Catch Up Post

It's been a bit busy here lately and instead of trying to do individual posts about everything, I'm throwing it all in here.

Working our way backwards, today we had a concert at an Old Folks' Home.  These are sometimes in a rather sorry state with residents (usually all white) whose families have left the country.  But the one we visited was seemingly in good shape and had a nice chapel where we performed for the residents.  We did a variety of group pieces, solos and finished off with Christmas Carols.  Followed, of course, by tea.

Last night, the girls and I joined the church band to play Christmas Carols for Light Up night at Sam Levy's village.  I blogged about this event last year but there was no parade this year so we opted to play our instruments instead of sing in the "choir" as many other church members did.  John missed the event due to a trip to Ethiopia.

Monday night was decorating night.  The girls have been doing it on Thanksgiving weekend the past few years, but that was so busy this year that it was postponed to a week night.

Weekend business due to our:

Featured Soloist!

Hanging out in the violin section before the concert

Flowers for the soloist

So, Thanksgiving weekend was busy because we had a Harare Chamber Orchestra concert which featured Abigail Macy as the soloist!  She played the first movement of Mozart Concerto No. 4 and did a great job!  She was really well prepared, but even so I couldn't help but be a bit nervous for her.  Sitting in the orchestra while she performed did help a bit - I could focus on my own music.  The Arundel Chapel was packed and the audience loved the performance!  I got a kick out of the text I received from an HIS mom who couldn't come to the concert because she was at a retreat.  She said, 'At this retreat I just overheard the following '...apparently there is a 13 year old girl who is playing a concerto.'"  Fun to be the mom of a kid who is the talk of the town!  It was a great opportunity for her and I'm thrilled that she took advantage of it.  

 Tables set up in the garden

Girls hanging out after dinner

Boys hanging out after dinner

So, a few days before the big concert, we hosted Thanksgiving dinner.  It was the most eclectic American crowd that we've had so far.  African Americans (as in, families from Africa and the US) of various descents (black and Indian) and Asian Americans of Japanese/Chinese descent.  All in all it was still a pretty traditional dinner (and of course we ate too much!)

Which takes us back to two weeks ago Sunday and the Annual Recital.  Eeesh it's been a busy two weeks.  Exciting (Arianna also had students who performed), but tiring.

Cottage Industries

While our kids undoubtedly think that there is more to do in Zimbabwe than there was in Paraguay, there is still a sense that entertainment is not exactly abundant.  So one thing that occurs frequently are fairs - at schools or various properties here in the northern suburbs - which are mostly for small merchants to show their goods.

At one of these fairs (the one at HIS), I discovered that a woman I know runs one of these cottage industries.  When it came time to buy a gift for some pianists at our recital, I decided to try to patronize her shop.  When I asked her where it was located, it turned out that it wasn't her shop but rather a workshop where they also sell retail.   I went with a friend of mine and it was fun to see where they make the pottery from start to finish.  Here's one of the items I bought:

The funny thing is you can't ever find the info for any of these businesses on the internet.   Since the most recent phone book we have is 2006, I'm not sure where you can find out about the businesses unless you know the owners or go to the fairs.   

Messiah in the Southern Hemisphere

Last weekend was the 38th consecutive performance of Handel's Messiah here in Harare by the Marden Singers (local choir) and my second annual performance.  While the music is of course familiar the setting is a bit different - a beautiful 90 degree day with no air con (as it is called here).  It made for one sweaty performance!

The (mostly white) audience was highly appreciative despite the long first half (an hour and a half) and the firm benches they were sitting on.  Tea of course is served at the "interval" (I was told that drinking hot tea cools you off) and wine and cheese were served afterwards.

I was happy to see some representation from the US Embassy community this year - even the Ambassador and his wife were at the first performance.  Previous musical events have not had any embassy attendance so it was a pleasant change.  Hopefully there will be even more at the next big event - when Abigail will be a soloist with the Harare Chamber Orchestra!

UN Day

I've been falling a little behind here on the blog - in part because I'm starting to think that if I don't start publishing my photos in a different way the blog is going to be full.  The last post I wanted to do was all full of pictures, so instead I'm reporting on an event from yesterday while I sort out the photo issue.

The UN day celebration this year was special for me because it featured a lot of music.  Here are two of the violinists in their country dress:

Not only did the celebration feature music, but it was started off by a solo in the spotlight by Abigail, soon joined by two of the other violinists as they came down through the auditorium.  After they reached the stage, the curtain went up and showed the orchestra ready and waiting to join the soloists.  It was a great moment and Abigail did a great job.

