Chapter 526 Lighthouse of Civilization
“Ernst!”
As soon as he returned home, Ernst was heading to the office to work when he was stopped by his old father who had just returned from Bagamoyo.
"What's wrong, father?"
"Yesterday I went to Bagamoyo. Walking on the road, I was very pleased to see the urban development in East Africa, but I heard in the newspaper that Chicago A high-rise building with a height of tens of meters has been built in our city, and it is planned to be completed in the next few years. I want to know if we can build one in East Africa. The cities in East Africa are almost exactly the same as those in Europe, and they have no characteristics.”
Ernst knew what his old father had planned as soon as he heard it. If he guessed correctly, the tall building Constantine mentioned was the Chicago Home Insurance Building-the world's first skyscraper.
"Father, I feel that the buildings in East Africa are very good. There is no need to blindly pursue height, and the buildings in East Africa are also ornamental and artistic."
"What do you know, I just think East Africa lacks eye-catching landmarks , this is not a high-rise building that is going to be built in Chicago to attract attention, I just remembered it, and there is no Statue of Liberty, New York also has a bunch of bulky buildings, they are really a bunch of nouveau riche.”
Listen. Ernst couldn't help but laugh at the old man's sour tone.
“Why are you laughing? I’m asking you something!”
"Okay, I almost know what you mean, father. Don't you just want to build a landmark building? If you have any specific ideas, tell me. If you can do it, I will definitely do it for you."
For As long as Ernst wants to make Constantine happy, it doesn't matter if he spends some money. Is Ernst short of money? There is definitely a shortage, but what rich people like Ernst lack is big money, and building wonders is just a small amount of money.
Of course, some wonders are expensive and can even hinder the development of a country. Ernst and Constantine are not the kind of people who are greedy for pleasure, so they have a sense of proportion.
As expected, Constantine was in a good mood after listening to Ernst's words, and he really started to consult carefully: "We definitely can't learn from the nouveau riche group in the United States."
He thought about it carefully. After the episode, he said: “First of all, our building should have extremely high artistic standards. The quality and ornamental quality cannot be worse than those of other countries, otherwise they will be the same if they are made or not. Secondly, there must be historical and cultural elements. This must be distinguished from the nouveau riche in the United States. Finally, it is best to It has some practicality and the price should not be too high.”
Constantine's requirements may not seem high, but they are actually quite high, especially the second one, historical and cultural elements, which is exactly what East Africa lacks and is not as good as most countries in this regard.
Ernst thought about it carefully. The most representative thing about East Africa is the pile of lions on the grassland. This is probably the first impression of Africa for most people.
This was taken into consideration when the East African flag was designed. After so many years of development, East Africans are all learners. There is no innovation in the cultural field, and what is unique is the natural heritage. Black people have their own civilization, but they do not Go to the elegant hall.
So Ernst said: "What we lack most in East Africa is historical and cultural heritage, so it is better to use world civilization as a perspective and mix in some unique cultural symbols of East Africa as a reference in this regard."
Constantine nodded and said: "That's right. How about adding it to the national history?"
According to Constantine's thinking, although East Africa has a relatively short history, it has still developed over more than ten years, and a country with such a large area can leave a profound mark on human history in the future.
But Ernst didn’t think so. Isn’t the history of East African countries the history of a feudal slavery country? This happens to be the biggest stain on East Africa, so much so that Ernst did not even establish a national holiday in East Africa, which is as ironic as Thanksgiving.
In the future, all black people will disappear in East Africa and after the abolition of slavery, Ernst plans to separate the future East Africa from the current East African kingdom. The fact that the kingdom is a slave country cannot be changed, and the empire can be a brand new empire. .
So Ernst shook his head and said: "That's not necessary. In terms of national history, I am not very optimistic. Our East African system is not in line with the mainstream international public opinion. Starting from this aspect may attract some criticism. . ”
Feudal autocracy, slavery, closed markets... are not good words, so it is better to use the perspective of world civilization to build the main body of this landmark building.
Ernst's words also awakened Constantine: "You are right, I do have concerns in this regard." Even Constantine felt that his East Africa was all black and had no advantages. In fact, there were advantages, so It is through the accumulation of these stains that the national power and royal status of East Africa are built.
Seeing that his father was a little depressed, Ernst consoled him: "Taking world civilization as a perspective may not be a bad thing for us. We say it is based on world civilization. , but as long as this landmark is settled in East Africa, it will belong to East Africa and no one can move it away."
"Is that right? I almost got into a misunderstanding because of your cleverness." react.
Culture belongs to the world, but in the end it depends on the region. For example, the Great Wall stands on the land of the East, so it belongs to the Far Eastern Empire first, and then to the world.
In the same way, things built on East African soil are inseparable from East Africa, and they can also forcibly bind East Africa to world civilization with the help of the righteousness of world civilization.
Suddenly an idea flashed in Ernst's head.
"Father, how about we build a lighthouse!"
"Lighthouse?"
"Yes."
"Lighthouse, I feel like there is nothing new?"
Speaking of lighthouses, this kind of thing is too common, especially after the West entered the Age of Discovery.
Many lighthouses have been built in East Africa, especially with the opening of many new ports in East Africa. In terms of size alone, some of them are even ranked among the best in the world.
After all, Dar es Salaam and Mombasa are also world-class ports. Although they are not as good as cities with a population of one million like New York and London, cities with a population of hundreds of thousands in this era are not It is too common, not to mention that the combined population of the old and new urban areas of Dar es Salaam has exceeded 200,000, and is expected to reach more than 300,000 in the next few years.
“Lighthouses are common landmarks, especially for port cities. One of the seven wonders of history is Alexandria, so as long as this material is built, it will have great potential.”
"Then what do you want to do? Should you choose Mombasa or Dar es Salaam?" Constantine asked.
Lighthouses are naturally built in ports, and landmarks are for people to see, so Constantine naturally thought of Dar es Salaam and Mombasa, the two East African international ports. These two cities are the only ones in East Africa. Two cities that display the features of East African countries to the outside world.
“Just choose Dar es Salaam! The weather in Mombasa is still worse.”
If it were a previous life, Mombasa would definitely be more developed than Dar es Salaam. , but in this generation, everything has fallen apart, especially after the Central Railway was completed ahead of schedule, Dar es Salaam is far ahead in development, and other cities in the Central Province are also assisting.
“We will build a ‘civilized lighthouse’ this time!”
"Lighthouse of Civilization?"
This is a good name, Constantine muttered in his mind.
In fact, Ernst had an idea before and what he thought of was the name Lighthouse of Civilization. In previous lives, the West always loved to label the United States as a lighthouse of civilization.
What if there really is a "lighthouse of civilization" in East Africa? Ernst thought it was interesting to think about it. If someone brings up the concept of a civilizational lighthouse again, they can't avoid the "civilizational lighthouse" in East Africa. It's just different from the symbolic civilizational lighthouse. East Africa really is A lighthouse, in the physical sense, is this considered a ploy?
(End of this chapter)