The Holiday of San Juan

This past week we celebrated a jungle tradition. Every 24th of June they have what they call San Juan. It’s a day to remember John the Baptist and his martyrdom. Everyone eats “Juanes” and drinks “chincha de maiz”. Juanes are basically tamales made from rice, chicken, and olives and are cooked in Banana Leaves. They form them into balls to represent the head of John the Baptist on the platter. And the “chincha de maiz” is a drink that they make from corn but you have to be careful when you drink it, because it ferments really quickly. If you aren’t drinking it from a member or from a trusted source chances are that it is alcoholic. But in the end I think the holiday of San Juan is just another excuse to drink. They love their holidays here and also their booze. But we celebrated San Juan Mormon style which was just fine with me.