Albuquerque, USA

When the Drums Sound, the Indians Resist


Native American Crowd
Thousands of Native Americans swirl around The Pit.
The Future of the Tribe
Indigenous youth watches the unfolding of traditional dances, further down in the pavilion.
in full adolescence
Young people participating in a competition, dressed and painted to perfection.
in ecstasy
Indian girl twirls during a Native American dance display.
Headdresses and more Headdresses
Hundreds of Indians display the costumes of their tribes during the Pow-wow of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Indigenous young man late for the event
Native American has help finishing his costume in The Pit arena parking lot.
a communal drum
Drum players display the melodies and rhythms of their tribes.
Native American-Pow Pow-Albuquerque-New Mexico-United States
Native American with a lush headdress.
A Mere Retouching
Indigenous women touch up their looks in a bathroom.
Native American Elegance
Indigenous participant of the Gathering of the Nations prepares to enter the grounds of The Pit in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
A spectator apart
Indigenous dressed in formal wear stands out from the rest of the public.
Dance Exhibition-Pow Pow-Albuquerque-New Mexico-United States
Indigenous shows an intense dance of their tribe.
Marjorie Tahbone
Winner of the Miss Indian World contest parades around the enclosure.
Native American Elegance
Three-feather headdress on the head of a young indigenous woman.
A Communal Drum II
Drummers and singer carry out their exhibition.
With more than 500 tribes present, the pow wow "Gathering of the Nations" celebrates the sacred remnants of Native American cultures. But it also reveals the damage inflicted by colonizing civilization.

The weekend arrives and Albuquerque switches to its playful mode. Various sporting and musical events take place on the premises of the local university.

Aware of the inevitable student irreverence, a battalion of superb New Mexico police patrols the vast academic facilities with a mission to avoid overly chaotic parking lots and behavior.

One of them, extroverted as well as haughty, notices our car's license plate and the disorganized air inside and can't resist commenting: “California??

Participant, Pow Pow, Albuquerque-New Mexico, United States

Native American has help finishing his costume in The Pit arena parking lot.

You've really come from far away. Are they coming because of the concert or the Indians ?? By that time, we had no idea of ​​one thing or the other. Comparing the eccentricity of the hypotheses, we choose to question the authority over the latter.

The Amazing Discovery of Albuquerque Pow Wow

The agent tells us that The Pit – the large sports arena that is home to the local basketball team, the Lobos – is about to host a Gathering of the nations. Faster than we expected, we confirmed the information.

We left the old but elegant Buick Le Saber arranged within the legality between the institution's pavilions. We cross a busy avenue and come across another crowded parking lot.

We noticed that, there, instead of euphoric teenagers, they get out of their cars and cross the road Indians confused, dressed, painted and adorned with feathers, feathers, jewelry and other ethnic ornaments that sometimes formed similar looks, in other cases, completely different.

We approached the caravans that make up box office and discovered the posters that, even if no longer needed, proved that one of the biggest was held there. pow wows (indigenous meetings) from North America.

Elements from over 500 tribes had come from the four corners of the US and Canada to celebrate their mother cultures and renew spiritual beliefs.

They were divided into different age groups, from the elderly to children, with the purpose of participating in 32 dance competitions, others in singing, in drum competitions and even in the Miss Indian World competition.

We entered the pavilion.

Hundreds of these participants and many more supporters walk up and down the upper aisle entertained to socialize, buy food and drink or peek at the numerous small business stalls.

Native Crowd, Americans-Pow Pow-Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

Thousands of Native Americans swirl around The Pit.

The Gathering of the Nations Ceremonial Gathering

We found a stairwell opening and finally managed to peek into the arena. The benches are full of people and color.

Below, an exuberant army of Indians dances around the ring, in sync with the hypnotic soundtrack produced by groups of drummers and singers from a falsetto deep tribal.

The various drums distributed around the enclosure are huge and echo the heartbeat of the Earth. We are punished by groups of powerful men, some of which are also exaggerated in size.

Drum Show, Pow Wow, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

Drummers and singer carry out their exhibition.

We had already noticed the type of food fast food served by most of the stalls and bars abroad and on the top floor, in everything consistent with what undermines the health of the American nation.

Shown before us were some of the most unlikely victims of the Yankee obsession with easy and immediate profit. In the audience itself, who admired his musical gifts, there were numerous large natives.

Once upon a time, their tribes survived on what they gathered from Nature and hunted.

High Headdress, Pow Pow-Albuquerque-New Mexico, United States

Native American with a lush headdress.

