Doesn’t quite have the ring of 4th of July but it does have the same significance. Readers, please indulge me in a quick history lesson about something that irks me (but not nearly as much as it bothers our neighbors to the South). The 15th of September (1821) is the Independence Day of Central America. Central America, of course, includes Mexico. Therefore, Cinco de Mayo is NOT the Mexican Independence Day. Besides being a great excuse to don goofy mustaches and acting like “the most interesting man in the world”, it commemorates the battle of Pueblo, Mexico.
Moving on, the 14th of September is similar to Cinco de Mayo (but for Nicaragua) in that it honors the victory over William Walker at San Jacinto (a city just north of Managua) in 1853. Needless to say, all of Nicaragua has both of these days off and I, as an educator, have the 16th and 19th off as well. What to do with all of these days off? Actos and parades of course! Fotos:
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| Marchando |
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| Festive huh? |
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| My students! |
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| Strange dress but good tunes |
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| Muchas personas! |
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| The acto |
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| For country, for life, take care and conserve the environment |
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| Indoctrination or just plain adorable? |
Additionally, this weekend I’m going up to a city called Jalapa for “Corn Fest”. I’m not sure what I’ll be doing, besides the obvious consuming of dozens of corn products that is. I’ll let you know how it is!
*Update: now having attended “Corn Fest” I can tell you exactly what it. I’m pretty sure I accidentally stepped into a time warp and ended up in Iowa. There was a parade of floats made out of corn, bands signing songs about corn, a Miss Corn Pageant which includes women dressed in corn answering question about their favorite corn products. Additionally, some of the corn things I ate:
Guailla – a large thick corn tortilla baked on banana leaves served with cheese. Less than $0.50.
Nantuca – mashed up corn into a small loaf with a hunk of chicken in the center all baked in the husk of the corn. Less than $1.
Mystery word – deep fried corn balls with a powered cheese on top. Practically free.
Chicha bruja – fermented corn beverage. Less than $0.50 for 8oz.
Afterwards, we went to a “dicoteca” which really just was a pool with a bar and a stage. People just danced around the pool deck (and threw empty cans into the pool). As a recovering lifeguard, I’m shocked that throughout the night, no one fell in.
Back to work Tuesday!
Sounds like Chaddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd's paradise
ReplyDeleteI just read this and laughed. It DOES sound like you ended up in Iowa! It actually sounds for Iowan than the State Fair was!
ReplyDeleteFor sure. To both.
ReplyDelete