Later in the performance I joined the girls in their string quartet since their cellist is on leave from school this semester.  I was especially happy about that performance because Arianna had a rather serious concussion the previous Saturday (after falling off a horse while jumping) and had been on doctor's orders to rest for a week.  The UN Day performance was the first real "back to normal" thing she did and I am incredibly thankful that she is recovering well.

The ceremony ended with the flag parade - which is always an impressive display of the many countries represented at HIS - and the national anthem (of Zimbabwe, of course) .  After the ceremony we once again enjoyed food from the many nations - a great end to a good day!

Two Firsts

This month I've had two firsts here in Zimbabwe - First visit to a mall - an actual mall that is.  Usually if we shop we go to Sam Levy's Village which is a series of shops (it was built in several phases) with outside access to all of them.  So I ended up at the mall downtown for Arianna's PSAT exam!  The Embassy's office of Educate USA is located there and that was where she had her exam.  When we got there I realized it was the first time I'd been in a mall here.  It's a pretty funky building - you can read about it here:  http://inhabitat.com/building-modelled-on-termites-eastgate-centre-in-zimbabwe/.  Or search on Eastgate Centre Harare.

So, my other first was at the Westgate Shopping Centre where we went to see a movie.  John and I went with Abigail and one of her friends to see Gravity last night.  It wasn't my favorite movie but I enjoyed seeing the Westgate Centre - it looked pretty nice though it was hard to tell at night.  We went to an 8 pm show - and it was almost empty.  No late shows here!

Jacaranda Trees

Posting here for those who don't have Facebook - I posted a lot there.

Tree in front of our house on a sunny day!

Trees going in town (Harare).  Some streets have complete canopies.

Combined Schools Concert

About a dozen schools participate in a big event here that usually happens every September.  It was a bit late this year (October 1st) and happily, our girls both participated.  They were part of the orchestra (which was directed by HIS music teacher Roz Whaley) and the string orchestra (which was directed by Arianna's viola teacher and the teacher at a nearby school called Hellenic Academy).

A bit blurry because I turned off the flash to get a decent photo - but it's a pretty good size orchestra, isn't it?

One of my favorite parts of the concert was the marimbas.  I counted them and there were 45!!  You can see some up on the jumbo screens.

If you think that it was a lot of marimba players, the choir had over 500 in it!  You can see all the different school uniforms here, as well as special jackets that the prefects wear.  I think the choir students were mostly from the last two years of high school (form 6) - they had to be selective in order to fit everyone on stage.

The evening was rounded out with a Wind Ensemble (aka band), an a capella vocal group, a Big Band, and a Pipe and Drum Corps.  Yes, that's bagpipes!  One of the local schools has a strong tradition in bagpipes and the students had traveled to Scotland on the last term break.  They were joined by some players from another school that I think is a government school (most, if not all of the schools that participated are private schools).  They were my second favorite part of the night even though I'm not usually a big bagpipe fan.  The drummers were great and it was just impressive to have them all march in playing.

EZ and Sweet 16

One of the highlights of the HIS program is their Explore Zimbabwe trip that the students do in 4th-12th grades.  This year's trip for Abigail's class was going to Outward Bound Zimbabwe in a beautiful area of the Eastern Highlands.  Outward Bound is an international organization (my sister Megan has led trips for them in the US) and we were excited for Abigail's experience of adventure.

Getting ready!

 Out on the raft that Abigail's team built

Beautiful setting.

Unfortunately, on the overnight trip into the mountains there was an accident with one of the cook stoves and several students and an HIS teacher were burned.  The teacher is still hospitalized for treatments for his burns so if you are inclined to pray please keep him in your prayers.  

Arianna had been waiting to have a little "Sweet Sixteen" celebration for many weeks and we finally had scheduled it for the day after Explore Zim.  Three of the five guests happened to be the injured students from the trip, so we debated about whether or not to go ahead.  Fortunately most of the student injuries were minor and the one more severe still wanted to come and hang out.  We canceled the water fight that was scheduled and it was a good chance for the girls to spend time together after their school trips.

Hanging out after making tie die shirts

"Sweets" table - the candy buffet was a highlight!

For those of you who know Arianna, she loves to plan a party.  She has enjoyed getting ideas off of Pintrest and blogs and has even started her own blog with ideas.  Here is a sample of her handiwork - cupcake tops on pint mason jars complete with labels for different beverages.  On the sweets table you can see the Chinese takeout boxes that she made and decorated for the girls to take home their candy loot.

