When Mardi Gras time hits New Orleans I run as fast as I can to escape the city. It may sound a bit like Scrooge at Christmas, but really I do not see festivities and community of love, but rather crowded streets, excess and chaos. But not to rain on any parades, the point is that I try to leave town when those two weeks are upon us down here in New Orleans. Last year I went to my girlfriend's hometown of Mexico City and experienced so many wonders there. This year I went on a road-trip with a Brazilian photographer / journalist. He had done a similar trip in 2014/2015 and taken 5000 photos of people and places in 9 Southern cities in the sub-regions we would call Southeast, Mid South, Deep South, Mississippi Delta and Gulf South.
Last year I began researching for the author / photographer for his return to the US to launch the book that was born of the photos he had taken. 66 images were chosen and these images are believed to embody musicality in this diverse region. "Diverse" here refers to music, as the author experienced the changes in musical styles from Country in Nashville to Rock and Roll and Soul in Memphis, then Blues in Mississippi and Jazz in South Louisiana. Many Southerners may say, "hey that's a no-brainer." But the cool thing about the book is that a foreigner came all this way to discover something we all see because we grew up here. But he dedicated 18 months to research the topic of musical influence then took a 17 day road trip and then even published the book.
Well, the book "Cold Hot" by Sergio Poroger has been well-received in Brazil and has appeared in all the major newspapers and on TV and radio. Sergio will be interviewed next week on TV Globo, the largest TV station in Brazil and one of the largest in the world. The idea was to launch this book in the US, so we did.
We held events in bookstores, museums and music venues in New Orleans and Lafayette in Louisiana; Jackson and Clarksdale in Mississippi; Memphis, Nashville and Chattanooga in Tennessee; and finally in Atlanta, Georgia. The tour was tiring and felt like a roller-coaster, as we drove about 3 hours each day and spent only 1 or 2 nights in each city. Some events were scarcely attended while others were a hit. Overall, the book was well-received and is for sale in at least one location in each of those cities.
Our highlights were meeting the mayor of Clarksdale, and a pair of Austrian girls who went to both of our events in Memphis, and the tour of the new Songbirds collection at the Chattanooga Choo Choo.
I learned a lot through the tour. I learned to embrace some of the Southern culture, and not to criticize it all. There are some good parts, like the friendly people, great music, food, and the slow, patient way of life for inhabitants of the region. I learned to listen, to give people a chance and to not assume the worst of this region. I returned home with 15 new books, and realized that I am interested in an array of topics from history to culture to architecture and languages.
The trip was a whirlwind and a joy, as I was able to guide and support the author on his journey. I had to put myself aside and understand it was not about me, but rather about him. This I had learned somewhat on my previous book tour, twice as long, with the Argentinian author in November, when we traveled together, author and translator, to 13 cities in 26 days.
Travel is a joy and a gift, but my next trip will be for leisure!
