Friends Celebrate Pre-Equinox with a Traditional Cookout
Two artists salute each other
folks waited patiently for the highlight of the day, an earth oven the caretakers of the garden had built together that housed a stock pot full of pork, marinated in a mix of spices and wrapped in banana leaves that had been set to cook since the morning of the celebration.
By Manuel Vasquez
On March 19, 2023 friends and neighbors of the Cesar Andreu Iglesias Garden, a north philly community space, gathered together for a pre-equinox celebration by spending the day cooking together in the traditional methods of many of their homelands.
On this day, as they have during other celebrations, the participants use this space as an opportunity to build community through practices that they would have only experienced in Latin America. People brought fresh dough or "masa" for tortillas, corn, vegetables and more as they cooked over an open fire. As folks gathered they waited patiently for the highlight of the day, an earth oven the caretakers of the garden had built together that housed a stock pot full of pork, marinated in a mix of spices and wrapped in banana leaves that had been set to cook since the morning of the celebration.
Once un-earthed, folks huddled together to get their portion and shared space as they ate the tacos over plates in a communal showcase of one of the greatest cultural practices that they can offer by cooking for one another.
Photos and captions by Manuel Vasquez
