Interesting Article in the NYT Today...
Dec. 8th, 2006 02:17 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
akujunkan...about Bamiyan, an ancient trading outpost in Afghanistan, and one of the most westerly Buddhist sanctuaries. The Taliban blew it up in 2001, long before good ole Shrub and Laura were into giving two shits about the country, but I remember being crushed, along with many of my classmates in EALC. Anyway, the Afghani government is considering restoring it, which I think would be a wonderful idea (as well as a way to keep the pressure on world governments to keep the Taliban in check; no one wants to pour tons of money into a project only to have it blown up again).
Bamiyan is one of the places I hope to visit one day (along with Dun Huang in China), and I really am optimistic that it can be restored if the political situation is stabilized. I didn't always believe that to be possible, but after visiting Po Nagar in Vietnam and especially Angkor Wat and the Bayan, I'm convinced it's possible. I am, however, confused by the NYT's statement that any new building (as opposed to restoration) at the Bamiyan site would disqualify it as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I've seen stone masons cutting new blocks for the Baphuon with my own eyes, and I was under the impression that Angkor Thom was still on the UNESCO books.
And on a slightly related note, what is with Asians and screwing up historical sites? I'm looking right at you, Mr Hiro Yamagata, and your proposal to "to mount a $64 million sound-and-laser show starting in 2009 that would project Buddha images at Bamiyan, powered by hundreds of windmills that would also supply electricity to surrounding residents." Or, for that matter, the Korean group that wanted to use electric trains to haul tourists around Angkor. Oi.
Anyway, the article is here, so go check it out.
That will be all.
Bamiyan is one of the places I hope to visit one day (along with Dun Huang in China), and I really am optimistic that it can be restored if the political situation is stabilized. I didn't always believe that to be possible, but after visiting Po Nagar in Vietnam and especially Angkor Wat and the Bayan, I'm convinced it's possible. I am, however, confused by the NYT's statement that any new building (as opposed to restoration) at the Bamiyan site would disqualify it as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I've seen stone masons cutting new blocks for the Baphuon with my own eyes, and I was under the impression that Angkor Thom was still on the UNESCO books.
And on a slightly related note, what is with Asians and screwing up historical sites? I'm looking right at you, Mr Hiro Yamagata, and your proposal to "to mount a $64 million sound-and-laser show starting in 2009 that would project Buddha images at Bamiyan, powered by hundreds of windmills that would also supply electricity to surrounding residents." Or, for that matter, the Korean group that wanted to use electric trains to haul tourists around Angkor. Oi.
Anyway, the article is here, so go check it out.
That will be all.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
on 2006-12-07 06:04 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2006-12-10 06:00 pm (UTC)