GRANDMA MAKES MAMALIGA!

Grandma Amalia kindly agreed to show us how to make a mamaliga. You can't miss this!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Px2qpOqMHCs



We'll be posting more updates, videos and pics at the link below of our campaign. Check it out!
http://www.indiegogo.com/Mamaliga-Blues

MAMALIGA BLUES IN THE STREETS OF LOS ANGELES

Distributing flyers around Los Angeles is not an easy task – the city is so spread out. So we had to document it. Special thanks to Lia, Briley, Julie and Erin!

MAMALIGA BLUES FLYERS

We'll be passing these around in Los Angeles, putting it on local businesses and so on. Anybody interested in doing the same in your area, let us know, we can send a jpeg for you to print out.

Thanks!!

WE ARE ON INDIEGOGO!

As you all know, in 2008, my father, sister and I went to Moldova (once part of former Bessarabia) to search for our Jewish roots. My paternal grandparents were born there and immigrated to Brazil in 1931, surviving the World War II. The result of our trip is the documentary Mamaliga Blues, a film about our search for family traces lost during the Holocaust, the history of Bessarabian Jews, and the uniqueness of this fascinating country. We’ve been working passionately on this project for the last 3 years. It is almost done and very little is needed for it to become a reality.

Our film needs support for completion and that is why we are launching the IndieGoGo campaign. Click on the link below to learn all you need to know in order to be a part of this project:www.indiegogo.com/Mamaliga-Blues

And also check our official website: www.mamaligablues.com

All donations are tax deductible, the site allows you to donate online and you can also send checks. Help us to rescue a little bit of the history of this region. We have many great perks in return to send your way!

"Like" us on Facebook and please spread the word to your friends!

Thanks for joining us on this exciting project. We look forward to hearing from you!

Cassio Tolpolar - Producer/Director

CLOSER TO SPIELBERG

My parents were just in LA to visit their granddaughter - not me, my sister or my wife:) Their stay was wonderful, and talking to my dad, he told me a few more things I didn't know about my grandfather. Moshe Tolpolar traveled back and forth between Bessarabia and Brazil before he settled forever in Porto Alegre, in 1931. However, in the 20's he already started to leave his mark in this Brazilian town. First, he subscribed to the legendary Yiddish-language daily newspaper The Forward, based in New York (http://www.forward.com/).

But before that, in 1915, he had been one of the founders of the first Yiddish-language newspaper in Brazil, Di Menscheit, in Porto Alegre.

My dad said that Moshe also subscribed to the Jewish Argentinian newspaper "El Diario Israelita" and the Brazilian magazine "Aonde Vamos?" (both in the 50's). The funny thing was that while The Forward was a left-oriented newspaper, "Aonde Vamos?" was written by right-wing Jews.

While in the Grove/Farmer's Market (if you've been in LA you've been there), we spoke more about philosophical matters. I asked my dad "So now that you're 72 years-old, what life lesson could you give me, is there anything special advice?" He looked and me and promptly replied "I'm still looking for it".

The same day we had dinner at the Kosher restaurant "The Milky Way" owned and hosted by Leah Adler, Steven Spielbeg's mom. The food was just OK. Actually Leah is the real star of the establishment, cheerful and very sharp. Walking around, you can see pictures of her with the famous son and other celebrities. We all had a great time.

THE QUEST FOR THE MOLDOVAN SALAMI

I had just moved from San Francisco to Los Angeles in 2005 when my dad came to visit me. I was sleeping in a cheap futon, which he then slept on and I moved to the floor, had no job and was feeling horrible. You need at least one year (and a job!) to start getting used to Los Angeles. In any case, having him around for a few weeks cheered me up. I remember when we went to a grocery shop once and found a salami from Moldova. We were very surprised and bought it right away. This was before our trip to Moldova in 2008, and anything from Moldova would trigger our curiosity. We went home and ate it. It was not great, but it was from Moldova.

My parents returned to LA for a 20-day visit a few days ago and my dad and I thought of trying to find the salami again. I looked in a few grocery shops but could not find it. The one we bought it last time was closed. Then we went to Jon's, a traditional Armenian market where you can find the most interesting produce, beer from Estonia, cookies from Malasia, guarana from Brazil and maybe salami from Moldova.


We went first to the meat/delicatessen produce section, but the attendant had never heard of it. There was salami and sausages from Romania, Russia, Armenia, Germany and Hungary. But nothing from Moldova.




We walked around the place, got soda from Lithuania and cookies from Poland, saw marmalade from Israel and cheese from Greece. It was then that, all of a sudden, we saw the salami. It was actually the salamiS, as there were 3 distinct kinds.


We picked up one and went back home for dinner - very happy.


This one was different than the one from 2005. Soft and not spicy, an almost delicate taste to it. True that the salami is made in the US - but who cares? It's Moldovan style!


NEXT: More adventures in Los Angeles!

THE KARSHENBOYMS

A few weeks ago I got a message on this same blog from Gene Karshenboym. He said “Hi! My father was born in Yedentzi and I spent my childhood summers there… I have many pictures and would love to chat with you about your experience. I reached out to my dad right now over the phone to see if he knows any of the people you are looking for.”

We exchanged a few e-mails, Gene sent me some pics from his latest trip to Edinitz, and then we finally talked over the phone.

His dad Ruvin was the one who knew more about Edinitz. Now living in Atlanta, US, he told me many things, including well known "celebrities" from Beltsy and Edinitz (where he said people were known for being well educated) and wine making in Moldova. He said most Jews who left Edinitz went to New York, Toronto, Germany or Israel. Ruvin said his father was also in South America, in Argentina (he was a "gaucho", he joked). Actually his father, (still alive, in Israel) when questioned if he had heard about any Tolpolar, said “of course, Fima Tolpolar!” Fima, my dad’s first cousin, was a teacher for Ruvin’s mom, and was like part of the family. Ruvin and Gene also know many of the people we met in our 2008 trip, including Semion Furman and Ana Filipona (in the photo below).

We chatted for a while. At last, Ruvin said the old generation, his parents, never talked about their past. For some reason, they didn't want to or feel like it, he wasn't sure if they didn't want to remember the atrocities committed to Jews or just didn't think it was important. Ruvin regretted that, because now he doesn't know as much as he wanted about the past. I thought about my grandparents, who also never said much to my dad.

My in-laws happen to live close to Atlanta, so when I go there, in December, we will meet in person with the Karshenboyms. We'll eat mamaliga and drink wine. As Gene put it in a later e-mail, “Isn't it pretty crazy to think that after everything my dad told us about your family, that we found each other and that a Karshenboym and a Tolpolar are e-mailing each other? Crazy world.”

Crazy world indeed.