A few weeks ago, I was invited by two members from one of Seres’ partner community organisations (COFETARN) to go on a 3 day ‘tour’ through Ixim Uleu (Land of Corn in Quiche), into the remote highlands around Tajumulco – Central America’s tallest volcano. The day before I left, I was asked by a friend: “What is Seres going there for? What are you doing there?”…to which I replied: “I don’t know yet. That’s why I’m going…to watch, to learn, to listen – I’ll tell you when I get back”. It may seem like a strange philosophy – to head out into a community with no idea of why you are going, what you will be doing or what to expect but that is the way I work. Whenever I go to meet a new group or community, I (as Seres) try to go without prejudices, without ideas as to what the people may need, without plans or preconceptions or solutions…taking the time instead to listen to their stories, to see things as they see it, to understand their needs, concerns and desires. And so this is how I left for my tour of Tajumulco – with no idea of where we were going or who we were going to see, I went with nothing more than a warm jacket and good walking boots and I returned – as always – overflowing with ideas, inspiration, enthusiasm, new contacts, new projects – and plenty of answers for my friend about why Seres went there.
A furtive photo of the clandestine fields - poppies grown in amongst the corn
Over these three days, I learnt about foraging wild food (from mushrooms to cranberries to native honey bees) and about age-old traditional farming practices. I saw ancient artisans, weaving intricate fabrics on enormous wooden looms, and the clandestine poppy fields hidden in the mountainous highlands between the Guatemalan and Mexican frontiers. And I met with many people – some of which did not speak Spanish, but only the indigenous Mam dialect of the region – and listened to their stories, their fears, their hopes. These three days could easily be recorded as one of the most incredible journeys that I have undertaken here in Central America – perhaps anywhere – and one that I would like to share with you. To give justice to this incredible journey, and time and space to share with you the stories and photos that I gathered over these three days and the ideas and projects that have spun out of it, I have decided to break it down into a few shorter (but still long!) chapters. I hope that I can give justice to the telling, and that you can share some of the amazing things that I was so priveledged to witness. And so here is the first chapter of a story: a glimpse into the place where the wild things are…
Friday 6th August, 2010
Ivan Yoc - Guatemala's "Bush Tucker Man"
The night before we set out, I sat in the home of Ivan Yoc – my companion from COFETARN and ‘guide’ for the next 3 days. Ivan is a fascinating and knowledgable man, who carries an enormous passion for protecting and conserving the amazing biodiversity around the Tajumulco region. The first time he came to visit me at our Casa Del Nino project, he brought with him a bottle of Miel del Silvestre - wild bee honey direct from the forest, together with an invitation to go and visit the communities that he was working with from that region. The honey – that had an incredible flavour that I had never before tasted – was a great bribe and I promised that as soon as I could make time, I would go. And now, here I was: sitting in Ivan’s kitchen waiting for dinner – sauteed wild mushrooms that Ivan had collected from the forests the day before – discussing the plans for the following days. To give me an idea of where we were going, Ivan started to show me photos of the communities we would visit. As we looked over the photos, it soon became obvious that Ivan had a culinary passion as strong as his passion for the environment: there was a common theme running throughout the photo show – food! But not just any food: forest food, sustainably harvested from the wilderness and proudly displayed by beaming young children. I watched Ivan’s excitement grow and to be honest, it wasn’t long before I was sharing his enthusastic grin as he showed me photos of wild cranberries, mushrooms with stems as round as a men’s forearm, elongated oyster type mushrooms that would reach from my elbow to my fingertips, wild honey bee hives and truffles (that’s right, Guatemalan truffles) the size of both of my fists. With a light in his eyes, Ivan looked over at me: “they’re all edible” he told me, “but no-one knows they’re there”.
Hongo del Maiz (Corn Mushroom) - a rare find: sweet and crunchy, but not very attractive!
Over our dinner of hongos (mushrooms) and stories of all manner of comestibles, Ivan told me of his desire to bring eco-tourism into Tajumulco. The region is one of the poorest in Guatemala, and while rich in biodiversity and Indigenous Guatemalan culture, it is little visited by outside tourists. What little tourism exists is generally bought in by foreign tourist companies, which does little to help the communities from the region. Having just seen Ivan’s photos of the region, I couldn’t help but feel a little saddened – imaging this beautiful place ending up like all the other wonders of Guatemala such as Tikal that are now tourist highways: polluted, struggling with the population influx, loosing culture. Was there another way to do it?
Finishing dinner, Ivan’s wife brought out two steaming hot cups of salvia tea (a tree native to the region, with a flavour similar to peppermint), and a jar of black liquid. “Do you still have the honey that I bought you?” Ivan asked me. I nodded. “Well, now you must try this!” He handed me a spoon and the jar. I sniffed, looked at Ivan’s grin, and shrugged. I could tell that the next three days were not going to be ones where I could afford to be picky about food. And wow! What a surprise. The runny black liquid was another of Ivan’s wild honeys – this one harvested from tiny bees that make their nest underneath the ground. The flavour…like a port flavoured lemon honey (or maybe lemon honey flavoured port) only lighter, with a fresh aftertaste. Again, like nothing I have ever tasted. As I nodded my approval, a thought struck me: Bush Tucker Food! A concept that is growing rapidly in Australia, I realised that here in front of me was the exact same thing, only from a completely different region. Sustainably harvested, wild organic food. And sitting in front of me: Guatemala’s equivalent of the Bush Tucker Man. Wild cranberry jam, honey, mushrooms, tea, coffee and all manner of things I had not yet discovered. I started thinking again about Ivan’s desire for Eco-toursim, and a thought struck me: what about a culinary tour? A completely unique experience: visiting these remote communities, learning about sustainable food forests, and tasting the delights in a way that promotes and supports the culture, and preserves the knowledge about this food that is gradually being lost through the generations. I told Ivan about the bush tucker movement in Australia, and suggested that here he could maybe try something similar. He called his wife over, and I sat listening as he explained the concept and their ideas started to flow. It is something that gives me so much pleasure to watch, as people’s minds open up to a new concept, a new idea, and they start dreaming of new possibilities. Feeling sleepy from the salvia tea and keen to get to bed ready for tomorrow’s early start I left Ivan to muse over the idea of a culinary tour of Tajumulco, knowing that I was going to have an interesting few days ahead of me.
Tags: Corrina Grace
