Julio -- mes de la Guelaguetza en Oaxaca

[htmb]

Three solid weeks? Yikes!!!!!

[bjd]

I like your two old ladies with the long braids.

[bixaorellana]

That's right, Htmb! Really, the last couple of days I've been wondering if I'm deaf, since it's so relatively silent now.

Thank you so much, Bjd. I was quite pleased with that picture, especially since in order to get it I had to wait out the compulsively posing dancing couple between me & the old ladies.

I guess I'm looking for extra appreciation here, but sheesh! My intention is always to get un-posed pictures. But often, just as I get a good one framed up, either some onlooker will frantically get the subjects' attention to direct them to pose for me, or the subject him-/herself will snap to with a pose. *sigh*

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Now on to what I consider one of the highlights of this thread -- the muxe parade. A friend & I came upon it by accident on our way to a concert. Please appreciate the pictures, as I had to run in cute shoes to catch up to the parade. Admittedly, that's less impressive when you see the amazing heels some of the participants wear in the service of beauty.

The muxe are people who are physiologically men, but who adopt some or all of the roles and socially recognized attributes of women. They proudly and openly identify themselves as muxe, a recognized designation from far back in pre-colonial times.

Here is a good overview article: thesocietypages.org/socimages/2012/06/22/a-third-gender-in-oaxaca-mexico/.
I got very lucky just now, first completely by accident when I came across this thought-provoking article in the August 4, 2014 issue of The New Yorker: www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/08/04/woman-2, and again in finding a complete online documentary: www.hotdocslibrary.ca/en/detail.cfm?filmId=25822. Since I just found the documentary, I haven't viewed it yet, but did check to see that it works.

Enough yakking ~~ on to the pictures!

Traditional costumes, but with the contemporary note of the ubiquitous selfie ~
























Duty calls me away from the computer right now, but I'll be back with more pics of this parade.

[htmb]

Thank you for posting the links. I read through much of the New Yorker article. It certainly addresses some issues I had never really thought about before.

[bjd]

I believe there is a similar group somewhere in India. Right now I don't remember what they are called, but from what I read, they are also socially accepted.

A quick google tells me they are called Hijra in Pakistan:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hijra_%28South_Asia%29

[bixaorellana]

Thank you, Htmb. Yes, that was my reaction to the article as well and it certainly made me examine my own attitudes. I plan to re-read it & would love to discuss it with others.

Bjd, thanks so much for that link. Really, it is closer to a description of the muxe than almost all of the "official" ones I found online. Quite interesting as well -- I never knew any of that.

There are quite a few youtube videos on the muxe, including this one in which you should recognize some of the participants in the parade I'm showing in this thread:

Again, apologies again for taking so long on this thread, but I have been super busy. Let's pick up the parade here where I left off in my last post ::

[bixaorellana]

And this, boys & girls, is how you sashay!


Oh look -- here comes the queen!

And with that, we hurried on to catch the concert.

There is just a little bit left to wind up this thread, which I'll post tomorrow. See you then!

[tod2]

Bravo Bixa!! This has been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G !
I noticed too many details to comment on every one but I desperately want to show that popcorn vendor a better, more simple way to contain his popping corn!
Instead of covering it with another sieve he would do better to attach by a piece of wire an old tin flat pot-lid on one side so it fits like a flap. When the lid starts to lift nearly all the corn has popped. The one I used as a child also had the sieve strapped on a length of wood to make it easier to hold. We used to pop the corn over the fire place in the lounge.

Looking forward to more!

[bixaorellana]

Tod, thank you! You are always so enthusiastic and encouraging, which I really appreciate.

And kind, too, about the popcorn vendor. All I could think was "Why?!" Maybe it was performance art for people so young they only know about microwave palomitas. Popping corn in the living room fireplace does sound like fun -- a nice memory.

