A film trailer must necessarily draw upon our own prior understanding of mythical concepts, in the Barthesian sense. By awaking in us memories of abstract ideas and familiar stereotypical characters and concepts, the authors can succeed in creating new myths associated with their films.

The semiotic exchanges at play during the watching of a film trailer are complex. The meaning of what we see will be interpreted according to denotation but also according to the connotations of such images and sounds within our particular cultural system. Going beyond into the future, the film may succeed in creating certain myths that will become part of our cultural experience and body of language and will in turn imply new connotations for new connected images, narratives and concepts.

The trailer for MELANCHOLIA by Lars von Trier exudes all of these complexities, which it uses to give the object of the film an aura of intrigue and mystery. The cutting of a film trailer is by definition an attempt at the creation of a myth. The trailer represents the film, it creates an idea of it which goes beyond its actual elements, the denotation: who the actors are, who the director is, what the story seems to be about.

The first scene shown is a couple in wedding-ready attire walking through what looks like a path leading to a mansion. Expensive-looking cars are parked on one side. On the level of denotation, what we see is a woman in a white dress and tiara and a man in a tuxedo, walking. The dialogue is the following:

Woman_ Won’t even bother saying how late you are.

 On a connotation level, these images evoke in us much more complex ideas. First of all, we associate this type of dress with weddings and we associate weddings on a mythical level with “happy endings” or a happy time, especially for women, if we take into account the Western narrative tradition. However, the woman’s tone and words denote anger or nervousness or both. The author is thus contradicting the myth of “weddings as happy endings,” as portrayed in popular children’s stories by the Grimm brothers and the like.

Moreover, on its connotation level, the setting implies that these people are rich, because of the place where they are getting married, their clothes and the cars we see by the side. The fairy-tale myth of the happy wedding is not usually complete without a promise of future wealth. In this respect, without the woman’s nervous look and words; the scene would be an ideal portrait of the “happy-ever-after” myth of fairy-tales.

In mixing the bride’s nervousness and anger with that mythical image of happiness, the director is creating a new myth: that of the people who LOOK like they have it all to be HAPPY and yet are not. But this is not entirely a new myth; our imagination is full of memories of films and books and even stories of real people we have met or heard about who were not happy when they got married or who had it all to be happy and yet didn’t succeed at it. Therefore, there is a new level of connotation, which will build complex links in our minds between our previous knowledge and assumptions about such stories and the images before our eyes.

Up to the 24th second, the trailer focuses on images which signify wedding celebration on a denotation level and “happy ending” and the like on a connotation level: Wedding guests dance, the bride is told that she has never been this beautiful, she says that she is thrilled, etc.

But after that, the trailer goes back to this MYTH being created, namely, that of the people who have everything to be happy on their wedding day, but are not. After we see these images of happy relatives and friends at the wedding, it is first the dialogue that reveals something amiss by referring to how much the wedding “is costing John.” This again goes to challenge the myth that was being created. Now, we learn that the wedding is “costing John a lot of money,” which implies that, at least for the character named John, this wedding has meant an economical effort, therefore the luxury we are being shown is not representative of the exact social standing of at least one of the people involved, and potentially more of them.

What we will now go on to call the MELANCHOLIA MYTH is emphasized once more with the following off-screen dialogue:

Woman_I thought you really wanted this.

Bride_But I do.

The dialogue is set against more images of “happy wedding people.” So, here is the MELANCHOLIA MYTH again: the contrast between an appearance of happiness and an inner reality of gloom and melancholy that befits the movie’s title.

But over the next minute and a half, we will learn that the MELANCHOLIA MYTH is not only about rich people who have it all and yet cannot be happy. The melancholy expressed by the bride at many points comes to be echoed and augmented and re-signified by the powerful images of a planet that is coming closer and will imminently collide with the Earth, thus destroying the world.

Now, without these images and sounds, this movie trailer’s connotations and myth creation would not be too different in our minds from the many stories, films and books we have been exposed to along our lives which present an outward idea of fairy-tale happiness to later reveal an inner uneasiness and ultimately unhappiness. But the MELANCHOLIA MYTH goes beyond that. When we get to the end of the trailer, the myth has been constructed. This is a movie about the opportunity of perfect happiness going to waste at the end of the world.

The MELANCHOLIA MYTH acquires more force because of the moment it is being released: this is 2011, when prophecies about the supposed end of the world in 2012 have been circulating for many years. On the eve of that supposed destruction, the MELANCHOLIA MYTH means something very different than it would have at a different time in history or in a different context.

To further the myth’s inner complexity and contradictions, and echoing the “not so happy fairy-tale ending” myth, the images of the planet approaching the Earth are extremely beautiful: much as the people look happy but are not, the planet approaching the Earth looks beautiful, and yet it means that the end of the world is coming and everyone will die.

