San Basilio de Palenque

Elly, Nyasha and I in front of the Benkos Biohó monument in Palenque

If you’ve never heard of San Basilio de Palenque, you should know that it is very significant in terms of Colombian, Afro-Colombian, and Black history because it was the very first freed Black town in the Americas. Cartagena was a major port city during Spanish colonization; a place where gold was stored and transported from Colombia to Spain, a site of Spanish Inquisition, and a major part of the slave trade market. However, there were many enslaved Africans who did not accept this fate and escaped slavery including Benkos Biohó, an African prince and warrior who escaped enslavement near Cartagena and led others to follow him, establishing San Basilio de Palenque in 1599. The Africans who escaped lived in villages called palenques, a word in Spanish that describes the walls that they built around these villages. The inhabitants of the palenques were brave, resilient, and clever as they developed the method of periodically building, demolishing, and moving their villages further and further away from Cartagena to avoid being recaptured by the Spaniards. There were many different palenques throughout history, but San Basilio de Palenque, also known solely as Palenque, is the only one that remains to this day. As such, Palenque became the first free Black town in the Americas with a peace agreement between the Africans and the Spaniards in Cartagena in 1608, and a formal decree recognizing the Africans’ freedom from the Spanish crown in 1713. The pueblo now lies about 2 hours south-east of Cartagena.

The music house of *Kombilesa Mi*, a hip-hop fusion group known for mixing traditional and urban sounds that feature lyrics in both the *palenquero* language and Spanish

Each year Palenque hosts its most famous festival, El Festival de Tambores y Expresiones Culturales de Palenque (The Palenque Drum and Cultural Expression Festival) which is a huge celebration of the pueblo’s cultural heritage. Like I’ve mentioned time and time again, I love music and dance, so when one of the professors in my program told me that the Festival de Tambores was coming up, I knew I had to be there. She connected me with another staff member at the University who is palanquero (from Palenque) named Jarol, and he welcomed me and J’Aun, the other Fulbright ETA, to take the trip to Palenque with him.

The Festival de Tambores takes place each year for 3 days each October, usually from Friday to Sunday. That Saturday J’Aun and I made our way to the Terminal de Transporte in Cartagena to meet with Jarol to head to Palenque, and we literally almost missed our bus! We had to chase after it a few paces, but thankfully they stopped at the exit of the terminal for long enough for us to hop on. It was a long, hot ride, but a breeze made it through the windows while we were in motion that cooled us down a little bit. We took the bus from the terminal, then a smaller busetta, and then the slowest most scenic moto ride that I’ve ever taken to finally reach the pueblo. Once we arrived in Palenque we set our things down at Jarol’s mothers house, drank a shot of ñeke that was offered to us by their neighbor, and we walked around the pueblo for a little bit.

As we explored, we ran into Jarol’s father who was excited to learn my name once I introduced myself, because he said it was a palanquera name, a name from the village. Jarol went off to a meeting, and J’Aun and I ran into with some acquaintances who we had lunch with at the restaurant of a woman named Doña Hilda. We made our way back to the main plaza and were checking out the emprendimiento (small business) stands where palenqueras were selling jewelry, pastries, and traditional sweets when two girls came up to J’Aun and I complimenting his shirt. We all started chatting and it turned out that they were from the States too but were currently living in Cali, Colombia and were visiting for the drum festival. They said they had been watching us for a little while trying to decide if we were or estadounidenses or not and turns out something J’Auns shirt gave us away hahaha. We spent the afternoon going to a mapalé dance workshop together, sharing about our journeys in Cartagena and Cali and hanging out into the evening. J’Aun decided to leave that night, but I was dying to stay because the live music and dance presentations on the main stage had just begun, and because I realized we had missed most of the various language, drumming, dance, hair braiding, and other cultural workshops having arrived halfway into the festival. Elly and Nyasha graciously offered me a space in the room where they were staying in the pueblo, so I was able to stay behind with ease, set with lodging and new pals to accompany me for the rest of the festival!

