"A nomad I will remain for life, in love with distant and uncharted places." -Isabelle Eberhardt
"A nomad I will remain for life, in love with distant and uncharted places." -Isabelle Eberhardt
First and foremost….drinks.
Limonada de coco con ron.
Coconut milk, lime juice, cream of coconut and plenty of sugar with a lime slice on top. Served over ice and with a shot of rum. Or without!
Then Katie shows us how to make Guacamaya baskets.
A tour of Colombia has no shortage of vibrant, exciting culture and a handicraft that matches this vibrancy and turns it into a take-home creation is the guacamaya. Guacamayas are colorful rainbow vases, bowls and plates created by the indigenous U’wa tribes utilizing ancient coil-building techniques.
Aside from sharing the same name with the town in Boyacá where these gorgeous spiral baskets are made, these handicrafts also share the same name with a popular local macaw that is just as stunning. Perhaps, it was these birds that inspired the rainbow hues throughout these beautiful pieces.
So how are they made? Like all ancient coil basket weaving practices, the U’wa people start off by gathering leaves from a palm tree as well as fique, a natural fibre more widely known as cabuya. Once gathered, the leaves are bundled into tiny bushels that are held by the crafter’s hand. After the bushel is in place, the artisan takes fique fiber and binds the bundle tightly with the threads until a flat spiral appears. The crafter then continues adding more leaves and fique as she continues to create the desired form.
But what about all those beautiful rainbow colors? The crafters dye their fique fibers to get the sunny yellows, shocking oranges and mellow purples to complete their pieces. The dye process involves using natural pigments, like berries, and boiling the fibers with the dye until the desired color is achieved.
What I love about Marinuska is that we really do go in-depth discussing the book. This time with The Fruit of the Drunken Tree , was no exception. We learned about the drunken tree. We learned about the politician Galan. We talked about the perspectives of Chula and Petrona. We talked about Escobar. We talked about superstitions and religion. We talked about arepas! Which had nothing to do with the book and I realized I ate them so fast I forgot to take pictures. They turned out well, thank goodness! I was nervous.
Can’t wait to see you all in November when we ‘travel’ to Sweden!
The post Marinuska: An Art & Travel Book Club – Colombia appeared first on The Book Nomad.