In a way, the MELANCHOLIA MYTH comes to challenge the kind of bourgeois myths Roland Barthes himself claimed to despise; in this case that of the rich marrying happy couple. The scene that most directly challenges this myth is that where an older woman says, “enjoy it while it lasts; I myself hate marriages.” Much as Barthes was critical of the myth that associated wine with a good lifestyle in order to sell more bottles of it to the French public (1), the trailer is directly critical of the myth of the happy and rich marrying couple, which is in its turn, also used in advertising to sell everything from vacuum cleaners to laptop computers, all over the world.

Considering this implicit criticism of bourgeois ideals (or myths), this phrase used to describe the art of painter Camille Garcia would perfectly apply to the MELANCHOLIA trailer:

“ [it] appropriates imagery that has become synonymous with the

commodification of the fairy tale aesthetic, such as princesses, magic potions, poison

 apples, and castles, which in turn evokes new significations and meanings about the

myths of today’s world through her modification of these motifs” (2)

On the other hand, Barthes saw myth-making in a negative light. He believed that myths depleted sensory experiences, such as images and words read or heard, of their meaning to create an iconic idea of them that was sometimes used to sell us on ideas and products alike.

Because the MELANCHOLIA MYTH can be seen as a meta-myth which very directly and obviously challenges those types of myths that are still so common in our day, I believe Barthes wouldn’t have been so critical of ZENTROPA’s wish to sell us the MELANCHOLIA film; just a hunch, but I guess we’ll never know the answer to that.

REFERENCES

 1. Barthes, R. “Myth today.” (1957) Translated by Lavers, A. (1984) http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~marton/myth.html (Retrieved on May 22^nd, 2011)

2. De La Cruz, J. “The Art of Camille Rose Garcia: An Existential

Fairy Tale” Master’s thesis 2010, San Jose State University.

http://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4851&context=etd_theses (Retrieved on May 23^rd, 2011)

For over two and a half years now, the groundbreaking Citycenter complex has come to challenge everyone’s views of what Sin city represents.

A creation by Art Gensler´s GENSLER DESIGN, partnering with MGM MIRAGE, Citycenter took over two years to build.

Introduced as the largest privately-funded architectural project in the country’s history, the original Citycenter was supposed to cost 7 billion dollars, but the final cost rose to 8.5.

A Green Luxury

Covering 18 million square feet, the same as twelve blocks on the island of Manhattan, nothing remotely similar to Citycenter has ever been built as yet. In fact, it is the governing emphasis on the consistent use of green energy and green practices for each aspect of the construction, from shape and orientation to the disposal of garbage.

Citycenter´s most salient GREEN features include an 8.5 Mw natural gas plant which creates energy, as the heat generated is also used to heat up water. Groundbreaking water conservation systems that allow to save up to 60% of consumption, reusing water for irrigation, limos that run on clean natural gas, its very own recycling facility, and many more.

Ever since its opening, Citycenter has become a must see for tourists coming to Las Vegas from every corner of the world. The density of high-end stores has lead some to compare Citycenter with Rodeo drive or 5th Avenue, and tourists especially appreciate the train rides, great fun when visiting with kids, the art collections and the stunning views that abound.

Personally, I cannot imagine Spain in a different season as the summer. I have been to Ibiza, Madrid, Barcelona, Huelva, and some smaller towns, and I lived in Valencia for a year, while I was doing my Master´s. Though it did rain a few times while I was in Valencia, you don´t really get a winter there, and I also escaped to the Caribbean for a few weeks in December, so, I really have very little experience of Spain in the winter.

Enjoying life, Spanish style

One of my favorite things about summer in Spain are the crowded terraces, those relaxed long lunches, where I´ve seen things unimaginable in Uruguay, like taking over an hour for the lunch break during a film shoot, and even having wine and beer with the food.

Spain is all about the culture. The Spanish people really know how to enjoy life. The seafood is magnificent, the cava never stops flowing, the bars never close and the beaches are spectacular.

If you go to one of the islands, you´ll get a smaller offer in terms of cultural activity, but more when it comes to water sports and sheer leisure and outdoor fun. Barcelona is the best place for museums, art and just everything that is trendy in terms of design, fashion and culture in general, but if you want a bit of culture in a more relaxed setting, you will always prefer Valencia.

To get a feel for flamenco culture and the Arabic influence, you must see the gorgeous Seville and Andalucia, but the North also keeps some jewels such as the breathtaking coastlines of Galicia and the fabulous Basque country, with its beaches, interesting cultural heritage and fabulous cuisine.

