GLOBAL LIFE

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GRACILIANO BISPO OR THE POWER OF HANDS

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ocated inside the Jewelry Center, Down Town, Miami, Graciliano Bispo, a man in his late sixties, who at a glance embodies patience and hard work, owns  a gem enterprise  Mr. Bispo  is not the only one involved in jewelry business, but, better than anybody else, he works as did long before him gemologists  who have learned about  rubies, lapis, amethyst and many more. M. Bispo continues to make a living  cutting and handcrafting, but he also looks like an artist acquainted to earn money with a job he loves. That’s all the difference.   Globe went to pay him a visit, deep into this 777 Mall.. at  55 ne 2st street # 4 Ph: 786-357-6395
 

An easy going person whose face lightens a few time after he engages conversation,  Graciliano  Bispo  remains soft spoken while inquiring about your visiting him. What does he want from me? M.Bispo appears to ask. But, not long later, the tone becomes friendly as a small grin softens this face that  seems to reflect so many nuances form observing stones and other unusual stones.

“ I used to cut stones, all kind of them” he gets started when  asked about his doing. Gold, diamond? No, he replies all of a sudden. “ Everything is about  stones, he warns . Lapis,  emeralds and amethyst are stones with no secret for him, he  proudly  says.  

 “ I like to work with my hands,  affirms M. Bispo, a short man with eagle-shaped eyes and stubborn attitude. His office, a 10 square feet , unable to accommodate four people, has nothing to do with some jewelry business.  Connoisseurs  affirm  that with a pocket size instrument  kit worth $ 85 gemologist one can go to business.

Such details are not a concern to him. A stone cutter for more than a quarter of century, M. Bispo never went the way he is supposed to. He rather trusts  the power of hands, I’d  say their magic. “ With my hands, only with them” he insists.  “My boss never agreed” ;  he was a Chino who handled  scissors, knives and other tools.  Nevertheless,  with an intense gaze, he continues to work his way.
 

Everything started   when he was turning  seven.  We know a few about his busy childhood, but we can imagine a child splited  between  his passion for stones and  family concern for education and house tasks. This young man followed his guts. He was starting to earn some  money. So  he remained  with his  stones, fascinated by the nuances  and light emanating  from them.

As years went by,  M. bispo ventured overseas.  Los Angeles seem to have been his birthplace in matter of business. “ I really started there”, he adds with few details about his beginnings.  “Then, I went to New York before settling here in Miami in 1979”. He always moves forward as did his business while mentioning  to be  a native of Brazil.

Now, M. Bispo has a stable life. A man with a good laughing and deep- rooted eyes, he seems to scrutinize everybody as  he does with his stones.  But, he is a sensitive human being enjoying relaxation and peace after so many  places he went though back to these volatile sixties. But, what a delight to  examine stones,  labeled condensed energy! Energy here is a matter of color. Our technician  revolves in a infinite  spectrum  of a  colorful world. He goes deep into the  turquoise sea and sunny amethyst. Lapis Lazuli  hides some  mystery and  golden treasury.  The aquamarine tones trigger within us  a feeling of  far away adventures, without saying nothing of  the  rubies and its his blood- tainted  tone and the green hope of  the emeralds..

Stuck to his office and his stones,  M. Bispo is doing a creative  job. He prepares  beads and pearls stringing,  fixes crystal for watches and  recreates a microcosm of sapphires  and other  luminescent  stones.  There is no better  way to tame and  humanize energy.
 

 God Bless M. Bispo  And America

COME % SEE AMERICA: DOWN TOWN MIAMI

 A CROSS ROAD OF TASTE AND CULTURE

I



2 W FLAGER ST
MIAMI, FL 33131
troy@rohocubancoffee.com

magine you are in Manhattan crowded with   skyscrapers and  forests apparently challenging the NY, NY’s unexpected background. From your point of view, in the nearby, at the Down town Miami bus station close to the museum and the library, the pace of life  however slows down. Next door, tough,  El Cacique, this Cuban restaurant which breathes life and youthfulness,  is buzzing  at lunch time . But, once you cross the bus route, heading east, you are  really immersed in the vibrancy of Down town Miami. There everything is pulsating, from famous restaurants to  jewelry stores.



112 W FLAGER ST,MIAMI
FL 33130
Ph: 305-3723323

In this  small area which has nothing to do with the  Manhattan beat, business spreads everywhere.  PIZZA RUSTICA, with  its tiny  yellow and black painted   umbrella, stands ready for business  along the street and further , the so-called Village want to preserve intimacy and closeness, with its hidden bistro such as the   French-owned bistro named  Pistou  bistro ( Ph:….) and Martini 28, a Peruvian owned café, a replica of Riviera piano-bar restaurant. PIZZA RUSTICA  by itself reminds a sort of  Mediterranean place back to remote times. A Slice of Roma ( Ph..) seems to save , so to speak, Italian  and family traditions. Not to far, ROHO CAFÉ  emphasizes the Miami Cuban presence. By the way, get a glance at  the typical shirt store Ramon Puig (Ph…)  and fall upon some  old fashion you’re acquainted with.  It’s the guayabeRa with its  unavoidable Cuban  touch.

