Village Stay: El Carmen

Ben Quinn, Lia Van Dyke, Mary Washburn, Jack Braidt, Mateo Solberg, Sarah Jean Whelan

No one in our group seemed to know exactly what to expect going into our trip to El Carmen. While we all held preconceived notions about what life was like and what we would experience, these were uncertain at best and were undoubtedly changed by the time we left on Saturday morning. Below one can find the personal accounts of each of the students that spent Semana Santa in El Carmen de Inés del Monte. This experience in a rural pueblo is something that all of us will carry with great regard for the rest of our lives. Each of us developed relationships with people in the community and were initially struck with how many differences there were, but upon our departure what resonated were the similarities.  Below, each of us will talk a little bit about our experiences.

At beginning of our stay at el Carmen, I felt very much like an outsider. We would walk down the streets and never once did we not get at least a double take if not a stare by each and every person we walked by. I can’t say I found this at all surprising seeing as I was one of seven white Americans in a town of 700 rural Mexicans. It didn’t take all too long for this to change. After a couple days of playing basketball with the local kids and attending masses and talking to people on the streets, almost all of whom were interested enough to approach and engage us first, I began to feel very welcome here. In talking to the people of this town, I found that all the townspeople there I talked to were very interested in two things: (1) why we were here and (2) once they ascertained that we were from the US, what the political situation was like there. I got the idea that many of these people really believed the US was an ideal sort of place, or at least as good as a place to live could be. My host father was very interested in the differences between government aid programs in the US and in Mexico, and it was also interesting to see, every morning when we sat down for breakfast, our host father telling his 8 month old granddaughter how she is going to learn English and go to the north. Those people in town who knew anything about the political goings on in the US asked me, scarily enough, about Trump. As one can imagine they were not too fond of him or what they knew about his platform. I told them not to worry too much, I doubt he’ll win... One man asked what I’d do if he did. I told them I’d move to Canada :)

Going into El Carmen, I had no idea what to expect. When we got to our house, we made it clear that we wanted to help in whatever way possible, and our family was happy to oblige. Most of our days were spent doing relatively intense manual labor, from picking and sorting through hundreds of tomatoes to be sold to stores, to lugging massive amounts of manure to fill an entire greenhouse. It was a lot of work, and as the days went on I felt increasingly humbled by how privileged I am to have been born into my life. It was hard to see that our family worked so much and received such little pay, how they had little access to clean or running water, and how they had to be very conscious of conserving their resources. At the same time, it was a week full of great learning experiences and connecting to some very interesting people.

Although the manual labor consumed much of our time and initial attention, it was impossible to ignore cultural differences. These people worked more hours than the average US citizen doing physically harder labor too, which is enough to comment on itself, but the role I saw women play in this scenario was so much more. After working in the fields with them for many hours the only thing I could do was collapse on my bed and sleep for an hour. When I woke up, I noticed the men in the family had similarly passed out on the couch, but our host mom, who had done the same work in the fields as the men, had gone straight from farming to the overheated kitchen to prepare us dinner. While it was admirable to see the women in our family working in the fields too, it was difficult for us to see that they still had to pick up household chores after a long day of work. Another cultural difference I noticed was due to the fact that I was one of two vegetarians living in El Carmen for the week. It was nearly impossible to get our family to understand that we didn’t eat any type of meat. Not even chicken or seafood we would tell them. For us, living in the US, a lot of people understand that vegetarian means no meat, and more than that, vegetarians have access to food that’s not meat. Our host mom told us that she had once tried to be a vegetarian because she didn’t eat meat, but stopped because one day the only thing available for her to eat was meat. These cultural differences were very-eye opening. The amount of work they do and the little that they received made me feel so humbled. I had a great time working with them, but was thoroughly exhausted by the end of the week and was astounded to see how much they worked on a daily basis.

The thing that impressed me most during my stay in El Carmen was the pride and generosity that my family exhibited throughout my stay with them and increasingly leading up to our departure. Although they came from extremely humble means, both of our families were more than willing to provide us with as much as their limited resources would allow. We changed houses after a day to move into a house with electricity at the urging of both families. At first I thought that it was no big deal that they were simply looking out for what was best for us. It wasn’t until later that I realized how big of a deal it was for our original family. On Saturday during breakfast we began a conversation about how difficult it was for them to attain electricity. Our original host, Don Antonio, explained that it would be in the neighborhood of about a million pesos in order for them to hook electricity in the house (this is what I heard). It was after that that he took on a more solemn tone. He looked me in the eyes and apologized profusely that his family was unable to provide light for us and that we no longer stayed in their house. The pride and generosity to strangers is something that both myself and others could learn from this particularly generous and kind family.

