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Archive for the ‘Celebrations’ Category

Fathers of Oaxaca, 2014

Posted in Celebrations, Holidays, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , on June 15, 2014| 6 Comments »

To all the loving fathers out there…

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A very happy Father’s Day!

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Not your traditional Carnival

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on June 12, 2014| 3 Comments »

True confession:  I’m not in Oaxaca!  I arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area a week ago for a 3-week visit.  While I love seeing family, friends, “my” mountain (Mt. Tamalpais), and the Pacific Ocean, it also means bone-chilling summer fog, driving instead of walking most everywhere, and the absence of my regular blog fodder — no calendas, ferias, festivals, saints days, bandas, and urban art.  (Though, I will probably head to San Francisco for the latter!)

However, this break-in-the-action gives me time to look back through thousands of photos and create posts that had been put on the back-burner when something bigger, better, or more timely cropped up.

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So, here we go, back to Friday, April 24, 2014 — the last of five days of Carnaval in Teotitlán del Valle.

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While there are masks, costumes, men dressed as women, and merriment, this is not your Christian pre-Lenten Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras Carnival.

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This is a pre-Hispanic celebration that happens the Monday through Friday after Easter, not before Lent.

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Via El Baile de Los Viejitos (the Dance of the Old Men), it brings the community and elected leadership together to remind each of their social contract — in an extremely humorous way.

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A procession, gathering participants along the way, leads to the Municipal Plaza, where it seems as if the entire village assembles.

2 elderly women watching Dance of the Old Men

And, of course, the dance and ritual continue late into the night…

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My split second story

Posted in Celebrations, cell phones, Culture, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 30, 2014| 11 Comments »

“I dunno… not much… festival going on downtown… Yeah, food looks good… couple of bands… castillo tonight… So, ya wanna go?”

Young man leaning against blue wall talking on cell phone

Last Sunday on a quiet side street away from the chaos and cacophony of the festival honoring el Divino Señor del Calvario, in San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca, Oaxaca.  Of course, it’s probably not at all what was being said, not to mention the fact the conversation was most likely in Spanish or Mixtec.  But it’s my split second story.

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When we plant trees…

Posted in Celebrations, Creativity, Culture, Politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 17, 2014| Leave a Comment »

“When we plant trees, we plant the seeds of peace and seeds of hope.”  — Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.  From the poster for the inauguration of the Árbol de la Diversidad (Tree of Diversity) on Macedonio Alcalá celebrating May 17, International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

The Ombudsman for Human Rights of the People of Oaxaca said the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia is an opportunity to become aware as a society of respect and acceptance that we owe to the other, a day that encourages us to live and work in building a more just, more humane, more egalitarian and fraternal society.  (Noticias, 17 mayo 2014)

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Happy Mother’s Day

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, tagged , , , , , , , on May 10, 2014| 4 Comments »

Braided with love (and a little pain).  Ahhh, I remember it well…  Thinking of you, mom.

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Triqui mother and daughter near Santo Domingo, Oaxaca city, 2014

3 generations on top of El Picacho, Teotitlán del Valle

3 generations on top of El Picacho, Teotitlán del Valle, 2014 Día de la Santa Cruz.

Queen and mother at 2nd Viernes en Llano, Oaxaca city

Queen and mother at 2nd Viernes del Llano, March 2014, Oaxaca city.

Feliz Día de la Madre to all the beautiful, hardworking mothers of Oaxaca and all over the world.

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On top of Picacho

Posted in Animals, Celebrations, Culture, Religion, Sports & Recreation, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on May 4, 2014| 4 Comments »

Yesterday, we returned to Teotitlán del Valle to join in their annual Día de la Santa Cruz hike up El Picacho, the sacred mountain that watches over this incredibly special pueblo.  This year, instead taking the route up the mountain directly from downtown like we did last year (and it kicked our a$$), we drove to the presa (dam) and headed up a surprisingly well-marked trail from there.  A symphony of cicadas (cigarras or chicharras, en español), serenaded us as we climbed, young people passed us, and Templo de la Preciosa Sangre de Cristo, off in the distance, got smaller.  However, after more than an hour, we sighted our first pack burro (they bring up the food and drink) and knew we had almost reached our destination.

We were welcomed at the top by the family hosting the gathering and given cups of agua de jamaica — just what the doctor ordered!  There were even more people than last year, music blared from large speakers the aforementioned burros must have carried up the mountain, a new cross had replaced the one that had been hit by lightning last year, and, of course, the views were breathtaking.

