Adios Amigos!

There is only one way in. And only one way out. You come up the valley. You go back down the valley. And so it is that our visitors here for the week of Abriendo Caminos have departed.

And if you are thinking that those of us left behind in the village are saddened by this occasion, you would be wrong. The buses taking the week's departing guests to the boat returned filled with new guests coming into the village. We had no time to be sad. In the space of just a couple hours, there were rooms to clean, food to prepare, and a veritable ton of laundry to wash in order to re-stock the shelves. If you weren't already assigned one of the critical roles, you volunteered for one. Turnovers happen at lightning speed and are sometimes significant in size, as this one was.

But everyone seems of one mind that the special week of Abriendo Caminos was a success. Left behind...many of the brightly colored tissue paper decorations and many fond memories. The memories, of course, last longer than the decorations. And what will I remember? Well, the tamale line was fairly impressive, to name one thing. The call went out for people to show up at a certain hour on a certain day to assemble tamales. And by the way, every "call that went out" for people to come and help was answered with the extravagant gifts of personal time and energy.

With all of the prep work already completed, assembly of tamales begins in earnest with the filling of the corn husk wrappers with a healthy portion of cooked masa.

The next task in the assembly of the tamale is filling the corn husk wrapper lined with masa with the spicy meat filling found in the center when the tamale is folded.

Yes, there is meat...and sometimes a lot of meat... served at Holden Village. Here Norma Gallegos supervises as the carne asada is cooked on the outdoor grill behind the dining hall. This was on the menu for the night of the fiesta.

The mariachi band entertained near the outdoor "ark" with music and singing while everyone ate the fiesta dinner.

There were 3 pinata lines going simultaneously, one for each of the age groups. Joseph Coffey appears to be trying to get his bearings and figure out where the pinata is located. It did not matter. The pinata is manipulated by a handheld rope. If the person with the stick appears to be getting too close, the pinata can be pulled up and out of reach or can be pulled to one side or another.

After the fall of the pinata, Joseph (obviously) got a good share of the candy inside.

A hole was finally punched in the side of this pinata and the candy came spilling out intermittently. The children reach up toward the source.

These young girls were part of a group of dancers who performed several Hispanic dances. They and their dances were quite charming.

After dancing, the young girls led everyone on a procession through the village to bless all of the buildings that serve each and every one. At each there was a special blessing given in both Spanish and English to the accompaniment of music and song.

The mariachi band, seen here just behind the girls, also led the procession with their music and drumming. The lead group also included both a priest and a pastor. Stops were made at the school, the village center, Koininea, a lodge, and the dining hall...each representative of a significant part of village life.

This beautiful sky was the end of MY fiesta day. The music and the dancing continued on into the night around the "ark". A good time was had by all.