March Madness was in full effect during our stay in El Carmen.  Most days were spent playing basketball at the town basketball court.  Often times, a couple different town kids would wander up and we would play some sort of game.  Benito and Mateo played a three game 1v1 series, spread over three different days, with Benito coming out victorious. On Friday night, the Madness really came out.  Us UVM kids had been hanging out at the basketball court all evening, drinking Coca-Cola and playing basketball.  At around 8pm, the church mass got out, and many people wandered over to the court to see what was going on.  After a while it was clear what was to happen: all the older teenage boys had evidently gotten out of church, and came over to the basketball court to see what was up.  There were about 10 people just kind of sitting around, watching Mateo shoot hoops.  Mateo looked around, then decided to organize a game.  It ended up being Mateo and four Mexican guys vs Benito and four Mexican guys.  It really did feel like an organized game, because the court was lit up, many women and young children were watching us play, people were even cheering for the different teams!  Mateo and his team ended up winning, and all of the players celebrated after with some Coca-Cola and a big bag of chips, a typical snack for us during the village stay.  

Skepticism was the word that would best describe my first reaction to this village stay. I found myself asking, what are we going to do here all week? This attitude quickly morphed into one of reverence for the way of life of the people of El Carmen. Their hard work in the face of limited resources, and their ingenuity despite the lack of a formal education are all things that we will take away from this. The opportunity that this village stay afforded me, to connect with people I seemingly have nothing in common with, is one that I will always remember and hold as one of the most valuable memories from this trip. Although I can’t speak for everyone, it is for sure that this trip was unlike anything we had experienced before and will resonate with us for life. I for one am extremely grateful for this opportunity and want to thank the UVM Oaxaca staff for making it happen.

Village Stay: Be Down with Bii Daüü

The Village Stay Experience as told by :

Allison Keen, Mollie Anctil, Colin Rugg, Vanessa Calu, Gemma Cirignano, Miguel Charters

Flora, Fauna, and Folklore

On Wednesday morning, we woke up at 5:30 and set out for a 4 kilometer hike up the uniquely shaped Mount Pikacho in time for the sunrise. Steeper than we had originally predicted the climb to be, the sunrise hit us when we were two-thirds up the mountainside. This beautiful yellow glow helped power us up the rest of the way. At the top there was a shrine to the Virgin Mary and two crosses (the third had blown away..). The locals that accompanied us had brought flowers to lay at the altar and changed the water of existing flowers. The 360 view from the peek onto the valley below was absolutely worth it. We could see all of Teotitlán and much more! Those of us who are in the arts and sciences track also got a kick out of identifying the many plants along the trail (lots of cactaceae and bromeliaceae).

While the group spent a few hours enjoying the anthemic view of the valley and towns surrounding us, our guide to the mountain willingly shared with us a brief history of the land and people of Teotitlan. He first told us that the view we were taking in had not always been so green but instead was covered with water, glaciers, and ice in the many millennium before us. Due to this people lived higher up in the mountains and much of their religion had been based around the nature of the mountain.. As time went on, the water from this great valley drained into the river that flows through Oaxaca city today and the land became farmable for the people and communities began expanding downwards. For much of history before the Spanish conquistadors invaded the land, the land surrounded Teotitlan, along with Monte Alban, was fought over for the right to farm in these areas. Monte Alban served as a great strategic vantage point for the warring cultures of the Zapoteca and the Mixteca. For much of the history the Zapotecs were in control of this land and this is why the people in village and the surrounding towns speak Zapotec.

