100 Adventures in Rio

Rio de Janeiro. Apparently more than just a beach town. From the day I touched down I was swept up in parades, dancing in the streets, capoeira, climbing to waterfalls, samba, forro, farmers markets, outdoor jazz parties, anti-homophobia film festivals, favela photography exhibitions, make-your-own maracuya caipirinhas, and even an evangelical music concert! Oh yeah, and sunbathing on Ipanema isn't bad either. Check out my 100 best moments in Rio. Volcanic ash cloud, you can leave me stranded in Rio any time you like! Brazil was FULL of surprises.

After Neoliberalism: The Future for Development in South America

By Melaina A. Spitzer

In the midst of what is becoming known as the “crisis of development,” countries around the world that once put their faith in the large financial institutions like the IMF and World Bank are growing weary. Resistance movements have sprung up across the globe, challenging the neoliberal model for development, holding it responsible for the perpetration of grave economic violence, all while failing to bring about economic growth. In South America, with the deepening crisis of neoliberalism, questions are bubbling: What next? Can South American countries shed the crippling neoliberal model, and if so, what would take its place? Through a study of the entrenched neoliberal strategy in Ecuador and Peru, as well as the emergence of new models that threaten neoliberal dominance in the region, we evaluate the challenges to and possibilities for a post-neoliberal and perhaps even post-development model. This paper argues that while new initiatives have emerged in Ecuador, which challenge the extractive development model, repressive policies in both Ecuador and Peru have meant that neither country is out of the neoliberal woods just yet.

READ MORE...

New Article: Uprising in Bahrain

Dear Friends:

I invite you to read a new article I've written about Bahrain and the Arab spring. There's an excerpt below and you can click on the link for the full article. Thanks!

Uprising in Bahrain:

Democracy, Repression, and Sectarianism in the Arab Spring

By Melaina Spitzer

June 1, 2011

It’s springtime in the Arab world, and Bahrain has a new look. The tiny country comprised of about 30 islands in the Persian Gulf was once known for its relaxed social atmosphere, and received an overload of tourists hoping to escape the strict codes and confines of religiously orthodox societies like Saudi Arabia. Yet today, a visit to the capital Manama leaves a very different impression: Armored tanks occupy the streets, Shia mosques have been burned to the ground and Pearl Square, the epicenter of the pro-democracy protests just a few months ago, has seen its tents set ablaze and its pearl monument toppled by the very government that erected it. While uprisings and repression in Syria, Yemen, and Libya continue to make international headlines, Bahrain grapples quietly beyond the limelight with an uncertain future that, despite the modest size of the country, could have serious consequences for the region and the world. READ MORE...

Harmonica Tango Legend

Last night I attended the most unforgettable concert I've been to since arriving in Argentina--and I saw U2 here!--Tango Harmonica legend Franco Luciani with Tango singer Cardenal Dominguez, Live at the CAFF April 23, 2011, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

If you like it you can hear more on Franco Luciani's myspace page:

http://www.myspace.com/francoluciani

Podcast Launches! - Malena Canta el Tango

I'm launching my very own podcast!

"Malena Canta el Tango:
Music, Stories, and Musings from South America and Beyond"

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"Malena canta el tango como ninguna

y en cada verso pone su corazón."

~

“Malena sings the tango like no other

and into every single verse she pours her heart.”

I cannot introduce myself quietly in Argentina. Every time I tell someone my name, I get the same enthusiastic response: “Ah, Malena canta el tango!” Sometimes I get a smile, as wistful look off into the distance. If I’m lucky, I’ll get a serenade. Malena is a famous tango song from the 1940s, and while I may not live up to the first line (I have yet to master the art of singing tango), the second is most certainly true: if I am going to commit myself to something, I’m going to go all out. This podcast is my attempt to share the things I’m pouring my heart into these days, and the experiences that have left an imprint on my heart and soul.

Farmers struggle in Argentina

Today I attended a talk by delegates of the the National Indigenous and Farmer Movement who traveled from communities across Argentina to participate in events leading up to the International Day for Farmers' Struggle. Across Argentina, from the provinces of Jujuy, to Mendoza, to Santiago del Estero, farmers are dealing with displacement, land grabs and appropriation, lack of access to water, genetic engineering, lack of food sovereignty, and health and environmental damages due to mining contamination. This interview (in Spanish) highlights the struggles of one Mendoza farmers.

A photostory to honor Monica

With the recent passing of my Aunt Monica, I thought I would share this photo story that I shared with her a few weeks ago, when she first arrived at her hospice center. With my little tale, I was hoping to transport her for a few minutes, to bring her in to my world and hold her close. My mom read her the illustrated story and a letter I had written. Monica and I were able to video skype during her final days, so she could see my wrapping my arms around her in love.

Here's to you Monica, my inspiration forever.

(if you click on the album it will take you to the picasa page with the story written in as captions.)

Baklavah and Barbed Wire: A Bittersweet Holy Land

Israel and Palestine: Jerusalem and Bethlehem

I've been wanting to share some of these photos for a while. It was an amazing experience visiting the West Bank for the first time.

Giza

No cameras,
they said
at the entrance
to the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Upon entering I felt like laughing.
Its too dark to see anything!

It's as if
they want you
to feel.

