Last Minute (12:45 pm Tuesday August 2, 2011)

12:45 pm Tuesday August 2, 2011

 

It’s really difficult to change bad habits. In the past 4 years, since its “founding,” the Huanuco Jewish community has suffered from the lack of ability to read Hebrew and therefore, the habituation of essentially praying with many mispronounced and wrong words based on the fonetica (Hebrew writtern in Spanish transliteration) in their siddurim.  Today, I was singing Adon Olam with Rolo, and I noticed just how much of an issue it is. And he knows how to read Hebrew. It’s just that he and the others are accustomed to singing what they think are the words and are often lazy to change their habits of the past. So I sat down with Rolo and it took him 7 minutes to read through Adon Olam correctly. I could occasionally tell that he was trying (and failing) at cheating and remembering how they usually sing it (full of mispronunciations.) I stopped him several times and told him to stop remembering the pronunciation of the past, and utilize his ability to read the Hebrew to improve the pronunciation.  I know its tough but I hope that in the future, they continue to improve in this area

 

In classic Latin American fashion (the necessity to leave things to the last minute), when Juan went to purchase my ticket for the overnight bus from Huanuco to Lima, they were all sold out. I guess that’s what happens when you try to buy a long distance ticket just a day before its departure.  What this means is that I sadly have get to spend one fewer day in Lima.   Now, in my 27 hours in Lima, I’ll try to squeeze in Pachacamac (famous ruins), and 3 museums into a day.  Then Friday at 10am I fly an hour to Cusco, where I’ll be on my own for 2 weeks.