Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Numbering Trees...

... is better than painting rocks. Well, only just. 

Since moving to West Germany's former capital, I have often wondered what the silliest example of bureaucracy would be which I could come across in this city. I believe this could be it.


That's right - these trees have been numbered. They form part of a long boulevard of trees beside the DHL tower which lead down to the Rhine River. All trees are numbered in ascending order as you head towards the water.

Perhaps the fauna was numbered as a precautionary measure following the recent incidents involving an elderly gentleman stealing lamp-posts and other street signage in the local area, on a bicycle.

All I can say is: thank goodness the Bonn authorities have got this under control. One less thing to worry about.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

It's finally over...

Who would have thought seven minutes of video could be so taxing? Especially, unscripted video. But, I have to admit: it has been tough.

Not that Bonn has been an issue. She's been a perfect lady about all this. Every day a venue or story seemed to just be staring me in the face. And, I'm even prepared to say that I feel a closer bond to the city - who wouldn't, after a week of intimate videos together?

Looking at the commercial side of things: on average we've had 17 viewers a video. Not quite the numbers we or our sponsors were hoping for. Clearly, the project still needs time to achieve full acceptance with the audience. Still, I think this is going to take the world by storm. Payment for the series can be done by direct cash transfer to our office account.

So far, I've had one reader request to keep going with the videos - but that was "for the rest of my life" (no, it wasn't my girlfriend!). Otherwise, the overwhelming majority of just so euro readers have insisted that I stop the project immediately. Mainly because Youtube videos from the streets of Bonn just don't seem dramatic or newsy enough.

So, it's finally over. Or is it? One thing is for sure: we've done an outtakes video - c'mon you know you want to.

Wednesday, August 03, 2011

The "just so euro" Video Week

We promised it - here it is. The "just so euro" Video Week has begun.
Fun for all the family in 4:3 format for all our American fans.

Here's what's it's all about:



For all the updated videos click here or join us on Facebook.

Tuesday, August 02, 2011

Stopping Iran... in Bonn

The local Kurdish population got together last Saturday in Bonn to protest recent attacks by Iran on northern Iraq. The section of Iraq targeted in the July attacks was the Kurdish autonomic region, Iraqi Kurdistan.

It was a unique sight to see the protesters spread across Münsterplatz, the home of the famous Beethoven statue. It's not often that you see protests in Bonn - especially right in the middle of town like this one.

The latest big demo I can remember here was when locals blocked the Kennedy Bridge to voice their protest to nuclear power in Germany. Of course the numbers were huge then - over 10,000 turned out.

The anti-Iran protests last Saturday gathered together just a few hundred supporters. According to the website yekkom, Kurds number some one million in Germany. The group says that Kurds in Germany still struggle to be properly recognised as an official migrant group.


The attacks by Iran on the Kurdish autonomic region is a "developing story", as CNN would say. It certainly didn't get much coverage in western media over the recent weeks. Here is a small report from Al Arabiya for those that missed the story.