Taking The Long Way: One year later.

Well it's been a while, I know... It's just my busy lifestyle has kept me from blogging lately. That's a lie, I have no excuse. But I hope you'll forgive me because I have lots of pictures to make up for it! We've spent a good chunk of time this past month or so in Tres Valles with Octavio's family. I love it because it's nice to be surrounded by everyone and it's also really good practice for my Spanish! We spent a week in February there for the year anniversary of Octavio's mom's death. It doesn't seem like it's been a year but I guess it has. It was an incredibly sad occasion but we managed to enjoy the time we all got to spend together as well.

I learned how to make tamales for one thing. I think I did a pretty good job. Octavio's sister helped teach me along with other family and friends I hadn't met. They got a greak kick out of the little American girl dropping spoonfuls of masa on the banana leaves. I struggled a little to get everything wrapped all nicely in the banana leaf but I'm pretty much a pro now! Well, I think so at least... We had to make over 200 tamales! On the year anniversary of a death it's a tradition to have people over to pray for the days leading up to the anniversary and then on the actual day the family builds an alter for the deceased family member and everyone comes and says rosaries all night long. Let me tell you, no one knows how to build an alter better than a Mexican. Every time I see one I'm astonished by how beautiful and intricate they are! Between Day of the Dead and the alter for Octavio's mom I've seen my fair share and they're always amazing. So much detail goes into it! It's also a tradition to feed all the people who come over hence the 200+ tamales. The next day we took the cross from the alter and all the flowers to the cemetery to decorate his moms grave site. It was a sad, sad day but everyone was kept busy preparing for the day, which was good and perhaps part of what the tradition is all about.

The next day after we left the cemetery a few of us went to a nearby town. It was a ton of fun. We went to a church that had a famous black Jesus. Apparently, according to the story (as much as I understood it) a church burned but the Jesus on the crucifix didn't burn, just turned black. The indigenous people (or maybe it was the Spaniards?) found it and thought it was a bad omen so they tied it to a raft and sent it out on the nearby river but no matter how much they sent it out it kept coming back. Someone important in the town ordered the head cut off. Finally, they realized it wasn't bad luck after all and now the statue is proudly displayed in the church. (head and body seperate still.) Then we enjoyed a really nice lunch and some surprisingly tasty crab tostadas (I usually am not a seafood fan but these were delicious!) before taking a barge and a bus back home to Tres Valles.

Waiting for the bus to get to the other town. I got pretty sunburned and I think this was the moment right here.

The church.

Everyone (minus Octavio who was taking the picture) before we went into the church. Octavio's Aunt, Alma, her son, Jesus (aka Chucho), his aunt Lulu, me, his aunt Carmen, his uncle Salvador, his aunt Estella, and his grandma.