KOOOOOOOZA

Two updates today: the circus and the global market.

First, the global market. Today, all of the interns were invited to go to the Global Market in Minneapolis as part of a larger intern exchange program called MIX. There were about 100 (ish) interns all working in the Twin Cities region at a bunch of different companies. We arrived to the market at about 9:00 am and received our "itinerary" for the day along with $20 that could only be used at the market (think gift certificate). The Global Market is truly global, with shops from cultures such as: Mexican, Vietnamese, Hmong, Mediterranean, Tibetan, Swedish, Caribbean, etc etc the list goes on. I started the day with some jamaica juice that never tasted so sweet - I drank a lot of jamaica in Nicaragua and Costa Rica... it's hibiscus. We were all squished into a little part of the building for Latin dance lessons with the bubbly Veronica, who incidentally teaches Salsa Aerobics every Sunday morning. We listened to a guest lecturer about diversity in the workplace (after all, the whole day was supposed to be about exploring diversity). And we were going to attend a cooking workshop but it turned out that the person mixed up the dates or something. So the day was basically spent wandering around the shops and trying to fill out the scavenger hunt answers. I ended up buying a set of three bamboo bowls, some hummus and pita, Pop Rocks, and a $1 pin that says "UFFDA" - if you don't know the significance of uffda, look it up :) It turned out to be a very good day... and what's more, we got paid to have fun!

Kooza: Cirque du Soleil never fails to amaze. Kooza was set in a yellow and blue striped tent that was set up in a parking lot in downtown St Paul. We bought the worst seats and ended up being about to see everything since there wasn't a bad seat in the house. And let me tell you, Kooza amazed me. The back story was beautiful, about "The Innocent" trying to find his place in life with the help of other characters such as "The Trickster" and "The King." The music was great - there was actually a live band! They were fantastic at syncing with the performers even if a mistake was made. And of course the acts were superb. My guts wrenched while I watched the contortionists (that's just not natural!) and my heart leapt out of my body at least 15 times during the Wheel of Death (see movie link below). I can't believe the strength that those people have and the courage to be jumping around and leaving their lives in the hands of others and very flimsy looking safety nets. They are truly daring people. The clowns were hysterical! They were so goofy, a little bit over the top on the sexuality (lots of leg humping...), and overall so entertaining. Let's just say, it will probably be a highlight of the summer.

Wheel of Death: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4DfSBnBR08

Peace.