Another voyage in space and time. (Not again?!)
A quick nap. Casa de las campanas. House of bells. Tlalpan. 2017. (I liked the previous colour better.)
The eyebrow workshop. Paris. 2015.
Maasaï warriors. Amboseli National Park, Kenya. 1967.
Chinelos dancers. Two weeks ago, literally around the corner of our house. There are many traditional dances in Mexico in the villages, developed over the past centuries to blend pre-Colombian and Spanish customs. The word Chinelo comes from Nahuátl xineloquie, disguised. The masks – once in wood, now in fabric – are made to mock the Spaniards’ beard and uplifted, over-confident chin.
Solitude. Baroque church, 17th century. State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. 1975. (My second trip to Brazil. I’ll come back to that in another post.)
The drunken boat. Arthur Rimbaud. 1871. Saint-Sulpice is just around the corner. Paris. 2015.
I followed for full months, a-like a vileness
Hysterical, the swell, charging on the reef,
Dreaming not that the luminous feet of Marys
Could force the muzzle of lazy Oceans!
My own… hasty translation. I have looked for a few English versions, none very good. The best, I believe is Samuel Beckett’s. (Had to be!) Here is the link for those of you poetry inclined:
https://es.scribd.com/doc/96478299/Rimbaud-Arthur-Drunken-Boat-Samuel-Beckett-Trans
London. 2002. In front of the National gallery if I recall.
Cyprus, 1967. Just after the six-day war. This Greek statue is likely in the Turkish zone: the face has been carved out to follow Islam’s prohibition of the representation of the human face.
Gare du Nord. Northern Station. Paris 2016.
Danzón. (Dance-on) Tlalpan, Mexico. 2017.
“Captainji” and crew thank you for sailing on yet another Equinoxio Drunken time-space boat. Until next flight, wish you a day full of light…
Equinoxio 
The Maasaï warriors are statuesque! Is there an interesting story there?
The Maasaï are a very particular tribe in Africa. They used to be feared warriors in East Africa, and have managed to maintain their traditional way of life. See another post here:
https://equinoxio21.wordpress.com/2014/03/14/maasai-warriors/
I have read about the Maasai before but I will check out your story about them. It is the personal interactions that get me. Thanks 🙂
Personal interactions?
If you got to spend time with them…
No. Not really. Lots of language barriers. Our Swahili was not that developed. And many did not even speak Swahili. There was one French anthropologist when we were there who lived with them. Practically became a Maasai. Her name was… (looking on my bookshelves…) Jacqueline Roumeguère-Eberhardt. Here’s a link:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1518217/Jacqueline-Roumeguere-Eberhardt.html
She had an amazing life.
Oh I have to read this up. Thanks! I am fascinated by such stories that emerge from anthropologists and documentary makers spending time with the tribes. It is like our window into this untapped world.
It is. I have her autobiography on my shelves. In French I’m afraid… 🙂
But those people have opened a few doors to vanishing worlds. Another great documentary maker was Jean Rouch. He made a lot of movies in West and central Africa more than half a century ago.
I shall look him up. It is always enlightening to watch works of such curious people. Their curiosity serves as a salve to mine.
A salve? You are aware that curiosity killed the cat? (Which is why they were awarded nine lives)
Ah but I am a big dog at heart.
I read it…so you were in close quarters with them it seems? Your post revived what I had read in NatGeo mags earlier and added a fresh lot of information. Why thank you, I enjoyed reading it Brian.
My pleasure. Close quarters, no. We lived in Nairobi, which is Kikuyu land. But the Maasaï live near and in many of the National parks. So you would come across some. Ask for “picha”. Pass on a few Shillings, and they would take the pose. Proudly. And again, they are one of the few examples of preserving a traditional way of life in the modern world.