But, with spectacular views in all directions, why was most everyone looking down toward the road from the village to the presa?

A foot race!  From what we could understand, there were 3 classes of runners; one that ran all the way from mercado in the center of Teotitlán and other two “only” ran up from the presa.  Whichever route they took, as one of the runner’s t-shirt says, they were all “chingon!”

The winner!
Young, lean, and tall.
The first place girl!
Wow, runner and SF 49er fan!
Not all runners are tall and lean.
His parents raised him well.

And so was this gal, who was on her way up as we were coming down.

Woman carrying basket on head

Muchisimas gracias, yet again, to the people of Teotitlán del Valle for another unforgettable experience.

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Happy May Day to workers everywhere!

Posted in Celebrations, Economics, History, Holidays, Labor, People, Politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 1, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Even though the significance of May 1, as International Workers’ Day, had its origin in the USA, it is not celebrated there (for a variety of reasons I won’t go into here).  However, like most countries in the world, Día del Trabajo is a national holiday in Mexico.  To honor labor everywhere, here is Oaxaca’s favorite daughter singing her song, “Mother Jones.”

“Pray for the dead, but fight like Hell for the living.”  — Mary Harris Jones (aka, Mother Jones, the miners’ angel)

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Celebrate the children

Posted in Celebrations, Creativity, Culture, Exhibitions, Holidays, Museums, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 29, 2014| 4 Comments »

On Saturday, we drove to San Bartolo Coyotepec for the opening of the exhibition, Colorum, an exhibit of art by the children of Oaxaca, mounted as part of tomorrow’s el Día del Niño (Children’s Day) celebrations.  We went primarily to support my friend Juan, as his son Allan was one of the young artists participating in the show.  However, we stayed because it was a wonderfully inspiring and uplifting experience and I applaud the Museo Estatal de Arte Popular Oaxaca (MEAPO) for encouraging and showcasing the imagination and creativity of the children of Oaxaca.

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What is given to children, the children will give to society.

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Children are the most important resource in the world and the best hope for the future.

The free imagination transforms the world and makes things fly.

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The Colorum exhibition lasts until May 20, 2014.  It is open from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Tuesday through Sunday.

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Feliz cumpleaños Oaxaca!

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, History, Holidays, Transportation, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , on April 25, 2014| 2 Comments »

Today the City of Oaxaca celebrates 482 years as a colonial city.  (*** See below for a little history.)  The day began at 6 AM with the ringing of the Cathedral’s bells, the singing of Mañanitas Oaxaqueñas, and marimbas and tamales on the Alameda de León. Alas, that was a little early for me to be up, dressed, and downtown.  However, all I had to do was step out on my terrace to watch the next event of the day.

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Five Pilatus PC7 Mexican Air Force planes put on a  show over the city.

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They made several passes over the city.

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For their finale, contrails displayed the green, white, and red of the Mexican flag.

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And then they were gone.  I love how Noticias concludes their report,  “After 45 minutes, the ‘steel birds’ returned to their base, pending a new appeal to challenge gravity.”

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Celebrations continue through May 8 and a schedule of events can be found HERE.

*** In 1532 Spanish settlers (their bloody way paved by Hernán Cortés and his conquistadores) successfully petitioned the Queen of Spain for a land grant of 1 square league.  The colonists had already established their own town on the site of Huaxyacac, renamed it Antequera (after an old Roman city  in Spain) and received a Royal Charter from King Charles I of Spain. However, Cortés had successfully gotten the entire Valley of Oaxaca (hundreds of thousands of acres) declared as his own private marquisate and, his greed knowing no bounds, kept trying to evict the colonial townspeople.  By obtaining the queen’s charter, this end-run around Cortés insured the rights of the townspeople to the land.

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World Book Day

Posted in Books, Celebrations, Culture, Education, Libraries, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 23, 2014| 2 Comments »

This librarian couldn’t let this go by without a mention… Today is World Book Day and, naturally, Oaxaca celebrates with music!   Under the shade of 130+ year old Indian laurel trees on the zócalo, the State Marimba Band opened the festivities.

P1030861According to the SECULTA website, the celebrations also include storytelling and a marathon of reading aloud from works by Octavio Paz, José Emilio Pacheco, José Revueltas, Julio Cortázar, Efraín Huerta, Juan Gelman, Juan Ramón Jiménez, and by the recently deceased and much revered, Gabriel García Márquez.

