Languages

“Il pleure dans mon coeur comme il pleure sur la ville”

-Paul Verlaine

does any one have any favorite lines or poems theyd like to share?

The term Candomblé is a combination of two words from the Central African Kikongo language: Ka and ndonbé, together meaning “custom of the black people.” The drums play an essential and dominant role in Candomblé ceremonies. The master drummer plays the rum, which improvises intricate variations. The rumpi and lé play relatively unchanging patterns as they repeat one steady rhythm. The master drummer or alabê (Yoruba alá agbè) always has overall control of the ceremony, so it is important that drummers never go into a trance.”

-Gerard Taylor (Capoeira: The Jogo de Angola from Luanda to Cyberspace)

I highly recomend this book to anyone who finds african culture interesting.

Translating the heading: “The ship turned over, in the depths of the sea there is treasure.”

This traditional folkloric capoeira song is an apt metaphorical lyric to represent Kongolese religious ideas that have been described by T.J. Desch Obi. He explains that the counter-clockwise roda, or elola, was essential to central African cosmology, which “linked human combat to the interplay of spiritual forces from across the kalunga, or the threshold between the lands of the living and the dead.”

Kalunga in Central Africa, in N’Bunda language, meant the sea. The word also means rivers and the kingdom of the ancestors. In Kongolese cosmology, the counter-clockwise circle represents a solar cycle. If a cross were drawn within the circle, the horizontal east-to-west line is the kalunga. The kalunga divides the material world from the spirit world or afterlife. East represented birth, north was the peak of strength, west was death at the intersection with the kalunga line, and regeneration came at the southern extreme of the cross.”

-Gerard Taylor (Capoeira: The Jogo de Angola from Luanda to Cyberspace)

more will come tomorrow on this theory

heres some of the capoeira from brasil day:

here is some of the pagode (paw-gO-djee) from yesterday, the capoeria is coming up tomorrow i think.

today i hung out at brasil day. this cultural festival was held at the la brea tar pits from 12-6, sorry i hadnt informed you earlier, i have been kinda consumed with school, i have two tests on monday and a bunch of preformance peices coming up, yikes! anyways… brazil day was awesome! there was pagode, a style of street samba that developed in rio de janeiro, there was forró, a style of dance and music that derrived from baião, and capoeira, the famous brazilian martial art. i also picked up one of these:

  a tamborim.

they are really fun to play. expect videos today or tomorrow of some of the cool preformances at brasil day.

Bem-te-vi

i miss atabaques

today im going to post 5 of my favorite engrish photos (expect plenty more). for those of you not familiar with the concept of engrish check out engrish.com. hope you enjoy!

be sure to click the thumbnail and read them.

The European Commission have just announced an agreement whereby
English
will be the official language of the EU rather than German, which was
the
other possibility. As part of the negotiations, Her Majesty’s
government
conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has
accepted
a 5-year phase in plan that would be known as “EuroEnglish”:

In the first year, “s” will replace the soft “c”– Sertainly this will
make
the sivil servants jump with joy. The hard “c” will be dropped in
favor
of the “k”. This should klear up konfusion and keyboards kan have 1
less
letter.

There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year, when the
troublesome
“ph” wil be replaced with the “f”. This will make words like
“fotograf”
20% shorter.

In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expected
to
reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible.
Governments
will enkorage the removal of double letters, which have always been a
deterent
to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horible mes of the
silent
“e”’s in the language is disgraceful, and they should go away.

By the 4th yar peopl wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing “th”
with
“z” and “w” with “v”. During ze fifz yar, ze unesesary “o” kan be
dropd
from vords kontaining “ou” and similar changes vud of kors be aplid to
ozer
kombinations of leters. After zis fifz yer, ve vil hav a reli sensibl
riten
styl. Zer vil be no mor trubls or difikultis and evrivun vil find it
ezi
tu understand ech ozer.

ZE DREM VIL FINALI KUM TRU!!

ok so im finally going to let you guys in. i have recently finished writing a peice called (joue des rabeaux[game of the fairies]) a kinda rough raft midi of it is on My Myspace go check it out, let me know what you think!
Half Moon

well im finally after quite a while posting to tell about my return to the united states. its been a great rewarding trip, and amazing experience. i will miss it a lot. to commemorate my return tonight at capoeira i used a few of the more difficult moves iv been learning in the roda. i used an au sem maos (no handed cartwheel) macaco (literally monkey, its like a back walkover/backwards cartwheel) and armada-martello (540 flying kick). im gonna miss my friends a lot. :((. now i go home to paying rent and going to school! yehaw! oh well. so how are all you guys doing?
Bem-te-vi

so here is it, the main event for today me (and my sister on her site) getting pwned in the roda:

as a secondary treat here are three freaking awesome acrobatic acts done by some of my instructors for the batizado:

