The strange “Vasija del mono de obsidiana” (lit. “the vase of the obsidian monkey”) is one of the Aztec-Mexican masterpieces of the National Museum of Anthropology of Mexico City where it is exposed. We appreciate its appearance, but yet we know so little of its history as this captivating work continues to keep its secrets hidden.
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Never without my Mate: the Latin peace pipe.
Argentines and Uruguayans go everywhere with a shoulder bag that protrudes a Thermos. We see one, then two, then ten, and then, during a meeting between friends, we see ourselves handing a kind of shaman’s gourd accompanied by a « tomas mate? » (which means “do you drink mate?”). No reference with your “mate” friend but a Spanish word that you should pronounce “matey”. The thermos actually contains hot water in which we brew the precious mixture of dried leaves (Yerba mate, or “matey” ) and which we then aspire with a metal straw; before recharging it with water and passing it to you direct neighbor. So yes, then you would have, « tomado maté ». This ritual is much more than a moment of relaxation or a tea time with friends! Taking a look at the culture of the Mate in South America is essential to understand how these countries work. When we talk about the “Mate culture”, we mean as well the arboricultural culture, which is a major contributor to the export economy and the promotion of regional products from the south American area, as the traditional culture, a know-how, social behaviors and a South American way of life.
So, let’s have a look at this thousand-year-old drink that seduced both the revolutionary Che Guevara and the Pope, or even Madonna and Maradona!
Cix Mugre: urban art is not only Banksy!
The artist Antonio Triana becomes “Cix Mugre” when he grabs his brush, his tattoo machine or some colors sprays. With his art, that may look like a great ayahuascan trip, he now covers walls of all around the world! Meet Cix !
In the land of Santa Claus, the Samis: the last indigenous people in Europe.
Living with his reindeer in Lapland, our dear red Coca-Cola Santa surely resembles the Samis (is he one of them?), this ancient and long despised people formed by the most commonly known as “Lapps”. But who are they? How many are they ? How do they live? Why were they despised? What remains of their culture? Let’s go and meet this people !
A Portuguese Folly ? Discover the Amazing Monserrate Palace!
Going through it is a real change of scenery: pastel-colored walls, corridors of arcades divinely carved in stucco lace, a central atrium under a dome of finely chiseled wood, tiling subtly decorated with volutes, all ordered according to a circular plan … everything participates to create an intimate and mysterious atmosphere. We find ourselves far from the pomp or the rustic, from Versailles and its grandiloquence or from the old country house. No, this palace has its own look, and its own aire, that of a getaway in the 19th century as romantic as oriental!
Museum Tales 