Uruguayos

I just got back from another culture shock experience. This time, 5 days in and around Montevideo, Uruguay. The plan was a gathering of Fellows, Program directors and young people (1 each per program) from 7 countries around Latin America (and Ashoka) who would share their methodologies, ideas and cultures to form a network and some sort of replicable product. I was a little bit of everything: younger than some of the "youth," a program director and Ashoka rep.

Here's a picture of the Caraguatalatinos (our street name) at the beach at sunset:
















We're from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Columbia, Mexico, Uruguay, Venezuela, and the US (me).

It was an intense week of new friends, new ideas and a recurring theme of subtle anti-"Americanism." I learned some slang, some songs, and got a crash course on Latin American identity. We stayed in "the country" in cabins that, at first, didn't have hot water. We ate, drank, danced, sang, but mostly spent from 9am to 8pm in meetings (presentations and discussions).

We were there just in time for International Tango day, so we got one night on the town. The rest of the nights we entertained ourselves with guitar, theater, and international drinks. We even had a little love bloom between Bolivia and Uruguay (well, the representatives). It was sad to say goodbyes in the end, but we're still very much in touch. This could be good for the program and was probably good for me.

I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next....

Gracias a la Vida

A little Thanksgiving ode to the CaraguataLatinos:

An Excerpt from "Gracias a La Vida" by Violetta Parra

Gracias a la vida, que me ha dado tanto.
Me ha dado la risa, me ha dado el llanto.
Así yo distingo dicha de quebranto,
Los dos materiales que forman mi canto,
Y el canto de ustedes que es el mismo canto.
Y el canto de todos que es mi propio canto.

An attempted translation, "Thank You to Life"

Thank you to life, which has given me so much.
It has given me laughter and it has given me longing.
With them I distinguish happiness and pain -
The two materials from which my songs are formed,
And your song, which is my same song.
And everyone's song, which is my very song.

Adventures in Agra and Beyond (Part III)

Here's what we did after hours (not much time):

Night 1: The Times of India staff that we shared the retreat house with threw a party on the lawn and invited us (mostly 'cause 6 people on the dance floor gets lonely). We danced and drank some in an eerie mix of nightclub lights, fog, and American and Indian techno music.

Night 2: Dinner at Sohini's house with the team -- beautiful view of the city, good food and good company.

Night 3: 2 hours at the tourist market. Bought a few nice things, but got some unwanted harassment by one of the vendors. People warned me Delhi guys were aggressive, but seriously!
Dinner at Anujas with the Delhi Fellows -- exhausted.

Day 4: our ONE free day!!!!

Went to Agra bright and early with some of the crew. First stop, Akbar's tomb where we had a terrible, semi-deaf guide, but took pics and saw monkeys. Then off to the Agra Fort -- beautiful. I got to play around with my camera features (yay for Sepia), even. Finally, after lunch (yummy veggie Thali) we paid a visit to the Taj Mahal. My camera died a few minutes in, but the best part were the people, the cool breeze, and the romance.

Night 5: Chill night in. We watched Baraka (the best and the worst photos set to music)

Night 6: Dinner, a few hour nap at Scott's palace and then off to the airport at 4am

Adventures in Agra and Beyond (Part II)

Ashoka Staff from around the world gathered in Delhi to set strategy and share experiences in Youth Social Entrepreneurship (new name pending) programs as part of the Innovative Learning Initiative (new name pending) -- the initiative of Ashoka that works with areas of learning and Youth. Meet the ILI Global team:

Gretchen (Global office in DC): Director of ILI and now, ED of Youth Venture
Tia (Global)
Gared, Dolon and Roshan (just left): India Team
Hut and Lek: Thailand Team
Chimene and Hlanga: South Africa Team
Olivia: Brazil (my teammate in Latin America)

We met, collaborated, strategized, and ate and had tea. That basically continued the whole week, though by week's end we were all exhausted. At least we have a stronger team and the beginnings of a strategic plan.

Adventures in Agra and Beyond (Part I)

For those of you who've been stalking my blog to no avail, this influx of posts should make up for the recent dearth. Here is a recount of my recent travels to India and DC. My adventures in Uruguay begin tomorrow.

It began on November 7, 2005 with an early arrival at Benito Juarez International Airport (MEX). When I tried to check in they told me either a) my ticket was a paper ticket (bad news) or b) my ticket hadn't been paid for (equally bad news).

Since I didn't have the $6000 to buy last-minute tickets to Delhi, I spent the next two hours playing phone tag with the travel agent in DC (thanks to the Continental Baggage office for free international phone calls). It turns out nobody had ever confirmed and paid for my tickets. Through a miracle of travel agent genius (thanks, Jocelyn) she got me a new itinerary leaving 2 hours after my initial flight for under $2000. It did however have more stops and shaved the first and last days off my stay, but it got me there in time.

After a day in DC where I picked up paper tickets and headed to the airport, and of course, after 24 hours of flights through NY and London (my first time), I made it to Delhi around 11pm and waited for the Thai team until 1am. We went straight to the retreat house and collapsed until our meetings began at 9am.

Stay tuned for ILI* Global Team Meeting aka "Adventures in Agra and Beyond (Part II) "

* I'll provide a little background next time

Chez Lorraine

I now have a place to call home. Check it out:





The kitchen is through that white door and the guest room and laundry room is through the kitchen.

The bedrooms and bathrooms are to the right down the hall. I'll post a pic of my room when I have a bed.

Dia de los Muertos

Feliz Dia de los Muertos!

Highlights from the Offrenda at the Museo de Dolores Olmedo:

In Mexico people celebrate the Day of the Dead by building altars and bringing offerings of candles, flowers, food, and anything and everything to their loved one's graves. It's a national holiday, but the custom is regional, so not everyone celebrates this way. Halloween is still celebrated with kids begging for candy and money dressed in costumes. Thus concludes today's culture lesson.