Looking at Lima through fresh eyes

As most of you know, I very rarely have days when I think "Wow, I am so lucky to live in Lima". I had them all the time in Berlin, but Lima just doesn't have much to make it particularly endearing. I've been feeling sort of anti-Lima lately and wondering why I've decided to stay for another year, so this couldn't have come at a better time. I was walking along the Malecon this morning on my way to book club and I was looking out at the ocean thinking "Wow, I am so lucky to live on the Pacific Ocean. I never imagined I would ever live in a city that sits right on the ocean, particularly the Pacific." Of course, it was gray, hazy and polluted, but it is still the Pacific and I felt pretty good about it this morning. I need these good Lima days to keep me going and it was nice to feel this way today. Things are looking up!

The Bar Harbor Fire, 1947

My mom just sent me a package that included a newspaper article about the devastating fire that destroyed parts of Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island 60 years ago, in October 1947. My dad's parents were living Hulls Cove (a tiny little village just before you reach Bar Harbor) at the time and I remember seeing a book about the fire at my grandparents house and asking them about it. My grandmother told me how the fire went up one side of their house and down the other and she had a picture that was in Life magazine of all of their belongings in a pile in the middle of the town baseball field because they had to evacuate their house.

It is interesting to me that the anniverary of this fire, which is a big deal in the history of Maine, is happening right at the same time as the devastating fires in California. In the Maine fire, over 17,000 acres burned, 10,000 in Acadia National Park alone. The damage was over $23 million, including the loss of many of the summer "cottages" of the rich and famous on the outskirts of Bar Harbor. It took over a month for the fire to be completely put out - it burned out of control for a week, then continued to smolder for another 3 weeks.

I've spent some part of nearly ever summer of my life in Bar Harbor and I've always found this fire fascinating, partly because I know my grandparents lived through it (my dad would be born 2 years later in Bar Harbor) and partly because it dramatically changed the face of Bar Harbor. I can't even begin to imagine what the town looked like in its heyday with all the mansions. The fire also destroyed Jackson Laboratory, a cancer research lab, and years of cancer research were lost. Here is a photo of Bar Harbor now, the way I know and love it, but it is interesting to think about how it looked 60 years ago when the fires were coming down the hills towards the town and the water.

It is incredible how destructive a fire can be. The pictures and stories on the news about the California fires are heartbreaking. It must be so scary to be there right now - in the path of something that people have such little control over. It is interesting to me to see history repeating itself, just on a different side of the country. The combination of the current news and the newspaper article my mom sent me got me to thinking, so those are my thoughts...

Census Day

It is national census day in Peru and I have never seen Lima this quiet. No one is allowed to be outside their homes between the hours of 8am and 6pm, except tourists and emergency personnel. There isn't much advantage to being a tourist though, since nothing is open, and I mean nothing - no stores, no restaurants - and there are no cabs. It was very weird to wake up this morning and not hear anything. Lima is usually a very loud city - honking car horns, people talking very loudly, traffic, car alarms. None of that is happening today. All I hear is the occasional dog barking, and birds - who knew there were birds! And there is not a single soul on the street, at least from what I can see from my window. Even the guard who watches my street isn't there. Maybe they figure the streets should be safe today, since everyone is suppose to be home. It is a very weird experience - looking out onto empty streets and not hearing the usual city noise.

Inspiration

I am in the process of writing a paper on Jewish contributions to American popular music - the final paper for my second to last grad school class (hooray!) - and in my research I came across these great pictures of two of my favorite musicians.

Dave Brubeck - amazing jazz composer and performer. He is in his late 80s now and is still performing occasionally. I love this picture - look how the piano keyboard is reflected in his glasses. Brubeck was in the army in WWII and led an integrated band, the first example of black and white musicians playing together in a group in the military. I saw him in a video (Ken Burns' "Jazz" - amazing, I highly recommend it) and he talks about how difficult it was to come back to the States after the war and still face racial discrimination after all they had fought for in the war and all the time his band had spent touring together as a group in Europe.

How great is this picture? That is Leonard Bernstein conducting, my superhero! I love the little girl standing there, listening in wonder. I think I would have been the same way if I had had a chance to hear Bernstein conducting live. :)

Peruvian Census

So, it looks like I get to participate in the Peruvian census next weekend. Check out this notice we got from the US Embassy about it:

"Sunday, October 21, 2007 is National Census Day in Peru . Peru ’s National Statistics Institute (INEI) will conduct a nationwide census on Sunday, October 21 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Embassy has been informed that all public establishments (markets, supermarkets, convenience stores, restaurants, gas stations, and all commercial establishments) will be closed during census hours. All cultural activities, sporting events, church services, and access to museums and archeological parks will be suspended during census hours. In addition, the sale and/or excessive consumption of alcohol is prohibited during the census hours. The government of Peru has directed that the population of Peru remain in their homes during census hours. U.S. citizens in Peru are subject to Peruvian law and must comply with any legal restrictions imposed by the government."

