These statues caught my eye in the maritime museum in Melaka (Malacca) in Malaysia
This room held prisoners of war of all ethnicities, slaves and sailors who committed crimes. Cramped against each other in a dark and congested room, the prisoners had no hope for freedom. Normally ballast was placed in the belly of the ship to act as a stabilizer. However this diorama was put together to re-enact the conditions in the ship (Flor De La Mar)
The original ship still lies undiscovered in the sea bed. We spent the evening in Malacca listening to some music and taking in the sunset.
Happy to see that the common sparrow and the mourning Dove is common in Kuala Lumpur too (got both of them in one frame)
Earlier we had been to the Batu caves in Kuala Lumpur (more for the challenge of climbing the 272 steps that lead to the Lord Murugan temple.)
The climb was not as difficult as we thought, but it is good to be a little cautious of the monkeys. The Grab driver who ferried us was very jovial and informative too. (Grab is similar to Uber cabs) He was talking of things in general and I found that whatever he said made sense.
As the sun went down, clicked this picture from the windshield.
While in Malaysia, we visited Kuching in Sarawak (situated in the island of Borneo) A wonderful place, the island and the people. Very warm and helpful, things move at a leisurely pace over here. Borneo is owned by three countries. Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei.
We flew in from Kuala Lumpur to Kuching and headed straight to the Sarawak cultural village by road. The roads were well marked and lush with greenery.
We got to see the traditional dance by the different tribes. I was taken in by the skill and accuracy of the boy with the blowpipe.
The world rainforest music festival is held here every year and many renowned musicians converge over here to perform.
Many of them are so much in awe of the place that they leave their instruments behind as a mark of reverence and respect for the simple minded people.
The highlight of the Malaysia trip was the visit to the Semenggoh wildlife sanctuary where we could see Orangutans.
We were lucky to spot six of them, four adults and two young ones.While watching them at close quarters I noticed that many of their movements and actions were very similar to that of humans (except that we can't eat with our feet)
After a long time I got to hear the song "A Tisket - A Tasket" It was sung by Megan Rault with the Shout Section Big Band doing perfect justice to the music. The original song was by Ella Fitzgerald.
The director of the Band, Brett Dean was always present in the front giving directions as and when required.
At times he chipped in and that is when you can see him at the back giving that extra boost to the tempo.
I could not get the names of all the musicians, but I could see that each one contributed in a special way.
I was particularly impressed by Mike Benning on the double Bass. I mean continuously plucking on those thick strings must be pretty tough on those fingers.
Then there was Diego Rodriguez on the drums who did not miss a beat.
The rendition of Ba Ba Black sheep was done well by Kirby Fellis
Jon Rarick had his own style and there was an extra gusto when he put on his hat.
You could see a few in the audience picking up a few steps but I was expecting more dancers considering the enticing jitterbug music that was being played.
One of the regulars I see at the Town square is Ken Czech who manages to capture some of the musicians in action.
That was the best set of statues I have seen. Maybe because it evokes action, music, life, whatever you call it. I just loved them. Their body stance is so perfect.
It is Seward Johnson's creation, cast in bronze.
If you are at the "Grounds for Sculpture" in New Jersey you can see a vast variety of sculptures and statues, which cannot be covered in a day.
The one on "God Bless America" is quite big. It is in aluminium and wood.
If you want to gauge the size here is one more picture.
The girl on the bench reading a book looks very realistic from a distance, and all are curious to know what is so interesting in the book.
What you see in the foreground is "Painting by the glow of the green Fairy" The Van Gogh figure is working on his painting lit only by the stars and the lantern to his right.
Sailing to Siena is again cast in bronze and painted (chromobase paint system) clear coat. This is based on Eduorad Manet's painting "Argenteuil"
One thing I realised is that all those that are outdoors, remains outdoor so it has to withstand sun, rain and snow.
Coming back to our musicians shown in the first picture, I clicked a few pictures, put them together and added some music to make them come alive. Wish I had clicked a few more pictures to make the video longer.
When compared to the previous blog written two weeks ago, the venue was the same and the crowd was (almost) the same. The only difference was the band.
Had been to the Schaumburg Library Town Square where the 911 Mambo Orchestra gave a wonderful performance.
The group achieved national attention when it was nominated for a Grammy Award for best Traditional Tropical Latin Album.
Some of the audience joined in for a dance and I could see that people from all age group had a good time.
Our friend the artist was there sketching the performers and as usual he was quick with his sketches.
One of the singers made everyone stand and asked them to dance from wherever they were standing. "I am from the medical field and I don't want any thrombosis to happen" he said. In a way it was good as it gave a chance for everyone to shake a leg especially those who were shy to come to the dance floor.
Made a short 14 minute video of all what I could capture. One could say that the musicians enjoyed what they did.
