4 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days

Last week I saw the Romanian film 4 months, 3 weeks, & 2 days playing at Alcazar. This is probably the most important motion picture I have seen all year, and believe me that I have been well on my way to earning the Cineplanet gold card for a while now. (Meaning I go to the movies 2-3 times a week).

4m, 3w, & 2d was absolutely perfect as a film, and the story was riveting though admittedly not something that I felt so comfortable watching.

Every scene was full of visual and audible information bursting with symbols and color and compassion. I think that movies taking place near the end of communism (Good Bye Lenin, for example) have such intriguing material to work with that such scene development is possible. The sets put forth a lot of details about the era that give the viewer the gritty sense of what it was like for these young students living in Romania.

The film is delicately layered with images/scenes of intercourse and motherhood that really get at the center of the film's subject matter. To me the most important and impressive scene was one that I was about to discard as lengthy and boring before I realized what was going on. When Otilia goes to Adi's house for dinner and the camera focuses on Adi and Otilia as they don't say a word though Adi's parents and uncles tell family stories and compare today's (1987) audacious youth with their own. When I stopped trying to read the fast moving subtitles and just saw the beautiful faces of Otilia and Adi. The scene segues into an argument that Otilia and Adi have over what they would do if Otilia were to end up in Gabita's situation. It's a scary though accurate example of male ignorance of birth control and the actual choices that women have to make and the ones that they have no control over. This is why this scene to me is the most important one of the film: this open discussion of what if: the need for more information from one's partner. It is one of the least shocking scenes of the film, though I think it leaves the viewer with the most to take away. Discussions about birth control need to be existent and open. Women need to be shown the respect by men and other women and society to make the decision that is best for them -- and it is a woman's decision--whether it be abstinence, using a contraceptive, having an abortion at a suitable juncture, or having a baby. If a woman is as daft as Gabita when it comes to making this decision, I pray for more Otilias, responsible partners, and widespread and comprehensive sexual education in this world.

Vacation

Foreword: I know I have not written in this blog this year like I had planned, but I suffer from a stressful schedule and a severe lack of inspiration.

After working at my newest job for 9 months, I finally have a real vacation. I traveled for a week to Arequipa (1st time) and Puno (2nd time). Now I don't know what to do with myself. I can tell that I have been working a lot because even as I write this I start to type the common phrases that I write about 50 times a day at work (ex. 1st choice), rather than what I actually want to type (1st time).

In short I loved Arequipa. The city is beautiful and the people from Carlos's adolescent past were very heartwarming. Special thanks to Luis Miguel for his vocabulary lesson and sharing his sangre (home-brew pisco) with us and to Linda for the best lunch turned pisco afternoon and evening I have had in a while. It was cool to see Juanita, the frozen Andean girl found in the mountains close to Arequipa as well as the Molino de Sabandia, which reminded me how enjoyable it is to escape into the country. El Convento de Santa Catalina was more than I expected and the view and queso helado at Yanahuara were quite refreshing. I would go back for an extended trip to visit the Colca Canyon, the Cotahuasi Canyon, and Misti as well as Corire, home the the great people I met. For restaurants, El Turko II was excellent (the first ostrich meat I ever tried), El Colibri was adequate and Tradicion Arequipena was representative of Arequipa cuisine. Nothing was as tasty as the fried chicken at 9 pm on Sunday, the final course of our lunch at Linda's house, though we still need to go back for the adobo.

This time around I got a deeper impression of Puno and Lake Titicaca, though I still didn't get to do everything that I wanted due to logistics. Kathy and I made it to Taquile Island and Copacabana on the Bolivian side, though I really feel like I missed out on visiting the Sun Island via catamaran. I give the Bolivians credit for making immigration the easiest and least sketchy border experience thus far -- I'm only missing Colombia and Brazil now. The food at Incabar was delicious as well as the food as Casa Andina Private Collection's restaurant, though Incabar was much more generous for a lower price. Colon Inn was comfortable and their restaurant was good as well. In terms of heat it was fine. One must keep in mind that it is very cold at night in the altiplano and you need to bundle up. Do not forget sunblock during the day, however.

I came back to Lima in time to see Wanted with my sister and Susana. I found it to be very entertaining visually, though it did not take my mind very far. That night there ended up being a party on my terrace and we have almost cleaned up entirely from that. For now as I mentioned I don't know what to do with myself. I am happy to be back in Lima with Carlos and Mapache, though the weather is absolutely depressing which doesn't leave me with much of an urge to go out and do anything.

We'll just have to see what tomorrow brings...