The Generalized Destruction of Native American Civilizations

Centuries after the conquest of West, after repeated persecutions, slaughters and confinement on reservations, the Indians were reduced from many millions to just 500.000, a tiny population if we take into account the total population of the United States and Canada, almost 350 million.

We are now also victimized by sugary drinks and king size burgers, dogs, clubs, burritos, nachos and french fries soaked in oils and sauces, one of several cultural aggressions that they suffer in an already long process of conformation.

Driven by the shrewdness of its brands, the capitalist civilization developed by the European settlers of North America conquered the world with relative ease.

Coming from an intimate relationship with the land, the natives could never resist. That weekend, the headdresses, typical costumes and exuberant rituals of each tribe have temporary prominence.

Native Americans Parade, Pow Pow-Albuquerque-New Mexico, United States

Hundreds of Indians display the costumes of their tribes during the Pow-wow of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

After the participations, most of the natives give in to jeans, sneakers and compliments of fashion, to the t-shirts and baseball and baseball caps, to the made expressions and packaged notions of the nation that has shattered the identities of its tribes.

The Gathering of the Nations Resistance Demonstration

The Gathering of The Nations we watched, like others across North America, were still impressive manifestations of resistance and survival.

During the Eagle Staff's sacred Great Entrance – the banner that symbolizes the unity of all Native Americans – representatives from each tribe line up to hear the Eagle Staff Song and the gathering's MC (Master of Ceremonies) speech.

They also share a prayer to the Creator of the World, a communal prayer for happiness and for the cure of the ills caused by man on Mother Earth.

Native American in the Crowd, Pow Pow-Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

Indigenous dressed in formal wear stands out from the rest of the public.

We had already descended on the playing field when the inter-tribal dance competitions continued, all with simplistic names inspired by Nature or by everyday life: Dance of the Beautiful Shawl, Dance of Smoke, Dance of the Blanket or Dance of the Owl.

The singing followed, interspersed with more majestic displays by the drummers and curious juvenile tastings. At the level at which the action was taking place, participants circled the field over and over again.

Some passed very close to us, given to the rhythm, their heads swaying low, repeating movements of pure trance.

Trance Dance, Pow Pow, Albuquerque-New Mexico, United States

Indigenous shows an intense dance of their tribe.

An Unusual Sponsored and Awarded Spirituality

Certain exhibits radiated deep spirituality. When we least expected it, the song ended and the MC announced the sponsoring brand of the upcoming competition, or the value of his prize in dollars.

All mysticism was gone. It wasn't the next test that brought him back.

The presenter gives the signal and the dancers hurry to leave the field. Little by little, women from different tribes and regions of North America, from the Tiwa from the Puebla civilization around Taos, the tribes of Florida those of the northernmost part of Canada.

Native American Women, Pow Wow, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

Indigenous women touch up their looks in a bathroom.

Place for the Miss Indian World Election

They start by lining up in front of the main bench, but once the presentation is over, they are free for another dance that a panel of juries evaluates with strict criteria.

The results of the dance are added to the Public Discourse, Personal Interview, Traditional Presentation and Rehearsal. The final score determines the election of Miss Indian World.

Dance, Pow Pow, Albuquerque-New Mexico, United States

Indian girl twirls during a Native American dance display.

As a rule, last year's winner appears to the public to summarize in a few words the honor of the title.

We see Canadian Dakota Brook Brant, from the clan Mohawk Turtle does it with a somewhat automated confidence and pride that lives up to the title: “I was glad I was chosen to serve as an ambassador. It was a pleasure to help build healthy relationships among our relatives throughout the Indian territory.”

Marjorie Tahbone, an Alaskan Inupiaq/Kiowa, short, round and, in a way, gawky is anything but the prototype of a conventional Miss World or Universe.

Miss Indian World Winner, Pow Wow, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

Winner of the Miss Indian World contest parades around the enclosure.

Despite the surprise that arouses us, he collects the new crown, awarded according to values ​​that have little to do with those we are used to in these events. As a reward, he spent the year traveling the world promoting the culture of Native American tribes.

Fawn Wood: The Chosen Voice of the Gathering of the Nations

Enter Fawn Wood. In the center of the arena and the attention, this singer, famous among the indigenous people, sings a theme that those present seem to know. It makes them vibrate, alternating with its high-pitched and powerful voice, much appreciated guttural sounds and English lyrics that speak of jealousy, love and loved ones but already broken.

In between the songs, the MC intervenes again: “don't forget that we have Fawn's CDs for sale. Here in Dallas, keep asking me to repeat the warning!"