Well, there is very little more to show. I suppose the following pictures could be said to fit into the weaving thread, but they also show a little of the variety of items for sale in some of the booths on the periphery of the big park ~

          

          

          

And now I invite all of you to crowd into my shower stall with me to observe the grand finale fireworks display at the auditorium on the hill above my house ~

~ ~ ~ That's all, folks! ~ ~ ~

[fumobici]

Thank you Bixa for this veritable tsunami of color and culture. Incredible depth, it works on so many levels, from the exuberant visuals--the people, the costumes, the spectacle--to the fascinating fusion of indigenous and colonial cultures to the sociological. I had no idea whatever about the muxa! Oaxaca always seems to hold more delightful surprises.

[Deleted]

I am amazed at how every time you switch to black & white, Bixa, except for a few tiny anachronisms, it looks like it could be a magazine report from the 1950's. That makes it quite clear that the event has remained authentic for more than half a century.

There are so many costumes and headdresses and hats and paraphenalia that I have difficulty imagining how they manage to store all of this stuff between festivals, especially since I imagine that these people participate in all of the other events with different costumes, masks, items to wave around, etc.

[bixaorellana]

Apologies for this very late reply to the kind comments, but my wifi/phone/internet company created a big mess for the entire city, so except for sporadic moments of connection, I've had to be incommunicado.

Fumobici, I am still basking in your gracious words ~~ thank you so much! Receiving that kind of feedback adds to the pleasure of being able to show off my adopted home. But you do need to bring your camera and artistic eye down here to see for yourself!

Kerouac, I do know what you mean. Even though I took those pictures myself, looking at the b&ws after downloading was a constant surprise in terms of how old they looked.

I'm guessing there is a lot of sharing, swapping, handing down & even possibly renting of costumes. However, the dancers must have their own stuff. Since dance requires so much commitment in terms of time & practice, surely the dancers invest in their own costumes.

[htmb]

Fumobici said it quite articulately! Yes, a wonderful report, Bixa.

[bixaorellana]

Aww, thank you, Htmb! Not only are you generous in your own thread-making, you're always so good about checking back on the threads of others.

As this page loaded, I looked again at the first photo of the queen, with parade onlookers in the background. That triggered a memory of a quote by a transvestite. The gist of it was that transvestites look better than regular women because they take more time & pride in their appearances. Then I remembered where I read that & that the book really needs to be recommended here. I know that you, Fumobici, with your keen interest in the sociological and political big picture, would be fascinated by it, as would many other anyporters. When I checked out the link on the book, I found that the very quote I remembered is included in the excerpts on the publisher's page.
Please click below to be taken to that very complete page:

Streets, Bedrooms, and Patios -- The Ordinariness of Diversity in Urban Oaxaca, by Michael James Higgins and Tanya L. Coen

[htmb]

Thank you, Bixa. This has been a most interesting thread. There's still so much I don't know about Mexico, but I seem to learn more from you each and every time you post pictures of your adopted home.

[lugg]

So fabulous - the photos and the way you progress the storyline are riveting . Like someone else posted - the switch between B&W and colour really enhances the report.

So some have already posted about the wonderful photo of the two old ladies - agree really special. Never heard/read about Muxa before - fascinating. Killer heels always impress me on a woman but on a man they are doubly impressive, notice though most are sitting down The stilt men - love the perspective in many of your photos

However my favourite photo is that of the blasé baby in the sling, love it

[tod2]

Bixa- Thank you for the fireworks video! I hope with all hope that I will also bring you the fireworks we are expected in September in the seaside city of Blackpool! For the whole month of September, every Friday is an exhibition night by one country or another. We have picked a weekend which includes such a night beside the annual "Illuminations".
I will be reporting back sometime in October.

[bixaorellana]

Belated thank yous for the very kind & head-swelling comments!

Htmb, I really appreciate that. I think all of us here worry a little bit about whether or not we're putting across what we see & like about a place.

Lugg, I treasure your words! Did you notice that some of the float-riders did that age old self-flattering painful thing of choosing shoes that were too small?

