Long trip

Much better place to stay this time.

Just arrived in Haiti from Yeosu, Korea via New York. But the trip went well and I got to sleep a night in New York. Weather in Korea was windy with temperatures just above zero. It actually snowed for the first time this year in the captial, Seoul. New York's weather was beautiful. Would have loved to go to the city, but just had a few hours to sleep and back to the airport. This is the best time of year to visit Haiti. It is 30 degrees C with a light wind and white puffy clouds. We are here to do a story with the Red Cross. I will have more on that later.

Two years after the horrible earthquake. I haven't seen much yet, but the airport is looking much better. The parking lot where we slept two years ago, is full of cars. The tarmac is empty compared to two years ago when it was filled with aid boxes, big C-130 planes, soldiers and aid workers, not to mention journalists. The accomodations are better this time, staying at the Red Cross base camp on the other side of the road from the airport.

I wonder who my neighbors are?

I have been here to cover elections and filming in the city was dangerous because of a high crime rate. During the earthquake, though, I felt we could go anywhere, even places off limits before. People were more concerned with finding food and water than with a foreigner with a camera. I asked the driver how things were now. "It's dangerous again," he chuckled. In some sense, I guess that is progress.

Preparing the Fantastic

The site of "The Living Ocean and Coast" Expo 2012

We came to Yeosu on Korea's southern coast to film the preparations for World Expo 2012. It is still work-in-progress, but this 3 km2 site will be full of imagination and discovery. From Beluga whales to high tech laser, water and pyro shows to the largest pipe organ in the world, Expo 2012 will probably surprise even the most blasé.

2012 marks the end of the commitment period of the Kyoto Protocal and the 10th anniversary of the Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development. The theme of the ocean and coast, man living with the ocean underlines the importance of respecting nature. The ocean is 71% of the earth's surface and 40% of the world's population lives on the coast or within 60km of the shore.

Nam Jae Heon and his Big O under construction.

The Big O with be a central attraction. It is an engineering feat combining the latest in pyro, laser and water technologies. A Californian company is putting in the entertainment side of the O and says there will be nothing like this anywhere else in the world. Mr. Nam, head of the Big O project says it is a delicate project. "The Big O is floating and we have to take into consideration a tide change of 11 metres and we have to think of the effects of bad weather," explains Mr. Nam.

So far 106 countries will be participating. We went to see the USA pavillion which will be huge. Philippe Cousteau will be the official US representative to the Expo. General World Expos happen every five years. In between, there are World Expos based on themes. Expo 2012 will be in Yeosu, Korea from May 12th to August 12, 2012.

Sunset over the hills and islands in Yeosu, Korea

Yeosu is a city of almost 300,000 people in the south of Korea. Fishing is maybe a traditional occupation, but the city is now a major port and the site of an amazingly huge area of large factories that light up at night with the same colour lamps making it look like a stary night on earth.

The city is gearing up for some 8 million visitors, mostly from Asia. I have often been to Korea and can only say it is a great place, so you can visit the Expo 2012 and take time to see the rest of this fantastic country. You can see our report on www.euronews.net/focus during the week of 19 December.