Raining - Part Two

I wasn't expecting to be able to write about real rain so soon after that last post, but here it is:

First grey sky we've had in months.

You can see the raindrops on the pool!  The first rain is expected around October 15th so this is unusually early.  We also had some unusually hot weather the last few days of September (October is usually the hottest right before it rains) - which still makes me laugh a bit when people say, "It's so hot" since it only gets into the low 90's with no humidity.  Nothing compared to the 4 months of heat in Paraguay.  Or even July in Philly - when it is hot and humid whenever it is hot.  Looking at the forecast I think this is pretty much an one off event - no rain in the ten day forecast after today.  But at least it will bring the "perfect" temperatures that we usually have here in Zimbabwe (80's) back for a while. 

Here is the Jacaranda in our front yard.  I hope to get into the part of Harare where the trees make a canopy over the road when the blooms peak in a few days.  With any luck, I'll have some more spectacular pictures to post.  

When it rains it pours (even in the dry season)

OK, so it's not at all raining out (I don't think there's been a single drop since we got back over a month ago).  But we've been inundated with great musicians from America (as the US is called here!).  There is a concert series here that has been underutilized in the recent past but happily had it's first concert in about a year because there was an American Piano Trio that was doing a tour in the region.  It turns out that they are from Pittsburgh!  And that I've played with the cellist in at least one symphony (and probably more).  When I saw the promotional material I wasn't totally sure but when she walked out on stage I was!

The trio (Trio Nova Mundi) was great and two of the members were able to come over the morning after the concert to join Arianna and me for breakfast (one of the benefits of online schooling).  It was great to hear a bit more of the story of their journey to Africa for a tour before they left the country for their last concert at Oprah Winfrey's school for girls in South Africa and then headed back to Pittsburgh.

So, the same day they arrived in Harare, an expert Suzuki teacher who did the first teacher training here in Harare also arrived.  She stayed for a week, spending time with the woman who runs the program at the International School here (Ivy Decker Jones).  She did three days of parent talks and Arianna attended them all (another one of those benefits of online school) which is great since she is continuing to teach.  I think it inspired her to do Suzuki teacher training when she is eligible (you have to be a high school graduate or 18).  Unfortunately, her visit coincided with the Explore Zimbabwe trips so the HIS students in middle school and high school missed the opportunity to work with her, but I think there are plans for her to return to Zimbabwe in the near future.

The day all of these people arrived in Harare happened to also be the day that I had the chance to be part of a concert of a departing Japanese pianist.  She had been here for two years and wanted to do a farewell concert and include some chamber music.  So a local violinist and I joined her in three movements from Mendelssohn Trio No. 1 which is one of my favorites.

August Visitors

Our first visitors were friends that we met on the plane to Costa Rica when we were all on our way to language school!  We were so happy to have Bob and B Nesbitt visit us soon after our trip to the UK.  They are now part of the pastoral care team for their missions agency and so were able to stop in to see us for a couple of days after their first trip in their new role.

Besides having a great time hanging out, we revisited the caves at Domboshowa - a short ride out of town.

Rocks rising up as we drove there:

 North of Harare:

 View from the Domboshowa hike:

I had warned Bob and B that the paintings were not in good shape so I think they were pleasantly surprised at what we were able to see in the one cave we visited:

 Climbing up the rock formations:

Last night of the visit:

We hope to see them again the next time they come to this region!

National Musicamp of Zimbabwe

 I love it when we get to be a part of local life and the girls and I had a great opportunity to do that last week when we went to National Musicamp of Zimbabwe.  It was held at Peterhouse Girls' School out in Marondera and these pictures are from the picnic in the park there at the girls' school.  There are animals in the park but I didn't see any.  I did see the famous Msasa trees (in these photos at the park and below) which produce lovely colored new leaves in the springtime.  Not quite as brilliant as fall leaves in the Northeast of the US, but spectacular nonetheless.

 HIS students (and friends).  Even though school was in session, the kids were excused from classes for the week because the school thinks it is a good opportunity.  I have to agree!

String players waiting around for the final rehearsal at the concert venue back in Harare - the campus of St. George's College (which is a high school in American English) - also in full spring bloom.  The conductor was Juan Luis Munoz - a Chilean who has lived in South Africa for the last twenty years.  He brought a great sense of humor to the rehearsals and really knew how to prepare the kids for a good concert. He and his wife also performed in a recital in Harare on Sunday which was excellent.

