The pictures in this post were taken my brother-in-law, Peter.
The first clue that it was the perfect Tai Chi Chuan class came about half way through it when I realized that since the class had started, I hadn't once thought about the fact that on the way, I had driven into a bus. If you've visited, you know that we turn left to the main road right onto a one-way bridge. So there was no traffic on my right when I arrived. A truck came from the left and I was about to turn when a bicycle appeared, being very slowly pedaled. I waited, looked right again, looked left, and another slow bike drifted into view. I waited and didn't look right. I drove into the bus's wheel. Nothing at all happened to the bus, but my car's right everything was pretty much done in. Fortunately, nothing hit the wheel. What the hell, I drove on to my first class in my life in Tai Chi. Among other things, it's supposed to relax you, right?
Martin Vinaver, our friend and the co-director of La Ceiba Grafica is the teacher. I, at this point, the only student. You all can head for your gyms with their studios and fancy equipment. I'll take this for a classroom any day:
The classroom is this balcony on the second floor of La Hacienda la Orduña which is the home of La Ceiba Grafica, a project I've written about before. Here Martin and Per Andersen are developing a graphics school/gallery/residency program for artists in the hacienda which they are, at the same time, renovating. All the renovations must represent pre-1930's styles and techniques.
Here you sees a bench in one of the residency bedrooms set in front of a wall with, I think, Matisse-inspired stencilling. The shelf/box above it is a wooden sculpture.
La Ceiba, by the way, is the tree the Mayans referred to as the axis of the earth, its umbilical cord. Here is the tCeiba tree in front of the hacienda which inspired the project's name.
Here is the kitchen:
The residents cook their meals here, and cooking classes are sometimes offered here as well.
One of the projects at La Ceiba is the making of traditional tiles. These tiles are not glazed ceramic tiles, but rather they are made from a cement-like substance with the colors pressed into them. Here is the making area:
Here are some of the tiles made in this fashion:
Bathrooms are also being restored. Here is the kind of toilet I remember being terrified of at my grandmother's house when I was a child. I think Per made the seat:
And a view of the balcony from outside, to conclude:
La Ceiba Grafica is a wonderful project.
The tai chi class on the balcony was, too. I have taken Pilates, but I have never taken Yoga. Tai Chi after my first class is nothing like Pilates. Maybe it is like Yoga. It is certainly like dancing -- the dance I remember studying for many years all those years ago. The body becomes unified, fluid, even for an old lady like me. The movements bring joy, and, yes, sweat and twinges in the shoulders and in the knees, and, well, you can imagine.
