Microsoft: Bill Gates does Europe - how a monopolist pushes its technology

Let me take you on a trip down memory lane.

Picture below: Bill Gates goes all-digital (and yes, it's an original ID, no editing, no photoshop, it's the real thing)

The picture shows the personal Belgian all-digital ID-card (issued to Bill Gates) that dear old Bill came to promote in Brussels way back in 2005. Remember Bill, Brussels, Belgium, Europe, where a crazy freak threw a cream-pie in your face: http://www.burntpickle.com/videos/bill-gates-hater/

As a native Belgian living near Brussels, I'm currently owning one of these over-hyped, mandatory state-issued smart-card-ID's, although there are almost no ID readers available or in use (thanks Bill, great concept… ) However, some came bundled with Dutch copies of Office 2003 (…), but nobody cared. Due to the lack of a visible street address (only machine readable) Belgians have to carry a separate piece of paper to confirm their place of residence.

Insane. The total failure of technology.

But the Belgian government almost treated Gates like a king back then, although we have a real one of our own, who's 'poor' compared to Bill Gates, but at least our king is "born genuine without mandatory validation" (this is starting to sound like the 'genuine windows validation program', time to sign off..)

This time Bill stayed at home, while the lawyers of his Empire are staging a battle with the European Union, clashing in a Luxembourg court. And yes, we all know how it will end, as always, don't we…

Terror in Egypt: the bombing of my vacation memories - update

I was shocked to view these pictures

from the bombs that exploded a couple of hours ago in Dahab, Egypt, a country where I just returned from, after having enjoyed an almost perfect cruise on the Nile, while visiting the main ancient sites of this beautiful country.

While I’m browsing through my 500+ vacation shots, I realised that attacking the Egyptian tourism industry is the way for fundamentalists to destabilise a moderate Arab country like Egypt. And when I’m confronted with the fact that I could have been a “terror casualty”, reality really bites…

While I feel kind of shell-shocked, you may read the bombing details elsewhere: e.g. at CNN.com: http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/04/25/egypt.blasts/index.html, Reuters News Agency or at this detailed Egyptian terrorism analysis at blogspot

Viagra, arabian version

While walking around the souks in Aswan, Egypt, I came across this local "herbal" variety of Pfizer's "Viagra" last week. (They didn't even try to push me into buying the stuff while I took the picture, which says it all in Egypt) The price was a giveaway, so I actually gave it a try.

Unfortunately, it had the arousal potential of the weather channel (if you live in Belgium: it was as exciting as counting the raindrops)

Discovering Egypt, protected by machine guns

My plane just touched down a couple of hours ago at Brussels-International airport, having spent an amazing week in sun-soaked Egypt. When I boarded the plane at Luxor, the temp reached 42°C (108°F), Brussels airport reported an overcast 15°C (60°F) - the contrast couln't have been more dramatic. Overall, cruising the Nile from Luxor all the way down to Aswan was a great experience which I intend to repeat (money is not the deciding factor here): diving in the Red sea is just a thrill I cannot go without.

First of all, some basic facts. Cruising the Nile in superb 5* luxury is great - I simply got on board of the MS Semiramis http://www.sunrisehotels-egypt.com/docs/cruises_semiramis1_h.htmat Luxor (after a 5 hour flight from Brussels with Eric, my travel companion) and I got the full treatment: the Valley of the Kings, The Temple at Luxor, Philae, Karnak, the amazing Aswan dam - we even went all the way south through a small part of the Nubian dessert towards Sudan on a camel (an experience I wouln't recommend to anyone: it's not like horse-back riding - after 30 min you never want to ride a camel again ).

I've often been for shorter visits to the Middle-East (but never on a real vacation), and while Egypt is not a radical Muslim country (Egypt has freedom of religion and leans towards the West - I even visited the Christian Coptic Orthodox Church Of Egypt in Aswan) you will definitely notice this is a part of the the Middle East - people outside the cities are visibly very poor, so basically I set off with the idea: "hey, the money I spent during our vacation is going towards the development of this country".

