The Truth About Thanksgiving Day

Turkeys at Market, Ocotlan Oaxaca MX

These Mexican turkeys are not destined for anyone's Thanksgiving table, but Spain and Colonial Mexico did play a roundabout role in the US's first Thanksgiving. There is the myth of Thanksgiving that we all learned in grade school and then there is the truth.
To read about it, click the link below. You will be surprised.
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2015/12/colonial-spain-and-first-thanksgiving.html

A Dia de los Muertos Odyssey

Cemetery decorated for Dia de los Muertos, Romerillo, Chiapas

Dia de los Muertos, the time of year in Mexico when the worlds of the living and dead intersect, is coming up.  According to the lore of the holiday, on November 1 and 2, the souls of the dead visit and partake of the lives they once lived on earth. Preparations to welcome the dead begin well before these days and in many places Halloween (Oct. 31) is included in the celebration. 

Each region of Mexico contributes its own specific beliefs and customs to this pan-Mexican holiday. Our odyssey, here, begins in Chiapas, Mexico with its unique contribution of pre-Columbian Maya beliefs and customs.  The green crosses in the photo above are typical of Maya areas and have a local meaning and symbolism beyond that of the Christian cross.  In Romerillo Chiapas, people place boards over graves so that the dead during the year, so they cannot leave them and wander around before Dia de los Muertos.

Grave in Cemetery of Romerillo, Chiapas

Read all about Dia de los Muertos as it is celebrated in Chiapas:
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2013/11/dia-de-los-muertos-chiapas.html

Dia de los Muertos, Cemetery San Juan Chamula, Chiapas

You can see it, as well, in the Videos linked below. The first one I shot at the November 2 celebration in the cemetery of San Juan Chamula, Chiapas. It is one of a kind and you will be treated to an event not usually seen by outsiders, since photography is forbidden ( I had special permission)
A second video is of the celebration in the beautiful cemetery of Romerillo shown in  two of the photos above.  
The third video is of the Panthéon (cemetery) of Cristöbal de las Casas.  Cemeteries are hubs of activities during Dia de los Muertos and this video captures the beauty and poignancy of the celebration.
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2013/11/videos-of-dia-de-los-muertos-in-chiapas.html

Add caption

In the states of Quintana Roo and Yucátan there are unique twists to Dia de Los Muertos where the holiday is known by its Maya name of Hanal Pixán.
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2014/11/dia-de-los-muertos-hospitality-for-dead.html

Add caption

In parts of the US once owned by Mexico, elements of Mexcian culture are still vibrant.
Here are two videos shot in the Spanish missions of San Antonio, Texas, which was once a part of colonial Mexico. They show the unique blending of indigenous American and Mexican-Christian elements in this Dia de los Muertos celebration.
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2015/10/coahuiltecan-indian-blessing-of-dia-de.html

Dia de los Muertos revelers, Oaxaca

Oaxaca is justifiably famous for its celebration of Dia de los Muertos.  People painted as skeletons, portraying La Catrina the icon of Dia de los Muertos, are everywhere.  Is this all fun and games?  No, there is a much deeper level to all the rollicking activity, as you will learn here:
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2015/11/dia-de-los-muertos-in-oaxaca-rehearsal.html

Open Grave in Cemetery of Pomuch, Campeche

Pomuch, a small town in Campeche, hosts what I call the "Ultimate" Dia de los Muertos". 
It's a little shocking, at first, but fascinating.
https://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2016/12/pomuch-campeche-dia-de-los-muertos-you.html

                                       ----------------------------------------------

Mexico is wonderful any time of the year. During  Dia de los Muertos it is most itself with its essential nature, the unique blending of indigenous and Christian elements, shining through.

Eat and Drink Like an Aztec (or Inca)

Guinea Pig

The thought of eating your child's classroom pet, like this adorable guinea pig, is bound to be upsetting.  Yet guinea pigs were and remain a popular protein source in Peru and elsewhere in the Andean area that was once home to the Incas and other Quechua-speaking peoples.  At least by local standards they are delectably prepared, skewered with rosemary and baked in wood-burning ovens. Crispy and succulent when roasted,  live guinea roam the kitchens of Andean homes awaiting their turn in the oven.

Roasted Guinea Pigs, Pisac, Peru

Roasted Guinea Pigs, Pisac, Peru

 Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican protein sources were different from ours, because our food animals like cows, sheep, goats and pigs were not native to the Americas, only arriving from Europe with the Spanish Conquest. Mexico has more edible insects than any other place in the world and good use is made of them.  Insect-eating is rooted deep in its Pre-columbian past and is very much alive today.

 if you find bugs in your guacamole in Oaxaca, don't send it back- they are supposed to be there and you are probably paying extra for them. These fried grasshoppers give crunch and texture to the dish and guacamole with chapulines is a signature dish of the region.

Insects, typically fried and dusted with various flavorings such as chile, lime or garlic are sold in markets in throughout Mexico.  People buy them by the bag to munch on and they are a healthy snack because they are almost pure protein.  They also show up in tacos and incorporated into various dishes.  