Valencia area

If you do choose Valencia for your sort of center of operations, besides getting a chance to explore the magic neighborhood of Carmen in the oldest part of town, with its medieval buildings and meandering pedestrian streets, full of fun bars and cafes, you should also look into visiting the charming little Moncofa or securing some cheap Benidorm holidays. Moncofa is a tiny town on the seaside, which I wouldn´t ever have heard of unless I had once been invited to a film festival there. Unassuming little place, great food, great ocean views, nice people and I seem to recall, some pretty fabulous cantaloupe, are some of the things Moncofa has to offer.

On the other hand, Benidorm is pumping in the summer, art shows, electronic music festivals and concerts await in this coastal aera with modern infrastructure and top-notch restaurants and hotels.

Isle of Ons, Galicia

The islands

Among the islands, my heart is in Ibiza, but I guess it´s only because my beloved aunt Raquel lives there, and I have visited her at her beautiful villa in the area of San Rafael quite often. There are as many Ibizas as there are people visiting the island. If you want, you can dance from night till midday the next day at the various discos, but you can also rent a quiet place by some of the islands fantastic cliffs or in the middle of the greenness of the island´s center (though it will be more like yellow in the summer, when it doesn´t rain very often), and just enjoy the quiet side of the place. One thing you must definitely do if in Ibiza is take the ferry to the little but super-charming island of Formentera.

Madrid is one of my favorite places, but in the summer it´s like a cauldron, and I do not recommend spending more than a few days there, just enough to see the Prado and Reina Sofia museums, stroll around the beautiful Retiro gardens, do some shopping and board a speedy plane to the nearest beach!

Spain has always been gorgeous and full of life, but right now it is also quite inexpensive, and a good summer season in the economic sense may be just what the people there need to regain a little hope for the future of their wonderful land.

Images by Jessica Menchacatorre and AndyRobertsPhotos

Featured image: Getaria beach in the Basque country by Fresco Tours

“This shore of the lake is one continued village, and the
Milanese nobility have their villas here. The union of culture and the untameable profusion
and loveliness of nature   is here so close that the line where they are divided can hardly be discovered.”

Percy B. Shelley

Lounging by lake Como

A favorite spot for the most celebrated Romantic poets and Hollywood stars alike, Lake Como is endowed with an aura of mystery and romance ever since it was portrayed in novels like Frankenstein by Mary B. Shelley or described by her husband, the famous poet Percy B. Shelley as exceeding “anything I ever beheld in beauty.”

In the past, it was mentions in Hemingway’s or Mark Twain’s novels that made people wonder about Lake Como, but today, most tourists flock in, in hopes of catching a glimpse of George Clooney or Madonna, who own villas around the lake.

Transportation around the area is mostly done by romantic boat and train rides, and lovers can always be found around the passerella (lakeside walk) by night.

Sedona, Arizona

 ” [Paris and Sedona] the only two places  in the world that I would want to live.”

Max Ernst

I suppose I think places where great love stories took place always seem to make a good case as romantic spots in my eyes. Sedona is a

Surreal Sedona

magic place, its desertscapes are dreamlike and almost unreal. Surrealist painter Max Ernst lived there with his wife Dorothea Tanning, settling down after he thought he had found a place he had dreamed about, before ever having laid eyes on it, in one of his paintings.

Max Ernst’s love stories always seemed very romantic to me. Perhaps it is the fantastic women he married or the powerful couple portraits that have survived, but I always thought this would be an extremely romantic place for a sejour a deux.

Sedona has evolved enormously since Ernst’s time, and you can now enjoy the raw nature of the desert staying at fabulous 5-star hotels with a view of the impressive red-rock monoliths around Sedona town.

With great hiking trails and natural parks, fishing and horseback riding adventures available, Sedona makes a perfect romantic escapade for couples with a passion for the outdoors.

Romantic highlight: Looking at the Sedona stars by night.

Oia, Santorini

Oia at sunset

If you visit Santorini, you will be taken straight to the busy town of Fira, if you’re only there for a day, perhaps you will entirely miss out on the blissful little town of Oia.

For me, the quiet Oia (quiet even in the middle of the summer), was sheer bliss after walking around the charming, but crowded, Fira.Just like Fira, Oia is perched up on the high cliffs of this volcanic island. Beautiful restaurants and relaxed art galleries line the main street, while a walk down the steps of the adjacent slopes will reveal the beautiful horizon-edge pools of the charming local hotels and B&Bs.

The classic white and blue of the constructions, the magnificent views of the sea, the friendly people and the delicious food will make Oia a perfect paradise for almost any couple looking for a perfect romantic haven.

