wagner

i saw a performance of "das rheingold", the first of four operas in wagner's ring cycle. i was really tired and contemplating on going to the opera, but i decided to go eventhough I might fall asleep. i have never listened to the opera before which is not good ever. mind you, the opera is in one act and it is 2.5 hours long. and there is not a lot of beautiful arias and uplifting endings; you only applaude at the end of this 2.5 hours.

the production was absolutely beautiful. the set was magical and the special effects were done amazingly well. i enjoyed the music when i was not napping, and i specifically liked waton, the ruler of the gods' role. but damn, 2.5 hours is a long time when you are not prepared for the kind of music.

so i decided that i'm going to study wagner a little bit. i chose "die walkure", the second and the most popular opera in the ring cycle, about 5.5 hours long including the intermissions. i had a book with commentaries and printed out the libretto and i downloaded the music so i can listen to it on my bus ride to dc. i listened to the first act of the opera, about 1 hour long. but i say it took me about 4 hours to read the text, listen to the music, play back to hear the leitmotives and just get a grip on the music. as i said, the style of singing is so very different from the "bel canto" i usually listen to, but when you actually get to know the music, you eally enjoy it. the story is also very interesting. So I gradually studied all the acts and listened to the music.

i went to a performance of die walkure last night at the metropolitan opera. and now i understand why you need to study the opera before you go. i knew the words well so i did not need to constantly read them on the screen and I could concentrate on the music. and this was totally rewarding. comparing last night's performance with the ones I have heard before and hearing interpretations of the different singers, gave me something to look forward to.

it's good to do some homework sometimes, is the moral lesson of this post!

back at work. work is slow and i don't like it this way. i decided to enjoy my summer though, so i bought a yoga dvd and i'm trying to do some yoga at home. it's fun and it makes me shaky sometimes.

my sponsored kid christopher sent me a letter, which was written by his mom cause he can't write well just yet, about how he is doing and how school is going for him and that he likes to draw and play footbal. maybe i go to guatemala one day soon and visit this kid. i wanted to write him back but my spanish has really diminished over the past year. i need to take classes again.

i'm dreaming about my next vacation already. not that it is anywhere close but it aint hurt to dream. maybe i go to the boundary waters again, i really want to, but i also want to go other places. there are so many places i want to see. i wish i was 21 again...

i'm at heathrow. it's funny how much i don't want to come back. although i love new york and living there, i do not want to come back. not a bit...

oh well....

bazzar

i went to tehran's great bazaar yesterday for the first time. it's weird that i've never been there before. my mom has always wanted to take us there but she always faced with terrible resistance. i used to think the bazaar is a noisy crowded place with useless stuff. it was not like that at all; it was clean and there were a lot of good stuff, and they were cheaper than anywhere else in the town. it was also interesting in almost any way.



i wanted to buy a rug. my relative knew some one there who had a shop, or "hojreh" as they call it in the bazaar. it was the first day after the new year's holidays and at 12pm when we got there they were just opening their shops. a lot of them haven't even bothered to come. i guess because it was right after the craziness of the end of the year when people shop like there is no tomorrow. in every open shop 3 or 4 people were chatting or reading the newspapers. there were too many people doing nothing, or not much.



the rest room was unbearably dirty and stinky even for iran's standards. i got dizzy when i stepped in. i was thinking these people are among the richest people in this country, if every shop in this yard paid a dollar each month, they could have the bathroom squeaky clean. but they don't really care...how could they not though?



i bought a pretty rug. it has a reddish background and there is some blue in the corners. the guy (haji) who sold the rug was really nice and he chatted with us about his kids and living in the states and how many many years ago he has gone on a trip to germany with my grandpa. he said these days people are difficult to travel with; they don't go just anywhere and they need to eat halal meat.



i was having a hard time deciding which rug i like the most and haji told me: if i was going to ask one out of three sisters for marriage, i would be confused as well. that's why you should just take one home and see if you like it. and i liked the sister i borough home.



we spent 7 hours in the bazaar. we also ate a lot of snacks which was just awesome. good times.

i noticed that i've lost all of my jaywalking skills. i can not cross the street like a tehranian! new yorkers think they know how to jaywalk, but they really don't. the most they do is crossing the road when the light is red and there's no car. in tehran though, people cross the street when the cars are coming at them. i mean they are coming at you full speed, like they are actually trying to take you out.

the thing is, pedestrians are vulnerable and that makes them bold. you know the driver is not going to risk it; he is going to slam on the breaks at the last minute. they are not going to hit you because they are scared of the consequences, so you just cross the street being faithful in their fear. and as irrational as it is, it is rational. fear is powerful; it is the reason people do a lot of things. on the other hand, there is always human error, and exceptions. it's improbable but it is still there. and it's not very wise to risk your life when human error is so huge of a factor. but there is really no other way to cross the streets in tehran: you will be waiting forever. there is also that adrenaline rush.

i miss the calm of my own place. i miss being able to sleep whenever i want and not needing to speak with anyone. it's a little overwhelming to be around people all the time. the same way that being alone all the time is overwhelming.

i saw an old friend today. we talked over a nice bottle of wine. about everything and nothing, and listened to maria callas singing lucia. he is one of those people whom i met and felt like i've known for a long time. it's not every day that you meet someone and the conversation just flows.