To enter the Pyramid is to enter into the well of history
beautiful and brutal
Climbing up narrow passageways, hands on the cold metal rungs
Head bent under stone
instead of climbing up
you are climbing down.

Down into the shaft of forced labor,
of lugging stones
Larger than
the human heart
Stones that have crushed so many

They were here, "my people"
toiling through time and space
to make a mountain with their hands
That could not be climbed, nor crossed,
That could not crumble
as our weak flesh is known to do.

I look away.
Now "my people" have morphed into some
sarcophagus of the pharoah they fled
with a whip to the heels
of the newly oppressed
As the age old paradigm reveals
over and over:
we live out our trauma at the expense of our children. Or in this case--
somebody else's chidren.

I can't forget:
After the exodus
was the brutal slaughter
of the inhabitants of Canaan
the "Promised" Land.

--

The air is cool,
a pool of tears
suddenly refreshing
against the blazing sun
The same Sun under which
they toiled endless days
for this:
A perfectly sculpted tomb.
seamless.
empty.

The only thing
they couldn't loot from the tomb
was the stone tomb itself,
carved from within the rock.

The heart of the pyramid can never
be torn from the cage of its stone flesh.

Strip searched, violated
the tomb still had four perfect walls
Against them, my small voice
echoes into the distance

I open my mouth
an am surprised to find
at the exhale of one cool breath
on the edge of my lips
the SH'MA.

It is the prayer that unites us
Jews of the diaspora
of the desert and cold mountains
of the shtetles and palaces
of the new world and the ancient

For one moment in time
in the tomb of the Pharoah
despite all my misgivings
and shame
--and without my consent--

My soul laid claim to my people
whose suffering became their weapon

To their memory--both shining and tarnished--
echoing uninvited
in the chamber of my lungs.

Back in Egypt....Diving for Dinner

Well, I have to admit, it was hard to eat fried grouper after my adventures in the Red Sea.

Check out my audio postcard and accompanying slide show to catch the light and sound waves down under.

Can You Handle the Jandal?

I recently attended the Social Good Summit in New York City, an event that brought together world leaders, celebrities, journalists and bloggers to look at how social media is being utilized to make social good. The event paralleled September's United Nations summit in New York and focused on initiatives helping to move toward the UN Millennium Development Goals.

In attendance were do-gooder celebrities including award-winning actors Edward Norton, Gina Davis, and musician Craig David, promoting new online platforms for philanthropy, bettering girl's representation in children's T.V. programming, and the fight to stop Tuberculosis.

Following these celebrities around were two young Kiwi women, who were anything but paparazzi. The were part of a delegation of young New Zealanders asking celebrities and world leaders for a unique kind of autograph--to sign their "flip flop" (known in New Zealand as a Jandal) in hopes of raising awareness about the Millenium Development Goals and cutting poverty in half. The idea is, that while many New Zealanders may take their flip flops for granted there are people around the world who don't even have access to basic footwear.

They managed to get signatures from several world leaders, including Helen Clark, Melinda Gates, Jeffrey Sachs and Chris Hughes (co-founder of Facebook), for the UN Millennium Development Goals Summit. And they're collecting more signatures at www.p3foundation.org

Can you handle the jandal?

From the bottom of the deep blue Red Sea

Over the last week I have had the pleasure of getting to know some very distinguished marine creatures. I went to Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, on the tip of the Sinai peninsula, to learn how to scuba dive. While most programs put you in a pool for the first few days, I learned in open water, which meant an eagle ray and hundreds of fish on day 1! I loved it so much I decided to go for my advanced certification, which meant 11 dives in 6 days! Over the course of the week I managed to:

- Spot an 150 year old giant green sea turtle, an eagle ray, a rare ghost pipe fish, and schools more of crazy colorful sea creatures

- Catch a glimpse of Squid and Cuttle fish on a night dive

- Chill with baby barracudas and long white shimmering eels

- Pull tar off of oil barrels from a ship wreck decades ago

While my camera couldn't come on the deeper dives (100ft.) I did get some great shots during one dive and a few snorkels...

See for yourself:

23 mummies and all is well...

Sound like something out of a horror film? Guess again. The great Pharaohs, Queens and High Priests of Ancient Egypt have been mummified and are on display at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Many still have their original fingernails and hair...some have ear piercings and look like they were pretty hip back in their day. Some have reddish or white hear, others were nubian and display African features.

There's nothing like staring down at King Ramses II, the famous Pharaoh who eventually "let my people go." That's probably as close to Moses as I'll ever get--unless I climb Mount Sanai.

Apparently, ancient Egyptians also really loved their pets. Several mummified animals are also on display at the museum. Check out the ram, baboon, and dog mummies pictured below.






For those of you who know the story of my Aunt Monica's bracelet, here it is featured atop the head of a mummy!




Unfortunately they don't allow pictures in the mummy rooms so I'll leave the image of King Ramses up to your imagination...Sleep tight!

A tase of where I've been: Avatar in the Amazon

I joined a group of indigenous leaders from the Ecuadorian Amazon to see Avatar in 3D.

LISTEN TO THE REPORT:

http://media.theworld.org/audio/012920107.mp3











For another view, and a taste of indigenous spirituality, watch the video