GOCTA WATERFALL (CATARATA DE GOCTA )

I lived in Peru some time, and unfortunately didn't have the possibility to visit it all, but just Lima and Callao. Thanks to Mr. Huaman Quintana, a tourist guide who lives in the North part of Peru, I will present tourist sites that are as interesting as the popular Machu Picchu, Nazca lines and lake Titicaca.

First, I will start with the Gocta waterfall, situated in the Peru's province Chachapoyas in Amazonas (approx. 700 km north-east of Lima), which is the he third tallest free-leaping waterfall in the world after Angel Falls in Venezuela and Tugela Falls in South Africa.

the location of the Province Chachapoyas

According to the sources I found on the internet, some refers that the waterfall was discovered in 2002 by a German, Stefan Ziemendorff, who informed the Peruvian government of its existence, while other sources report that his discover was made public in 2005. On 11 March 2006, following his third expedition to the falls, he held a press conference, the contents of which were published by several of the world's wire services. He stated that the total height was accurately measured at 771 metres (2,530 ft).

Catarata de Gocta, photo sent by Mr. Quintana

Local people knew of its existence but they feared the curse of a beautiful blond mermaid who lived in its waters if they revealed its whereabouts. An ancient myth says that the mermaid keeps a golden bowl which in turn is guarded by a giant serpent.
The waterfall can be reached by walk, starting from Cocachimba, which is situated 6 km from it. The time of walk is of approximately 6 hours; 3 hours to reach the waterfalls and other 3 hours to return back. The other possibility is by car, starting from Chachapoyas, Lamud, which takes one hour and a half.
More detailed information can be given you by Mr. Quintana, who kindly gave me information about that wonderful places, I am describing in my blog. Mr. Quintana can be contacted by mail: kleverman_15@hotmail.com.

To present more accurately the waterfall, I added more photos found on the Internet. The waterfall is so spectacular that it deserves a more detailed presentation.
Enjoy its beauty.

CATARATA DE GOCTA

"O SOLE MIO" A LULLABY FOR MY BABY

I don't remember exactly when I started to sing "O sole mio" to my daughter, but since the day I did it, she falls asleep very fast and tight. Oh, I am glad I started to sing her that song. But I sing it in Italian, and more precisely in the Neapolitan dialect (Napoli in Italian).

The song goes like this:

Che bella cosa na jurnata 'e sole,
n'aria serena doppo na tempesta!
Pe' ll'aria fresca pare gia' na festa
Che bella cosa na jurnata 'e sole.

Ma n'atu sole
cchiu' bello, oi ne'.
'O sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te!
'O sole, 'o sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te,
sta 'nfronte a te!

Lùcene 'e llastre d''a fenesta toia;
'na lavannara canta e se ne vanta
e pe' tramente torce, spanne e canta
lùcene 'e llastre d'a fenesta toia.

Ma n'atu sole
cchiu' bello, oi ne'.
'O sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te!

Quanno fa notte e 'o sole se ne scenne,
me vene quase 'na malincunia;
sotto 'a fenesta toia restarria
quanno fa notte e 'o sole se ne scenne.

Ma n'atu sole
cchiu' bello, oi ne'.
'O sole mio
sta 'nfronte a te!


I found also a translation of the song on the internet, which goes like this:

My sun

What a beautiful thing is a day of sun,
calm is in the air after a storm!
The air is so fresh it seems already a holiday...
What a beautiful thing is a day of sun!

There is no other sun
more beautiful
my sun
is on your forehead

Sparkling are the glasses of your window,
a washlady sings and boast
while she wrings, hangsout and sings.
Sparkling are the glasses of your window!

There is no other sun
more beautiful
my sun
is on your forehead

When evening comes and the sun sets,
I am assailed by melanchony......
I will remain under your window,
until is evening and the sun sets.

There is no other sun
more beautiful
my sun
is on your forehead

translated by Luisa

Webmaster: Umberto de Fabio
udf@mclink.it on Napoletanita'

Well, I sing the Neapolitan dialect version, because this is the original, and because part of my family is from Avellino, a city near Naples. It is a way to transmit to my daughter one small part of her origins as well.

