So we all brought "typical" São João food. Let's see, we had corn cake, corn on the cob, corn goo (don't know how else to describe it), corn stuff wrapped in corn husks...we forgot to make popcorn. Anyone notice a theme? We also had peanuts, peanut brittle and several other cakes made of unusual (to us) things. Though a little less than diverse, the food was great!
I forgot to mention what São João is- it's the holiday for John the Baptist that, especially here in the Northeast, has morphed into a huge holiday season. It's like Christmas- stores started decorating over a month ago! The festival aspect started in the small towns and everything about the holiday has the small town feel. The traditional dress is plaid, bandanas and straw hats. The food is simple (and apparently thought up by corn farmers!) The music is fun and bouncy and there's a sort of square dance that goes with it. Mostly it's an excuse to have some fun all through the month of June. Everywhere you look someone is having a São João party. Now that the actual holiday is here, it means two days off. Most people in the city will head out to the small towns to participate in the festas there. We'll stay here and check out the festas here in town. It's so much fun to get to learn a new culture!
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