There is something fierce and delicious, almost edible, in the alchemic ways of Puerto Rican Spanish. Boricuas don’t merely speak their very own brand of the language of Cervantes with an aspired “s,” a nasal “n” and a guttural “r.”
Carpet weaving is an important tradition in the Moroccan Berber culture; here, an entourage of women weaves an elaborate, sophisticated system of designs into a large carpet that can take up to three months to complete, working around the clock.
That is the question…on the minds of many moms with Latin American backgrounds. Lucky for me, my baby girl was born in Miami where the tradition of ear piercing was considered more normal than not piercing and where her poor mother wouldn’t have to endure the wrath of apparently just about anyone who reads The New York Times.
Today, on the Times’ website, a Townies series column on the Opinionator page told the story of Eleni N. Gage and her daughter Amalía. They live in Miami and Amalía’s father is Nicaraguan while Ms. Gage is from Massachusetts. Apparently, Ms. Gage struggled with the idea of conforming to the Latin American customs she was discovering in Miami, but with a little push from her husband’s side of the family, decided to go for it and have her 6 month old daughter’s ears pierced by her pediatrician.
I definitely had my ears pierced when I was two months old, obviously no way in hell I remember the pain. I would think that circumcision would hurt worse, anyway. Thoughts?
These images are from the project “Los Alteños” which became a book last year. “Los Alteños” is about the city of El Alto, the highest city in Bolivia, very close to the Andes and one of the fastest growing in South America.
Since 1917, Puerto Ricans are American citizens by default. We have American passports, and can move to the mainland United States just like someone moves from Kansas to Ohio.
So why does former Surgeon General Richard Carmona, who is running for Senate as a Democrat for Arizona, self-identify himself as the son of immigrants?
Many mothers in Peru, such as these at a market in Chinchero, carry their children in mantas, brightly colored woven shawls that they sling across their backs.
