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How to Prepare for an Earthquake in a Third World Country
The devastating 8.8-magnitude earthquake that ravaged Chile on Saturday could easily have happened here in Lima or anywhere else along the Pacific coast. Sooner or later another big one will hit Peru, as one did in July 2007, and there are only a few ways to increase your odds that you won’t get killed when it happens. Living in a well-constructed, “earthquake-proof” home is the best way to protect yourself. I put quotation marks around that phrase because no structure is guaranteed to withstand the most violent earthquakes. Still, as engineer Andy Johnson notes, a well engineered building should hold up long enough for the people inside to escape before it…
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The Three Jacks & Breffni Dancers Conquer Peru
Just a bit of exaggeration in that headline. But I’m entitled to gloat about the success of my band last weekend at Auditorio Santa Ursula, in San Isidro. We had two fabulous concerts, Friday and Saturday nights (May 15 & 16), and got loads of people to contribute money to build a hospital in Pisco. Plus I met a lot of great people — Peruvians and expats and even some readers of this blog — which made the event truly special. [photo above by Robert Stolpe 2009, Three Jacks rehearsing in Miami] I’m still coming down from the high. Media buzz went into high gear two Sundays ago when TV…