Sri Lanka!

Hello,
I just saw that some of my Sri Lankan friends posted this video on Facebook and thought of sharing it with you. It is a new campaign to position Sri Lanka as a top tourist destination, especially now after defeating the LTTE.

I certainly do not agree with the methods used by the government and I am totally against the extermination of the "other" putting in danger, risk and under siege the lives of thousands of innocent people and the harmonious coexistence of the country. The conditions of those affected by the war are sad and unthinkable for many, even for Sri Lankans living in other areas. People who have been to the refugee camps said that refugees are in very bad conditions, even comparing them with those affected by the famines in Somalia.

I believe there is resentment, anger, happiness, sadness and feeling of glory for many in Sri Lanka, but I question why the price for this "artificial peace" have to be so high? Can peace be conceived only as the absent of war? Isn't structural and cultural violence in Sri Lanka much more difficult to deal with? Don't the fundamental questions and issues related to the conflict still remain there? Can we call this peace?

I got surprised by the reactions, sometimes violent, of many of my friends in Sri Lanka, when the LTTE was defeated by the government. The sense of pride and the hundreds of messages based on "either/or" "we/them" "you/us" are in my mind all the time, as a reminder that military glories are one of the most powerful tools to inspire people to be more violent and unaware of those attitudes that can be dangerous for a country in the future.

Anyway, Sri Lanka is a beautiful country, with a lot of potential and amazing people. I do believe many inicitiatives for reconciliation and real peace are on their way to bring unity and mutual understanding in this country. I wish I was there to work for it.

Look at this beautiful video and get inspired to visit this amazing country.

Peace,

Malu

Short time in London!

Hello,

Just one day in London was not enough to see and share with some of my friends who live there.

I went to London for a meeting with a company to discuss a project to convert Learning to Live Together into a game for children and young people and to create an interactive platform for youth leaders and teachers to learn how to use the manual effectively. For those who don't remember what Learning to Live Together is, it is the manual Arigatou (the NGO I work with) created to promote intercultural and interfaith learning and ethics education and which I have been involved during the last years.

In between this meeting I had the opportunity to see my sister, her husband, Diana, Arun, Dhanushka, Chanuka and their child. I couldn't see Pilar, another friend, but we spoke on the phone several times. Short encounters, fun discussions, deep reflections, quick goodbyes and a strange feeling at the end. It felt somehow like there was no closure to our conversations, or that everything went so fast that there were open topics and a huge emptiness when we said goodbye.

Perhaps there was no need for a closure or for a goodbye as we are used to. Perhaps relationships are just that...a series of encounters with that "other" nurtured by the sense of being there with our soul rather than with our physical body, motivated by the sense of sharing the moment rather than by the fact of seeing the other or even saying goodbye. Perhaps true relationships are meant to happen by just circular moments and created spaces and circumstances, where there is no need to expect a beginning or an end and where each encounter is motivated by just being there. I guess the dualism of the encounter itself made it so powerful that this simple fact is what makes relationships stronger.

Thank you all for a good time!

Now I am back in Geneva. Yesterday I enjoyed a lot Fête de la Musique, helped selling sweets in my church, danced in the streets and even sung with Paul!

I am now packing to go to Athens for a conference on intercultural education.

Hugs,

Malu

Angels!

Hello,

In the midst of preparing for a short trip to London tomorrow, I couldn't help thinking about angels, people you love and are always there for you. People who guard you or keep you safe, even if you don't notice it. I am especially thinking about Paul..my wonderful angel, who is always there for me, who takes care of me, who supports me and gives me strength when I need it.

I love you my angelito!

So for those who are also thinking of angels! Here is a song I like and makes me smile.

Love,

Malu



Halo
Songwriters: Bogart, Evan Kidd; Knowles, Beyonce Gisselle; Tedder, Ryan Benjamin;

Remember those walls I built
Well, baby they're tumbling down
And they didn't even put up a fight
They didn't even make up a sound

I found a way to let you in
But I never really had a doubt
Standing in the light of your halo
I got my angel now

It's like I've been awakened
Every rule I had you breakin'
It's the risk that I'm takin'
I ain't never gonna shut you out

Everywhere I'm looking now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby I can see your halo
You know you're my saving grace

You're everything I need and more
It's written all over your face
Baby I can feel your halo
Pray it won't fade away

I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo
I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo

Hit me like a ray of sun
Burning through my darkest night
You're the only one that I want
Think I'm addicted to your light

I swore I'd never fall again
But this don't even feel like falling
Gravity can't forget
To pull me back to the ground again