Axé

Bem-te-vi

the batizado (baptism) at my capoeira school (ginga mundo) started yesterday. we had a lecture on the word mandinga in capoeira. then after we had a class and roda led by mestre nenel, a son of mestre bimba (the guy who invented capoeira regional the most widely spread type of capoeira) its really cool, im taking my camera today so i can film some of the capoeira angola. i cant wait. im very very excited.

here is an article on mandinga and some interesting concepts in capoeira (taken from http://www.capoeiramichigan.com/Mandinga.html ):

“Different than the literal translation given by the Brazilian Portuguese dictionary, the word Mandinga has its own meaning in the capoeira world. The Aurelio dictionary translates the word mandinga as a “magic” or “spell.” In some sense that meaning applies to capoeira, but in a different context.

Mandinga in the capoeira environment means, amongst many things, the hidden power that one has to disguise their real intention and to trick the opponent. It is a way to invoke some forces to blur the opponent’s vision of reality almost like hypnotizing him/her into a trance-like state so that they can’t see what is coming. It can also be magic, like a trick that confuses and distracts the opponent. However, much more than any of the above meanings.

The word mandinga has a very special meaning as a way of referring to capoeiristas that are very expressive in their game and know how to embellish their jogo* with beautiful and impressive gestures. These gestures are sometimes very theatrical, sometimes like a primitive dance, and sometimes imitate all kinds of animals (e.g. monkey, jaguar, snake, eagle, bull, and many others).

When a capoeirista is reffered to as being a “mandingueiro” it can be considered as one of the highest complements that could be given. It implies that one is experienced and mature with a good sense of humor and yet dangerous and not to be fooled by appearances. Sometimes the word mandinga is also used to imply that someone put a spell on a player and for that he/she can’t play well or is not doing well in some sense. For example, a person might make a comment after realizing that he/she is not having a good day by saying “Jogaram mandinga em mim” meaning “someone put a spell on me” (that’s why I am not succeeding with my endeavors). This meaning is metaphorical but used frequently in a positive way as when we say “ele tem mandinga no jogo” meaning that he has mandinga in his game. In other words, his game is rich and expressive, difficult to figure out, but easy and great to appreciate.

I would risk saying that besides the word capoeira and ginga, the word mandinga must be the next most used word in capoeira songs and literature. This word is intimately related to malícia** and axé*** which are also words of exquisite and intriguing meanings. However, malícia and axé are qualities that can be separated from mandinga, but mandinga can not be separated from them. For in order to have mandinga, you have to have malícia and axé. On the other hand you could have axé or malícia but lack having mandinga. To have mandinga incorporates having axé and malícia as well.

Mandinga is a powerful, meaningful word that helps to rescue the essence of the spirit of capoeira and for that reason, after doing extensive research to find out if there was any group using this name, I decided to use it for our group because to my surprise there were no other Capoeira Mandinga groups in the world. Since in the capoeira world we try not to copy anyone else and instead choose to be creative and unique, the name Mandinga gave us the honor to be associated with the biggest interest I have always had in capoeira, which was to rescue the expression and the spirit of the art.

Axé, Malícia, and muita Mandinga!

Mestre Marcelo

*jogo is the capoeira game

**malícia means among other things having the street smart experience that gives the capoeiristas the cleverness to realize tricky situations that are not very evident yet. It also implies that someone having malícia could be a difficult person to figure out and a potential dangerous opponent.

***axé signifies the life force. It also symbolizes the force we can give or pass on to someone and for that reason we often say axé to people as they are leaving as if we would be saying go with the life force or be with the life force that surrounds you.”

one of the moves im working on

one of the moves im working on

first thing on the agenda today: erica (my sister) has a very important blog today so check out her site
http://ansusberkana.voxtropolis.com

so this is a video of planeta zoo, this is a petting zoo in brazil. freaking awesome.

a short portuguese lesson:

Bird= Pássaro
Macaw= Arara
Duck= Pato
Chicken= Galinha
Rooster= Galo
Dove= Pomba
Vulture= Urubu
Armadillo= Tatu

ok so there were no urubus in the video but i just like that word.

O meu Deus como é que se vive
neste mundo enganador
Fala muito é falador
Fala pouco ele é manhoso
Come muito ele é guloso
come pouco ele é sovino
Quando briga é desordeiro
Se apanha ele é mofino
Trabalho teve o marimbondo
De fazer casa no capim
Se o vento leva ela
Marimbondo leva afim
Caveira quem te matou
foi a lingua meu senhor
os conselhos que eu lhe dava
você achava ruim
e eu sempre lhe avisava
de inveja matou Caim
Camaradinha, viva meu Deus….
Eh, viva meu Deus camará
Eh viva meu mestre
Eh, viva meu mestre camará…

