October / Mes Morado

October is known as the Purple Month as Limeños honor the icon known as El Señor de los Milagros. The painting of Christ survived an earthquake a couple hundred years ago, while all else was flattened, and now the icon is marched in processions all month and devotees wear purple. I've seen grandmothers in purple frocks, but also saw an upscale business women in purple blouse and fab purple pumps, and some houses are bedecked in ribbon. Considering we've felt 2-3 tremors since being here, a little devotion to an earthquake survivor seems prudent.

I also want to note the interesting Moorish influence that lives on in Lima. I don't know how other South American cities are, but Lima from its founding has been a bastion of colonialism. So it's no wonder that vestiges of the Moors, that had such an effect on Spain, can still be discerned here. The ornate enclosed balconies are everywhere in the old parts of town. The traditional cookies called alfajores are everywhere, even having a couple stores dedicated to them. Peruvians very often use the phrase "ojala" to express hope, a derivation of "insha'Allah", or "god willing".

The colonial era here, as everywhere I suppose, created all sorts of cultural mashups. Today is Dia De Los Muertos, but also a time when Criolla music is traditionally honored. Criolla, in music and food, is a mix of influences from Spain, African slaves and Andean peasants. The rhythm is drummed on a cajón (= "drawer", from the days when the slaves would use a wooden drawer) that the player sits atop.

Below are some Google images of all these things.