Voting and Counting in Suchitoto and environs

Various photos from election day.

1) Dave effectively observing and not interfering in our driver casting his vote.

2-3) Vote counting. Each voting table conducts its own count. The president of the table takes out the ballot, shows it to all assembled and declares if for one party or the other. The "vigilantes" from both parties are posted at every single table and it is their job to look out for their party's interests. You'll note that the ballot is very simple - it included nothing more than the symbols of the two parties (not even the names of the candidates) and the voters simply had to make a mark on the symbol of their choice.

4) A polling station made of cardboard. They are uniform throughout the country.

5) Getting a ride to the polls. Political parties offer rides to the polls for their partisans, like they do in the US. I have never seen it quite like this in the U.S. though....

public art in El Salvador

We saw a few reminders of the terrible civil war. Occasionally in parks we would see memorials made of downed helicopers or planes.

This was displayed in Suchitoto - on the left side of the scales is a bomb, on the right, pupusas. You see what wins.

Las Viejas

I love the little old ladies and their aprons. These are clearly dress aprons for wear outside of the house. Election days in Latin America are festive affairs – elections are held on Sundays, when most people don’t have to work, and the streets are full of people wandering around, seeing and being seen.

lady

I tried a fruit that I've never seen before and whose name I can't remember anymore. It was super, super bitter. But more to the point, don't you love the expression on the lady's face?

Jim B in his skin

In his cotinuing battle against El Sol, JB has bought a skin which is supposed to keep the sun off of his tender skin and give him time on the beach to do something else other than apply sunscreen. Poor boy, the first day he wore his skin, he forgot to put sunscreen on his hands and burnt them up. Poor blanquito!

Pollera Festival in Santo Domingo

On Tuesday of the Carnaval week, Santo Domingo, which is located right outside of Las Tablas, has its pollera festival. The pollera is the traditional dress of Panamanian women, with its origins somewhere in Spain. The pollera must be worn with tons of gold jewelry. Hair is put up by the ears and you wear enormous trembleques, which were once made out of pearls but now out of plastic, and you also add gold combs in your hair. The weirdest part is the little pompom in front and back (called the mota) that is always in a contrasting color – then you have silk shoes the same color as your motas. I think that the polleras are a great tradition. Panamanian women wear theirs occasionally on special occasions – they are passed down through generations and the best ones are handmade and cost thousands of dollars.

The 2nd photo is of me and Estephania, the daughter of our friend Colombia. She’s wearing more of an everyday pollera, and I have on the vasquina, which is just a fancy ruffled shirt that you can wear with black pants or whatever. I am supposed to also be wearing gold jewelry with the vasquina. I own the silk shoes that go with the pollera and also small trembleques, but they won’t stay in my hair (plus they look ridiculous). The 3rd photo is of a family we walked by who was getting ready for the festival. Mom is all ready but the daughter is getting her hair done.

Video of polleras in Santo Domingo

Here is a short video of the parade of polleras.