São João in Campina Grande
Campina Grande, deep into the state of Paraíba in Northeast Brazil, is not a common tourist destination. Except, that is, for the month of June, when fans…
Category: Masks and Music
Masked Enigmas
The brilliantly colored and captivatingly grotesque mask of the Vejigante remains enigmatic. The name derives from the Spanish vejiga or…
La Conga
I was trying desperately to sleep, but it was too cold. It was July in Cuba, but the air conditioning on the cross-country Viazul bus had two settings—“freezing” and…
Carnaval in the Dominican Republic
I stand mesmerized by the flashing fangs and devilish eyes of the mask, topped with spiked horns and kaleidoscopic mane, worn by a whirling, dancing…