Yet, the mountains did not serve the sole purpose of being a militarily strategic viewpoint for the Zapotec during war, it also provided a sense of proximity and closeness to the gods whom the Zapotecs worshipped. Zhan-Woobeesh and Zhan-Bewoo, the Sun god and the moon god, respectively, were the two gods that the Zaoptec often climbed the mountains to worship. The mountain, besides being host to various families in the Zapotec community, the people began burying their dead in the mountains after the Spanish arrived. Our guide mentioned that many people in the community believed that there were many unrested and bad spirits that still lay awake in the mountain that if you were to take a compass on the mountain, it would be forever unbalanced as the spirits of the dead were disrupting the forces of energy on the mountain. Skeptical of this, Lance and Miguel decided to test this theory. Much to their amazement, the compass that we had pulled out from our bag was in fact going crazy. Lance, the skeptic that he is decided that the vast deposits of Iron-ore in the mountainous terrain surrounding us would be enough to disrupt the compass. However, Miguel, much like Agent Fox Mulder of the 1990’s cult classic, X-Files, wanted to believe in the extraordinary forces surrounding us. The main reason that the Zapotec people began burying their beloved ones in the mountains was because they wanted their people to be buried closed to Zhan-Woobeesh and Zhan-Bewoo.

As the Spanish moved in and took control of the land, the culture of the Zapotec was what one could say ‘influenced’ heavily or effectively forever altered. One of the biggest influences of the Spanish that is clearly visible is the big church in the middle of the town. Before the Spanish there was Zapotec temple that was the central point of the city and once the Spanish arrived, they tore down the temple and with the decrepit remains of the temple, a new and empowering church was constructed in the town center. It is still very easy to see the remains of the former temple as a vast majority of the church was built with the rubble of the temple. Due to this reconstruction, and forced adaptation of the beliefs, much of Teotitlan is Catholic. However, there is some integration of Catholic and Zapotec deities. In the town of the Teotitlan, the Virgin Mary was one of the perhaps most renown figures. Our guide mentioned that the people especially liked her since the Virgin of Guadalupe and the Virgin Mary so closely resembled one another. Interesting enough, the question of reclaiming old Zapotec traditions and holidays was brought up and the only real holidays that are observed are the winter and spring solstice. Beside those two nothing else is really practiced. Although the town itself is heavily Catholic, there are still a few subtle Zapotec beliefs that have managed to stand the test of time in the small town of Teotitlan. Although our conversation on the mountain ended up with the conclusion that the Gods of the Zapoteca may have been forgotten, there were still various other parts of the Zapotec culture, such as the food that were still practiced with traditional techniques. Eager to learn more about the food in Teotitlan, the group headed to bottom of the mountain to learn more about the variety of flavors that that filled the morning air.

Food & Frappuchinos

The food was delicious in Teotitlan! Every morning our host mom and us would head off to the market to buy the ingredients from desayuno and comida. She would carefully choose the fresh breads (which were often still warm), vegtables and meats. We would head back to the house, and the cooking would begin. Every day the home would smell of something new and delicious. Each day was a different traditional Zapotec dishes, soup, and more. Plus, the food felt like it was never ending. Our host mom kept offereing more and more. Most of the time, I couldn’t say no because it was so amazing! Not only was the food great, the fresh squeezed juices were amazing as well! Our group often met at the local cafe for some wonderful frappuchinos and to catch up with one another!

Fashioning rugs

Many families in Teotitlán de Valle create tapetes, or rugs, to make a living. Teotitlán is, in fact, best known for these homemade artisanal tapetes. Bii Dauu, the cooperative through which we were given our family home-stay assignments, consists of many different families who individually work to make their products but sell them together in one place. Bii Daü prides itself on using all organic dyes and locally sourced wool. Every UVM student had a completely different experience at their home-stays, so it is important to keep in mind that I can only speak about one experience. It was explained to me by my family, that during Semana Santa, all work must stop by Wednesday. However, on Monday and Tuesday, I had the opportunity to watch the family in action. There were about 7 looms total, each working on a different project. My home-stay sister, Soledad was making about 8 little coin purses. I watched her create the swatches on the loom (and even got to work the loom myself for a little while), cut and tie together the excess strings, sew the sides, and finally, sew on a zipper. It was so incredible watching how fast the family works and how much they love their work. Soledad told me that she doesn’t mind waking up early in the morning because working on the loom makes her really happy. Below are some pictures depicting different steps in the process of making the coin purses.

Families

Families come in all shapes and sizes. Although we all had different experiences with our host families, we can all agree that they were incredibly gracious families. Mollie and Vanessa stayed with the Rafaela and Mariano, owners of the Bii Daüü Cooperative. They got to see the everyday life of this family. They ventured every morning to the market with Rafaela to purchase the day’s food. They watched Mariano weave rugs and learned about the intricate process to create the natural dyes used. The chicas attended the daily processions and sermons at la iglesia during Semana Santa. Other households would share card games and tricks to pasar tiempo with the family. Every afternoon the Bii Daü families would cook a lovely comida to share with us and get to learn from one another the customs of our cultures - we even got to learn some Zapotec phrases! It was humbling to experience the community life and see firsthand the importance of maintaining close relationships with family in their culture.

