Since the time of the first French colonial settlers in the islands of Seychelles, the pirogue - a traditional vessel used with oars - was the key to the livelihood of many generations of fishermen and a means of transportation for some, but this is now almost extinct. Many of the Seychellois youngsters have either never seen one or do not know these boats' importance. Jonas Albert Victor, from Praslin, the second most populated island of Seychelles, used to earn his living by making pirogues for many years. SNA met Victor at his house to learn more about this part of Seychellois heritage, which is disappearing. The resident of St Joseph, a small community in the Grand Anse Praslin district, who celebrated his 85th birthday on August 3, recalled how growing up, life was very difficult so he pushed himself to acquire skills that could help him make a living at an early age. He is the eldest from a family of four but Victor did not live with his parents. Since he was three months old, he lived with his grandmother and her husband. «My adopted grandfather was a pirogue maker and since I grew up with him, I admired his skills and was fascinated by his work, thus I decided to try it.  I started making fish traps at the age of nine and accompanied him when he went fishing. It was fun and since we lived by the sea, I loved the sea,» Victor said. Aside from being a carpenter, Victor is also a mason and has done most of the work on his house himself. He has worked on a number of housing projects on the island. Victor, from Praslin, used to earn his living by making pirogues for many years. (Mandy Bertin) Photo License: All Rights Reserved  Building the pirogues Victor said he used any type of wood to build these boats as there were high demands for pirogues long ago. «At that time, it took me around one month or two to make a pirogue. I was employed at that time so I had to make these boats after my working hours. But after things in the country evolved and we started getting electrical tools, then it took me only around 11 days to make one on my own,» he explained. The size of a pirogue depended on the client and some wanted those of 15ft pirogues while others 12ft. It all depended on what they were going to use their pirogues for, some only for fishing and others for transportation only. Victor said that at the time day, a pirogue used to cost SCR100-SCR150 but then with much development and the introduction of fiberglass, the demand for pirogues reduced. «For raw materials needed to construct these boats, I did not find it difficult to get them compared to nowadays. There were special nails that we used and as for the wood, I preferred to use the Takamaka wood because it was found to be more durable,» he added. The last pirogue he made was almost 10 years ago, and it is now at Juan Pillay's residence at Grand Anse. Most pirogues were painted using a special black paint and at times white paint would be used to paint a thin layer on the upper part of the boat. Inside, there were two small decks at each end where people could sit and there were also two bench-like seats as well. Underneath them, people used to store their fish or other items. There were two holes in which the long paddles were inserted when they rowed their boats. «If we are at sea during a storm and you are in a fibreglass boat and I am in my pirogue, the pirogue will save your life. It is because the fibreglass boat will sink to the bottom while our good old pirogue even if it capsizes, it will not go down,» Victor said. Asked whether he was willing to make the pirogues today, he said, «Even if I could still be making these boats, I know I would have to face a few challenges such as finding a person to assist and availability of resources. Long ago, you could go and cut a tree at a neighbour's place and you did not have to pay for it or maybe for a very cheap price, but nowadays it will cost you quite a bit.» He added that materials «such as the nails we used back then are not readily available as there are no demands for them nowadays. But the truth is, I do miss making these boats. They were special to us and it is sad that along the way, we have forgotten about them. Pirogues were not just the boats we used to go fishing but they were also a helpful means of transportation for us islanders.» He said when larger vessels brought merchandise from Mahe to Praslin, pirogues were used to unload the goods to shore and they were used to transport people from Praslin to nearby islands such as Cousin, Cousine and Aride. «We have allowed it to fade away and it is sad that we have forgotten the useful and important position that these small boats played in our past,» Victor remarked. Many people who have visited the popular cultural site Domaine de Val des Pres on Mahe, the main island, might have seen a long black pirogue there built by the Praslinois himself. Victor still has many of his tools which he used over many decades to construct these pirogues. 

Glastonbury bosses are hoping to lure bickering brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher to reform their rock band Oasis in time to headline the event next summer

When American singer-songwriter Madison Beer found her nails to be «breaking and falling apart» before her Singapore concert on Aug 22, she reached out to nail salon Edens' Atelier Co located at Aljunied. But the 25-year-old paid for a lot more than just a manicure, helping the business formerly known as Toto Nail Studio with their rent and promoting them on her Instagram Story. The nail salon's owner, Hazel Wah, then shared an Instagram post yesterday (Aug 24) about how it went down. The 21-year-old prefaced the story with how she had taken a «huge leap of faith» to move into a large studio, but was left «hanging» by her former business partner. «That led to financial constraints as we'd planned to invest into the business for the first six months with our personal finances to let the business grow,» Wah added. «I lost over $20,000 trying to maintain the rent, electricity bills, salaries and much more.»

