Fiesta, theater and school

This saturday I went down to the area around the Central university. Before I left for Venezuela a friend in Malmö had given me the email address of his friend, Christina, who is engaged in a social center, called Ateneo Popular, located in Caracas. After having been in contact with her a few times since I got here she invited me to the celebration of its anniversary. It was very nice to see what they had accomplished and just to meet people who have ideas and try to carry them through. The house offers different kinds of cultural activities, but they also organise discussion groups which touch upon various political issues. I have signed up for one of those!
They have recently put together a library with a good variety of political litterature, open for everyone. I didn't really get a deeper explanation of the main aim of the house, nor to how they carry out their work. But the general idea is clear, and it gave me a whole lot of positive energy!
In the evening it was a very nice show on the street outside with people juggling, linedancers and other very difficult things. There was even a girl doing acrobatic stuff in a long piece of hanging cloth. Darn, it was impressive.
The area around the university Central is known to be very pro-Chavez and indeed it was the first place I have visited where I could actually see that.

At the fiesta I met a guy who the day after (sunday) took me and my room mate Petra to the theater. It was a play about the contemporary woman in Venezuela. It was very nice to see them play but to be honest I didn't understand much at all. The actors were a bunch of quite fast speaking women and they didn't go easy on the slang. But I laughed on the right moments and all that, thank god it was dark where the audience sat so that no one saw my confused and lost expression. Apparently it was about how venezuelan women tend to be very over protective with their children and how that affects the children.

After the theater we went to a café and talked about politics. It was very releaving to get a more diversified analysis of Chavez, by a socialist.
Listening to seemingly well informed and often outrageous anti-Chaviztas can really give you the idea that "socialism" is being dragged in the gutter by C-man's politics. In these situations it is difficult to justify why leftisch organisations/groups/partys all over the world are behind Chavez. But after having spoken with quite a few anti-Chaviztas I am now of the opinion that they tend to deliver their arguments with just too little reflection. When I ask WHY their sworn enemy has made a certain proposition they explain it as if the only reason is to worsen the situation it concerns. Even if this is true, that is not the reason given by Chavez. The official reason behind a reform does not have to be in every way correct, for sure, but the explanation to why it is proposed should at least be mentioned and analysed by the people, no matter if they are pro or against Chavez.

When speaking about C-guy in public everyone lowers their voices, and poeple prefer to talk politics in private. I guess there are many individual reasons behind that, but I was told that one reason is that openly expressing your political view (pro or against) will generate such lively discussions that it is often better to keep quiet. The political dichotomy also tends to make any discussion predictable in the sense that it is already beforehand obvious that no one will change their minds. People generally know what they think they know and that is that. They don't go in to discussion with an open mind and a will to understand the opponent.
This problem is quite applicable all over the world though...

Ok, so just a few short words about my first two days in school. Well, it is a hazzle trying to understand when the courses start, where to go and who to talk to to fix everything.
Yesterday I had my first class in Ecología II, I was one hour late since the two first buses for school just passed me, without picking me up, they were full. But once I got to class I got a good feeling about the course, the teachers and the students. And I understood everything they said! Weeha. But making comments myself will have to wait a while.
Thereafter I met with my teacher in Fish Biology! It is a very nice and extremely devoted man who talked for about one hour non stop. Clearly there is much to say about fish, but then again, who ever said there wasn't?? We are only three students taking the course so it will be hard to miss out on classes without him noticing, not that I would want to do that. Three hours of fish knowledge every wednesday, smack, it's gonna be great!

Today I trained with the running team for the first time. We were doing laps at the sportsfield. The teacher wanted me to run 5 laps (2000 m) the fastest I could. Christ Almighty. I haven't done that kind of thing since I was 15 and my sports teacher "forced me" to run 800 m at the district championship. Man, I hated it then and that acid, energy draining, feeling with a taste of iron (which is blood people!!!) hasn't really grown on me since. I did my one try, but the rest (a group of lively and clearly crazy men in their 40's) did 3! Tomorrow we are doing long distance running.

Other than that, Venezuela is full of extremely nice people. All the time students at school come up to ask who you are, where you are from and why you chose to come to Venezuela. And then they invite you to join them on whatever they are up to: salsa, a trip to the beach, lunch, hiking...and so on. Well, it is very nice indeed. And the machismo that I feared so much before coming here has kept quite a low profile still.

ok, this has to end. tomorrow:
second lesson in Ecología II (7.30 am!!)
first lesson in Fish biology (I get goose bumps just writing it...)
tour of the library
running with crazy old men

can't wait!
Ciao