Peligro, Peligro

At about 4:30am this morning. I heard a knock on our apartment door and then a whistle blowing. It took me a while to realize people outside were trying to get our attention. When I opened the door this middle aged woman came running up to the door yelling ¨Peligro,...words in fast spansih that went over my head... Vecino..Peligro¨ Peligro of course is danger, and Vecino is neighbor. I mangaged to ask ¿Necisita Ayudar? Do you need help. She said NO.. and then again Peligro Peligro. Then went away. There were people collecting outside the next apartment. But only out of the one building.

Because there were others outside, I abandonded the idea that this woman was just stark raving mad. Dawn finally volunteered to go outside and check it out. She figured out that it had something having to do with an electrical box. We figured it was nothing to mess around with. So all went outside. About 15 people were standing outside this building waiting for who knows what. What we deduced was that it had to be an electrical short that they were worried would cause a fire or an explosion. The weird thing was that there were no emergency vehicles, and everyone was relying on this one woman who didn´t seem exactly calm to judge how long to stand outside at 5 in the morning.

After about 10 minutes, when we saw nobody else from our building outside, we decided to go back in. Dawn yelled to the folks outside ¨Si fuego, dormimos¨and motioned to knock, intending to mean.. if theres a fire knock on our door, we might be sleeping. Later we laughed thinking of what she said, something like.. if theres a fire, then we sleep- or if theres a fire, it can sleep with us. Needless to say we haven´t figured out what the 911 protocol is in Venezuela. Don´t know if theres a centralized system for reporting emergencies.


On the Political Front,
If folks are reading and hearing alot about Chavez radical actions in the last month, remember to check the lens through which your viewing things. Chavez has accelerated the move towards a socialism for the 21st century through his moves to nationalize water, electic, communications, and petroleum activities. He has been granted the ability to pass laws by decree withing certain legisilative areas for a specified time period. And his communications minister has said one of the main opposition TV stations (RCTV) would not have its broadcast license renewed. These are reported by much of the US press on a negative light. Of course. Take a look at Venezuelanalysis.com for a look at some of the background to each of the decisions and why they are part of the very positive trend towards a popular socialism that fosters grassroots power and economic democracy.

More US War Criminals Spouting Lies about Chavez and Venezuela

John Negroponte, former ambassador to occupied Iraq, and party to horrendous human rights violations in Honduras and Nicaragua, is spouting crap about Chavez and Venezuela again.
From Democacy Now!
¨Back in Washington, Chavez has come under new criticism from National Intelligence Director John Negroponte. On Tuesday, Negroponte said Chavez is a threat to democracy who exports “radical populism.” Negroponte was speaking before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which is considering his nomination to become deputy secretary of state.¨

Wasn´t Negroponte implicated in shit having to do with Iran Contra? This is the problem with not having a real opposition party in Washington, we can´t rely on democrats to remove war criminals from power. (indeed in many cases the democrats are war criminals) Now Negroponte actually has a platform where he can use the word Democracy. What a perversion. I shouldn´t act so surprised, this keeps happening over and over.....

Merida rambling on....

Yes zarha did navigate solo by bus from the zoo in Merida back to our apartment. She insisted the zoo was terrible and stormed off (once we gave her money for the bus.) Its not that andy and I like zoos but the zoo is built up into the mountains and we liked the trails, waterfalls and exploring the scene. I think navigating solo is a great experience for zarha. She is very competent about finding her way around and I think this has been great pre-training for her year abroad when she is a teenager. Hey, isn't that right around the corner? how old is she now? 12.5. wow! Zarha was great about trying the meringue dance class and for a gringo child was impressive! I cant say the same for me or Andy. haha. Zarha went alone afterwards to one of her favorite computer spots. It is funny how independent she is, when even the local Venezuelans wont walk alone here after dark. Its not dangerous in Merida. We have been living here a month and walk the streets all the time any hour of the night. However, the local families will walk or drive their 19yr daughter a block to her job!