Native American, Pow Pow, Albuquerque-New Mexico, United States

Indigenous participant of the Gathering of the Nations prepares to enter the grounds of The Pit in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Fawn moves on to another theme. Halfway through, two spectators approach her and leave money at her feet. Before long, hundreds of others do the same, and the dollar smear that will complete your paycheck expands.

The final day of the Gathering of The Nations draws to a close but The Pit's outdoor bunkers don't disarm. To the Americanized way of doing things, while the meeting drags on The Profit Must Go On.

We left the room wondering how much longer Native Americans will be able to avoid the total bankruptcy of their cultures.

Key West, USA

The Tropical Wild West of the USA

We've come to the end of the Overseas Highway and the ultimate stronghold of propagandism Florida Keys. The continental United States here they surrender to a dazzling turquoise emerald marine vastness. And to a southern reverie fueled by a kind of Caribbean spell.
Cape Coast, Ghana

The Divine Purification Festival

The story goes that, once, a plague devastated the population of Cape Coast of today Ghana. Only the prayers of the survivors and the cleansing of evil carried out by the gods will have put an end to the scourge. Since then, the natives have returned the blessing of the 77 deities of the traditional Oguaa region with the frenzied Fetu Afahye festival.
Overall, Mexico

The Most Caribbean of the Mayan Ruins

Built by the sea as an exceptional outpost decisive for the prosperity of the Mayan nation, Tulum was one of its last cities to succumb to Hispanic occupation. At the end of the XNUMXth century, its inhabitants abandoned it to time and to an impeccable coastline of the Yucatan peninsula.
Jaisalmer, India

There's a Feast in the Thar Desert

As soon as the short winter breaks, Jaisalmer indulges in parades, camel races, and turban and mustache competitions. Its walls, alleys and surrounding dunes take on more color than ever. During the three days of the event, natives and outsiders watch, dazzled, as the vast and inhospitable Thar finally shines through.
Bhaktapur, Nepal

The Nepalese Masks of Life

The Newar Indigenous People of the Kathmandu Valley attach great importance to the Hindu and Buddhist religiosity that unites them with each other and with the Earth. Accordingly, he blesses their rites of passage with newar dances of men masked as deities. Even if repeated long ago from birth to reincarnation, these ancestral dances do not elude modernity and begin to see an end.
tombstone, USA

Tombstone: the City Too Hard to Die

Silver veins discovered at the end of the XNUMXth century made Tombstone a prosperous and conflictive mining center on the frontier of the United States to Mexico. Lawrence Kasdan, Kurt Russell, Kevin Costner and other Hollywood directors and actors made famous the Earp brothers and the bloodthirsty duel of “OK Corral”. The Tombstone, which, over time, has claimed so many lives, is about to last.
Bacolod, Philippines

A Festival to Laugh at Tragedy

Around 1980, the value of sugar, an important source of wealth on the Philippine island of Negros, plummeted and the ferry “Don Juan” that served it sank and took the lives of more than 176 passengers, most of them from Negrès. The local community decided to react to the depression generated by these dramas. That's how MassKara arose, a party committed to recovering the smiles of the population.
Grand Canyon, USA

Journey through the Abysmal North America

The Colorado River and tributaries began flowing into the plateau of the same name 17 million years ago and exposed half of Earth's geological past. They also carved one of its most stunning entrails.
Monument Valley, USA

Indians or Cowboys?

Iconic Western filmmakers like John Ford immortalized what is the largest Indian territory in the United States. Today, in the Navajo Nation, the Navajo also live in the shoes of their old enemies.
Navajo nation, USA

The Navajo Nation Lands

From Kayenta to Page, passing through Marble Canyon, we explore the southern Colorado Plateau. Dramatic and desert, the scenery of this indigenous domain, cut out in Arizona, reveals itself to be splendid.
PN Tayrona, Colombia

Who Protects the Guardians of the World?

The natives of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta believe that their mission is to save the Cosmos from the “Younger Brothers”, which are us. But the real question seems to be, "Who protects them?"
Red Center, Australia

Australia's Broken Heart

The Red Center is home to some of Australia's must-see natural landmarks. We are impressed by the grandeur of the scenarios but also by the renewed incompatibility of its two civilizations.
Rhinoceros, PN Kaziranga, Assam, India
Safari
PN Kaziranga, India

The Indian Monoceros Stronghold

Situated in the state of Assam, south of the great Brahmaputra river, PN Kaziranga occupies a vast area of ​​alluvial swamp. Two-thirds of the rhinocerus unicornis around the world, there are around 100 tigers, 1200 elephants and many other animals. Pressured by human proximity and the inevitable poaching, this precious park has not been able to protect itself from the hyperbolic floods of the monsoons and from some controversies.
Annapurna Circuit, Manang to Yak-kharka
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna 10th Circuit: Manang to Yak Kharka, Nepal

