Cities are important to the location, each city has its own party, they call it ferias, the feria de Cali just happens to be during Christmas time , the carnivals are in Barranquilla Carnival. These carnivals are huge festivals in which the Colombian people showcase different sets of parades and a lot of other different stands just to show off their different type of foods or even toys for the kids to have fun with.These carnivals last for many weeks sometimes in order to celebrate through the time change of the seasons.Alex is a Colombian native who immigrated here when he was just a little boy. His family left Columbia in response to all the violence that was emitting from Pablo Escobar’s reign of terror. In order to keep his family traditions alive, his parents constantly told him about the vast events and beauty of his homeland and people
Category Archives: Foodways
Ferias Monucipilanas
Every city, every town, has a yearly party, feria monucipilanas, and each have their own saint in which they cherish and praise during the festival. The people of the city make a big tower that you light at the bottom of the tower so then the fireworks make really colorful designs upon explosion. Alex is a Colombian native who immigrated here when he was just a little boy. His family left Columbia in response to all the violence that was emitting from Pablo Escobar’s reign of terror. In order to keep his family traditions alive, his parents constantly told him about the vast events and beauty of his homeland and people. These fairs seem like the walks that Catholics due in Los Angeles during Easter to acknowledge a saint.
Food Preparation
Every time food is prepared, there are always a variety of spices available. The mexican-cuisine culture surrounds that taste. A common tradition of Juan is too have habaneros ready at hand for every meal. This has been a tradition between his dad, and grandpa, and so forth, mostly the males of the family, in which they would spice up their food to extraordinary levels. He says it comes as a way to show that food is fought for, and the spiciness not only adds taste, but also shows that the literal sweat and tears are needed to have food on the table.
–
Juan is a Mexican-American from Mexico city. He works demolition, but is super into his religion of being a Jehovah Witness. He has been passing down his traditions to his kids, just how they were passed down to him by his dad and grandpa.
Ecuadorian Parties in Chicago
Main Piece:
Participant marked with CM below. I am noted as LJ.
LJ: What was it like growing up in Chicago as an Ecuadorian?
CM: We had a lot of parties where you pay $20 at the door. We have a lot of Ecuadorian artists that um donate their time. And we have, um, a lot of people who make food for us. Oh, and we all dance from like 7 to 2am.
LJ: What else happens at these parties?
CM: We don’t really like to spend money on outside people. The community supports eachother…we’re a small community so we’re really family based.
Context:
I asked the participant to tell me about what it was like to grow up Ecuadorian in Chicago. She touched on parties and food–above is the party aspect of it.
Background:
The participant is a first generation Ecuadorian-American in Chicago. She is currently a first year at the University of Southern California.
Analysis:
The Ecuadorian community in Chicago seems very close knit by the way that the parties seem to operate. The participant spoke about feeling a great support within the community. It is evident in how she mentions that, for their parties they reach out to other people within their neighborhood. Music, food, and fun serves to help the keep the group together.
The participant later went on to tell me that she feels that these parties help maintain the traditions of Ecuador–that they are especially important to those who have never been or can not go back to Ecuador.
Street Scenes in Urban Mexico City
The informant is from Mexico City, currently rotating at UT Medical Center.
The interview occurred at a family barbeque on a Sunday.
He and I discussed what he thinks about when he thinks of his home, which is originally Mexico City. He said that there is nothing quite like the sights and sounds of the urban squares of the densely populated capital.
“Those of us who are from Ciudad de Mexico, it’s represented as CMX, instead of as the old Mexico, Distrito Federal, is the official title. We are known as Chilangos. We love to eat street food, sold at mobile markets called Tianguis. They sell esquite, which are roasted corn kernels mixed with mayonnaise, chili powder and lime juice, fruit with chili powder, gorditas, which are fried tacos of all sorts and tamales, which are known as the Student’s Menu, and used to be ten pesos each. We also have lots of informal commerce, even on the Metro, which is always chaotic and crowded. Many of the products are chafa, which means imitation of famous labels; sold very cheaply, and that’s why we frequently say “Lo Barato Sale Caro”, or “what’s bought cheaply becomes expensive (since it never lasts).”
The informant describes an urban environ filled with constant access to food, trinkets, and other vendors. As a young medical fellow in the city, Jesús experienced busy city life first hand, and often ended up eating at these mobile merchants. Thus, the street food of Mexico and the small carts one buys tacos, tamales, and other foods from, have become a part of the memory Jesús has of Mexico City. Also interesting is the nickname of “Chilangos” given to city dwellers. This is a moniker widely used by Mexicans, who call Mexico City “Chilangolandia.” There are numerous theories as to why this nickname exists, yet no concrete answers have been found. Some believe the “Chil” portion refers to hot sauces, while the “Angos” portion refers to the Nahuatl toponym “Tenango.”
The market of knockoff goods exists in many Latin American countries and is a cultural economy that many depend upon. His reflections on Mexico City are an interesting case study in Mexican urban culture and its imagery. For a similar experience, I suggest visiting Santee Alley near downtown LA, which features many of the same authentic street foods and a similar market setting.