That night I brought my things to the room we were now renting together in a house in barrio arriba, and I took advantage of the chance to shower after spending nearly the entire day sweating beneath the hot sun that is ever present in the coastal region. We all took a little nap before heading back to the center of town to watch music and dance presentations in the plaza. I was giddy to partake in the music and dance that I had anticipating, and let me tell you, it was P H E N O M E N A L. Never would I have been able to expect the rich African culture and heritage that I encountered through the music and dance that night, as this is something quite unexpected and unique to find in Colombia. Walking through the village to the plaza we ran into a mural that said “Rincon de Africa”, which means corner or small piece of Africa, and it was spot on for describing San Basilio de Palenque. There was drumming, theater, dance, people playing instruments and singing in the street. There were many different Afro music and dance groups from the Caribbean coast and groups that traveled from the Pacific coast, which is the other area with large Afro-Colombian populations in the country. From the Caribbean coast there were bands and dancers performing mapalé, bullerengue, cumbia, and champeta which I had learned was the style of music created in Cartagena but grew to understand that its early roots come from Palenque as well. It was all so dreamy. I thought back to Jarol’s father telling me that my name was from Palenque and felt a level of connectedness sharing the space with long-lost brothers, sisters, and cousins of the Diaspora. It felt like a homecoming.

Un bailarín palenqero

Los Tambores

Singing and drumming in the street

Mapalé

I mentioned I felt like I was dreaming, and I mean this figuratively but also literally hahah. My fatigue from the day was indeed catching up with me at that point, and reasonably so after a long, jam-packed day of traveling, exploring, meeting a ton of people, and being outdoors in the heat all day. As much as I wanted to be there, I felt quite exhausted as the festivities continued. I was soooo glad that I had a bed with my name on it for the night. I tried to stay up as long as possible for the Alborada, a parade that would close out the night and start the next day at sunrise, but I just couldn't do it. I went back to the house and fell asleep hoping it would just be a nap and that I could maybe, possibly wake up a little later for the parade that was slated for 4 AM.

The Alborada

Thankfully I was awakened a couple hours later by the sound of drums. The point of the Alborada is to make people up and it worked! The parade route was close to the house where I was staying, so I hopped up around 5 AM and was able to join the last bit of it. The part I saw consisted of the dancers performing mapalé, cumbia, and other dance styles as we walked, accompanied by music from los tambores and other instruments. I was astonished at how everyone still had enough energy to be doing this, but I loved it. I caught just the tail end of the march, as we ended the route back at the main plaza in the center of town. After having taken my nap, I was ready for more, but the end of the parade was when everyone finally went back home to rest as the sun began to rise and the morning began. I was only slightly bummed that I didn’t wake up earlier, and went ahead back to bed.

The walk back home as the sun began to rise around 5:30 AM

A couple hours later the girls and I woke up to go on a proper tour of the village, and it really helped to contextualize all that I had seen in the village up to that point. We went with a family owned and operated group called Paletur (@paletur_minikusuto on instagram), and our guides were super welcoming, kind, and knowledgeable. We learned about the history, culture, language, medicinal practices, music, dance, and ate delicious food. Some initial interesting things we learned is that San Basilio de Palenque is the birthplace of Palenquero, a creole language that is a combination of Spanish, Portuguese, and various African dialects that is only spoken there in the village. We also learned that there are no police there, and collective responsibility keeps the community safe as everyone watches out for one another. There are methods for working together to handle any conflict or difficulties that may arise, but generally the pueblo is crime-free. We also learned that the history of the pueblo is quite complex, and that despite the peace agreements, Benkos Biohó, the founder of Palenque, was captured and later assassinated in 1619 by the Spaniards to discourage any other Africans from escaping. Benkos was killed but his impact remained, and many enslaved Africans continued fighting to regain their freedom. Today his monument in the main plaza in Palenque features broken chains on his wrists and his right hand reaching towards Africa.

The international award winning *“Kumina ri Palenge pa tó paraje”* cookbook & *un dulce* called *enyucada*

On the first stop of the tour, we learned about how palenqueras make the traditional dulces (sweets) like cocadas, enyucada, alegría and more. In el Centro Historico you will see palenqueras in their signature colorful dresses selling these sweets as well as tropical fruits and this has been a tradition for years throughout history. The difference today is that most of these palenqueras aren’t making the daily journey from the pueblo to the city and live in Cartagena instead. Additionally, some palenqueras pose for souvenir photographs rather than selling goods in the Center. In Palenque the cuisine goes beyond just sweets, as the typical dishes have been internationally recognized. A cookbook of the cuisine published in the Palenquero language won Best Cookbook in 2014 in Beijing, China at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards out of over 15,000 other international applicants in the contest. I got to flip through the cookbook, and we learned that singing is a big part of cooking to pass the time. We got to partake in some more song and dance during a presentation of drummers and dancers as well.

pura alegría!