Festivities

   In terms of festivities, we were able to witness the parades and services given in celebration of semana santa. This began in our first day, when some of us marched with a large procession of the figures of Jesus and the Virgin Mary around the town to ask for donations to help fund the processions for the rest of the week. Part of these donations were in the form of nieves and tamales for the leaders of the procession, as well as for the entirety of the people marching with them. Along with this, we were witness to two other processions, both of which were on Holy Friday, and were separated by a mass and other special church services separate from the typical Sunday church. The morning procession was representative of Jesus meeting with Mary, as the two figures were paraded on different routes and met in the town center for another ceremony. The final procession took place after the afternoon recitation of the “siete palabras” said by Jesus before his crucifixion. After the crucifixion itself was played out on the altar, the figure of Jesus was lowered into an ornate golden coffin which was then processed to the town graveyard, where a service was given to lay him to rest. All of this was very moving, and gave off a real sense of the reverence that the community of Teotitlan del Valle gives to their religion, especially on semana santa when we were there.

Village Stay - Vida Nueva, Teotitlán

Last week during Semana Santa (Holy Week), Chuck, Kate, Katie, Kelly, Lance, and Selina lived in the rug-weaving pueblo called Teotitlán del Valle. We split up and lived with four different families involved in the Vida Nueva cooperative. This is an all women's co-op who weave beautiful rugs of all shapes and styles with naturally dyed wool (which they dye themselves). However, these women are not just weavers, but protectors of their land and community. They do projects within the community to connect the pueblo together and raise awareness on keeping their land healthy. Our group was able to help out with a project of theirs.

Hey it’s Kelly, I’m going to talk about the project that we worked on with Vida Nueva. After we arrived in Teotitlán and were assigned our host families, the women went straight to business. They told us that on the following day, Tuesday, we were to meet at Vida Nueva to start planning out the execution of our project. She told us that she wanted to bring awareness to making sure people keep the land clean by having us install trash bins in the community. So, the following day we gathered together and each family was given two signs and a dirty tin bucket. We were instructed that on Wednesday we were to wash the signs and the trash can and then repaint them, as well as attaching a post to the sign, so then on Thursday we can meet up and distribute the signs and bins. My experience with prepping the materials was a lot of fun. Chuck and Katie came to our home and with the help of the 10-year-old girl and her 4-year-old twin siblings we washed and painted the materials. Some of us got completely soaked while trying to wash the signs with a hose, and then all of us were covered in paint because there was only one paint brush, so finger painting was definitely the way to go. Finally, everyone woke up early on Thursday and met at 6:45 at a newly planted tree sanctuary where we were able to successfully install two of the eight signs. We then needed help from one of the woman's nephews because we struggled with getting the posts into the ground and making sure that the posts stopped falling apart. We also hung up the trash bins so that people wouldn’t litter in the sanctuary.  

Hi this is Kate! Something that I found very shocking was the state of nutrition in the pueblo. There was a vast contrast between cooking healthy soups and fresh tortillas daily and also guzzling liters of soda and not wanting to walk anywhere (at least this is my experience). My assumption is that the latter are signs of status and luxury, so my host family felt compelled to offer those luxuries to me because I am a guest from a more wealthy background. I also noticed that many times soda was cheaper than water, which just goes to show how corporations target populations such as these to make money. I did not see a single person drinking just straight water; everything was some sort of sweetened beverage.  The food we ate was very nutritious, with no meat and lots of vegetables and fresh cheeses. I was surprised at the amount of sugar in EVERYTHING. Our coffee was served to us in the morning pre sweetened, with so much sugar it made your mouth pucker. The two four year olds living in my house came and sat with us and even had a huge bowl of coffee every morning! Overall, a very different experience than back in the U.S, at least in Vermont!

Speaking of food, market dynamics were extremely interesting. Every day I went with my host mom into the market to help her sell tortillas. I noticed she bought cheese, beans, and vegetables from the same people every day, and asked her why. She stated that it was because she knew him or her; they were all some sort of family member. Living in a small pueblo, many of these people know or are related to a lot of the sellers in these markets, which makes the market more of a community meeting place and a social hub.  It also ensures that all the vendors selling the same things get consistent business.