Sintra

Just like Lake Como, Sintra has been a place that fascinatedwriters, like Lord Byron and the Portuguese Fernando Pessoa, probably the most renowned poet in his language.

What I remember of Sintra is driving around a lush mountain covered in greenness, walking up the steps and around the meandering streets to find those little cafes and restaurants where you can have the best bunuelos de bacalao (fried dumplings with cod).

There is a dreamlike castle at the top of the hill and many more things to discover.Sintra is just a relaxed spot of breathtaking beauty, and it is full of charming, romantic little corners where lovers will be happy to get lost.

Paphos, Cyprus

Cyprus is probably not the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of romancing around the Mediterranean.However, the island has everything you might desire in a romantic destination. Paphos flights are probably the best way to get there and start exploring this relatively undiscovered Mediterranean haven. Cyprus is an affluent land with a history that starts in the Neolithic and includes everything from Roman to Byzantine, Arabic and Ottoman times.

Among the local natural beauties, Aphrodite’s rock is a favorite with lovers. Set on a magnificent beach in the Paphos area, in Greek mythology, the rock marks the place where the goddess of love arose from the waters, after being formed from the god Uranus severed genitalia. Ancient Cypriots used to be very devoted to the goddess, and there is even a Temple of Aphrodite in Old Paphos.

Cyprus has great hotels, restaurants and infrastructure, beautiful scenery, relaxing beaches, great spas and natural parks; if you top that with a chance to go pay your respects to the goddess of love and pleasure, I just don’t know what could be more romantic than that.

Cyprus peninsula from above

I heard a lot about Cyprus growing up. I went to an Armenian school, and I would often hear about Cyprus, mostly in history class. The population in Cyprus is mainly Greek, but there is also a small Armenian community, and the Armenian language is considered one of the minority languages of the island.

Like Armenia, Cyprus suffered many attacks from all the empires that ruled across Asia and Europe in ancient times, and the two countries share the Christian Orthodox religion, a trait they also share with Greece. When you travel around the Mediterranean, there are some things that become instantly clear, one of them is that Greeks love Armenians and hate Turks, similarly, Cypriots love Armenians, most of them also hate Turks, for both historic and religious reasons, but some of them are Turks.

Overview

The Ottoman domination left a large Turkish population in Cyprus. Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots never quite managed to get along, to the point that the Turkish Cypriots created their one government in the Northern part of the island, declaring their own Republic state, which has only ever been recognized by Turkey.

Aphrodite's rock

Cyprus is a thriving nation with a per capita income just above that of the whole European Union. It has been very clever at attracting foreign investment, and it has also seen a steady flow of foreigners relocating to the island. British rule has left some marks in Cyprus, where cars drive on the left-hand side of the road.

The third biggest island in the Mediterranean after Sicily and Sardinia, Cyprus is closest to Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. There are two international airports with flights to many European cities and another airport in the Turkish side, which only offers flights to Turkey.

Cyprus combines the Greek warmth and friendliness, the exotic aspects of the Muslim culture in the Turkish areas and a strong national culture which includes delicious dishes very akin to what you may find in Greece but also a special type of Lokum or Turkish delight, which has a special territorial denomination; as Armenians, we have always eaten lokum, which goes to show that, when it comes to great food, nobody really cares about religion…

Cyprus music is also very similar to Greek and Arabic music, including some of the traditional instruments of one can find in Greece, such as the bouzouki, but also indigenous elements such as the Cyprus flute or “pithkiavlin.”

Places to see

Paphos castle

Cyprus holidays may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of summer in the Mediterranean, but there is so much to see on the island, that a couple of weeks will hardly be enough.

 Dating as far back as the 10th millennium BC, the well-preserved Neolithic village of Khirokitia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is the main highlights for historical sightseeing around the island. Other interesting sites include the archaeological sites of Paphos and the Painted Churches of the Troodos Region.

There is also a beautiful mountain named Olympus in Cyprus, although, apparently, the dwellings of the mythological gods are said to have been on the Mount Olympus located in Greece. As far as mythological site claims, Paphos is recognized as the birthplace of the goddess Aphrodite.

Mount Olympus

The impressive Avakas Gorge, home to the endemic plant “centauria akamandis,” Cape Gkreko National Forest Park in the south-eastern coast and the beautiful Pitsilia area east of Mount Olympos are some of the most popular local havens of natural beauty.

According to Tripadvisor´s community ratings, the most popular attractions in Cyprus are Beauty Palace a famous spa in Peyla, Latchi Watersports Centre in Polis and Ride in Cyprus Ltd., which offers horseback riding tours around some of the regions most spectacular locations.