Crazy, huh? I guess it makes sense to force everyone to stay in their homes to be counted. I've never participated in a national census before, so this should be interesting. That and the fact that the census people will be speaking Spanish and I'll be speaking English. Got to love it! I can give the basics - name, age, job - in Spanish, but there is no guarantee we'll understand each other after that. I'll let you know how it goes. And obviously I'll be home between the hours of 8am and 6pm next Sunday, so feel free to give me a call. :)

Thoughts...

It has been a interesting couple of days - nothing huge, just some random things to tell you about. I am currently on a mini-vacation, which is very nice. We have Monday and Tuesday off from school - Monday is Battle of Angamos Day, a national holiday in Peru. I don't think most people, even Peruvians, actually know what the holiday is for, but according to what I have read, the Battle of Angamos was when a Peruvian ship was surrounded and captured by the Chilean navy. The Peruvian navy was unable to protect the shores and Peru and Bolivia were open to attack by Chile. This all happened during the War of the Pacific in the late 1800s. Isn't it amazing how little we all know about South American history? I'm trying to learn more and more, but it is incredible to me how we learn about European and North American history, but nothing about anyplace in the southern hemisphere. Anyway, I'll take the holiday, whatever it is for. A lot of people are traveling this weekend, but I decided to stay in Lima and get some grad school work done. My current class finishes up in 2 weeks and I have a 20 page paper to write on "Jewish contributions to American popular music" between now and then. I'm hoping to get a lot of research done this weekend and maybe even start writing. I'm also enjoying catching up on some much needed sleep.
I went to a fun event on Friday night - a new bakery tasting. The parent of one of my students is friends with this man who is opening a new bakery and they invited me to come to the opening. It was held in the ballroom of a casino nearby and it was fun to get dressed up and wander around tasting yummy pastries. The owner is Taiwanese and the food is an interesting mix of Asian and Peruvian traditions. It was a fun, random night out.
I just received an email from a friend of mine here at school and she and her husband (both teachers at FDR) are leaving Tuesday to pick up their new adopted Peruvian children! Yes, after a year of paperwork and Peruvian red tape, they are finally going to get their daughters. They decided a while ago to adopt and then, much to their surprise, found out that Angie is pregnant. So, as of February, they will have 3 daughters - a newborn, a 6 year old Peruvian girl, and her 15 year old sister. Can you imagine??? Instant huge family!! I'm really impressed with them that they are committed to adopting these girls. They said all along that they wanted older children and it is nice that the girls are actually biological sisters. The girls are currently in an orphanage in the highlands and my friends will be bringing them back to Lima next weekend. The girls don't speak any English yet, but my friends speak decent Spanish, so I'm sure they will figure out how to communicate. Crazy, huh?
That's all for now. The sun is shining, a little, and I think it is time to get out and enjoy it.

Band Photo

Here is a photo of my band performing at the Nueva Acropolis Music Competition in Lima a few weeks ago. They look pretty small on the enormous stage, but they have a great, full sound and I'm really happy with how they are playing. The tech guy at school is suppose to be putting the recording of our performance up on the school website for people to listen to, so I'll let you know what that happens. And if you check out the following link, you can see photos from the band and orchestra lunch hour performance at school: http://photos.amersol.edu.pe/HSOrchestra_2007

SPRING!

It seems that spring has finally arrived in Lima. It has been sunny, warm, and beautiful the past few days, which is a huge difference from the cold, damp weather we have been suffering through since I got back in July. And the nice weather has come at just the right time. I had a very anti-Lima weekend - lots of little annoyances and frustrations that added up to make me ready to get on the next plane for anywhere but Lima. But now the sun is shining and all of a sudden Lima, and life here, looks better.

It has been a busy month at school: my symphonic band performed at a competition in the city and made it to the finals (I don't really believe in band competitions, but they did really play amazingly well and deserved to get to the finals); the orchestra had their first performance of the year, and my first performance with them as their conductor, at a festival at another school and did well; and both groups played at a lunchtime, outdoor concert at school (I'm trying to build up interest in the performing groups and get more people to come to our concerts). In addition to all the performing committments, my IB music classes have been keeping me busy - my 12th graders are working on a couple of big projects for class that are time and labor intensive, and the 11th graders are working their way through music history and theory. All in all, it has been a great start to the school year and I am so pleased with how everything is going. I've let the school know that I am planning on coming back for next year and it is nice to be able to plan ahead and look forward to another year in this job I love.