Hola reader, my name is Katie and this is what I gained from the village stay experience through family life and everyday activity.  I was excited because Vida Nueva was my first choice and I was looking forward to living with women who I find so empowering.  Chuck and I were paired to live together with Patrona, a middle-aged blind woman who lives with her eighteen year old son and husband Juan.   I was a little intimidated at first living with a blind woman but I also gained knowledge about what it means to live with someone with that disability.  It also really forced me to practice my Spanish because I could not clarify what I was saying through actions.  It was incredibly humbling and I learned about yet another thing I have taken for granted.  I am so appreciative for Patrona’s kindness and I love how her and Juan really opened up their home to Chuck and I.

        One of my favorite experiences was cooking with Juan and Patrona. Patrona was very adamant about teaching us how to make this vegetable soup.  She was so excited for us to learn about a daily aspect of her life.  I feel that food and cooking really is a great aspect of someone’s culture and a form of expression.  The creation of the soup turned into a group activity that took most of the afternoon.  We took our time cutting the vegetables and pureeing the ingredients.  Juan and Patrona were more than happy to include Chuck and me in most of the work even in circumstances where we didn’t know what we were doing (which was most of the time).  It is interesting to compare the way we cook in the United States to this one instance that I experienced in a village.  Back home, I feel that the day to day cooking can be very individualized and we are all about getting it done fast.  This took a whole afternoon.  I tried to take in all the ingredients by smelling them and noting everything that went into the soup.  The soup consisted of tomatoes, broccoli, garlic, carrots, zucchini, and pasta.  

Hi it's Chuck! During my stay in Teotitlán I found it very interesting to watch the social interactions between my host family and the town. I was particularly interested in the difference between their way of shaking hands and what I have seen in Oaxaca and the U.S. Their handshake (or at least those involving a woman) involves using two hands and bowing one’s head slightly. I thought this was interesting just because it made the interaction seem more genuine and sincere. I also saw this sincerity when I was walking with my host family and they greeted a man and his son who were riding their bikes. Instead of just saying hello back, the man and son dismounted from their bikes to shake hands with my host parents. I thought this was worth noting because perhaps it says something about their sense of community as well as pace of life. I think that in the U.S. this would be way more unusual. I feel that the pace of life in Mexico is much slower and more community orientated, and in many U.S. and European countries people are much more concerned with getting all their errands done and accomplishing tangible goals rather than fostering a strong sense of community.

Overall my week in Teotitlán was really quite fun and relaxing. I think a lot of us had a lot of trouble adjusting to village life-bucket showers, lack of our idea of stimulation, etc- but I really do think the village stay was mind opening for me, as cliché as that sounds. I think that it is really easy to forget that just because people’s lives seem so strikingly different at first glance, that isn’t always the case and I think living with my host family for a few days reminded me that wherever you go, people are people, with similar games, humor, and emotions as I do.

Hello reader, my name is Lance and during the Vida Nueva trip in Teotitlán I was placed in a family on my own and had an experience a little different than that of the others. Although my living conditions were more "rustic" than my UVM counterparts, it was actually somewhat enjoyable. I almost felt as if I were camping- even though I had the luxury of my own building, I felt quite exposed to the elements. Luckily I am used to camping with little resources available so I was fine with it. My family was very kind and worked on their respective rugs throughout the day. Because my family was always hard at work, it didn’t give me much to do, but it gave me the opportunity to observe a lot. I occasionally just walked around the town, seeing what there was to see, with the occasional “buenos/as dias/tardes/noches” to passerbyers. I did attend a couple of the processions, but I wasn't raised in a religious manner, so I wasn’t so sure what was going on, much less what to do, but it was interesting nonetheless. On the final day, me and Miguel (a fellow companion from the Bii Dau company) woke up bright and early at 5:30 AM to go on a little hike up the tallest mountain in the area. It was an arduous uphill battle, but was worth the view. On our way back down we saw some really interesting animals and flora, not to mention a marked cave. After that we made our way back to the city. I’m not sure what I’d take back from this trip. I’ve been and stayed in a lot of extremely impoverished areas so I somewhat knew what to expect from this experience, though I will admit mine specifically took me by surprise. One thing is for sure, and that is that I am more aware of how the kind natured towns people go about their daily lives here in the good ol’ state of Oaxaca.