I now strongly doubt this is the case. Egypt is a typical example of a Middle Eastern country with only a see-through icing of "western tolerance", a small-rich-upper class and millions of poor who's life will not change, no-matter how many tourists cruise the Nile on their 5* luxury liners. [read this post]
The problem is also to be found elsewhere: in every great Egyptian temple I visited, during every step I took, during every move I made while boarding or debarking during the Nile cruise, I was protected by the Egyptian military forces, armed with high-speed guns. There are about 200 5* luxury boats cruising the Nile, and each of of those has its own fully-armed police guards, its own metal detector, it's own feeling of "you may be the next victim of an attack". Fundamentalism is growing, all over the Middle East, even in a "moderate" M-E country like Egypt.

I wasn't amazed meeting very few Americans in Egypt (Irak is not all that far away…) while the country was packed with German tourists, who apparently forgot 1997: http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9711/18/egypt.attack.on/(71 tourists where killed by Muslim extremists while visiting one of the Egyptian temples surrounding Luxor)

Anyway, neither could I forget the imprisonment of many gay men in Egypt: http://www.ilga.info/Information/Legal_survey/africa/supporting%20files/gay%20men%20in%20egypt%20amnesty%20int.htm

While my travel companion basically just enjoyed the great views, I quickly decided not to support the bizarre economy of Egypt.

Being almost forced to pay for even the smallest bit of good-will by "baksheesh" ["tip me"] yelling, impoverished locals became slightly annoying (hey, I was on vacation guys ;-)), although I'm quite used to this type of behaviour :-).

Egypt is a country that has amazing treasures from a 3000 yo civilisation that no longer exists, but does a really lousy job distributing the GNP among its citizens. Although there is a "middle class" in Egypt (some shop keepers, some business owners), Egyptians in general are either filthy rich, rather poor or really very poor.

Obviously I did not expect a welcome committee waving a gay rainbow flag with lesbian arab cheerleaders chanting, "welcome to the Middle East" - being a gay tourist makes it an obvious "don't ask, don't tell, don't show" destination.

Cruising the Nile was an experience, but I'm off to the gay beaches of Spain's Canary Isles this summer, nothing beats feeling that my "Gay EURO's" are really welcome

I'm tired and slightly jet-lagged - I will try posting some more "cruising the Nile" pictures during the next few days

Cruising the Nile, in 5* luxury

My dearest readers, you may soon notice a short break, as I'm about to embark on a Nile cruise (indeed, in Egypt). If you care to watch a promotional video: this is how we intend to spend our time: http://www.egyptontheweb.com/videos/nile-cruise.avi

Below: the temple complex of Abu Simbel in Southern Egypt, along with several shots showing the boat. Although the distances are quite impressive, most of it is done on board a 5* luxury Nile river-cruiser. I will make sure to post some vacation shot as soon as I return.Well, I do hope the 35°C/100°F heat will be bearable while we sip our cocktails around

the ship's sundeck pool (I'm on the 5* Nile cruiser MS Semiramis above, true 5* luxury

This is not the “Paris Hilton”

After a more than hectic morning, I took some time off to meet an old friend in the bar of the nearby Antwerp Hilton (like in Antwerp, Belgium) It's one of the few hotels in the Hilton chain that has it all: real old-world charm, authentic style and the knowledge that you're walking through a former historic landmark, not a trashy Paris Hilton soap. [www.antwerp.hilton.com]

While I dislike the shallowness of Paris Hilton, the Antwerp Hilton brings back a lot of memories. It actually used to be the "Grand Bazar", one of the oldest Antwerp department stores, dating back to the days when "Grand" really meant more than having an awesome front. I spent Saturdays shopping with my parents inside the building, admiring it's impressive top floor where my mother bought her china, now known as the "Pillar-free Exquisite Ballroom".

Reminiscing about those good old days is a suitable antidote when confronted with yet another brain-dead "Paris Hilton" story - but can it be a coincidence that I recently noticed a visibly confused traveler, wandering through the Antwerp Hilton, gasping for air while shouting "all facade, nothing inside, nothing!" and "it looked much better on tv!". Well, he must have met the ghost of Paris Hilton afterall…

Let’s have a Kodak moment

Quality time can be a rare commodity these days, and while everyday blandness is a common complaint, finding those precious “Kodak moments” is just what life’s all about. Most of those moments only have a personal value, but I just couldn’t resist sharing one with you.

Picture on your left: my brother’s 2nd born daughter