piñata: an intergral part of mexican culture

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bbc.com/Diane Selkirk – The piñata is a ubiquitous aspect of Mexican culture. Yet how it got to be that way is somewhat of a mystery.

However, piñatas are a ubiquitous ingredient of life in Mexico. Part of the cartonería or carton piedra (rock cardboard) tradition ‒ which also includes mojigangas (giant puppets), masks and dolls ‒ the piñata is as vital to Mexican celebrations as mariachi music. Traditional fiestas, such as the Our Lady of Guadalupe celebration in mid-December, call for donkeys, fish and birds. For birthdays, kids gravitate toward cartoon and action figures.

The piñata is as vital to Mexican celebrations as mariachi music.

Typically created in small cottage workshops, piñatas can be made to order or bought from shops or market stalls. When my 15-year-old daughter, Maia, and I set off to buy a piñata to celebrate our successful circumnavigation, I started at a Bucerías neighbourhood dulceria, a shop devoted to piñatas and a dizzying (and stomach-churning) variety of sweets with which to fill them. Read Full Article