Selina here, focusing on religion. The pueblo of Teotitlán is very Catholic-- interesting due to the fact that a large portion of the population is indigenous and Zapotec. During Semana Santa, people were on vacation and a lot of effort was put into preparing the town for the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Sunday (Easter). Monday started off with a procession in which nearly the entire pueblo partook. It consisted of carrying around religious figures, such as the Virgin Mary, and the parade would occasionally stop so that people could worship the Virgin and bring food and flowers. During these stops, food and drink were offered to everyone.

On Thursday night, I went with my host mother, her sister, and their mother to church at midnight. There was an altar set up with fluorescent christmas lights and lots of candles, and incense was being burned constantly. People came in and out of the church all night with copious amounts of flowers, to come kneel in front of the altar and pray, and rosaries were being said out loud. Around 1am, 12 men dressed as the apostles came in and sat down in front of the altar, and played music and sang songs. Food and drinks were being offered to those coming to worship. My host grandmother and myself went home around 1:30, but my host mother and her sister stayed until six in the morning.

Friday was another procession day. I woke up to my host family cleaning the street outside their house, because the procession would be walking through there. This consisted of sweeping the street, throwing water on it, and then laying out flowers and flower petals. The procession then came (with loud brass music) and walked by the house carrying a statue of Jesus. This procession then met with another procession coming from the other side of town, holding a statue of the Virgin Mary. Jesus and Mary met in the town center, and a priest said a few words in front of all the townspeople who were gathered around.

Later in the afternoon, we went back to the church to witness Jesus being taken down from the cross. This was done with extreme care, and took about half an hour. He was then put in a casket and the casket was once again carried through the town, to the cemetery and back to the church, as another procession. This procession went around the town twice, and by the time they got back to the church it was dark out.

It was extremely interesting to experience such intense worship. I am Catholic but have never seen people go to such lengths to pay their tributes. In America we don’t have such processions, and “Semana Santa” doesn’t really exist in the way that it does down here. People make the sign of the cross just passing by the church, and the church area was a communal place to hang out-- more so than the town center. I truly enjoyed my stay in Teotitlan, and feel very lucky and grateful that we got to spend it there during such a sacred time.

Global Health: A Week of Traditional Medicine Internships

The week began on scorched Monday morning and Jonathan was kind enough to accompany Katie and Miguel to the outside town Viguerra on the northern end of the city. Upon first inspection of the traditional medicine center, the small plot of land owned by local traditional medicine healer, Alejandria, was absent of anything that resembled a traditional medicine center. Katie and Miguel's first task of the internship was acquiring local shop supplies to craft herbal soap remedies as well as rich oil to be used for tomorrow's lesson. The next day Katie and Miguel arrived to Alejandria’s house and were introduced to Alejandria’s compassionate pupil, Mariana. With no time to waste the group began preparing to make the soap. The soap itself was very simple and natural to make as it only required oats, Vaseline, and glycerin. In a process that one simply boils Vaseline and the glycerin in a pot. After coming to a boil, one pours the two liquids into any shaped mold that is desired. After, one then takes the oats, or the Spanish word for oats, Avena, and sprinkles them into the mold. Finally the soap is left to cool overnight. In the next couple of days, Alejandria introduced Miguel and Katie to the indigenous ritual that aligns the mind, body, and soul to improve one’s emotional health. These are called limpias. The process consists of one being whacked by certain plants such as ruda, rosemary, and other local herbs. This represents a spiritual cleansing. Then the individual is rubbed with an egg all over their body. After this, mezcal is sprayed forcefully onto the person’s lower back, neck, and stomach. The mezcal represents the awakening of the spirits. After this is completed, the person takes 7 deep breaths, and releases those spirits. In some cases, a black chicken would be motioned over the person as well. The egg that was rubbed all over their body is then cracked into a glass of water. Alejandria would observe the egg and read the mental state of the individual. Miguel and Katie witnessed many limpias and even got to perform limpias themselves. After seeing many women return after their limpias feeling refreshed, the two received a different perspective on spiritual and mental health that they had not seen before.

