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Mexico's Indian Cultures Keep Us Company
(As
We Travel Through The State of Veracruuz)
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Habeeb Salloum
As we left Mexico’s state of Puebla and drove into the state of Veracruz, Manuel Martinez, our scholarly guide, kept us alert with his unconventional narration of the history and attributes of the state we had just entered - one of the richest areas in the country. “Whatever you want to see and do, you’ll find it in Veracruz. All important events in the country have some connection with this state. It produces almost everything! It’s the centre of the universe! It’s the capital of the world! He continued, “And I’m not prejudiced! I was born and live here.” I could almost hear him chuckle as we drove onward through green-covered mountains.
Manuel, standing up in front of us, continued with his jokes and historical anecdotes: “Look at me! Even though I have the white man’s features, I’m an Indian.” He went on grinning, “My great, great, great, but I don’t know how many great grandmothers, married an Italian pirate. Imagine how beautiful she must have been. A pirate who could have any woman in the Americas chose her. I’m proud of my great-grandmother.”
His voice seemed to become louder as he went on, “I’m, above all, proud of my Indian ancestry. My forefathers, for thousands of years, produced civilization after civilization - in their times, the best in the world.”
Apparently angry, a man in our group shouted., “Explain to me human sacrifice!” Manuel’s eyes blazed, “Human sacrifice was a Spanish invention in order to dehumanize our people. Tell me! How could we have sacrificed humans when the flying dancers (once an Indian religious dance, but now a part of Mexican folklore) before chopping down a mahogany tree would dance all night around its trunk asking forgiveness for its cutting? It was a lie put out by the Conquistadors in order to enslave our people.”
Manuel’s words aroused deep questions in my mind. There is no doubt that history is always written by the victors. Today, many archaeologists are questioning the conventional story of Mexico’s Indian civilizations written by the conquering Spaniards.
Manuel continued on, praising the America’s Indian civilizations until we entered Xalapa, also spelled Jalapa - a city of 400,000 and the capital of the state of Veracruz. One of Mexico’s colonial gems, it is located on a 1,200 m (4,000 ft) high plateau and is known as the ‘City of Flowers’. Both provincial and cosmopolitan, Xalapa is remarkably attractive, clean, cool, civilized and life is easy-going. The city offers unspoiled gardens and parks, as well as a lively artistic and entertainment ambience.
Above all, it is famous as a university town, renowned for its University of the State of Veracruz and its Mueso de Anthopología (Anthropology Museum) - one of the most beautiful museums in the country, rivaling Mexico City’s great Museum of Anthropology. An extraordinary museum and a must to see, it houses more than 25,000 pieces relating to the three main Indian cultures in Veracruz the: Olmeca, Totonaca and Huaxteca.
Manuel, truly a guide extraordinaire who had just finished writing a book on the Indian civilizations in Mexico, took us through the exhibits, beginning with the Olmeca. Here amid the relics of his ancestors he was in his glory.
 “The Olmeca, nicknamed ‘the people who have knowledge’ were the mother of all cultures. 3128 years before Christ they knew of the magnet and invented the concept of ‘zero’ and ‘three astronomical calendars’ with numbers in bars and points, many years before any of the Old World’s civilizations.” Exuding an aura of pride, Manuel went on, “Their calendars never needed corrections and their sculptures, like the gigantic heads you see around you, were very advanced. All later Indian civilizations adopted the Olmeca culture. I’m very proud of what they contributed to humankind.”
We went on to examine the famous statues with smiling faces, fine musical instruments, exquisite jade and ceramic pieces, metal chisels of all kinds and obsidian figures - all remains from the state’s three Indian cultures. The museum was quite amazing, beautifully laid-out and informative - exceeding all our expectations.
Back on the road-making our way to the city of Veracruz, capital of the state, Manuel was again on the microphone. Noting a series of Volkswagens passing by, he commented, “You know what we call Volkswagens in Mexico? Bellybuttons!” “Why!” Someone shouted. I could clearly Manuel snicker, “Everyone has one.”
 A few minutes later, as we passed a graveyard of wrecked autos, Manuel continued, “Of course, you must all know what we call this place.” “No, we don’t!”, one of the women in our group muttered as Manuel explained, “A girl’s school parking lot!”
Manuel’s stories and jokes were never-ending until we reached the ruins of Zempoala. Walking through the ruins seemed to give him new energy and he was again relating his version of the Indian civilizations, “As I said before, the Totonacans who built this city received the knowledge of astronomy from the Olmecas. All these structures that you see around you relate to the stars, moon and sun. We honoured the natural world - the sky and the earth. The sun was our father and the earth our mother.”
He went on, “We did not have gods, but only lords and ladies, elected by the people as the best of the best. Perhaps, one day when Indian archaeologists excavate some of Mexico’s 25,000 archaeological sites, 3,000 in the state of Veracruz alone, the world will know our true history.” Was Manuel falsifying history? I felt that his stories, which had raised questions in my mind, deserved further investigation.
 Leaving Zempoala behind, we were soon Veracruz - the most festive of Mexican cities with a hedonistic tropical port atmosphere and one of Mexico’s virtually undiscovered vacation spots. In this clean and well-organized resort city, rapidly drawing more and more tourists, we relaxed.
Amid its seemingly always festive atmosphere, the destroyed Indian civilizations and Conquistadors blend together, making the city attractive to visitors. For me, it was an ideal place in which to bid Manuel adios. Here, where the majority of his compatriots have forgotten their Indian past, he still remembers his ancestors with pride.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Habeeb Salloum writes from
Canada
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