Assorted Fried Insects, Oaxaca, MX

Fried Grasshoppers with Chile, Oaxaca, MX

Fried Insects at Market, Cholula, Puebla MX

Fried Grasshoppers, Cholula, Puebla MX                

Mexico has some 300-550 edible insects according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, all sustainable sources of protein. These include grasshoppers 
(chapulines), flying ants (chicatanas), honeypot ants (hormigas de miel), ant larvae (escamotes or ahuatle), dragonflies (libélulas), crickets (grillos).    And don't forget about the crawlers because worms and caterpillars are also popular. 

Pictured below are the popular gusanos, maguey worms, that are an important ingredient in some moles and are also eaten fried on tacos.                         

Gusanos, Mexico City MX

 Drink:

Pulque, a low-alcohol drink made from the fermented sap of the agave (maguey) plant, has a history in Mexico that is longer than a millennium.  Originally, it was a sacred drink and its use limited to certain classes of people.  After the conquest it became a popular drink 
for all.   Pulque is low alcohol, about the same percentage as beer, and has health, even medicinal, benefits and is used in hospitals with anemic patients to raise their red blood counts.  It is my personal favorite, as well.

Production of pulque is labor and time-intensive, with the slow-growing agave plants needing twelve years to mature.  The fermentation process of pulque is on-going so it must be consumed soon after it is produced, which is why it is not exported.  

From my experience, there is a regional variance in pulque.  Pulques in Oaxaca 
tend to be clear and slightly fizzy, whereas in the state of Mexico, the pulque is cloudy, 
more viscous and comes with different flavorings. 

Pulqeria,Mexico City, MX

The photo above is from a popular pulqueria in Mexico City.  As can be seen, their 
pulques are offered in several flavors- oatmeal, peanut, pineapple, pine nut, guava  and others. Consuming pulque is a leisurely pursuit and people come to pulquerias to sit, visit and enjoy the snacks offered.

Pulqueria, Mexico City MX

Pulqueria, Mexico City ,,MX

Below are typical presentations of pulque in Oaxaca, where it often is sold at weekly markets in small towns around the city. The second container labelled tepache is another drink, low alcohol,  made form the fermented rinds of pineapples.  The process is much faster than that of pulque, taking only a few days. Its origins are pre-Hispanic, but it never had the significance of pulque.    

Typical Pulque and Tepache container, Oaxaca MX

Pulque vendor, O

Pulque vendor, Oaxaca MX

Atole, seen being made below, is another popular Mexican beverage with pre-Hispanic origins.  It is made from ground corn (masa), sugar, cinnamon, with other flavorings such as chocolate sometimes added. It is stirred with bare hands and served to customers in small bowls.

Atole in process in market, Oaxaca, MX

Buen Provecho!                       

Hidden Gem of the Taos High Road: Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Las Truchas NM

Nuestra Señora del Rosario Church exterior, Truchas NM

Nuestra Señora del Rosario Church exterior, Truchas NM

Las Truchas, named after the trout found in its streams, is one of the small historic communities of New Mexico's Taos High Road.  This 56 mile road winds through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains between Santa Fe and Taos connecting the tiny Spanish Land Grant and Pueblo Indian villages in its path.  Initially built as a walled compound, Truchas was created in 1754 as a buffer to protect Santa Fe and Rio Grande villages from raids by roving Apache and Comanche bands. 

Las Truchas' church, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, was finished around 1805 and is still used for worship in the summer months.  It contains important altar screens (reredos) by famed New Mexican santeros Pedro Antonio Fresquis, the "Truchas Master", and Rafael Aragon. 

The adobe church is small and narrow, with a single aisle and wooden beam roof typical of New Mexican churches. A choir loft is present in the back of the church.

Nuestra Señora del Rosario Church, Truchas NM

Back of Church showing Choir Loft, Nuestra Señora del Rosario Church, Truchas NM,

The main altar, seen in the photos below, was created by the "Truchas Master", santero Pedro Antonio Fresquis between 1800-1818. The santero style was unique in the Colonial world for reasons I discuss in my  September 9, 2014 post  "Understanding New Mexico's Santos". ( Note that photos enlarge when clicked to better show detail).

Main Altar by "Truchas Master" Antonio Fresquis, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Truchas NM

Very top: God the Father- it is convention of place this image at the very top of altars.

Top row from viewer left to right:  San Juan Nepomuceno (St. John of Nepomuk, 14th century Bohemian saint), Our Lady of Carmel, Our Lady of the Rosary for whom the church is named, St. Francis, St. Gertrude the Great. 

Bottom row viewer L to R: St. John the Evangelist, St. Josep, empty niche, St. Anthony of Padua, St. Barbara.

The Latin inscriptions above the altar in the scroll-shaped pieces, Ave Maria and In Gratia Plena, are the opening words of the Hail Mary.  In front of the empty niche on the bottom row is a small bulto (statue) of the Crucified Jesus.

Bulto of Christ, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Truchas NM

Two beautiful bultos of the Virgin Mary are located on top of the front altar.

Bulto of Virgin Mary, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Truchas NM

Bulto of Virgin of the Rosary, Nuestra Sen1ora del Rosario, Truchas NM

On a small table to the left of the altar is a bulto attributed to the Santo Niño Santero, who was most know for his exquisitely carved crucifixes.