On the way to the Annapurnas Even Higher Lands

After an acclimatization break in the near-urban civilization of Manang (3519 m), we made progress again in the ascent to the zenith of Thorong La (5416 m). On that day, we reached the hamlet of Yak Kharka, at 4018 m, a good starting point for the camps at the base of the great canyon.
Treasures, Las Vegas, Nevada, City of Sin and Forgiveness
Architecture & Design
Las Vegas, USA

Where sin is always forgiven

Projected from the Mojave Desert like a neon mirage, the North American capital of gaming and entertainment is experienced as a gamble in the dark. Lush and addictive, Vegas neither learns nor regrets.
Bungee jumping, Queenstown, New Zealand
Adventure
Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown, the Queen of Extreme Sports

In the century. XVIII, the Kiwi government proclaimed a mining village on the South Island "fit for a queen".Today's extreme scenery and activities reinforce the majestic status of ever-challenging Queenstown.
Ice cream, Moriones Festival, Marinduque, Philippines
Ceremonies and Festivities
Marinduque, Philippines

When the Romans Invade the Philippines

Even the Eastern Empire didn't get that far. In Holy Week, thousands of centurions seize Marinduque. There, the last days of Longinus, a legionary converted to Christianity, are re-enacted.
Singapore, Success and Monotony Island
Cities
Singapore

The Island of Success and Monotony

Accustomed to planning and winning, Singapore seduces and recruits ambitious people from all over the world. At the same time, it seems to bore to death some of its most creative inhabitants.
Meal
Margilan, Uzbekistan

An Uzbekistan's Breadwinner

In one of the many bakeries in Margilan, worn out by the intense heat of the tandyr oven, the baker Maruf'Jon works half-baked like the distinctive traditional breads sold throughout Uzbekistan
intersection
Culture
Hungduan, Philippines

Country Style Philippines

The GI's left with the end of World War II, but the music from the interior of the USA that they heard still enlivens the Cordillera de Luzon. It's by tricycle and at your own pace that we visit the Hungduan rice terraces.
4th of July Fireworks-Seward, Alaska, United States
Sport
Seward, Alaska

The Longest 4th of July

The independence of the United States is celebrated, in Seward, Alaska, in a modest way. Even so, the 4th of July and its celebration seem to have no end.
Mount Lamjung Kailas Himal, Nepal, altitude sickness, mountain prevent treat, travel
Traveling
Annapurna Circuit: 2th - Chame a Upper BananaNepal

(I) Eminent Annapurnas

We woke up in Chame, still below 3000m. There we saw, for the first time, the snowy and highest peaks of the Himalayas. From there, we set off for another walk along the Annapurna Circuit through the foothills and slopes of the great mountain range. towards Upper Banana.
Singapore Asian Capital Food, Basmati Bismi
Ethnic
Singapore

The Asian Food Capital

There were 4 ethnic groups in Singapore, each with its own culinary tradition. Added to this was the influence of thousands of immigrants and expatriates on an island with half the area of ​​London. It was the nation with the greatest gastronomic diversity in the Orient.
Portfolio, Got2Globe, Best Images, Photography, Images, Cleopatra, Dioscorides, Delos, Greece
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

The Earthly and the Celestial

Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul, Travel Korea, Color Maneuvers
History
Alone, South Korea

A Glimpse of Medieval Korea

Gyeongbokgung Palace stands guarded by guardians in silken robes. Together they form a symbol of South Korean identity. Without waiting for it, we ended up finding ourselves in the imperial era of these Asian places.
tarsio, bohol, philippines, out of this world
Islands
Bohol, Philippines

Other-wordly Philippines

The Philippine archipelago spans 300.000 km² of the Pacific Ocean. Part of the Visayas sub-archipelago, Bohol is home to small alien-looking primates and the extraterrestrial hills of the Chocolate Hills.
Northern Lights, Laponia, Rovaniemi, Finland, Fire Fox
Winter White
Lapland, Finland

In Search of the Fire Fox

Unique to the heights of the Earth are the northern or southern auroras, light phenomena generated by solar explosions. You Sami natives from Lapland they believed it to be a fiery fox that spread sparkles in the sky. Whatever they are, not even the nearly 30 degrees below zero that were felt in the far north of Finland could deter us from admiring them.
Lake Manyara, National Park, Ernest Hemingway, Giraffes
Literature
Lake Manyara NP, Tanzania

