Confidences of travelers | photograph the world

Traveling is like riding on a mountain road. But among the ups and downs, there will always be those indelible memories that you carry with you all your life. The Press recounts the adventures, big or small, of fearless travellers. Today: an amateur photographer who thinks outside the box.

Simon Chabot
The Press

Jean-Michel Boivin-Deschênes discovered photography during his first big trip, which took him from Turkey to Iran, via Armenia and Georgia, when he was 25 years old.

Now 33, the civil servant at the City of Montreal devotes a large part of his savings to his two passions, which feed each other. If he made a few trips when it was allowed since the start of the pandemic, he really resumed the path of adventure last spring, with a trip of just over two months to Iraqi Kurdistan, Uzbekistan and in Ethiopia, with a stopover with the in-laws in Turkey, where he joined his wife for a holiday.

“For me, it was time to finally go where I wanted,” says the traveler. There is a little vertigo when you buy a plane ticket to Iraq, but I really find it more interesting to visit less touristy countries. »

New Year in Lalish

In northern Iraq, he did not hesitate to make the long journey to spend just a few hours in Lalish, the holy place of the Yazidis, on the occasion of the New Year, celebrated on April 20 for the first time. since the start of the pandemic.

“The Yazidis are an ultra-minority people, who have been victims of the atrocities of the Islamic State group and who are constantly fighting for their survival, explains Jean-Michel. It was worth the effort to meet him. To see the young people, to visit the temples, to share meals, and to take pictures… there were thousands of people, it was truly an exceptional day. »

At the beginning of May, the traveler was in Uzbekistan, where he notably took part in the Boysun spring festival. “It’s a typical Uzbek festival, with dancing, music, costumes, equestrian sports and wrestling,” he explains. The annual event, which has been held for ten years in the village, is relatively unknown and the foreign visitor has attracted attention. “Everyone wanted to take a selfie with me and the TV took my testimony. It was quite funny! »

Between caution and audacity

When he goes into unknown territory, Jean-Michel always hires a guide. “It’s essential to know what to do and what not to do,” he says. Despite everything, it happens – rarely – to feel less safe. As in Ethiopia, where he went this spring, despite the armed conflicts which are still raging there.

“I always take precautions, insists the holder of a master’s degree in political science, but in Gondor, where there is a lot of tension between Muslims and Christians, when you see young people with AK-47s around their necks, it worries. For street photography, we’ll come back.

He nevertheless keeps excellent memories of the country of the Horn of Africa. Rock churches of Lalibela, carved out of the rock around the 13th century^e century, in particular.

The encounter with the hyenas, fed every evening for centuries by the residents of Harar, impressed him. Just like his visit to the Simien National Park, a canyon populated by exceptional endemic fauna, including the rare Ethiopian wolf, which attracts wildlife photographers and walkers. However, there are few of them these days. “I didn’t meet any other hikers on my way. »

The situation saddens Jean-Michel, who will donate some of his photos to lend a hand to local agencies. Of course, the current conflicts do not help in Ethiopia, but tourists generally lack audacity, believes the traveler. Overtourism hurts everyone, both those who are overwhelmed and those who are left behind, he says. “With my travels, I would like to give people back the taste for adventure. »

Where will you go next to broaden your horizons? In any case, for Jean-Michel Boivin-Deschênes, it’s already decided: it will be the Himalayas, somewhere in October 2023.