Adam Bemma

#CityTalk international hears from Senegalese-Gambian journalist Aisha Dabo at the African Press Agency about the controversy surrounding the construction of the African Renaissance Monument in Dakar, Senegal. Dabo is a resident of Ouakam, a suburb of Dakar situated right next to the monument, where loss of electricity is common while spotlights keep the statue illuminated…

There’s something about the Moroccan flag I find fascinating. It’s so simple yet revolutionary! I have to admit I have the pentagram tattooed on my left arm, so it’s a symbol I obviously appreciate. When I arrived in Tangier Med on the ferry from Algeciras, Spain, the flag was everywhere. It was a national holiday…

Inside Marrakesh, Morocco’s medina (old city), crowds gather to watch the snake charmers and musical performances in the main square, Jemaa el-Fna. #CityScape is an idea I had to use natural ambient sound to make others feel they’re on an audio adventure with me (as lame as that sounds). This #CityScape explores Marrakesh’s medina from…

This week #CityTalk goes international. In this two part radio special, #CityTalk hears from Xavi Masip from Amics de la Rambla (Friends of La Rambla in Catalan) a group working to improve La Rambla, which is a series of pedestrianized streets frequented by tourists and locals alike in Barcelona, Spain. To listen or download part…

I decided to start this trip in one of the greatest cities in Europe; Barcelona, Spain. I got off the overnight express plane from Montreal and caught a bus to Plaza Catalunya (Catalonia is the region of Spain where Barcelona is located, but I’ll get to that later). From there I found a hostel close to the main…

This week #CityTalk hears from Montreal blogger/journalist Kristian Gravenor about his time living in downtown Montreal’s storied Overdale district. Land developers fought Overdale residents and urban conservationists in the 1980s to demolish the block and build a condo project, which came to be known as Underdale. Both sides lost and today this former residential district…

This week #CityTalk hears from Ecomusée du fier monde director René Binette about a new exhibit at the museum. It’s dedicated to Montrealers engaged in their communities called “Citizens – yesterday, today and tomorrow.” The Ecomusée du fier monde celebrates the working class history of Centre-Sud, a district in downtown Montreal, dating from the industrial…

#CityDoc: Operation Park Avenue is an interactive citizen-led urban design workshop looking at the northern sector of Park Avenue in Montreal (Van Horne to Jean Talon). The workshop brought residents, students and community groups together to propose a plan to the city of how to re-imagine the streetscape in an area slated for redevelopment. The…

Montreal Diary: Group trying to save Park Ex footbridge Structure referred to as ‘cardiac crossing’ slated for demolition by the city this year By Adam Bemma, Special To THE GAZETTE MONTREAL – Towering high into the sky above the CP railway in Park Extension, an abandoned footbridge is causing a rift between a local historical…

This week #CityTalk goes to the corner of Papineau and Ontario Streets, a once seedy area in Montreal’s Centre-Sud district. As the neighbourhood changes, a group of 30 artists known as the Hotel Jolicoeur collective, named after a former brothel turned into condos, are self-publishing a book on the once derelict building. The Hotel Jolicoeur…