While the zócalo and Alcalá are the settings for book fairs several times a year, most of the public libraries are inadequate to fulfill their designated tasks and the price of books (200 to 300 pesos) is way beyond the reach of most of the state’s residents.  Thus, it should surprise no one that reports show Oaxaqueños read an average of only one book per year.   The secretary of Cultures and Arts of Oaxaca ( SECULTA ), Francisco Martínez Neri, acknowledged, “A people with few economic opportunities read little, so it requires the creation of public policies to have books at affordable prices.”  Programs like Libros Para Pueblos, try to fill the gap, but it’s only the proverbial drop in the bucket.

I’ve previously mentioned the controversial “education reform” program of Mexico’s current president, Peña Nieto.  Perhaps, a massive nationwide literacy campaign modeled after the wildly successful, Cuban Literacy Campaign of 1961 would be a good place to start.  Maybe the education reformers should read, Latin lessons: What can we learn from the world’s most ambitious literacy campaign?

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Portraits of Jesús

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, Religion, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 23, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Good Friday wasn’t all about Mary.  Viernes Santo processions present larger-than-life images of Jesús in all his piety and suffering.

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Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ
Who are you? What have you sacrificed?
Jesus Christ Superstar
Do you think you’re what they say you are?

— Superstar, lyrics by Andrew Lloyd Webber

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Portraits of María

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, Religion, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 21, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Good Friday in Oaxaca… Jesús may be the one who they say was crucified and resurrected, but María is never far from his side.

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From frequent traveler to Oaxaca, Liza Bakewell’s book, Madre:  Perilous Journeys with a Spanish Noun:

One can travel all over Spain and its former viceroyalties and never see as many elaborately bedecked and bejeweled Virgins as one will see here in Mexico — neither in number, nor in glory.  Yes, in Peru there are many famously ornate ones.  In Colombia, too.  Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador have their share.  The Philippines is a runner-up.  But Mexico has all of them beat.  Marian devotion, the worship of the Virgin Mary in all her forms through song, prayer, writing painting, sculpture, and shrines, went wild in Mexico.  (p. 169)

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Felices a todos!

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, Religion, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , on April 20, 2014| 2 Comments »

From the streets of Oaxaca today, wishing you happy Easter Sunday…

Palm fronds and cross against blue wall

Four Twenty Day…

Caps with Bob Marley image & marijuana leaves

almost Earth Day…

T-shirt "Local food = primary care"

And, though nothing seen around the streets of the city, a happy Passover!

 

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Holy blindfold, Batman!

Posted in Celebrations, Churches, Holidays, Religion, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 18, 2014| 4 Comments »

Last night, fortified by tostadas, guacamole, and a little vino, a gal pal and I set out for the Jueves Santo (aka:  Holy Thursday and Maundy Thursday) tradition of visiting seven churches.  According to that fount of knowledge, Wikipedia, “The tradition of visiting seven churches on Holy Thursday is an ancient practice, probably originating in Rome.”

We purchased our bag of Pan Bendito (bread that had been blessed) and set off.  As always, the sidewalks were teeming with people in a combination of a semi-solemn pilgrimage, street festival, family night at the fair, and date night.  (Of course, there was canoodling.)  And, despite the “Entrada” and “Salida” signs on the doors of many of the churches, foot traffic was often gridlocked.  I didn’t help matters when I stopped short.  Jesus wearing a blindfold?

Blindfolded statue of Jesus

At another church, another blindfolded Jesus…

Blindfolded Jesus behind bars

And, another…

Blindfolded statue of Jesus behind bars

Holy Thursday, Batman, how could I have missed these blindfolded Jesus figures in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013???

(For those, like me, who are clueless where this blindfold business comes from:  According to the Gospels of Luke (22:64) and Mark (14:65), Jesus was blindfolded, mocked, and beaten following his trial and before his crucifixion.)

 

 

 

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Good Friday morning to you

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, Religion, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 18, 2014| 5 Comments »

And so, Viernes Santo began…

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Processions from churches in the Historic District began at 7:00 AM.

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They converged at the Alameda, on the south side of the Cathedral,

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where “our Lord meets his most Holy Mother going towards Calvary.”

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The faithful, now as one, then proceeded east on Independencia…

People dragging wooden crosses

along with the images of Mary and Jesus…

Statues of Mary and Jesus

stopping along the way at Stations of the Cross.

Septima Estacion - altar on outside stairs

I left at 9:30 AM — they were still going.  Early this evening, all will again gather for the Procession of Silence.  No rest for the faithful or weary bloggers!

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