I don’t know much about Cinco de Mayo*
Another story that takes place in Northern Mexico is Laura Esquivel’s Like Water for Chocolate
It’s Cinco de Mayo weekend, with lots of festivities happening around town. It’s not a huge tradition in Mexico, but here in the US, we love any excuse to party. Believe it or not, Cinco de Mayo is not the Mexican independence day. You have to wait until September for that one.
Regardless of what Cinco de Mayo is all about, it represents fighting for what you believe, like Esquivel’s Tita quietly fights for the man she loves, like her sister Gertrudis fights in the Mexican Revolution. For Tita and her family, let’s eat a burrito and drink a few margaritas. Viva Mexico!
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*Cake, Prolonging the Magic
May 13th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
I finally read “Como agua para chocolate”; of course it wasn’t because I wanted to, but because I was forced to read it for mu Spanish 5200 class. However, that being said, I really enjoyed it. Being somewhat of a cook myself I could relate to the story well. The mystical connection between the different dishes and the moods of the characters was intriguing. The symbolism in the ingredients in the recipes was another thing that caught my attention. (I read it in Spanish so excuse my translation) For example: the lemons in the wedding cake, I think represent the bitterness Tita felt with Pedro and her sister’s wedding. The title “Like water for chocolate” I think, demonstrates the boiling fury she felt when her sister spoke of continuing the family tradition with her daughter Esperanza (whose name that translates to Hope, is clearly another symbolic reference). The great thing about this book is that it serves multiple audiences. For the light reader who just wants to read for enjoyment it provides humor, drama and magic. For the more critical reader who wants to dive into the meaning behind the words it is a literary masterpiece. Then for cooks like me; we get some good recipes. Yum!
By the way, Cinco de Mayo is the celebration of the battle of Puebla in which a small Mexican contingent fought off the larger invading French forces. This was a victory for all of the Americas because it was the last time that any outside force invaded the American continents. So I guess we can all celebrate. ¡Viva México!