ancient modern times

Well, here I am in San Cristobal de Las Casas in Chiapas, Mexico. I migrated up here like a stupid bird following cold weather north. The city is beautiful, nestled in the cool, pine-covered mountain Jovel Valley between tropical rainforest to the east and Spaghetti-western landscapes to the west. This is Mayan and Zapatista territory, and the businesses in the city have certainly capitalized on both the culture and subculture. ¨Zapatourism¨ (as one local referred to it) is all over the place. As ubiquitous as Che Guevara images, Zapata silouettes are everywhere. Emiliano Zapata, one of the more important leaders during the Mexican Revolution, used armed force to take back land, especially for poor, indigenous Mexicans. The EZLN (Ejercicio Zapatista Liberacion Nacional / Zapatista National Liberation Army), or the Zapatistas, named themselves after Emiliano Zapata. The Zapatistas demand autonomy from the Mexican government over land and natural resource use, especially in the Mexican state of Chiapas. On Jan.1 1994, the first day of NAFTA, they masked Zapatistas occupied (for several hours) the city of San Cristobal.

I find it very strange that this revolutionary now has baguette sandwiches named after him. The Zapatista revolution seems to be more of a fashion statement, and Zapatata a brand name icon like Calvin Klein. There are many Zapatourists wandering the cobblestone streets of San Cristobal, touting Fidel Castro green, short-brimmed hats and army jackets adorned with iron-on revolutionary emblems. Ironically, the anti-globalization revolution has been neatly packaged and marketed for the global-consumers palette. T-shirt and sandwich makers alike have coopted the revolution.



On the note of cultural cross-pollination/contamination, I took a lovely bike ride this weekend to San Juan Chamula, a Tzotzil Mayan pueblo known for its church which mixes Mayan and Catholic traditions. The church is illuminated with thousands of candles and Tzotzil (the Mayan dialect of this region) chants echo throughout the nave. Local Tzotzil Mayans kneel on the pine-needle covered floor, praying and crying, with candles and Pepsi or Coca-Cola soft drink offerings in front of them. These carbonated beverages are believed to expel evil spirits, in the form of a burp (in which case, I have expelled many an evil spirit in my day).



Here is a link to an excellent, informative article:



http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2840/



Coca-Cola products can be found about every ten feet, usually accompanied by Sabritas (Frito-Lay products in Mexico). I have no idea how all the little convenience stores stay afloat, what with all the competition. Whatever the case, Coca-Cola and Frito-Lay surely must not be making much of a profit at all these outlets, but they are definitely following an agressive-marketing strategy that does not miss one blank wall or piece of empty real-estate in Mexico and Central America.



So San Cristobal is a very interesting intersection of landscapes, climates and cultures. In the downtown plazas Mayan women wearing sheepfur skirts sell traditionally woven sweaters and scarves next to swanky cafes that sell gelato and chai lattes. The streets themselves testify to the transformation of ancient to modern. The weathered, polished stones on the streets and sidewalks were once the building blocks of Mayan temples around San Cristobal. The city is living history, an embodiment of all the issues found in anthropological, sociological and political science textbooks the world round.