The rock in all its splendor

As things are, I am probably the only person I know who has been to both Gibraltar and the Falkland islands. These two special places have one interesting thing in common: they are much contested UK territories outside of the UK, people are bilingual Spanish-English in both of them, and they seem to have a strong national sentiment, which I suspect relates more to being Gibraltarian or Falklandian, rather than to being British.

I came to Gibraltar already 13 years ago today, looking for locations for a film I had been writing for my beloved friend, Spanish actress Angela Molina. As things turned out, I never made that film, but my visits with Angela and her beautiful family in Madrid and my little Gibraltar séjour were well worth my trouble.

Before coming to Gibraltar, I had come in contact with CLIVE FINLAYSON, director of the Gibraltar Museum and, I would soon find out, a charming, fascinating man.

My film was to be set in Gibraltar because of two historical occurrences, Neanderthals in Gibraltar and soem obscure sabotage attempts by the Argentinean military, using political prisoners as suicidal diver-bombers during the Falklands war. The latter had supposedly undergone some brain re-programming process, and were under thought-control, not performing the attacks (which ultimately failed) of their own free will. The plot was about a girl who uncovered her real father´s dramatic past as one of the suicide bombers, while researching about Neanderthals in Gibraltar.

Gorham´s cave, a Neanderthal haven

As for the war event, there wasn´t much to be researched in present day Gibraltar, at least not much that anyone was willing to talk about, but I found the history of Neanderthals in Gibraltar fascinating, not to mention that the main Neanderthal site, namely, GORHAM´s CAVE, was one of the most beautiful places I had ever seen.

I stayed at a hotel owned by Danes, who would talk Danish to each other in front of me, most likely about me, just to annoy me, making jokes like Corean manicurists in a Seinfeld episode. I didn´t much take to the two young, rude, Danes.

On the other hand, I received the most fabulous welcome from Clive and his smart and delightful wife Geraldine, who introduced me to the Governor of Gibraltar at a lovely party they were kind enough to invite me to.

Gibraltar Neanderthals lived long after Neanderthals were extinct everywhere else in the world, and research about them has indicated that they were much more sophisticated and advanced than scientists initially believed. A visit to the Gibraltar Museum and Gorham´s Cave will provide a fascinating experience for anyone remotely interested in history, natural beauty and ultimately, humanity.

Another fascinating tour I did, thanks to Clive again, was that of the tunnels inside of the Gibraltar rock, and I also remember what a special moment it was to see the tip of Africa across the water from a panoramic point near a beautiful mosque that captured my fancy so much, that I wrote a poem about it.

Catalan Bay

It´s been so long, memories probably get too blurry, but what I can say is that, even when it may not fit the category of cheap holidays, what with the exchange rate for British pounds and all, Gibraltar is one of those little places you will fall in love with. It has all the style and comfort of the UK, mixed with the warmth and joie de vivre of Southern Spain. Gibraltarians are half-Andalusians, and this is one thing you mustn´t forget. Most of them speak Spanish to each other at home  and in non-work environments, and there are even some words in the local version of English that are purely Gibraltarian, a mix of the queen´s English and the Andalusian turns of Castilian Spanish.

I remember seeing women in Andalusian-style, Arabic-heritage clothes crying out to each other from one end to the other of a street, in an accent that one might have heard on the streets of Seville, full of typical exclamations such as “Venga” and “Salero” and “mi niña,” etc. The very British garden cocktail party I attended, complete with Oscar Wilde´s cucumber sandwiches, combined with the image of this woman on the street make up the perfect picture of how I see Gibraltar in my mind, after the week I spent there.

This is, no doubt, one of the most fabulous places I have ever been. Back then, I had to take a plane to Malaga and then a very expensive cab to get there. Fortunately, if you are visiting today, you can get direct flights from Spain now, as well as from the UK.

Por un lado, me dieron ganas de compartir algunos videos de cosas maravillosas que sucedieron esa noche, de la cual participaron algunos de los intérpretes más talentosos, personales e inspirados con que cuenta el Uruguay.

(Video de urumusica - delicioso Pablo Damonte en minuto 4:40)

Pero además de eso, también tengo ganas de celebrar la manera en que Spinetta moldeó de alguna forma la sensibilidad de toda una generación, o varias, en realidad. Spinetta nos enseñó a cuidar el alma, a cuidar a nuestros niños, a entender nuestros sentimientos y a sentir propiamente de maneras que no hubieran sido posibles sin su sabiduría, sin la belleza de su alma transformada en canciones perfectas.

Hay formas de ver el amor, la naturaleza, el dolor, los miedos y hasta la belleza, que yo creo que no serían posibles, no habrían sido posibles sin Spinetta.

