Poetry Reading at Metelkova

 Thanks to various contacts in the poetry world, set up before departure (thanks to Gary Lawless of Gulf of Maine Bookstore, in Brunswick, and Ray Miller), I was invited to participate in a monthly poetry reading in Metelkova, an autonomous communal cultural space here in Ljubljana. (See link below for more background on this area).

This poetry space, now in its tenth year, welcomes voices of all kinds, from beginning to established poets, and each guest is given equal time: about ten minutes.  With seven poets reading, this makes for a lovely mix of voices.

With my modest Slovenian, I had the cool experience of just listening to the sounds of the language, the voices of the poets, their cadences, pitch, emotion, and body language.  A bit like listening to Indie music, and I was completely taken into the words.

Veronika Dintinyana, who organizes the readings with poet Dejan Koban, translated some of my poems, so when it was my turn to read, she followed my English with a Slovenian translation. This made for some dynamic verbal music, and I'll look forward to working more with Veronika in the future.

One humorous piece of the night:  Metelkova, like much of Ljubljana, is dog friendly, so of course I brought Bella with me.  She spent most of the evening visiting all the  guests' tables or chairs, getting lots of attention, and a taste of beer (not to her liking).  But what she really wanted was to sit in the poet's chair on stage:  a red overstuffed armchair, with a microphone near to project the seated poet's voice.  Bella tried to nose next to a few reading poets, but her triumph came after the last poet read, the chair was empty, and she claimed it.  A memorable moment for all watching.

 Take a look at this link for a history of the fascinating space known as 
Metelkova

Piran/Pirano

We went to Piran/Pirano on Friday, February 13th, for a day trip.  Only about 90 minutes away, we entered an entirely different ecosystem - palm trees, lavender, and rosemary blooming.  And the smell of the sea, important for me, being the coastal Maine girl I am.

Piran/Pirano is ancient. Romans overturned the Celts (who likely usurped some other tribe) in the first century, but it is the later 500 span of Venetian rule that has left its mark.  Winding narrow streets, Gothic architecture, plazas, and a well-protected harbor, make this is lovely town to get lost in, even off season, as we did.

The Slovene here sounds like Italian, and most signs are in both Slovenian and Italian. True to the eclectic cuisine here in Slovenia, we had a great lunch at a Bosnian tavern, and super cappuccino at a tiny corner cafe.  Bella, who is multilingual, had a dip into the Adriatic sea, and posed for me after.

Ljubljana: Settling In

Now here ten days, we have found the outdoor market, the supermarket, great pizza, super yoga, and kind people everywhere we go.  Thanks to Ray Miller, professor of Slavic Studies from Bowdoin College, I have already a wonderful network of professional colleagues. 

On Monday, Don Reindl, in the Translation Department, was gracious enough to spend time with me at Le Petite Cafe, and give me some insights based on his long career here in Ljublana.
Tuesday was a jackpot with a long chat with Tatyana Jamik, poet and translator, and Iztok Osojnik, also a poet and active member of the arts community here.  Thanks to them, I will have a reading of my work in a few weeks, at the progressive Metalkova.
Thursday I was back at Le Petite Cafe to chat with economic historian, Zarco Lazarevic, and left with a reading list.
A Slovenian lunch is planned with my super colleague, Mojca Krevel, and her family.
My proverbial dance card is pretty full already.

Still in store for me, Slovene lessons, a pool schedule (at Tivoli Park), and some time for my own reading and writing.  Classes start in one more week, and I'm super excited to meet my students.

Time to dash off to Preseren Trg, for a meeting with Mateja,  my Slovene penpal.

I will post some photos later ~
Lep Pozdrav!

Arrival in Ljubljana

We have arrived in beautiful Ljubljana, whose name (according to my Lonely Planet Guidebook), almost means "beloved," (Ljubljena in Slovene).  Even though today was overcast and drizzly, the city already feels beloved.  An emerald green river surrounds the central castle, and buildings along the river are earthy pastels, with worn facades and friendly Baroque flourishes.  We wandered around the narrow side streets, explored the snowy plazas, and peeked into church courtyards.

Most of the architecture you can read about in any guidebook or find online.  Here are a few things one may not know until visiting:

Dogs are very welcome!  It may be because it is winter and not too many people strolling about, but we saw several dogs trotting along with their caretakers, without leashes and some without collars.  Bella was all too happy to be released to roll in the snow, chase some pigeons, and sniff snowbanks. 

Ljubljanians (I'll learn the proper word), stroll about even on a raw winter Sunday, some with dogs, or baby strollers, or walking sticks, or arm in arm with partners. The cafes along the river have heat lamps set out, and chairs with lambs' wool and blankets for patrons to sit outside and sip cafe or tea or whatever, regardless of the weather.

A simple "dober dan" (good day) and a smile can unleash a chatty response in Slovene, which this visitor cannot yet understand fully, but can appreciate.

I'll sign off this those remarks ~ Lep Pozdrav ~ (a farewell remark) ~
Ellen

Please note, this site, ETFulbright.blogspot.com, is not an official Fulbright Program site.  Although I am using the Fulbright reference, the views here are entirely of the author, Ellen M. Taylor, and do not represent the views of the Fulbright program, the U.S. Department of State, or any of its partner organizations.