Feels like I've been awakened
Every rule I had you breakin'
The risk that I'm takin'
I'm never gonna shut you out

Everywhere I'm looking now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby I can see your halo
You know you're my saving grace

You're everything I need and more
It's written all over your face
Baby I can feel your halo
Pray it won't fade away

I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo
I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo

I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo
I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo
Halo, halo

Everywhere I'm looking now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby I can see your halo
You know you're my saving grace

You're everything I need and more
It's written all over your face
Baby I can feel your halo
Pray it won't fade away

I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo
I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo

I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo
I can feel your halo halo halo
I can see your halo halo halo

Desmond Tutu in Geneva

Hello,

Last week Desmond Tutu was in Geneva receiving an honorary doctorate from the University of Geneva. On Sunday 7 June he attended a reception in his honor at the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey, nearby Geneva. I had the opportunity to be there and listen to his wise words.

It was such a great experience. For those who don't know who Desmond Tutu is, he was the first South African Anglican Archbishop of Capetown and received the Nobel peace prize in 1994. He chaired the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and is currently the chairman of The Elders. It is a group of well recognised peace activists created in 2007 with the objective to advocate for the protection and respect for human rights.

He is definitely a role model and a real peace maker. Since I read his book God has a Dream I fell in love with his way of seeing the world, his wisdom about the connectedness of people and his message of hope and unity. I love his emphasis on the meaning of Ubuntu: "a person is a person through other persons, or I am because you are" which is the African recognition of interdependence. Desmond Tutu says in his book:

"A person with ubuntu is welcoming, hospitable, warm an generous, willing to share. Such people are open and available to others, willing to be vulnerable, affirming of others, do not feel threatened that others are able and good, for they have a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing they they belong to a greater whole."

Isn't it amazing how he describes the power of connecting to others, of being willing to "give oneself" and open up to that other that perhaps we don't even know? I find it so powerful and beautiful. I really recommend you to read his wonderful book and get inspired by his words and his insightful ideas.

Photos: Peter Williams

Peace,

Malu

Conference in Oslo!

Hello,

This is just a short post about my two days in Oslo. I went to the inaguration of the European Wergeland Centre on Education for Intercultural Understanding, Human Rights and Citizenship.

It is a Centre created by the Council of Europe in cooperation with the Norwegian government and it aims at providing in-service training, carrying out and supporting research, creating networks, serving as a platform and disseminating information and good practices in the field. It ultimately aims at becoming a leading professional body of its kind.

The inaguration was well attended. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, of Education, the former Prime Minister, Parliamentarians, members of the Council of Europe, Ministers of Education from other countries, and well recognised people like Jan Egeland, participated. The Crown Princess Mette-Marit was also present during the inauguration.

I believe the centre has a huge potential to become a liaison place between theory and practice of human rights education and intercultural learning. The support given by the Norwegian government and the fulll recognition of the Council of Europe makes it a key center for the further development of intercultural education, dialogue and learning in Europe. See photos of the inauguration here.

After the meeting I had the chance to see a little bit of Oslo. It was my first time in Norway and I got a very good impression of this city. I was lucky to be there on a sunny day so I could fully enjoy the environment and the green atmosphere of Oslo.

I met Aruna, an old friend from Sri Lanka whom I met throught the GNRC many years ago. We had a very good time together, talked about many issues, had some drinks and a very simple but delicious Indian dinner.

Time passed really quickly. We said goodbye and at the same time we kept the promise to meet each other again soon, hopefully in India. It is great to have the opportunity to meet friends and be sure that distance and time are not limitations to build friendship and share dreams together.

Thank you Aruna for taking the time to show me Oslo, even if we got lost, and for the nice evening together. Hope to see you soon.

See some photos below...

Hugs,

Malu

Vallenato: con sentimiento compadre!

Hello,

These days we have been planning our next trip to Colombia for holidays. We will go there at the end of June. Paul will stay for two weeks and I will stay one week longer. We are really excited. Paul has not been to Colombia since December 2006 so this will be a very special time.

I have already made a list of new fruits I will introduce Paul to, places I want to take him to and things I want to show him. Colombia is such a magical country that everything is unique in the sense that everything you do and the people you are with make you feel special and happy.

We have also been practicing some Latin music: salsa, merengue, vallenato. Ohhh...vallenato, this is my favourite. I guess you are wondering what it is. Vallenato is a popular folk music from my country, originated in the Caribbean coast. It is played with accordion, special drums and guacharaca, a percussion instrument usually made out of the cane-like trunk of a small palm tree.

