wendy devlin
Dec 11, 2006, 10:22 AM
Post #6 of 11
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Am smiling at the description of Zacatecas, "cowboy town with culture."
Would like to sometime visit this interesting city .
The description above reminds me of wonderful times spent living among ranching people in several smaller colonial 'cowboy towns'.
Having lived since 18, in Canadian countryside, and small towns, I thought I knew farming/ranching people. Professional cowboys still exist here but 'cowboy culture' is not generally, equated with art, literature and beautiful architecture.
(Hearty apologies in advance to any poetry, song-writing cowboys who might be reading this forum:)
What gave me a long thrill of discovery was finding out about the many traditions of the vaquero, el charro etc. alive and well in Mexico today.
Many of those discoveries were relate in my old series about Mexican espectaculos. However many experiences are not described in that series.
Those articles BTW were edited with the help of various friends who were eager that i get the cultural details and especially the Spanish, correct. In fact the series could never have been written or published without these people.
Still not sure how to describe many things. Have to go back and do more 'research':)
Do think however, the cultural traditions from by-gone eras are rooted in human need. Humans, in my opinion, do not fundamentally change, and so perhaps, the needs still exist, and the customs of substance survive.
Besides the mining wealth that built the largess of those colonial towns, agriculture, especially cattle ranching provided another economic back-bone to the regions. Much of what people needed to live was made in the region or traded within the country.
Instead of a creating a culture back then, that looked down its nose, at people in agriculture and ranching, in colonial towns, there bloomed a culture where 'senores de ganado" (men of cattle) numbered among the movers and shakers in the region. Often at or near the 'top' of a pyramidal social structure.
Some still living proudly within traditions today.
And did I mention, tough:)
Yet often, lovers of wine, women, and song. Literature, art and architecture.
In case this post seem overly romantic, have also spent time living among, vaqueros and charros of another breed entirely.
Violent and coarse. Tough.
People of all stripes... everywhere.
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