Essentially, the entire month of August is a celebration of Arequipa's Anniversary, which is the 15th. For weeks we have enjoyed all the excitement - the fairs, artisan markets, parades, concerts, store offers, dance festivals, and the general Arequipeño pride. It's a privilege to be here at this time - definitely a bigger deal than the Peruvian independence day celebrated just a month ago.
I (Laura) had the chance to go with a group of friends from school to two dance festivals while Michael stayed home with Noah. (Thank you, Sweetie!) The first evening was entirely Peruvian folkloric dances from several districts of the country. Many of them were variations of the "Marinera," a coquettish dance with pañuelos (handkerchiefs). But others reflected the importance of agriculture in their community or similar themes that were unique to that district. Last night (Saturday), I attended an International Dance Festival that hosted groups from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Spain, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. It was impressive to see what made each of them very unique. Some of the groups were clearly professional. My favorites were from Mexico and Argentina. If you watch the video, be sure to look for the crazy footwork of those Argentinians!
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