Although during the first week Miguel and Katie were no more than strangers to Alejandria and Mariana, the group would become connected spiritually, mentally, and physically after practicing massages on one another. Alejendria informed the two to use a lot of oil that they made together the previous week and perform certain massage techniques on the body to release bodily tensions. These massages were different than what the two had seen in the United States. Katie and Miguel learned how to release tension in the muscles using forceful rubbing techniques on the legs, arms, stomach, chest, neck, and head.
The last technique that the duo had learned were card readings. The process begins with using a certain deck of cards. These cards all have images that have specific meanings. Someone who is looking to know more about themselves or their future would put their hand over the card, state their name, and ask a question about their life. For example, Miguel asked what his future would hold. Summoning the powers within herself, Alejandria took the cards from Miguel and dealt the cards to reveal an order that made wide eyes out of the group. Miguel's future would hold for him a rich wife, great children, but a sad death. Though he was sad to see such a cold future, he was accustomed to sacrificing for others and this was not new to him. To comfort Miguel, Alejandria explained that the cards act more as a guide and advisory for the future, not so much a concrete fortune. With this being said, the salty tears were cleared away by a bright gleaming smile, Miguel’s future still has hope. Katie and Miguel are immensely grateful to have had the opportunity to learn and experience the rituals and processes of traditional healing. They were both exposed to a new and different cultural perspective of health and what it means to be healthy. Alejandria advised the two to not just store this new knowledge in the back of their mind but she requested that they bring it back to the United States with them and continue to practice the things they have learned with their friends and family.

Food Systems: Cooking Away!

Our colorful comida in Teotitlan

Food Systems has had a busy week!  Throughout all of this taste testing and trying new foods, not all of our digestive systems have been able to keep up...but with electrolytes and some amor, we’ve all powered through!

On Monday, we had a relaxed day and learned how to do sensory evaluation (look, smell, feel, taste).  Professor Cynthia brought in a bunch of typical Mexican snacks, and we tried them all.  We learned that the Jell-O cups that are very common here are high in protein and are mostly pure gelatin.  We tasted some papaya with lime juice on it, and that was really good.  In general, Monday was a pretty relaxed day.

Tuesday, we went to Teotitlan del Valle, a town about 30 minutes east of the city.  The town is famous for making rugs, however we went there to have some private cooking lessons from some women in the Vida Nueva cooperative that we visited earlier this semester.  Each of us went with a different women to their respective houses and each of us made a part of the meal.  Mateo went with Isabela and they made the mole amarillo, which is a kind of sauce, but we put chickpeas in it, which apparently is not very common.  Kate and Petrona made the salsas, and Vanessa and her teacher made some delicious rice con chepiche, which is a Mexican herb.  We all came together, afterwards, combining each dish to make for a great lunch. 

 Wednesday, we went back La Villada, which is the hotel that all of us UVM students stayed at in our first couple nights for orientation.  There we made a delicious mole estofado, which is a sauce like mole amarillo, but a lot more complex.  There are raisins, almonds, cloves, allspice, thyme, lots of lard, bread, tomatoes and obviously amor.  It was a complex process of dry roasting some ingredients, blending others, then combining them to boil together for about 30 minutes.  It was served with some fried rice and chicken, and was very delicious!

The finished product: estofado!

The piles of maguey fibers leftover after the Mezcal process

The comal where we learned to make tortillas and lunch.

Thursday we set out to a palenque in Miahuatlan to learn more about Mezcal production. Mezcal, while being one of the oldest drinks in Mexico, has only gained an official certification in 2005. Andrea, a former UVM alumni, TA of the program, and now manager at Mezcaloteca, guided us through the complete process of mezcal from agave growth, to cooking, mashing, fermenting, and distilling. We saw over 10 different types of maguey (agave) plants. We also got to cook with one of the families at the palenque. We started out in the outdoor kitchen by the comal, learning how to make tortillas from masa. In order for you to get the nutrients from the corn you need to break down the cellulose layer, so the corn needs to be soaked in cal, or limestone before it can be ground up to make the masa. We learned the technique of flattening the masa and laying them on the comal (tortillas). It’s much harder than it looks! Tia was pleasantly surprised to find out that Mateo made the best tortillas out of all of us!

Friday we wrapped up the week at the faculty apartment, synthesizing our experience week long experience and tasting more weird oaxacan specialties, including a very mucilagenous fruit. Now we get to work on translating and putting together our recipes from the week. Stay tuned for our blog post!

Saludos,

Mateo y Kate