This song was first published in the 1898 and since than it was interpreted by different singers. I like the version of Enrico Caruso and of course of Luciano Pavarotti.
But it is really curious that my daughter started to like that much this song. I started singing her lullabies that my grandma used to sing to me, such as "Din don dindolon Janja je padla v kanon....": The translation of this part is really difficult, how it will sound in English. But the last part says that I fell into a canon. Don't ask me, why my grandma wanted me to fell into a canon. I never asked her, if she invented this lullaby or her mum sang it to her. Well, I must ask her.

But "O sole mio" lullaby works just fine for my little kid, and besides, I like it so much, it is such a lively song, full of energy and sun, and it makes me remember Napoli and the sunny character of the people there. Well, I never were there in fact, but still are in contact with familiars. It would be nice to go and to know the cities my grandpa lived in before the war.

Naples, Italy

And here goes two links to two versions of the songs:

Enrico Caruso: O sole mio
Luciano Pavarotti: O sole mio

I guess where my daughter got this ear for the opera, but she likes it so much. She sings and dances when she hears opera. We did a small video of here listening to the opera, singing and dancing.

She likes, besides opera, all kind of music, and when there is no music, she sings herself and dances. Kids are incredible.

THE (UN)KNOWN HALLOWEEN

As October is the month of the now well know Halloween, which is more famous for the costumes, witches, pumpkin, bewitched houses, etc, I wanted to research a little about this festivity.

Everybody knows that it comes from the United States, but very little know the real origins of this custom. I was always intrigued by this peculiar festivity and all the things that surrounded it, so I wanted to check farther and give back a little of its origins.
Halloween known also as Samhain is a Celtic festival which is one of the four major holidays celebrated by the Paleopagan Druids, referred to as "fire festivals". I am quoting this from the internet site The real origins of Halloween. Fire hat of course its importance in many cultures: to the ancient Celts fire was a symbol of divinity, holiness, truth and beauty.
Samhain was the original festival that took place from October, 31 to November, 2. These 3 days were for the Druids the time to connect with the spirit of their loved ones, who passed on the other side, because the spirit of the dead was for them a source of guidance not of fear.
With the coming of Christianity, this festival was turned into Hallowe'en.
Druids, who were a well organised and well structured society, used this three days to practically "go crazy", men dressed as women, women as men, and children knocked on neighbours houses for food and treats.
Samhain, pronounced as sow-an or sow-in, is derived from old Irish, and it means "summer's end" and the beginning of dark and winter. It is the end of one season, and the beginning of the other half of year, dark and cold. It was also the time to make stocks of food for the winter stores.
The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th Century, it is a Scottish variant of "All Hallows Even (evening) or Eve", the night before the Christian All Saints day on November, 1st.
According to Historian Nicholas Roger, men and women used to dress, wearing customs and masks, to ward of harmful spirits. It was believed that on that day, the line between the world of the alive and the dead was thin, and that time, allowed the passage of good and evil spirits.
I found on the internet that there are several theories about Halloween, and all are very interesting. But I found the theory of the internet page, I found, very fascinating. The festival was taken than to North America by the Irish immigrants in the 1846, because of the famine. They brought with them the customs of Halloween. For more details on that, I find an interesting page History.com which brings and interesting article
But I always wondered why people use pumpkins on that festival.


I found these interesting legend on Wiki answers on why people use pumpkins on Halloween:

"700,000 immigrants came to America in the 1800s during the Irish Potato Famine, bringing with them the traditions of Halloween and the use of Jack O Lanterns. Traditionally, the lantern was carved from a turnip, potato, or beet and lit with a burning lump of coal or a candle. These lanterns represented the souls of the departed loved ones and were placed in windows or set on porches to welcome the deceased. They also served as protection against malevolent spirits or goblins freed from the dead. Turnips and gourds were not as readily available in the Americas so the pumpkin was used and found to be quite an adequate replacement. The pumpkin jack o- lantern has been an essential part of Halloween celebrations since the Victorian days and today is a universal symbol of Halloween.

