From all parts of the Horn of Africa,they are thousands to converge every year, towards the mausoleum of Sheik Hussein.In the heart of the Ethiopian highlands,a unique partition of the mysteries of faith takes place on some days, in a secret held date. To honor the memory of a soufi saint, ancient pagan faiths re-appear in a very strange mixity of Islam and Christendom.

Get your own – Open publication

A Photo story by ©Cyril le Tourneur d’Ison/LightMediation

Contact – Thierry Tinacci – LightMediation Photo Agency +33 (0)6 61 80 57 21 thierry[AT]lightmediation.com

As Asma el Hassad,wife of Syrian president Bachar El Hassad, appears, dazzling, slender, thin silhouette, perched on high heels, moving like a ballerina one cannot help thinking of an oriental Diana, but the comparaison stops right there. The controversial president of Syria’s young wife shows an unexpected personnality who makes a point of keeping away from the press. Exceptionally however, she accepted to give an interview to an occidental magazine .

Photos ©Cyril Le Tourneur/LightMediation – English Interview® Claudine le Tourneur d’Ison

Contact – Thierry Tinacci LightMediation Photo Agency +33 (0)6 61 80 57 21 thierry[AT]lightmediation.com

L’Egypte Interdite par Cyril le Tourneur d’Ison dans VG7.

In the words of French writer, Olivier Rolin, « More truly and mysteriously than Egypt, Sudan is the realm of this fabled river ». The magnetic beauty of North Sudan bears a resemblance to what Egypt was a century ago, before industrialisation and tourism took over. A country whose people are exceptionally open and warm. There are few roads leading northwards from Khartoum following the path of the Nile, and conditions are tough. The region is extraordinarily rich in archaeological heritage: on 11 January 2003 seven monumental statues of kings of the 25th dynasty were discovered in Kerma by members of the Swiss mission led by Charles Bonnet. But the 20 years of conflict between Muslims in the north and Christians in the south, and the current massacre in the Darfur region, have sadly done nothing to develop the country’s heritage. The building of a dam on the 4th cataract is now threatening to destroy some exceptional and still little-known sites.

Photos ©Cyril le Tourneur d’Ison Text ®Claudine Le Tourneur d’Ison

Contact – Thierry Tinacci Agence Lighmediation +33 (0)6 61 80 57 21 thierry[AT]lightmediation.com

Français: Ultime capitale du dernier des grands royaumes de l’Inde du Sud, enrichie par le commerce du coton et des épices, Hampi fut l’une des plus belles villes du monde médiéval, auréolée de palais et temples dravidiens couverts de joyaux. Hampi reste aujourd’hui l’un des sites les plus saisissants du monde. Haut lieu de la beauté mais d’un accès difficile. Les sept heures de voyage à partir de Bangalore par des routes cahotantes surchargées de camions la maintienne pour l’instant hors de portée des hordes touristiques.

Photos © Cyril le Tourneur d’Ison Text ® Claudine le Tourneur d’Ison -A longer text is avalaible- Contact – Thierry Tinacci Lightmediation Photo Agency +33 (0)6 61 80 57 21 thierry [at] lightmediation.com

For the vast majority, travelling in Egypt today means keeping to the circuits offered in the tourist brochures. Does the land of the Pharaohs have nothing else to offer to the more demanding traveller? Surely a growing number of tourists are dismayed at the prospect of fighting their way through the crowds to get a glimpse of the country’s mythical monuments, after being dropped off by their coach in a car park that makes the temple of Karnak look small in comparison? We set out to discover the regions the tourist industry does not reach, where westerners are not particularly welcome or where access is restricted, to say the last. To earn the right to visit this unknown Egypt other than from behind the tinted windows of an air-conditioned bus under police escort, you need to be armed with infinite patience, a stock of hard-won authorizations and a plentiful supply of baksheesh money. This is the price to pay for access to Egypt’s eternal sands and stone and for a genuine encounter with the Egyptian people.

Français:
Voyager aujourd’hui en Égypte, pour la plupart des visiteurs, c’est se conformer à des circuits balisés et sécurisés. La terre des Pharaons laisse-t-elle encore quelques espaces de liberté au voyageur exigeant ? Combien de visiteurs lassés par des hauts lieux mythiques surpeuplés où les parkings de bus sont désormais plus vastes que le temple de Karnak ? Nous avons tenté de découvrir les chemins de traverse, les régions méprisées par l’industrie touristique, interdites aux occidentaux, ou tout au moins aux accès ultra réglementés. Pour faire ce voyage, pour ouvrir le regard sur une Égypte méconnue, autrement que derrière les vitres teintées d’un bus climatisé escorté par la police touristique, il faut être armé de patience, d’autorisations âprement négociées, et d’une réserve substantielle de bakchichs. L’accès aux éternités de sable et de pierre et les vrais rencontres avec les Égyptiens sont à ce prix.

Photos et texte © Cyril le Tourneur d’Ison / Lightmediation