The camp was mostly large ensembles (Orchestra, String Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Choir) and a bit of small ensembles of all kinds of instruments (including marimbas) and a chamber choir.  The camp was a full week long (Saturday to Saturday) and we are still tired!  But Abigail had a chance to perform as a soloist with the String Orchestra (Bach Double) and Arianna played an original fiddle tune at the Variety Show and so it's worth being tired.  

Rock Formation at Gosho Park and Msasa trees.

                                 

Chapel at Peterhouse

                   

Flowering tree at St. George's.  We had these in Paraguay so it is so nice to see them here!

First Day of School - part two!

School resumed today for Arianna and she was pretty happy to return to George Washington University's Online High School.  She is right now sitting in the first day assembly with over 100 kids who are meeting virtually.  I was probably equally as happy to login to the school this morning and feel like we were returning to a well run organization!  Arianna is a junior - can you believe it?  She is taking AP Biology and AP Spanish plus AP Psychology second semester so she will be a busy girl. 

How's this for advance notice?

Yesterday they announced that today was a national holiday.  Okay, so it's nice to have a day off come up out the blue (reminds me of snow days when I was a teacher!), but really, we couldn't decide this more than a day in advance?  The holiday is for the inauguration of President Mugabe.  Who of course has been the president since 1987 and was prime minister before that.  HIS (Abigail's school) has been in session for a week, just getting into a rhythm and they find out with less than 24 hours notice that they will be closed for a day.  I think this feels a bit of a culture shock moment because I'm in the process of trying to plan my schedule and everywhere I turn I find "well, we don't know what the schedule is yet..."

Oh well, it's a beautiful day and my family's home so I guess I'll just adjust to the situation and enjoy it.

BBC coverage of the inauguration:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-23790745

School starts - Part one

Abigail's school started a week ago and the good news is that most of her teachers got their work permits in time for the start of school.  The school has moved to a Middle Years Program (MYP) of the International Baccalaureate system so there will be some changes to the way things work there.  Today is MS Open House so it will hopefully explain things a bit more.  

Abigail was a bit disappointed that ALL of the new kids in her class are boys.  Not that she has anything against boys, but they lost about 5 girls over the course of the last school year so she was hoping for some new additions to their small grade.  Since they had a lot more girls previously the class is actually a bit more balanced now so in the end it may be a good thing.

General Update

We've now been in Zimbabwe for a over a year!  Fun to be back in the same season of the year as when we arrived - it gives a bit of rhythm to life.  I am enjoying the dry season knowing that things will be green again before a very long time.  And that the Jacaranda trees will soon be blooming!

After a bit of a break from blogging during a busy couple of months I will try to get back to regular posts.  Apologies to any of you who check regularly for the lack of recent posts (before yesterday).

Don't know how many of you keep up with the world news on Zimbabwe but let's just say that the good thing about the elections was that they were peaceful.  I'll leave the comments on the rest to others....

Making Lemonade Part Three - UK!

Since John wasn't able to join us in Massachusetts for a beach vacation, we decided to do a stopover in England on our way back to Zimbabwe for a family vacation.  It was a fantastic week (shout out to some of you who made recommendations) - great weather, great sites, great company (the girls were at a perfect age).  First stop was Cambridge and a punting ride on the Cam River:

Then two days in Stratford where we visited Shakespeare sites and spent a day at a castle:

And then on to the beautiful city of Bath where we felt like we were in Rome:

On our way back to London we happily had taken Abigail's advice of stopping at Highclere Castle:

Do you recognize it?  Yes, it's Downton Abbey!  We (Abby, John and I) have become fans of the show and so she looked into visiting the castle.  On the website it said all tickets were sold out, but we stopped by anyway and fortunately it was raining a little bit and there was no problem getting in.  It was interesting to see because the current Earl and Countess live nearby and are still trying to get the financial side of the castle to work - not unlike in the show.  So it was not all perfectly manicured inside as a museum would be (older wall to wall carpeting in many bedrooms - even those featured in the show).

After Highclere we headed back to London and had a great few days visiting the sites there.  The Tower of London was a highlight for all - we spent the whole day there!  One day we split up so that Arianna could get to see the Roald Dahl Museum which was on the top of her wish list but a train ride out of the city.  I went with her while John and Abigail went to Kensington Palace and the Science Museum.  We joined back up to go see Wicked at the theater that night.  It was a great family vacation and we could have visited a few more sights in London but we were also all glad to head home to Zimbabwe at the end of our week.