Bulto of Jesus by Santo Niño Santero, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Truchas NM

On the wall the left of the main altar is a retablo by the famous and prolific santero Rafael Aragon, born in Santa Fe sometime between 1783 and 1790.  This retablo from viewer L to R shows St. Paul, Jesus and St. Peter.

Retablo by Rafael Aragon, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Truchas NM

To the right of the main altar, and seen below, is another retablo by Pedro Antonio Fresquis, this one dated 1821. Top: Trinity depicted as three men, a Colonial Mexican convention that was continued in New Mexican religious art.

Second row  L to R: the Crucifixion, Our Lady of Sorrows

Bottom:  Our Lady of Carmel, St. Gregory's Mystical Mass

Retablo by Pedro Antonio Fresquis, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Truchas NM

The Truchas church provides an opportunity to see images usually only found in museums (such as the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe or the city's Museum of International Folk Art)  in the setting for which they were originally created.  The retablos and bultos were not pieces of art, but liturgical art that was used in worship and very significant in the religious lives of the people of colonial New Mexico.  These images differ from the religious art you will see in other parts of the Mexican Colonial world for reasons explained in my Sept. 9, 2014 blog post.

It is difficult to visit the Truchas church since it is open only during the summer and then at limited times.  Special permission from the Archdiocese of Santa Fe is generally necessary for admission to the church and photography is strictly forbidden, except with special permission which this writer was fortunate enough to obtain.  During the High Road Art Tour, which is always the last two weekends in September, the church is said to be open at certain times but it is best to check before going.

Art as Sacrifice: the Sawdust Carpets of Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

Creating a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

We have been conditioned to think of art as something permanent,  something of intrinsic value to be preserved.  Yet, there are other way to think about and use art.  Sometimes it is the process and intention behind the creation of a piece of art that are most important, not the outcome itself.  Such works of art are made to be fleeting moments of beauty dedicated to a higher cause.  The beautiful sand mandalas painstakingly created by Tibetan monks are one example.  These intricate designs are ceremonially destroyed when they are finished and the sand deposited in a stream or river to bless the world around it. 

Monk working on Mandala, Aspen Colorado

Ceremonial Destruction of Mandala by Monks in Aspen Colorado

Another of these perishable art-forms are the sawdust carpets created throughout Latin America during the season of Lent leading up to Easter day. (Also see post of March 25, 2016 on the carpets of Antigua, Guatemala).   They typically are made the same day or evening before one of the many Lenten and Easter processions in these countries to create a sanctified surface for the feet of the holy procession.

These carpets are labor of love and religious dedication; the work is painstaking and difficult.  The carpets below were constructed on a mercilessly hot Good Friday in Sutiava, a barrio  or section of Leon Nicaragua.  As someone explained, the work itself is a kind of meditation,  done prayerfully as a personal sacrifice and gift to the glory of the procession that is to follow.  It is a way to personally participate in the holiness of the event.

Group creating a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                

                                       

Creating a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                 

Early in the day the the base of the carpets, blank rectangles of dirt are laid out, ready for the carpet designs that,  In Sutiava, will be made free-hand, based on some image or idea. 

Bases for Sawdust Carpets, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                 

Beginning a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                 

The designs are made with colored sawdust that is placed on top of the dirt base.

Creating a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                   

The process is painstaking and difficult 

Creating a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                

and, typically, groups of people collaborate on a carpet.

Creating a Sawdust Carpet, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

Occasionally, in the Sutiava carpets, a pre-made stencil will be used for detail, as in the edge of the carpet below.

Carpet Stencil, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

                                  

Sawdust Carpet detail, Holy Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

By contrast in Antigua Guatemala use of stencils is more wide-spread and the stencils are more elaborate, being sold commercially. Because of the stencil use the carpets have a much more geometrical look, resembllng Oriental carpets.( "Anatomy of a Sawdust Carpet" 3/25/15).

Making Stencils for Sawdust Carpets, Antigua Guatemala

Stencils for making Sawdust Carpets, Antigua Guatemala

Sawdust Carpet, Antigua Guatemala

                                    

Sawdust Carpet, Antigua Nicaragua

Sawdust Carpet, Antigua Guatemala

The carpets of Sutiava have a very different visual impact.  Their religiosity is much more straightforward and devotional; they are powerful statements of personal faith. The Antigua carpets do contain religious symbolism, but the religiosity of the Sutiava carpets is personal and direct.

Sawdust Carpet, Good Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

Sawdust Carpet on Good Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon Nicaragua

Sawdust Carpet on Good Friday, Barrio Sutiava, Leon  Nicaragua

Sawdust Carpet on Good Friday,  Barrio Sutiava  Leon Nicaragua

As with the Tibetan mandalas, the glorious designs of the carpets are demolished as soon as the religious procession for which they were created begins.  There is no sense of regret at their destruction, because they have lived their brief lives and served their purpose.                                              

Processional carpet after its destruction, Holy Saturday, St. John Seelos Church, New Orleans, Louisiana