Hemingway's Favorite Africa

Situated on the western edge of the Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park is one of the smallest but charming and richest in Europe. wild life of Tanzania. In 1933, between hunting and literary discussions, Ernest Hemingway dedicated a month of his troubled life to him. He narrated those adventurous safari days in “The Green Hills of Africa".
Terra Nostra Park, Furnas, São Miguel, Azores, Portugal
Nature
Vale das Furnas, São Miguel (Azores)

The Azorean Heat of Vale das Furnas

We were surprised, on the biggest island of the Azores, with a caldera cut by small farms, massive and deep to the point of sheltering two volcanoes, a huge lagoon and almost two thousand people from São Miguel. Few places in the archipelago are, at the same time, as grand and welcoming as the green and steaming Vale das Furnas.
Mother Armenia Statue, Yerevan, Armenia
Autumn
Yerevan, Armenia

A Capital between East and West

Heiress of the Soviet civilization, aligned with the great Russia, Armenia allows itself to be seduced by the most democratic and sophisticated ways of Western Europe. In recent times, the two worlds have collided in the streets of your capital. From popular and political dispute, Yerevan will dictate the new course of the nation.
Joshua Tree National Park, California, United States,
Natural Parks
PN Joshua Tree, California, United States

The Arms stretched out to Heaven of the PN Joshua Tree

Arriving in the extreme south of California, we are amazed by the countless Joshua trees that sprout from the Mojave and Colorado deserts. Like the Mormon settlers who named them, we cross and praise these inhospitable settings of the North American Far West.
Robben Island Island, Apartheid, South Africa, Portico
UNESCO World Heritage
Robben Island, South Africa

The Island off the Apartheid

Bartolomeu Dias was the first European to glimpse Robben Island, when crossing the Cape of Storms. Over the centuries, the colonists turned it into an asylum and prison. Nelson Mandela left in 1982 after eighteen years in prison. Twelve years later, he became South Africa's first black president.
aggie gray, Samoa, South Pacific, Marlon Brando Fale
Characters
Apia, Western Samoa

The Host of the South Pacific

She sold burguês to GI's in World War II and opened a hotel that hosted Marlon Brando and Gary Cooper. Aggie Gray passed away in 2. Her legacy lives on in the South Pacific.
Fisherman maneuvers boat near Bonete Beach, Ilhabela, Brazil
Beaches
Ilhabela, Brazil

In Ilhabela, on the way to Bonete

A community of caiçaras descendants of pirates founded a village in a corner of Ilhabela. Despite the difficult access, Bonete was discovered and considered one of the ten best beaches in Brazil.
self-flagellation, passion of christ, philippines
Religion
Marinduque, Philippines

The Philippine Passion of Christ

No nation around is Catholic but many Filipinos are not intimidated. In Holy Week, they surrender to the belief inherited from the Spanish colonists. Self-flagellation becomes a bloody test of faith
Executives sleep subway seat, sleep, sleep, subway, train, Tokyo, Japan
On Rails
Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo's Hypno-Passengers

Japan is served by millions of executives slaughtered with infernal work rates and sparse vacations. Every minute of respite on the way to work or home serves them for their inemuri, napping in public.
Mahu, Third Sex Polynesia, Papeete, Tahiti
Society
Papeete, French Polynesia

The Third Sex of Tahiti

Heirs of Polynesian ancestral culture, the Mahu they preserve an unusual role in society. Lost somewhere between the two genders, these men-women continue to fight for the meaning of their lives.
Women with long hair from Huang Luo, Guangxi, China
Daily life
Longsheng, China

Huang Luo: the Chinese Village of the Longest Hairs

In a multi-ethnic region covered with terraced rice paddies, the women of Huang Luo have surrendered to the same hairy obsession. They let the longest hair in the world grow, years on end, to an average length of 170 to 200 cm. Oddly enough, to keep them beautiful and shiny, they only use water and rice.
Masai Mara Reservation, Masai Land Travel, Kenya, Masai Convivial
Wildlife
Masai Mara, Kenya

A Journey Through the Masai Lands

The Mara savannah became famous for the confrontation between millions of herbivores and their predators. But, in a reckless communion with wildlife, it is the Masai humans who stand out there.
Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles
Scenic Flights
napali coast, Hawaii

Hawaii's Dazzling Wrinkles

Kauai is the greenest and rainiest island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is also the oldest. As we explore its Napalo Coast by land, sea and air, we are amazed to see how the passage of millennia has only favored it.
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