En lo personal, cuando yo era adolescente, no escuchaba a Spinetta, leía sus letras publicadas en un suplemento de rock, y me parecían maravillosas, (en ese entonces, estaba muy interesada en la literatura), pero lo único que había escuchado era Muchacha, que nunca fue una canción que me moviera demasiado, pero después, Todas las hojas son del viento, Barro tal vez, Tu nombre sobre mi nombre, Cantata de puentes amarillos, tantas vidas, tanta calma, tanta sencilla sabiduría y humanidad, tanto, que hoy creo que sería una persona completamente distinta si no hubiera conocido a Spinetta, si no le hubiera tarareado sus canciones a cada uno de mis sobrinos para hacerlos dormir cuando eran recién nacidos, si no hubiera intentado entender eso que el veía, que ve, y que su música trata de transmitirnos.

Acá les dejo algunas de mis versiones favoritas de artistas locales, durante esa gran noche.

Ante todo, creo que es algo más que válido que exista un homenaje a Spinetta desde el Uruguay, y por qué no, un disco de versiones “uruguayas” de sus canciones. Spinetta se entiende quizás de una manera diferente desde esta orilla del Plata, o como bien lo dijera Elbio Rodríguez Barilari en mi última publicación, él era “el más nuestro” de los rockeros argentinos.

Como sea, lo extrañamos, lo amamos y le agradecemos cada vez más todo lo que supo enseñarnos.

Gracias, Flaco divino.

Stylish London homes

When I went to Finland to shoot my film RAUL, as it was impossible to book a hotel during the Master´s Athletics´ Championship, I used couchsurfing to accomodate me and most of my crew. The experience lead to some deep most likely everlasting friendships with a fabulous Finnish family. However, couchsurfing is not for everyone. It can be tricky to share a house with people you have never met before. It´s kind of a gamble, every time.

Recently, a new service has come to my attention that combines the experience of living in  a real home, as opposed to staying at a hotel and being somehow stranded from the “local” side of things, with having a place of your own. As I am going to spend the summer in Europe this year (and escape the Uruguayan winter; mild though it may be, because it´s generally not much fun), I am considering spending a few days in London, like a true Londoner.

Soho street

The service I am talking about is called One Fine Stay, it is basically a very well organized temporary home rental service. Basically, you get to stay at fabulous London homes, paying less than the same level of accommodation would cost at a hotel, while the owners are away.

I am so looking forward to this. because I hate hotels, I hate that “lost in translation” feeling; the idea of getting to know true Londoners` way of life seems extremely appealing to me. In a way, it´s like borrowing someone else´s life for a while, like being in a movie. The people who own the house actually leave a set of recommendations for tenants, so that, even when they are not around, they are giving you tips as to where to shop, where to go, etc. I think that is one of my favorite parts.

My other favorite thing about this service, which I hope will soon spread to every cool city on Earth, are the houses they offer themselves. It appears that the people at One Fine Stay go to great lengths to make sure that the homes are simply fabulous. There is even one boat home to rent and there is something for every budget.

I think I have already chosen my favorite; it´s Calabria Road, just the perfect combination between classic good taste and funky modern design. I love that there is a HOME TRUTHS section, where owners share the home´s disadvantages; that way, you´ll have no surprises, which is sometimes unfortunately not the case with hotels…

London in the summer, living in a true London home, it sounds beyond delicious. I´ll be sure to post all about it when it happens!

Quite the lounge... (St. Mary´s lounge, available through Onefinestay)

If you are planning to go to London soon, check out my guide to London plays and musicals; it´s not recent, but most of the shows are still on, and they have endured for a reason.

You may also check out some of these great films set in London, to get in the mood for your true Londoner experience.

Reading some Martin Amis, Hanif Kureishi or even Dickens (describing the London that once was) may also get you in the mood. As I have just read one bad Kureishi and one great Amis, so, even when I think Kureishi´s old novels are superb (Intimacy, The Buddha of Suburbia), if you are looking to read recent novels set in London, I would stick with Amis. Some of my favorite writers like Graham Swift or Orwell and Virginia Woolf do have novels set in London, but I guess there is not much of the external life of the city there.

So, if you´re planning to head to London this Spring-Summer, just read your London novels and watch your London films and get ready to take it all in like a TRUE LONDONER.

Photos by dchris,  chriszami, onefinestay.com

Tuve que dejar de escucharlo unos días también. No quería que se pusiera más de moda en mi propia casa que lo que siempre había estado, que ya era bastante, por lo que había pasado. Había un dolor que no se iba a calmar hasta que los diarios y las revistas y el Facebook encontraran otro tema de conversación.