Sounds fascinating still. They do look so beautiful, proud and traditional. It is a mystery that they have managed to hold on to their way of life despite the barrage of the modern world around them. I am glad they received some incentive for participating in your ‘picha’ 🙂
It is a material world. Even then. Having said that I wonder if anyone – anthropologist or sociologist – has studied the why and how they have managed to maintain their way of life, when 95-99% of traditional cultures have practically vanished. Except for performing traditional dances for tourists.
thats kind of creepy with the face taken off thing….eeks….but the last happy from behind dancing couple made me smile….her feet must hurt at the end of the day 🙂
Yes must hurt, but they’re having a blast, with costume and all. Music is played on the plaza every Friday afternoon, and elegant couples come to dance the “Danzón”.
Many thanks to you, Capitaine Brieuc !
Pas de quoi Gilles.
These are all fascinating photo-glimpses, Brian, but that Maasai pic takes the biscuit for sheer wonderfulness
Asante sana Tish. A hint of yesteryear…
(Though I understand the Maasaï have managed to maintain their lifestyle in the traditional way, which is nice)
All geared up for the winter?
Frosty here in Shropshire by Sherwood, but bright sun. And yes, the Maasai have more or less hung on to their traditional existence. Water sources are increasingly scarce though.
Hmmm. Hadn’t thought of that. With the Maasaï growing larger and larger herds of cattle… (And feeding the country if I’m not mistaken) water will soon be a problem. That land is already very dry…
And their traditional territory in Laikipia below Mount Kenya is occupied by large scale European wheat farms – there’s been some conflict there recently.
Had to look it up. Nanyuki? I would have thought this was Kikuyu land. Just read a few reports… Mbaya sana. Lots of conflict indeed. Maasai, Samburu, Pokot… A shame.
North a bit of Nanyuki. The Maasai moved across the entire Rift, and were moved out of the highly fertile Laikipia area by the colonials in 1904-ish, and shunted into the Mara which became a closed reserve to all but officials.
Yeah, just read a bit about it. A shame how the tribal feuds keep on and on and on…
Aah Brian, I loved this post! You have seen such interesting things in your life. I enjoy the old photo’s that you place among the more recent ones. The Maasaï always intrigued me!
Thank you. Always glad when a post is enjoyed. And yes, the Maasaï are intriguing.
Excuse me, but eyebrow workshop? I have two eyebrows. I always thought they were self-maintaining. Have I been missing something?
I knew someone would react. That shop is in the 15th arrondissement. And I found the name… so creative. 🙂
I hate to be so predictable, but really…
I thin I remember where it’s at. I will look it up on my next stay in Paris. If it’s still there, it means there is a market. 🙂
Have a nice week-end.
Trop ivre. Je reviendrais. 🙂
Bon. A bientôt… 😉
Je suis du retour. 🙂
I remember the sleeping sombrero, liked it the first time. You may be right about the colors.
The eyebrows may be a problem for some people that can’t accept their nature or desperately want a different look. Women are particularly picky in that domain. 😉
I’ve seen mentions of the Maasaï tribe in certain movies, they do look impressive in that picture; nowadays I wouldn’t wonder if they had a mobile phone stashed somewhere in a hut, being announced by authorities (or others) of tourists’ approach. 😉
There will come a time when los chinelos will be forbidden in the name of political correctness. Around the world we are not allowed to mock the jews, the gypsies, the whatever-other “minorities” because of some weird, still hidden agenda. Traditions will just be buried, history will be forgotten (and thus repeated).
There’s something magic about the shot of that brasilian baroque church but I can’t describe it. It just feels… special.
Gonna stay away from Rimbaud’s drunken ship as I’m still under influence (winter’s coming here, remember? 😛 )
Broken faces are everywhere if one looks closely, not only in London or Cyprus.
What does that girl in Gare du Nord dream about: leaves, hands, birds, fishes – all of those? Quite a colourful dream.
Mesmerising blue for both dancers! However I can’t help noticing the earring in his right ear, which usually is as sign of being gay. Maybe tradition is different there in Mexico. 🙂
Wow. You have been inspired… Thank you. A few comments back. The Brazilian church (which I’d forgotten) does have a strange feeling. Alone at the top of a hill.