According to Wikipedia:

"This form of music came from farmers who, keeping a tradition of Spanish minstrels (Juglares in Spanish), mixed also with the West African-inherited tradition of griots (African version of juglar), who used to travel through the region with their cattle in search of pastures or to sell them in cattle fairs. Because they traveled from town to town and the region lacked rapid communications, these farmers served as bearers of news for families living in other towns or villages. Their only form of entertainment during these trips was singing and playing guitars or gaita flute, and their form of transmitting their news was by singing their messages"

This is beautiful!... and it is one of the things I love from my country, the identity mixed between Africans, Indigenous and Europeans, that make us so diverse and at the same time easy to adapt to other cultures.

So today I have been dancing vallenato with Paul and I want to share with you a lovely one called "Obsesión". When I was in high school my friends and I used to sing it in parties and today when I listen to it, it's like bringing back memories and making me feel Colombia again. It's wonderful.

Here is the video! Note the landscape (typically Colombian), the style of the singers, the choreography, the care free environment and the music. The lyrics in Spanish are below, for those who can understand it.

And...about the title of my post, it means literally "Do it with feeling buddy", which is actually what many singers say when they sing Vallenato!

Love,

Malu



Obsesión - Estrellas Vallenatos

Qué dice tu mirada
que cosa extraña tus ojos tienen
cuando miro tu foto
una rara obsesión me detiene
Dios mio tu que eres el creador de todas
las cosas bellas que hay en el mundo
porqué no escuchas hoy mis peticiones

hiciste médicos pa´ todos los males
pero porqué no creaste uno que pueda
curar un mal de amores

yo quisiera que la tierra girara al revés
para hacerme pequeño y volver a nacer
y no tener que volver a extrañarte
ni en tu fotografía admirarte
ni llevarte fundida en mi pecho
como si fueras parte de mí

barranquilla ciudad de cantores
de vallenatos y de acordeones
ella adorna tus calles, decile
que le deseo que sea feliz
que es la última canción que compongo
que no creo volver a enamorarme
pero dime como hicsite negra pa´ olvidarte de mí

la gente me critica
porque ahora ya no soy parrandero
con tu partida negra
siento mas frio, muero en silencio

cuida bien mis retoños porque tu sabes
que yo los quiero dios mio dame fuerzas
pa´ continuar con este canto

recuerdo un mes de octubre tu cumpleaños
te juro que trato y no he podido
buscar el remedio para olvidarlo

yo quisiera que la tierra girara al revés
para hacerme pequeño y volver a nacer
y no tener que volver a extrañarte
ni en tu fotografía admirarte
ni llevarte fundida en mi pecho
como si fueras parte de mí

barranquilla ciudad de cantores
de vallenatos y de acordeones
ella adorna tus calles, decile
que le deseo que sea feliz
que es la última canción que compongo
que no creo volver a enamorarme
pero dime como hicsite negra pa´ olvidarte de mí

Fuente: musica.com
Las Estrellas Vallenatas

Holidays in Sweden

Hello,

After some hectic times finally we had some time to go on holidays to Sweden. We drove for almost 20 hours until we reached Fjälkinge, a small town close to Kristianstad in the southern part of Sweden, close to where Paul's family lives. We spent more than a week there and drove back home with the car full of Swedish food and Paul's books.

This was my first time in Sweden during "summer time", even though the weather was not very warm, the days were long (light until 11 in the evening) and the sun shone almost every day. It was very pleasant so we could go for a hiking and short walks for a couple of times, and enjoy the beautiful landscape in this part of Sweden.

We also had delicious dishes made by Paul's family and spent time with Paul's grandma, Svea, who is now 95 years old. One may think that at this age people are not very aware of themselves, but in the case of Svea, this is not true. She lives in a building with other elders and is taken care of by nurses who help her to clean up and in whatever is needed. She has her own apartment, helps in the kitchen baking in the morning from 8 to 10. Until very recently she also had her own workshop where she made beautiful table cloths and taught other elders how to do it. She is a very strong woman with a big heart reflected in her unmeasurable love for all those around her.

During the middle of our stay I went to Oslo for a meeting and came back to Sweden to celebrate Mother's day for Paul's mother. We went to a traditional Swedish restaurant close to Lund and Malmö and enjoyed the sunny day close to nature.

I enjoyed a lot this time in Sweden. Somehow I discovered things about the country that I didn't know before, experienced other customs and enjoyed from a different perspective. This visit opened up a new understanding of the country and its people and even helped me to see myself living there in the future. It was great.

Enjoy the photos and stay tuned for my trip to Oslo.

Hugs,

Malu