Justo cuando ya estaba pensando que ya era momento de escribir algo sobre él aquí en mi blog, sobre su obra, su luz, su humildad, la sabiduría que nos ha transmitido a varias generaciones, o no sé qué, hablar quizás sobre esas cosas que se sienten pero no se pueden definir muy bien, entonces, leí el artículo de mi queridísimo y admirado amigo Elbio Rodríguez Barilari que reproduzco aquí debajo, y me di cuenta que él había hecho sólo lo que los grandes escritores pueden hacer, había dicho todo lo que yo hubiera querido decir pero con un conocimiento y elocuencia de las que hubiera sido incapaz.

Gracias Elbio por estas palabras que deben ser las únicas que Luis realmente hubiera apreciado de todos los ríos de tinta que corrieron desde ese día gris hasta ahora.

Me tomé la libertad de agregar algunos videos de dos de mis discos favoritos, el Vivo en Obras grabado por el maestro Guido Nisenson y el ARTAUD de Pescado Rabioso.

EL FLACO FUE EL MÁS NUESTRO por ELBIO RODRÍGUEZ BARILARI (reproducido con permiso del autor)

Spinetta fue el más nuestro de los rockeros argentinos. Que no se entienda mal, por favor. No me refiero a la nacionalidad, ni les quiero sacar al Flaco, como ellos nos hacen con Gardel.

Spinetta fue un tipo de músico de un carácter que la música argentina casi no tiene. Ellos, históricamente, han pululado en gente como Charly y como Fito, Cerati o Calamaro. Gente que se mete dentro de un estilo del rock o del pop, lo copian lo mejor que pueden, y se suben en las sucesivas ondas que vengan, con más o menos suerte.

Buenos Aires tiene tango, como nosotros. Pero sufre la ausencia de folclores urbanos, como el candombe y la murga. Y encima los rockeros argentinos le han tenido miedo a la milonga.

Así que no hay equivalentes a Dino, que se puso a trabajar con fusiones de milonga y rock apenas pudo. No tuvieron un Rada, un Mateo, un Urbano Moraes, trabajando con fusiones de candombe, rock, y encima música brasileña.

En 1972, cuando cruzamos el río para ir al Festival de rock de Buenos Aires, muchos que hoy lo admiran, se reían del candombe rock. La barra esa, Moro, Mono, Cubero, Pajarito (el argentino, no el yorugua), oían a Tótem y te decían, muy sueltos de cuerpo:

-Séeeee, es como los morenos tocando las congas por la calle…

Así decían, Congas.

Demasiado prendidos del rock, los porteños no dejaron que las letras crecieran. Las letras del rock argentino son mayormente horrendas e inmaduras, como las del rock uruguayo en estado puro.

Un letrista que pintaba para más, como Tanguito, se murió enseguida. Otros grandes autores de canciones, como el mitológico Vasco y Pedro Conde, nunca salieron del underground.

Las letras de la música montevideana crecieron, se nutrieron, en la mezcla, en la zona turbia del rock con el candombe, la murga, la milonga y la música de Brasil.

Litto Nebbia, un precursor, puede ser lo más cercano a Dino. Pero Litto no descubrió que podía recurrir al folclore hasta bastante más tarde, en las épocas del grupo Huinca.

Los argentinos no han tenido un Darnauchans. Lo más cercano sería León Gieco, gran respeto a Gieco. Porque Baglietto, que me perdone, pero no, él es como más un cantante pop a la española.

Figuras como Fernando Cabrera, Jaime Roos, Mauricio Ubal, Schellemberg, Drexler, no tienen equivalentes en la música argentina.

Pero el Flaco Spinetta fue mucho más como ellos. O sea, mucho más “brasileño”, como son los nuestros. Más como Caetano Veloso, como Gilberto Gil, como Chico Buarque, esos ejemplos del otro lado, que tan benéfica influencia han tenido en la música uruguaya.

Si uno compara a Os Mutantes brasileños, o a El Kynto uruguayo, con los grupos argentinos de la misma época, hay años luz de diferencia. Mientras brasileños y uruguayos generaban la Bat Macumba o Dedos, mis amigos queridos del grupo Manal trataban de copiar blues, nota por nota y hasta con la voz ronca. Ojo, adoro a Manal. Pero como una parte de mi corazón, no por su legado histórico… ¡Jugo de tomaaate frío, en las venas… en las venas deberías teneeeeer!

En cambio Almendra era otra cosa. En Almendra había otros talentosos, no sólo el Flaco. El guitarrista Edelmiro Molinari tocaba rock fenómeno y podía hasta tocar jazz a muy buen nivel. Emilio del Guercio, con quien hicimos giras en Argentina en los 80`s, buen bajista, buen compositor, buen cantante, y un Gran tipo.

