Martes, 22/12/2015: Flamenco night, Symphony plays at the jail, 15-year-old expat all star

Hola, Todos – 

Pagina cultural – 

Flamenco – la Noche de Flamenco (Flamenco Night) this Sat at 20:30 in República Sur (Pres. Córdova 5-55) with rosario Castaño and classical guitarist Jon Colkey Valdé.

Concierto – with Rondalla Cañari performing Christmas music from around the world was yesterday at 20:00 in the Teatro Sucre.

Exposición – an exhibit called “Permanencia en el tiempo: Emociones en Dimensiones (Permanence in time: Emotions in Dimensions) (Does the title of the show really matter – how do you paint permanence in time?) by Fausto Bravo with 35 paintings and 16 sculptures is showing in the Galería el Puento Roto.

Articles about – 

The Symphony performance at the CRS (jail) was held in a gray walled space with orange jumpsuits providing color.  (The symphony was probably dressed in basic black.  Inmates joined the symphony with guitars, keyboards, bongós, sax, trombone, and huiro (the best translation I found in a cursory search was “a musical instrument” which was pretty obvious, and the least applicable was “seaweed.”) Prisoners are able to spend time doing art including theater, dance, reading, and music which is the most popular.  (I wonder what the recidivism rate is here and when prisoners are released, if they go back to supportive and functional families?))

Elections at CCE-Azuay (Casa de la Cultura Ecuatoriana).  The Network of Independent Cultural Centers has formed the Frente Independiente (Independent Front) to field a candidate for president of the CCE.

The Remigio Crespo Toral and Casa de las Posadas Museums almost had their water shut off for lack of payment.  The Casa del Sombrero doesn’t have phone or internet service and is relying on the employees’ private cellphones.  (Is  the economic downturn hitting localities now?  The Remigio C.T and Sombrero are city museums.  Not sure about Posadas.)

Applications are being accepted from Ecuadorian iw90km artists for the XIII Bienal de Cuenca Impermanencia until 15/1/2016.  (Anyone want to make a guess as to what percentage of applications come in on line between 23:00 and midnight?)  Artists need to submit their portfolio to comunicación@bienaldecuenca.org with the subject line “Portafolio XIII Bienal” or turn in a CD or flash drive at the office of the Fundación Municipal Bienal de Cuenca labeled with the same subject.

Otras cosas –

Titular – Minería a gran escala arranca en el Oriente (Large scale mine starts in the Oriente.)  The Mirador mine was inaugurated yesterday amid controversy.  Ecologists and indigenous are opposed due to fears of mining’s effects on the ecology and especially water resources.  The Ministry of Strategic Sectors estimated there are 6.7 billion pounds of copper and 3.2 million ounces of gold.  1.4 billion is being invested by Chinese firms for the open pit mine and processing plant, a port, road and bridge reinforcement, power transmission lines, and a hydroelectric station. (I can’t joke about an open pit mine.) For more about the Mirador mining project, click here.

The basic salary – will increase by $12 in 2016 to $366/mo.  This is a 3.39% increase, roughly the same as the predicted inflation rate in 2016. (Time to give your cleaning lady a raise.  And did you pay her the decimocuarto – 14th month payment?)

Your sliver of life article today – is about mingas with EMAC (Empresa Municipal de Aseo de Cuenca – Municipal Sanitation Company of Cuenca). The last minga de limpieza (cleanup minga – your word for the day. A minga is a communal effort for a communal good sort of like a quilting bee or barn raising with the community as the beneficiary.)  was in the barrio Cristal en Arenal Alto.  EMAC will continue the mingas in different areas in 2016.

Kapac Raymi was celebrated on the solstice, Dec. 21, in Cuenca in the plaza of the UNE.

Deportes – 

An article about a 15 year old expat futbolista (now shut your eyes and imagine that expat – what she looks like.)  High school all-star(?) goalie Jian Zeng was born in Guandong, PRC and came to Ecuador with her parents and sister when she was 7. (Is that who you imagined?)  Now she doesn’t have any trouble with the language which she learned in 5 years although she still runs across words she doesn’t know. (If it took a teenager 5 years to learn, am I going to die before I’m competent in Spanish?)

And that´s all for today so Hasta Mañana –

Jeanne