Urso de Óculos

Bechara and Bechara: in Itacaré

At the end of July there was yet another special event in the Urso de Óculos bookshop.

A writer was interviewed about his life and his modus operandus.

So, far, nothing particularly incredible.

But, this was, in fact, a unique event.

Colombian author Eduardo Bechara Navratilova came to Urso de Óculos to talk about his work and his latest novel Unos Duermen, Otros No.  And the MC for the night was the Argentinean Eduardo Bechara, Itacaré resident, a regular at our events, and also a writer.

Yes, well-spotted: the two writers share the same name. They also look uncannily alike (check out the photo). And, as if distinguishing between them was not already confusing enough, there are also loads of similarities in their lives.

The two met recently for the first time, when one Eduardo discovered that the other existed and invited him to Itacaré to visit him and his family.

“I was curious to know more about this guy with the same name and who seemed to look a lot like me, too”, said Eduardo when we thought of the idea for the event. “It’s possible that this story could only have taken place in today’s globalized world” he said.

The writer Eduardo Bechara Navratilova was born in 1972 in Bogotá, Colombia, to a Lebanese father and a Chech mother. A graduate in law (1999) and literature (2005) of the University of The Andes in Bogotá, he is the author of the novels La nóvia del Torero (2002, published by La Serpiente Emplumada) and Unos duermen, Otros No ( 2006, Editorial Escarabajo). A founder member of the Colombian Literature Association, Eduardo also writes columns and short stories in the Colombian press and runs literature workshops. He also writes his own travel and short story blog. Currently resident in Philadelphia, USA, he is very interested in Brazil and in the last few years has made various trips here.

Eduardo Bechara is from Córdoba in Argentina and now lives in Itacaré.  A stickler for good reading, and a regular at our Thursday night events, Eduardo writes short stories in Spanish, and also has an affinity with both Arab and North American cultures. He met his namesake when his sister discovered the blog by the writer with the same name as her brother. Eduardo got in touch and invited the Colombian to Pousada Mandala, the guesthouse he manages with his family here in Itacaré.

A good crowd turned up for the interview: Itacaré regulars and tourists from Brazil and further afield. It was an excellent event, lifting the winter season mood of The Spectacled Bear. Thanks to everyone who came.

The Argentinean began the evening by explaining how odd it felt to meet his new friend in person.

“But what happened to me could happen to any of you.” He said.

And the Colombian told us a little about his fascinating life story – from his time in the army when he wrote poetry à la Cyrano de Bergerac to help the lieutenant get a girlfriend – to how he became a professional author and what the daily routine of a fiction writer is like.

The most intriguing story of the evening was the description of a case of mistaken identity experienced by Argentinean Eduardo in Egypt years before he knew of the existence of his namesake.

I know that a lot of people followed this event from afar, after both Eduardos shared the news via the invitation I posted on our Urso Facebook Page. So, for those friends who couldn’t be here on the night and who understand Portuguese or Spanish (or Portiñol), here is the recording made by Eduardo Bechara Navratilova. Click here to listen to the recording of the interview.

The photo above is © 2009 Maria Lorena Rosales.