I have been filming a lot the past two weeks working on the Venezuela sign DVD. I have found another small photo copied book of Venezuela signs and have met some interesting deaf folks and one interpreter. I did some filming at the local television station, a behind the scenes of the interpreter working during the news hour. She is a 19 yr old interpreter who knows venezuelan sign language because here parents are deaf. However the professional ethic is different here and when I went to the university to film I saw just how much the role of the interpreter is transcended. The interpreter answered students questions directly, handed out papers, clarified the teachers meaning without clarifing with the teacher. I think that is in part because there is no official training for interpreters here and they have not yet distinguished the role of the interpreter. The filming has been fun except I left my great camera in Caracas and I am using a crappy little camera that has been frustrating. I have attended a local sign class taught by a hard of hearing local and her class is always packed! People are really eager to learn sign here because there is a large deaf community in Merida. At the University of the Andes (ULA)there are about 40 deaf students. They are all enrolled in the same degree program for education. As far as I can tell there is only one interpreter at the university. It is common that she does not show up and one of the hard of hearing students often interprets for the class. She says she doesn't get paid but ends up working a lot.
I love the aesthetic of the ULA surrounded by mountains and the building don't have enclosed walls, which is very common here, evertyhing is open and airy and sunny. Plants in boxes line every corridor and level of the building, it looks more like a botanical garden.
However, the same laid back phenomena of time played into my visit here as it did at the Bolivarian University in Caracas. the class was suppose to start at 3pm and it was close to 4pm before the teacher, interpreter and all the students showed up. This limited my filming time because I had a Spanish class that afternoon. I cant imagine working here when NOTHING starts when it is suppose to. It is so strange to my North American time senses but as a non working person here, it doesn't bother me much.

We leave Monday to travel a different route across the country back to Caracas.
I have a meeting with the director of the language program at the university and I plan on filming more for the sign project. We have decided to spend our last week or so on the beaches most likely on Margarita island. We need to absorb as much sun and warmth as possible to last us the duration of that horrible thing called WINTER, when we return. That is unquestionably one of the worst words. Winter, war, work....whoa! Actually work is what I am looking forward to! I have had many dreams of being back at Sorenson and I really miss interpreting. I find myself trying to interpret here from Spanish to English even when I am not needed and when I don't even understand everything fully! ha. I just love to inform people of things....even if its misinformation. haha.

we will be here for carnival, yet another festival here. more fireworks I guess. actually This is the festival with lots of bull fighting, none of us want to see that. Merida has been in a perpetual state of celebration for La Paradura del Nino Jesus. Basically its like an extra 2 months (January and February) of celebrating Jesus. They take the baby Jesus out of the manger thing, which is actually the size of a large doll and they walk him around singing followed by folks with musical instruments. Everyone kisses the doll and return him eventually to his cradle. He looms in size over the other figures in that manger thing. (what the hell is that called?) I didn't attend any of the rituals but we have seen many different groups throughout all of January carolling and walking the streets with the doll and candles. Its actually a bit creepy. I saw a women of about 80 yrs short and hunched over carry this baby doll Jesus like a baby. truthfully it freaked me out. Of course its all punctuated by insane amounts of fireworks. I cant over emphasize how obnoxious I find this. Its not a few colorful fireworks off in the distance but this m80 style bottle rockets set off right by the doors of the apartments and homes very late in the evening! it is a very loud city and it has made sleeping some nights challenging.
despite that and the aggressive traffic which is really mild compared to Caracas I will miss this place. We had a pretty yummy sushi dinner (for mountain sushi) last night and went out with friends from the language school. We are meeting the most interesting travelers. I guess they tend to be a dynamic bunch, those who travel.
I can dream and I do.....
we could have a beautiful home in the *quiet* mountains here only 20 minutes from Merida.
this would be my reirment destination...
ok, I'm of to the market and then filming for the sign project.
I had fun buying everyone hippy style jewelery in my favorite hippy vendor plaza yesterday. I love supporting the artisans that make it their life to be creative and travel all over south America.
fun things....
love out to you all