2010-06-01 Assinie, Cote d'Ivoire

Assinie is still famous in France because of the Club Med resort. It gained notoriety because it featured in the movie 'Les Bronzés'. Ten years ago the club was closed because of the political situation in Cote d'Ivoire. the resort is still there. The lawns are mown but the buildings are in a sad state. Another ten years and nature will have recaptured this piece of French 'civilization'.

2010-05-31 Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire

2010-05-31 Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire. In 2006 chemical waste of the Probo Koala, a ship of Oil company Trafigura was illegally dumped in Abidjan. After the dumping 17 people supposedly have died and tens of thousands have gotten sick of the chemical fumes. There are many reports of people still getting sick near the sites. Khadidja Konaté (2,5) (with her morther Issa) was born without hands or feet near one of the dumping sites. She is one of several children that have been born with serious birth defects that are attributed to the effects of the toxic spill.

2010-05-30 Yamoussoukro

'Le Fondation', one of several megalomaniacal constructions in the mostly rural capital of Cote d'Ivoire.

2010-05-29 Yamoussoukro

A 'friendly' militia.

2010-05-28 Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire

The president of the Sorbonne.... of Abidjan. A government-supporting 'speakers corner' that does not like dissenting opinions.

2010-05-27 Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire

I'm a Fan!

2010-02-25 Strasbourg

Place Kleber, the central square of Strasbourg. It's a collage of two images that were actually taken on different days.

Agency

Speaking about photo agencies.
As from this week I am represented by the Italian photo agency NAZCA Pictures for the Italian market.
Check out: http://www.nazcapictures.com/

26-02-2010 Strasbourg

Seats of Power from Ronald de Hommel on Vimeo.
I've been a member of Babel-Photo in Paris for almost a year now. A small collective photo agency. We have recently started the first collective project: 'chaises de pouvoir'. For the project I visited the Regional Council building of the Alsace region in Strasbourg. The new building is famous for its modern architecture by Atelier Chaix & Morel et associés. The goal is to produce a joint series of different councils throughout the country to be published before the regional elections in the middle of March.

Conseil Regional Alsace, Strasbourg

24-02-2010 Colmar, Alsace

Heineken Beer Rules!
Even in the the Alsace, the centre of beer production in France.

23-02-2010 Regional Politics

A Political meeting of the Greens in Colmar in the Alsace with local leader Jacques Fernique (l) and national representative Yves Cochet (r).

21-02-2010 Chinese New Year in Paris Chinatown

A Fresh start.
After a long silence I'll pick up my blog again. Starting with the Chinese New Year's celebrations in the 13th arrondissement of Paris.

NEW BLOG

For my next trip starting at Nov 02, 2009 I have started a new blog.
I will be traveling with colleague-photographer and friend Johannes Abeling. We've started a joint project where we will combine reportage, portrait, landscape and panorama photography with video and text.
Check it all out and keep following us at:
River@Risk
www.riveratrisk.com

Hope to see you there

Ronald

ps. In the future I will keep updating this blog during trips not related to the rivers project.

12-09+2009 Paris Manga

Paris Manga, a big trade fair for everything related to Japanese youth culture. But just observing the visitors was the most fun.

01-08-2009 Slum Surfing

Click on the image for a Soundslide presentation.

Eleven year old Joaquin from the extremely poor area of Alto Peru in Lima has learned to surf on the nearby Pacific Ocean. Two local surfers have set up an organisation to teach poor children to surf. They say Joachin is a talented surfer and If he keeps training hard, this sport may be an escape from poverty for him.
They try to teach their students other values too, like respect for the environment and education. They try to offer them an alternative to hanging around in the streets, joining gangs and using and dealing drugs.

(Music: 3 Deseos, by: Masilva, http://www.facebook.com/pages/Masilva/53601506820)

31-07-09 Lima

One of the dreariest areas of Lima, near the main garbage dump of the city.

27-07-2009 Peru

The Yanacocha mine is the biggest gold mine in Latin America. It covers several mountaintops in the Andes near the city Cajamarca in the north of the country.

28-04-2009 Cafoa

Vakaga state in the north east of the Central African Republic only has a few schools with stone buildings. Most students go to class in cane huts with thatch roofs. The French NGO Triangle is trying to build 20 new school buildings this year in the state. Problem is that in the rainy season that lasts from May to Oct. most roads in the area are impassable which will seriously hamper the construction efforts.

27-04-2009 Boura

French blue helmets patrolling the weekly market of Boura, the biggest market in the north eastern region of the Central African Republic. The borders with Chad and Sudan are not far away.

26-04-09 Birao

The catholic church of Birao still shows the signs of heavy fighting in 2006 when rebels took the town. The FACA, the national army quickly responded with the aid of the French army and retook control of the town. The French still have a base here, though now under the flag of the UN peace troops. On sunday morning many of the French soldiers come to mass here.

25-04-2009

Sam Ouandja, a refugee camp of Darfuri refugees in the east of the Central African Republic. Internally displaced people in Central Africa mostly flee into the bush, where they have to fend for themselves.

24-04-2009 Oubangui river

After a hair raising roller coaster flight trying to avoid a huge thunderstorm we ended up flying at an altitude of 200m, under the storm, following the Oubangui river back to the capital Bangui of the Central African Republic. So I didn't make it to Birao today. Hopefully tomorrow. I only took out my camera after we left the storm, so a peaceful view of a village from low altitude.

23-04-2009 Bangui

Malnutrition is a serious problem in the Central African Republic. The infant mortality rate at 176 per 1000 is amongst the highest in the world.

21-04-2009 Poumbaindi

The Central African Bush phone.

19-04-2009 Paoua

Part 2 in the series 'Yummy sources of protein': "Les Grillots" Fried in some oil they're said to be delicious.

19-04-2009 The future of Paoua

Members of a self defense group in Paoua.
Due to the extreme shortage of police in the Central African Republic, neighborhoods organize their own security. These groups of young men patrol the streets; they settle disputes and prevent petty theft. Some groups outside Paoua are known to clash with rebels regularly.

16-04-2009 Paoua

Humanitarian observers in the North west of the Central African Republic that cycle for hours through the bush to contact internally displaced people that have fled the violence.

12-04-2009 Central African Republic

A group of children catch flying termites that leave their underground home at the start of the rainy season. They eat them directly, or collect them to be used in dinner. It's a precious source of protein in this extremely poor region of Africa.

11-04-2009 Central African Republic

A school building in Patcho in the Centre of the Central African Republic was used by rebels as a headquarters. Now that the rebels have got a firm grip over the area the population has returned, the school is used again. The students have to look at the graffiti, the rebels left, because there's no money to repaint the building.

10-03-2009 The Sulphur miners of Ijen

In the crater of the Ijen volcano in Eastern Java (Indonesia) approximately 300 men collect Sulphur that is deposited around a volcanic vent. The red liquid sulphur turns bright yellow when it hardens. the men chop off thick slices. They fill their baskets up to more than 80 kilos. They first have to climb 300m up from the crater floor before descending the mountain to the small factory nearby.