This gallery contains 13 photos.
In the musical, In the Heights, the song Paciencia Y Fe is performed by Abuela Claudia, the heart of the community, and also its adopted grandmother. It is a touching account of her life story, and that of many other … Continue reading
This gallery contains 3 photos.
From Ground Zero, we make a superhuman leap across the length of the small island to northern-most Manhattan, where streets once again break free from the tyranny of the grid system, in more ways than one: here also, Manhattan appears … Continue reading
This gallery contains 32 photos.
Despite being the smallest capital city in Southeast Asia, Vientiane is no less diverse ethnically and religiously. Its commercial and religious architecture is consequently, one of the most interestingly diverse as well so far on the Grand Tour. It’s almost … Continue reading
This gallery contains 25 photos.
Where colonial and institutional architecture is concerned, Vientiane resembles its cousin Phnom Penh, with many colonial villas now housing government institutions, and many civic institutions occupying modernist and art deco buildings from the ‘50s and ‘60s. There are two main … Continue reading
This gallery contains 12 photos.
The Remains of the Day The Settha Palace Hotel is one of two legendary hotels in Vientiane, the other being the Lane Xang Hotel, built in the 1960s by the Russians, and famous for having played host to Beat author … Continue reading
This gallery contains 7 photos.
“Laos is as different from Vietnam as Big Sur is from Long Island.” Hunter S. Thompson, Checking Into the Lane Xang In Its Own Time Ten years is a long time between visits. But then, I never expected to revisit … Continue reading
This gallery contains 8 photos.
The song nears its end. We hear the same theme we heard during the introduction, except this time, it is in a hopeful D Major. It suggests that Death has won over the Maiden. We can almost imagine her, sleeping … Continue reading
This gallery contains 10 photos.
Death sounds his reply in ominous though seductive undertones. So says he: “Give me your hand, you lovely and tender form / I am a friend, and come not to punish / Be of good cheer! I am not savage, … Continue reading
This gallery contains 7 photos.
The maiden, enters and commences her desperate refrain in a contralto voice: “Pass over me! / Pass over me! / Go, you wild man-of-bones! / I am still young. / Go, rather, / And don’t touch me / And don’t … Continue reading
This gallery contains 4 photos.
The song begins in D minor. The mood is portentous. Eight bars of soft, but sinister chords on the piano echo Death himself, emerging from the water and creeping softly up to the unsuspecting maiden. The landscape here is a … Continue reading
Dream Of A City 