Almendra era una típica banda de clase media, que salió del barrio de Belgrano, cerquita de la casa de mi abuelo Barilari. Por eso que con Adrián Barilari somos primos segundos.

Almendra solamente duró de 1967 a 1970, pero la huella que ha dejado es desmesurada. No solamente por Muchacha ojos de papel. Piensen en cosas como Laura va, o como Figuración. Ahora comparen eso con La Balsa y el resto del rock porteño de la época, y se entiende el por qué.

La Balsa, de Tanguito y Litto nebbia, que se considera la canción fundacional del rock argentino en español, fue compuesta en 1967.

Mucha ojos de papel fue compuesta en 1969, dos años después, pero se escucha como si hubieran pasado toda una década.

Muchacha ojos de papel es una canción que tiende a la madurez. Se abre a una experiencia amorosa de una manera totalmente diferente a la típica letra tontuela del rock porteño. Y lo hace con una poesía simple pero de imágenes muy atractivas.

Además, es una canción transgresora. En esa época Nadie, pero Nadie, ponía la palabra “pechos” en una letra de canción. Y menos “pechos de miel”. Y nadie de esa corta edad confesaba que estaba invitando a la novia a pasar la noche juntos, hasta que por la ventana suba el sol.

La guitarra de Molinari en todo ese disco es mucho más sutil y avanzada que lo que sus colegas harían en toda la década siguiente, tratando de copiar a éste o a aquél, desde The Police hasta los Pretenders.

En ese disco hay invitados de lujo, Rodolfo Alchurron, tremendo violero de jazz, y nada menos que Juan José Mosalini, bandoneonista de Pugliese y hoy en día uno de los mejores del mundo.

Y hay que ver las cosas que Spinetta hizo después. No se conformó con Almendra y armó Pescado Rabioso, con un tipo de música mucho más difícil y desafiante.

Cada nueva apuesta fue como un golpe de timón buscando algo, algo nuevo para decir o una manera nueva de decirlo. Lo que me interesa menos es Jade, pero igual, Jade tiene cosas de un refinamiento brutal, nada que ver con la cosa pop, cheta y superficial que predominaba en la época.

Por el hambre de cambio, de fusión, de experimentación y por su trabajo obsesivo con las letras es que Spinetta es una figura rara, única, aislada en el rock porteño. Por eso lo siento más relacionado al autor de canciones e intérprete individual a la uruguaya o a la brasilera. El Flaco es más como Cabrera, o como Caetano, claramente, que como Charly.

Ahora que se murió han aparecido cardúmenes, manadas de “amigos”, entre comillas de Spinetta. Yo no me voy a anotar en ésa. Lo conocí gracias a Ruben Castillo, que me mandó a entrevistarlo. Lo seguí viendo, esporádicamente, a lo largo de los años. Estuve en su casa un par de veces, lo vi escabulléndose de los fans más cholulos.

Lo vi sentado en un sofá desvencijado con una guitarra acústica trabajando frenéticamente en una canción, mientras a su alrededor la gente fiesteaba.

Que yo sepa sus amigos, reales amigos, uruguayos han sido gente que ya se nos fue como el propio Castillo, el Corto Buscaglia, y entre los sobrevivientes, el escritor y hombre de radio Macunaíma.

En el trato que me tocó tener me quedé con la imagen de un tipo tímido en el fondo, que sabía vencer esa cortedad, especialmente arriba del escenario. Pero que buscaba dos cosas, por sobre todo: su paz y su propia voz.

El Flaco fue un tipo auténtico y un artista descomunal. Me ha llevado un tiempo poder sentarme a escribir sobre él. Más que nada por el vació que deja adentro de uno.

No tanto por la cosa de la muerte. Lo malo es una mala muerte, morirse después de una vida en la que uno no ha sentido que vivió, que hizo todo lo que pudo. Uno no hace lo que quiere o lo que debe. Uno hace lo que puede. Eso lo tenía claro el Flaco.

Pero él, pudo mucho.

My fondest memories are of eating fresh angel fish, just off the fishing boats, my solitary early morning walk through Playa de la Viuda (Widow´s beach, or Widow´s bay, as I like to call it), without a soul in sight for miles, reading a delicious old Vargas Llosa novel and the fabulous script of my next movie, which will be shot in Argentina later this year.

Nothing beats paradise when the throngs of tourists have all gone back to where they came from. I have been to Punta del Diablo only in December and March lately, skipping the most popular summer months of January and February, and, unless you have a problem with seeing a bunch of people holding hands inside the water and making out on the sand, I thoroughly recommend it. There won´t be a party, there won´t be a lot of interesting people to meet, but there will be bliss; in my book, that´s plenty enough.