O my God how to live
In this treacherous world
Talk a lot and you’re bigmouthed
Talk a little and you’re shy
Eat a lot and you’re greedy
Eat a little then you’re stingy
If you fight you’re a troublemaker
If you get beat up you’re weak
The wasp had a lot of work
Building his house in the grass
If the wind takes it away
The wasp is done with
Skull, who killed you?
It was the tongue, sir
The advices I gave you
You thought they were wrong
And I always warned you
That Kain killed out of jealousy
My friend, long live God…
Eh, long live God, camarà
Eh long live my master
Eh, long live my master camarà

Eu não sou daqui
Marinheiro só
Eu não tenho amor
Marinheiro só
Eu sou da Bahia
Marinheiro só
De São Salvador
Marinheiro só

Marinheiro, marinheiro,
Marinheiro só
Quem te ensinou a nadar
Marinheiro só
Foi o tombo do navio
Marinheiro só
Ou foi o balanço do mar
Marinheiro só

La vem, la vem,
Marinheiro só
Como ele vem façeiro
Marinheiro só
Como todo de branco
Marinheiro só
Com seu bonezinho
Marinheiro só

I am not from here
Lonely sailor
I don’t have a lover
Lonely sailor
I am from Bahia
Lonely sailor
I am from São Salvador
Lonely sailor

Sailor, sailor
Lonely sailor
Who taught you how to swim?
Lonely sailor
Was it the tumbling of the ship?
Lonely sailor
Or was it the rolling of the sea
Lonely sailor

There he comes, there he comes
Lonely sailor
How he comes so pleasant
Lonely sailor
All in white
Lonely sailor
With his little hat
Lonely sailor

ok so i havent updated in quite a while so heres my update. in 2 days im leaving for brazil. ill be there for 6 months studying capoeira, brazilian juijitsu, and language. it should be a lot of fun. my sister will also be going, though she will be there for a full year. soo, haha, theres my boring update. cya soon. (PS there are no starbucks’ in brazil!!!!!!)
Half Moon

“L’Amour est un oiseau rebelle”

Half Moon

today was my first time in paris alone. what a day… i bought my carte d’orange, all in french. then took the train into paris. i got off at st. michel/notre dame. notre dame is soooooo pretty, its an amazing peice of art. then i walked around and found the greatly needed starbucks. since i was freezing i bought an ice cold frappacine au café, caramel. i ordered it all in french and she didnt even respond in english this time! haha. then walked around more, bought a cord for my camera, that isnt the one i needed, but at least i got to use my french to buy it. then i went to the louvre’s garden and took lots of pix. after that i was getting hungry, so i stopped at one of the many street vendors and got un panini de jambon et un boisson (a ham panini and a drink) for 5 euros. the lady was extremely helpful there, i wasnt expecting that at all. and i understood every word she said, she spoke so nicely. then i decided to make my way home after a stop at st. michel. now this is the highlight story. im sitting in my bus minding my own buisness, when two young middle eastern boys come up to me, one sits in front of me and one to my right, and im next to the window. they were probably 15 or 16, and they wanted me to sign some petition or something. while i was trying to explain that i wasnt from paris the boy to my right pick pockets me! the boy in front of me tells me “he took ur thing” so nervousluy i collect my things and follow him down the train to get his friend. im not sure if theyre in this together or if its only his friend. so we catch up to his friend in the next car, and he comes down and kid A (the one who didnt steal my stuff) says “donnez” (gvie it back)
i reach out my hand to get it, and he (kid B, the one who did steal my stuff) , thinking hes very funny, sticks out his hand and shakes my hand. kid A insists furthur “donnez!”
kid B says “one euro?” now hes trying to get me to bribe me. i look at him straight in the eyes and say “donnez moi” (give it to me)
Kid B- “one euro”
me- “c’est moi” (thats mine)
kid A- “donnez”
after a bit more insistence hes still refusing and kid A tells me i should punch kid B! and kis B sheepishlly gives a dumb look and puts up his fists and pretends to box making fun. then give another offer “le coke?” now hes telling me to give him my coke! kid A says “no” he think i shouldnt give it to him. after furthur insistence to give him my coke i say “no, donnez moi” and he finally gives it to me, and they both leave. i check all my stuff, everythings good.
man…. i almost got to fight him! had he only thrown one punch… oh well, maybe next time, and next time ill watch my stuff a bit more carefully.
Half Moon

a thought i had from watching narnia for the second time (with french subtitles). when the kids all go
to narnia together and meet the beavers, mrs. beaver says “i never thought id live to see the day!” and isnt that the case for most christians (and probably jews before christ), we dont think well see the day, but we really have to be like the beavers, living with hope and believe that actually, its happening right now. god is working his will in the world this very moment.
Half Moon

this thursday i leave for france. i will be stopping in munich, saying au revoir to my sister, and going onward to paris. im very excited, im hoping to pick up a ton of french. it is surely one of my favorite languages. well, a beintot!
Half Moon