 TASTING FOOD AND RACE

LA PROVENCE is a French bakery  specialized in artisanal  bread. Ask for  French dishes, baked croissant and croque monsieur with sure a French taste. 234 NE  1 st  Street, Pilanka Nabraska is   a Hispanic place  well known for empanadas and breakfast.  At 145 East Flagger St, TAHAS chooses to be a little bit latino by making you taste  the authentic flavor of Peru while Giardino Gourmet Salads ( Ph & address…..) claims to “bring nature raw foods to a culinary experience for the wholeness to the body and wholeness to  the soul.” On the other side, Fratteli Milano announces briefly Italian Cuisine.

This melting pot cluster is also about varieties. ANIMAL CRAKERS  cares for animals. The owner of this store located at… has other concern.  A  practical store, AF focuses on our feet.  Japanese cooking reminds us Asia wants also to share the racial mainstream in America. Would you like to taste Sushi? Here you go. It is  served at …

What’s more, this  is a store dedicated to the elderly.LAS CASAS DE LAS VIEJAS.  Las Casas de las Viejas at 39 N.E. 1 st   thinks to the third age. There, you can find out   goods and other products for help. But, CHURCHILL’S at 12 SE 1 st Street Miami, an English style barber shop, offers always to the customers a new look with a range of  assorted haircut.

Shortly, DTM gathers  jewelry stores,  banks and body fitness buildings, even groceries and shoes shops. What makes it different and special consists of a kind of uniqueness in the making of business.

REMAIN HUMAN BY EATING

At FORTY FOUR CAFÉ, Rebecca , a blonde in her late twenties ,t brings in womanhood  and vibrant touch to this French owned Cuban like café. The place is 35 year old, Rebecca said.  It dawns upon anybody going over there to have something to do on its own.  Crea tu propria ensalada, sounds like a mantra for visitors sipping drink or expreso.  Rebecca doesn’t talk too much. Going back and forth, with a smile lighting her face, she has enough time to serve and monitor the service of waiters. The owners live in Paris, concludes Rebecca.

EL CARTEL COLOMBIANO ( Ph & Ad). A lounge and a restaurant. Its name sounds like a joke. Any way this is a phony name that makes  people laugh . Managers and waiters also laugh when asked about the name  . As a launching  business a few month old, El Cartel specializes sure in Latin American spicy foods, but…. Close by Halfmoon  also has a latino  taste. 

NAKED PIZZA (Ph & add…) ,according to a notice, is “ a crunchy, chewy crust of 10 grains, all natural tomato sauce and no added sugar or freaky chemicals in our veggies or meats”. Naked Pizza  is dedicated to peoples with a fear of  fat and conservatives.  A chain business with other locations, Naked Pizza is supposed to make you watering and smiling.  Briefly, even though nothing is new businesswise talking,  brand name and advertising pamphlets make the difference at Down Town Miami.

Passers by always look for novelty. Down Town Miami has  a lot.

DOWN TOWN MIAMI,

...SKY, SEA AND SUN

GRAND GOAVE'S FIRE

CLAUSE SASSINE

Our Man at Grand Goave

A LOVE STORY

 by Frantz Bataille

He loved everybody.

In his mid sixties, Mr. Claude Sassine seems to have two passions: Grand Goave & Miami. However, he dreams about something else - Name it. I won’t-. That Lebanese descendant, born and raised in the Southern town of Gd Gve, grew up to show always cheerful and good laughing. What is uncommon in our times. Unfortunately, as the uncertain sixties were unfolding, Mr. Sassine left Haiti to settle in the US. As an immigrant, he had been among the first ones who were shaping what in the 80s would have been the so-called Haitian Diaspora starting to grow in Brooklyn. Some figures already were highlighting this Diaspora such as Ti Sove and his barber shop open at Franklin Ave. Over the years, this place became a kind of epicenter for politicians and their fans. Marc Records, Wilson Desir still unknown.

 A hard worker, Mr.Sassine shared his time between two jobs and week-end splashed with coca cola and Haitian music. He said to have tried all kind of life: driving limousine car for more than 16 hours a day, making a security job for 24 hours during the week end and getting to his regular job from Monday to Friday. He was young and strong. But, what delight to go home with a loaded paycheck! God bless America for allowing him to make a living. But, G G’s magic was somehow appealing. This man fond of simple life and quiet suburb was homesick. “ Grand Goave sent me away, now it keeps calling me” Mr. Sassine whispered in the beginning of 2000s.

 A town of 40.000 peoples, lined with a lot of beaches carpeted with fine sand, and turquoise seas,GG relies on fishing and farming, let alone local tourism and transfer. No resort no hotels, but the late Taino Beach, to accommodate the nascent rush on Haiti since the earthquake. Mr.Sassine has some concern regarding the coming future. G G, his last frontier as Himalaya is so for adventurers, continues to inspire Mr. Sassine now back home. He dreams of a nursery for the GG’s elders so unfortunate; he adores going fishing in the early morning. But, a man acquainted to the high seas, Mr. Sassine dreams and thinks big, as lift up by the GG’s fire …

 A father of four, all born in the US, Mr. Sassine is not sure his offspring can share his love for GG. In the meantime, Mr. Sassine remembers how much his father had respected the men who plow the land, and the beautiful life they get there. As a child, Mr. Sassine used to sing and play with them, when he was not swimming in the blue waters of the sea, or visiting his sisters in P-au-P. Close to his roots and family, Mr. Sassine is still looking for opportunities. “ why not setting up a booming business such as fishing and tourism in the surroundings, he kept saying” . Elders’life is boring. “ I would enjoy entertaining them”, he added while laughing aloud and caring for his mother still alive.

NB: My friend, my brother had passed away, almost two months ago
. Resquiescat in pace!