Chota Fest 2010

"The things that happened could only have happened during a fiesta. Everything became quite unreal finally and it seemed as though nothing could have any consequences. It seemed out of place to think of consequences during the fiesta."

The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway

by Alisha

Our town's annual party (also known as the Feria Internacional San Juan Bautista de Chota or La Fiesta Brava) was held last week. Thousands of people come to Chota from the surrounding areas and throughout Peru. Many people who grew up in Chota or have family from the area return to celebrate the fiesta and reconnect with their roots. This year we met several groups of North Americans with family ties to the area who came back to Chota for the fiesta. Like last year, the town party included a Marinera dance competition, fire works, exhibitions of traditional foods and local artisan products, a beauty pageant (reinas campesinas), concerts, dances, and, most importantly, bullfights.



Several other Peace Corps volunteers made the trip to Chota for the fiesta (pictured above: our friends Elizabeth and Nicole). We took a trip out to a rock forest one morning to check out the strange rock formations that cover a field about an hour outside of town. The rocks have been shaped over the years by rain and wind. Our host family's dog, Tobby, came along for the ride and had his first experience riding in the back of a truck.

Micah and our host sister, Nicole, enjoying the afternoon at San Juan Pampa

The town party includes two days of activities at San Juan Pampa (San Juan field) which can be best described as a fair. Thousands of people congregate to watch moto-cross, horse riding competitions, the beauty pageant, the corrida de bufas (imagine guys dressed up as clowns running around a rink with very small/tame bulls and the comedy that may ensue). Generally, people go to eat, drink, and be merry.

Food vendors set up shop by tenting off a space and by cooking fried pork and cuy (guinea pig). Typically, each stand is complete with an enormous, freshly killed pig, that meat is cut from throughout the day. The cuyes are also butchered on site. The fresh meat is then cooked over an open flame.

People arrive early to find a spot on one of the hills surrounding San Juan Pampa.

Pictured above: Alfonso de Lima (Peru) and below: Hérnan Ruiz "El Gino" (Colombia)

The three Spaniards from left to right: Alejandro Esplá, Sanchéz Vara, and Juan José Padilla

"'Nobody ever lives their life all the way up except bull-fighters.'"
The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway

The main attraction of the fiesta in Chota are the bullfights, and the stadium in town seats around 12,000 people. This year five bullfighters from Spain, Peru, and Columbia participated in the three days of Spanish-style bullfighting. Chota is known as the capital of bullfighting in Northern Peru, and outside of Acho (the bullfighting stadium in Lima), Chota is said to have the best bullfights in the country. Last year, Micah and I went to one day of the bullfights. It was a shocking experience and one that I did not plan to repeat. However, this year Micah and I attended all three days of the bullfights. It is difficult to explain, but I found myself appreciating most aspects of the bullfights this year. The fiesta was a very good final exclamation mark to (almost) end our time in Chota. We had a great deal of fun and were able to spend a lot of time with our host family and some of our Peace Corps friends, which is something that we appreciated, since we don't have much time left in Peru.