learned while working at Hiker Heaven will be used, as well as this event. This article is more to have this specific incident out in the public to warn others ASAP.