There are many lore's and legends surrounding the origin of the Jack O Lantern. The most popular tale is that of a Nowell Irishman name Jack. Well known for his drunken meanness, Jack got so intoxicated on a Halloween that his soul began to leave his body. The Devil saw an opportunity to claim a victim and promptly came to earth. Jack was desperate to avoid his fate so he begged the Devil to allow him one last drink. The Devil consented but stated that Jack would have to pay for his drink because the Devil carried no money. Jack claimed to only have a sixpence left and asked that the Devil assume the shape of a sixpence to pay for the drink. Then, tab paid, the Devil could change back to himself.

The Devil considered the request reasonable and changed himself into a sixpence. Jack immediately grabbed the coin and put it in his wallet, which had a cross shaped catch. The Devil was unable to get out and began ranting and cursing. They then made a deal that the Devil would be released if he agreed to let Jack alone for one year. The Devil agreed and Jack set forth to reform is behaviour over the next year. It wasn't long before Jack slipped back into his mean, drunken ways and the next All Hallows Eve the Devil appeared to Jack and demanded his soul. Once again, Jack was desperate to save himself and did so by tricking the Devil.

He suggested to the Devil that he may want one of the delicious apples hanging in a tree nearby. He offered to allow the Devil to climb on his shoulders to reach the apples. Once the Devil was in the tree, Jack pulled out a pocket knife and carved a cross in the tree trunk. The Devil could not get out of the tree. Furious and desperate, the Devil offered Jack ten years of peace in exchange for freeing him. Jack insisted that The Devil never bother him again and he would be freed. The Devil resentfully agreed. Jack then returned to his old ways but before the next Halloween, his body gave out and he passed.

He was turned away at the gates of Heaven because of the meanness in his life. The Devil refused him at the gates of hell, stating that he would never bother him again and told him to return from whence he came. To help Jack see on his journey, the Devil threw him a burning lump of coal from hell. Jack put the ember inside of a turnip and it has been Jack's light on his eternal wanderings ever since. To protect oneself from Jack on All Hallows Eve, jack o lanterns were placed on porches and in windows, in hopes that Jack would take the light if needed instead of bothering anyone."

MY DAUGHTER'S FIRST BIRTHDAY

October, 11 is the day that my little sunshine was born. I still remember the day I went to do my regular monitor check at the hospital and it turned out, that my blood pressure was high, and I had to stay at the hospital the same day. It was Friday, 9 October and the weather was still nice, hot for that months. They had to induce the birth cause the doctor was afraid that the high blood pressure would affect the baby. The do me lots of checks and it resulted that the pressure stabilized and they starting giving me hormones so that the neck of the uterus would mature quickly and that would provoke contractions.

The process was so long to me, it started on Friday afternoon and on Saturday I still didn't have contractions strong enough to give birth. On Sunday morning the doctor decided that it would be the d-day because on Saturday I was too tired to go through all the process. And on Sunday morning, when I slept well, they started in the morning by giving me hormones to start contractions. I wasn't sure about the epidural, but as the contractions went stronger, I decided it would be for the best. And after the epidural, the little one started to knock very quickly so I started to push and at 5.40 p.m she was born.

My daughter right after birth

She was so tiny. My husband was present at the moment of her birth and we both got eyes wet for the great happiness to finally see her. What a day, full of the great emotions possible. It is really a magical event, to see your little baby and to take her into your arms after nine months. It was fantastic to hold her and to see her little body. The emotions that one feels at the moment of birth are indescribable, it is a moment between you, your baby and your beloved husband.
I remember each minute of it. Well, it isn't so far that moment, but still, it is a moment that mother and father remember forever.
From that day it is now one year already and our little miss is a big baby girl.

She is such a lovely kid now, very very stubborn, but very lovely. She has her own character and I can tell she will be a very brave person when grown up. The desire of the parents is that their kids will be nice human beings and will be happy. Their health and happiness are the first.

But it is not easy to be a parent, not at all. Our little miss is a very demanding little person, very curious about everything. But kids are all curious about life, about their surrounding, they are still learning about the world they were born in. Me and my husband are trying to do the best so she will grow up in a healthy and happy person.