One woman recently became the centre of attention for her striking looks and has been affectionately dubbed Singapore's Xi Shi by patrons of a coffee shop. Xi Shi was one of the four renowned beauties of ancient China. In an interview with Shin Min Daily News, Tang Xinyi (transliteration) shared that she began working at a coffee shop located at Block 491 Jurong West Avenue 1 only eight months ago, and was initially perplexed by the recent influx of messages she had gotten. «I was quite surprised at first,» said Tang who has been working as a beer promoter for two years. «But then I realised it was because someone had shared my photos and posts widely on social media».  The 27-year-old Malaysian shared with the Chinese publication that she was not mentally prepared for her sudden popularity and had never thought about becoming a celebrity. Some of her friends in Malaysia and customers here, she shared, have also expressed concerns about the sudden attention.  However, she said she's very grateful for the public's support.

The driver of a tipper truck that damaged the ceiling of the Central Expressway (CTE) tunnel on Aug 25 at around 1am has been arrested.  According to the LTA Traffic News X account, the incident took place along the CTE tunnel after the Havelock Road exit, towards the Seletar Expressway (SLE). Two video clips of the accident were posted on Facebook page Singapore Roads Accident.  The footage from both clips show the damage that occurred at the site which included debris, shattered glass and parts of the ceiling strewn across the two lanes on the right side of the road. It also showed traffic cones blocking off the affected section, leaving only the left lane open to traffic. Several police cars as well as the truck that exceeded the height limit can also be seen parked in the area. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) told The Straits Times that there was no structural damage to the ceiling. Lanes 1 and 2 were reopened to traffic at about 10.20am on Aug 25, the LTA added.

The IDF alsi said that the airstrikes had foiled a Hezbollah attack on central Israel

«The Kiev regime’s attempt to carry out a terrorist attack on targets in Russia using a fixed-wing drone was foiled last night. On-duty air defenses destroyed the Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle over the Belgorod Region,» the statement reads

Meanwhile, Hezbollah announced an «initial response» to the killing of its military commander Fuad Shokr in Beirut

According to the Israeli army, the country's aircraft attacked Hezbollah targets in Lebanon because preparations for a missile strike on Israel were underway there

Hezbollah emphasized that Israel’s allegations about preemptive strikes that had foiled the operation «are untrue»

DPP leader Peter Mutharika yesterday made a bold revelation telling Malawians that his party will win next year’s elections with a resounding 57.9 percent—to mean there won’t be any rerun as many commentators have feared.   Mutharika, in an exclusive interview with Brian Banda on Times Television Saturday night, said the 57.9 percent projection is […] The post Mutharika claims DPP will win with 57.9% majority: Says it’s according to a study by a ‘credible institution.’ appeared first on Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi.

In a bitter blow to FCB Nyasa Big Bullets’ continental ambitions, the Malawian champions were eliminated from the 2024 CAF Champions League after a 2-0 defeat to Zambia’s Red Arrows at the National Heroes Stadium yesterday. The loss marks a disappointing end to a campaign that promised much but ultimately fell short. From the opening […] The post FCB Nyasa Big Bullets clash out of 2024 CAF Champions League with 2-0 defeat appeared first on Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi.

With his visit to Kiev, Narendra Modi has shown the world India’s true willingness to establish a long-term, mutually acceptable peace Read Full Article at RT.com

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With his visit to Kiev, Narendra Modi has shown the world India’s true willingness to establish a long-term, mutually acceptable peace Read Full Article at RT.com

Rights group calls on international community to demand accountability through independent probe into circumstances of Berhane Abrehe's death

Kenya's former prime minister Raila Odinga's over three-decade long political stint in Kenya could come to a halt, for now, as he turns his focus to his African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship quest - a move certain to unsettle majority of his close allies who have over the years hang on his coat-tails to secure their elective position.

TOKYO, Japan (HOL) — Japan and Somalia reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations and tackling shared challenges during a high-level meeting between their foreign ministers on the sidelines of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Yokohama on August 24.

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Ils sont perchés à 810 mètres d'altitude et sont connus pour leurs fruits juteux. Les orangers de la Punaruu n'ont plus besoin de se forger une réputation. Pourtant, ils se font de plus en plus rares et vieillissent à grande vitesse. L'association «pour la protection de la vallée de la Punaruu» a donc décidé de les remplacer et propose un projet de régénération. Indispensable pour préserver ce patrimoine culturel de la commune.

Earlier, Pavel Davankov contacted Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with a request to seek Durov’s release