Artist for Peace

This week has been a very cultural one. On Wednesday Tumul K'in School hosted a Maya Ceremony (H'uk) similar to the one I attended in Guatemala. That meant another late night of offerings, Marimba music, and corn products and a 4:30am wake-up call to travel to a local ruin to perform the offerings. Once again, it was a great honor to be able to observe this event.

Friday I traveled to the Garifuna village of Barranco for a special event featuring Belize's most famous son. The Garifuna are an ethnic group in Belize that originate from the island of St. Vincent where a recked slave ship and the local indigenous population combined to form a unique Caribbean-African language and culture. They came to Belize when forced from St. Vincent by the British, and this Monday is the National Holiday of Settlement day that celebrates this journey and arrival in Belize. The language, music, and dance of the Garifuna are unique and amazing, but like many small cultures, in danger of disappearing. One exceptionally talented musician, Andy Palacio, has made it his mission to preserve his culture through Garifuna Language music that is now known the world over. He recently received the UNESCO Artist for Peace Award, and I was there in Barranco, his home village, to see the event.

We arrived in the back of a truck on a perfectly sunny day with a cool breeze rolling off the Carib Sea. The beat of the drums greeted us as we headed towards the park where the event would take place. Shortly, a parade of dancing school children and singing women made their way to the village wharf as a boat full of international press and Andy Palacio himself arrived by water. He was given praise by his family and community, and presented his award for his exceptional efforts at peace and cultural preservation through his music. Andy Palacio would say to me later that this ceremony usually takes place at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, but this one was special because he was in his home village. He would join ranks of Celine Dion, who also holds the honor of international artist for Peace. The short ceremony ended with dancing, drumming and singing.

Everyone moved on to lunch, which was a traditional feast of mashed green plantain (hudut) and coconut soup (serre) with fresh fish. I got my plate, sat at a table, and who should inquire about an empty seat but the man of the hour himself, Andy Palacio. I should emphasize that this is by far the most famous Belizean in the world, and regularly sells out concerts world-wide, so I was pretty honored. I also want to emphasize that his music is amazing and you can probably find his CD "Watina" at your local Borders, and I encourage everyone to go and get it and listen to it. Anyways, back to lunch. I tried to scoot over to make room, but the awkward slope of the group where we were sitting and the tight space proved too much for my clumsy self, and in the process of making room for Andy, I managed to spill some of his serre on him and the table. He was very gracious, came back with a cloth to clean up, and sat and made conversation anyways. He signed my CD and went on to do interviews with the press and we left Barranco amid the beat of more drums, but I had the distinction of not only eating lunch with a world famous musician, but embarrassing myself as only I can do. Way to go grace indeed.

Links and music for Andy Palacio (really, check them out!)
Music Downloads for Andy Palacio
PBS Frontline Interview with Andy
YouTube Behind the Music Video for Watina CD
National Geographic World Music on Andy Palacio with audio from Watina