And the earrings now have become fashionable regardless of preferences… 😉
Bon week-end.
Inspiration form a bottle of grappa. 🙂
Bon weekend a toi aussi, mon ami! 😉
A bottle of GRAPPA on your own? That is heavy stuff… How’s the headache?
Not an entire bottle at a time, mind you. 🙂 However, if it’s good stuff there won’t be any headache next day. 😉
And there wasn’t. 🙂
BTW, the ‘grappa’ (‘ţuică’ in Romanian) is much milder than ‘palinca’. 😉
I can imagine. You mentioned the latter before. And Grappa already gives me a splitting headache! 🙂
Sorry to hear that. I can’t imagine life without either one or the other. 🙂
Life’s little luxuries…
Unfortunately yes, spirits have become a luxury (or have they always been like that?) However I consider them as “antibiotics”, when not abused of, just like people in the countryside used to (and some still do).
Just make sure it’s 100% natural stuff, home made, not the “poison” sold in the stores. 😉
Home made can be dangerous. Moonshine can make you blind. 😉
So does wanking – they used to say. 😆
I think I read about moonshine on some other blog but can’t find that precise post. Would’ve been a funny story.
While mooonshine is traditionally made of corn (and/or other cereals), ţuica and pălinca are made exclusively of fruit. That may be why I didn’t go blind yet. 🙂
Cheers!
Once again, your ‘Pot-Pourri’ series is such a visual delight! I love the way that you take us across space and time and curate a series of distinct images that flow so well together.
Thank you Lisa. Comments such as yours make it worthwhile. Personally I like the variety. In Space and time. I like it better than a series of… doors for instance. (Though I’ve done one) It seems to me that once you’ve seen the 5th door in the series, you’re ready to leave.
How’s your mother?
I have been to this post before but the sea miles have softened my memory. I hope you’ll do an entire post on the Chinelos …and that I have the good fortune to see them in person someday.
The Chinelos are unpredictable… They come in the street around the block without any advance notice. Haven’t been able to determine what brings them out. Matter of luck.
Beautiful as always, Brian 🙂
No-hugs ❤
Thank you. A NO-hug doesn’t sound quite as nice as a Mo-hug. 😉
Hahaha! My mistake, Brian. Sorry about that.
Mo-hugs
😉 Muuuuch better. ❤
:))
Amazing pictures…such an enjoyable post!
Thank you. Glad you liked it.
When I saw the Maasai I knew Tish would home in on it! It is in deed a smashing photo.
But for me the Cyprus shot is the one. I have a very dear friend who lives in Paphos. We worked together in
a salon in central Johannesburg for years, but after democracy in SA business in the city simply died for years and we were forced to close the salon. I changed profession and Harry took his family back to his old home town.
Yeah, the Maasai caught Tish’s eye. As for Cyprus, sorry you had to close the salon. Had to look Paphos up on the map. Didn’t go there. Our friends lived in Nicosie and we traveled to Limassol, Larnaka if I recall. I will post more Cyprus photos in future blogs. Have a nice week.
This is great stuff! I love the Danzon picture, the blue of the clothing!
Yeah, the guy was very elegant. Did you notice the feather in the hat?
I didn’t! The feather makes it extra cool 🙂
😉
Wow, that Masaai photo is so haunting. Phantoms along the way.
Yes. Phantoms. As Ricoeur wrote: my memory is becoming history. (See La mémoire, l’histoire, l’oubli) 🙂
another bunch of awesome pix!
Amazing photographs! I love the “Rimbaud” wall!
It is quite an incredible wall. Facing the wall, walk right, then at the end of the wall, turn left and you are at Saint-Sulpice. (You can still see people inside tracking the clues of Dan Brown)
That’s really incredible, I love this collection of photos.
Thanks. It’s what I like with the “pot-pourri” concept. Several places, times, topics… I like variety. Even for me it’s more fun to post. 🙂