Tod, that last shot in the video was gorgeous in real life. When it went off, I went oooooo & thought how it looked like rain. At that moment, the little girl watching from a balcony across the way went "Oooo -- parece a lluvia!"

[Deleted]

Since there are so many events and celebrations in Oaxaca, what is the next event? Assumption, perhaps?

[bixaorellana]

I'm glad your early Catholic training kicked in, because mine didn't. First we had Día de los Taxistas, with each of the many concessions clanging bells for Masses and shooting off fireworks. But a couple of days later those noises started up again & I didn't know why. Yes, of course -- the feast of the Assumption. Thanks!

[DianeMP]

Oh my gosh, Bixa, when I look at your photos I realize I live in the dullest place on earth! Spectacular people, festival and place. The little boy in the angel costume, about half way up, was especially touching. You can see how seriously he takes his role. And, the guys in the raggedy fringed costumes! Oh, and I adore the drag queens!  

Love it, love it, love it!

[bixaorellana]

Diane ~~ THANK you! So sorry for the late reply, though.

I doubt any place you live would remain dull for long, what with your talent for ferreting out what is special, off-the-wall, &/or worth recording about a place. Still, you must come here. I have a feeling that after a few days, you'd be pointing out things to me I'd missed all along.

[bixaorellana]

Diane ~~ THANK you! So sorry for the late reply, though.

I doubt any place you live would remain dull for long, what with your talent for ferreting out what is special, off-the-wall, &/or worth recording about a place. Still, you must come here. I have a feeling that after a few days, you'd be pointing out things to me I'd missed all along.

[bixaorellana]

So I figured I'd already done a pretty complete job in 2014 of covering what it's like in July here. But then I captured the muxes getting ready for their parade this year and put that into a separate thread. Then, as luck would have it, I kept stumbling onto recordable moments of Guelaguetza culture over the past few days so decided to expand this thread. Ready?

The first stumbled over event had me yawning, "oh another parade", but there was a twist to this one ~

There are horses -- bunches and bunches of horses!

[bixaorellana]

Turning from the side street onto Avenida Juárez, a major thoroughfare that runs past the park,
I see many more horses ~

That's it for the equine portion of the report, but I have lots of other stuff to show, so please stay tuned.

[DianeMP]

Great update, love seeing all these expert horsemen! I will definitely stay tuned, Bixa. I wish there was a Mexican festival of some kind in Klamath Falls, Oregon. The immigrant population has grown, but the locals would probably have a collective cow over having to see them walking together in a crowd on Main St. <<<sigh>>> Yep, it's that kind of place.

[bixaorellana]

Thank you, Diane! You might check with your local Catholic church. I know that in one Oklahoma town, for instance, many Mexican immigrants find an outlet for cultural events such as folkloric dancing within the church community. That's not to say that all Mexicans are Catholics, but it's a good place to start. Keep your ear to the ground around December 12, which is the feast of Guadalupe and a day likely to be celebrated by Mexicans in Oregon if anything is!

So, late one afternoon I was leaving my yard to take my dogs for their walk. People were hustling down my street with that look in their eyes that told me, a skilled observer and veteran of Mardi Gras and of Mexican hoo-ha, that they were on their way to something fun. I zipped back inside for my camera, a good decision since I was to run into the march of the Guelaguetza delegations. These are the representatives from all the different indigenous and regional groups of the state of Oaxaca who will be appearing in the Guelaguetza auditorium. more info

Sorry about the quality of these pictures, but I do wish people would have their events sometime other than dusk, so my camera wouldn't have to struggle so. Either that, or I've finally worn the poor thing out.

As you see, the first part of the parade has already come up from the plazuela and turned the corner, but is paused for the moment ~

[bixaorellana]

In the Your Guess is as Good as Mine category, we have ~

[bixaorellana]

I yelled at these ladies to smile and, as you can see, the one on the left obliged.
No idea why their faces are covered.

[bixaorellana]

That perennial crowd-pleaser, the dance La Flor de Piña ~







"We're little but strong!"













That's the end of that parade in this thread, but far from the end of the thread.