Medicinal plants and herbs *en el patio de medicina*

Next, we visited the village medicine man’s patio where we drank more ñeke, which I learned is a rum steeped with medicinal plants that is used for its healing properties, as an aphrodisiac, and also as a drink shared among friends during times of celebration. This is what people were offering and drinking all throughout the festivities the night before. We learned about other natural medicinal elements used to heal ailments and about the spiritual protection that palenqueros may seek from the doctor specifically in the form of prayers and protection bracelets.

We also learned about boxing the culture in Palenque, and specifically about Antonio Cervantes Reyes, known as Kid Pambelé, a palenquero who became the 1st Colombian world champion boxer. We got a chance to do some boxing drills in the same studio where kids in the village are taught how to box, with the possibility of becoming the next champ.

Los Peinados

One of our lost stops on the tour was at a traditional museum house where we learned about the construction and layout of the homes in the village, the kitchen tools constructed of different natural materials and their uses, the significance of different hair braiding patterns, and some of the beliefs palenqueros hold about life and death. There are many complex elements of the social structure and religion in the village that underscore Palenque’s African roots that has been beautifully and carefully preserved. If you couldn’t tell already, Palenque is bursting with culture, and in 2005 was declared a UNESCO Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

We ended the tour with comida típica de Palenque, the best mojarra negra en zumo de coco that I’ve ever eaten, that was served with arroz de coco palenquero and ensalada on an hoja de Bijao with a spoon made from totumo (a gourd plant found on the Caribbean Coast) back at the Paletur house. Getting to sit, reflect, and eat such delicious food was the perfect ending to the tour.

Black Lives Matter x a mural of words in the *Palenquero* language

I was planning to leave that afternoon after the tour but was just having such a great time that I was convinced to stay. That evening I went out again that night with Elly and Nyasha then met up with a friend I made earlier in the day. We watched some more of the performances on the main stage, ate some food and drank some Costeñita, and then we went to one of the discotecas in the village that was so full that the party poured out onto the street. They played vallenato and champeta, and this was when I learned how to dance to both of those styles of music for the first time and I thoroughly enjoyed it. We danced the night away, and that entire evening in Palenque is one that I will truly never forget!

Another one of the beautiful murals in the *pueblo*

The next day we woke up with plans to go to Antiguo Palenque, a new construction of a village fashioned in the style that houses were built historically in Palenque. We walked about 30 mins to get there and ran into Jarol on the way. He came along with us, and we ran into more friends along the way. It was a beautiful walk in nature and once we got to Antiguo Palenque we hung out there for a while, looking at the ancient house constructions, chatting, admiring the peace out and quiet out in nature and feeding some cows. There was always music blasting in the pueblo, and probably more so that weekend because of the festival, so the contrast was really refreshing. Jarol tied up a chicken that he swore he wasn’t going to hurt, but that I was certain would soon become sancocho for him and his friends as he left to go meet them, and the girls and I headed back towards the village.

La naturaleza hermosa

*Las casas tradicionales de Antiguo Palenque*

On the way back we stopped by the main river in the pueblo and saw some more friends along the way. An aguacero (rainstorm) broke out, and it was like Palenque was crying that we were leaving. We went back to the house to collect our things, ate lunch, and said our last farewells. A friend of the Palentur family gave us a ride out to the main road in their car and we caught a bus back to the city. The bus catching was a HASSLE to say the least (all the busses passing by were full and there were a lot of people waiting to get on, so we ended up waiting quite a while before squeezing onto an already jam-packed bus), but it was a small price to pay for all the beautiful experiences of the weekend. I had planned to visit for one day but ended up staying for three because I enjoyed it that much. Thankfully that Monday was a holiday so I didn’t have to rush back to the University, and I am super grateful for the kindness of Nya and Elly and our shared spirits of adventure, inquisitiveness, and openness. Thanks to them I had friends to travel with and a place to stay, and I am so grateful that things just worked out and I was blessed with some really beautiful, impactful experiences. I 1000000/10 recommend you make the trip out to Palenque, especially to visit for El Festival de Tambores. You will meet great people, you will learn a lot and you will not be disappointed.

The Palenque letters (also spelled *Palenge*)

DISCLAIMER: This site (octaviachristopher.com) is not an official Fulbright Program site. The views expressed on this site are entirely those of its author and do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State or any of its partner organizations.

Costeñol Lección Número 3

Comida Costeña