“The Legend of the Red Rhinos”
It was 1521 in the highlands of Guanojuato, Mexico. The people in the small village of Yeneka (Indian word for dried meat) received terrible news. Their village was in the path of the Spanish conquistador and madman, Hernando Cortez, who had just defeated the powerful Aztecs. The Yeneka villagers made themselves as intimidating as possible. They disguised themselves as rhinoceros from a rough drawing left by an Arab trader.
On February 5th, 1521, a small contingent of Cortez’s army entered their village. When the Spanish soldiers saw a hundred bellowing red rhinos charging them with inflated scarlet bodies and covered in dung and iron clay, they fled never to return.
February 5th became “The Fiesta of Red Rhinos”. Over the centuries, the beast became celebrated as a thing of beauty and honor and good deeds. Ms. Baross is the only outsider to have observed the fiesta.
Portrait of Commandante Tlantl
Commandante Tlantli led that courageous charge against the Spanish and subsequently organized the fiesta. Tlantli is the Indian word for tooth, meaning one who is rooted in cross-dressing.
The faded portrait of Commandante Tlantli embodies the irrepressible spirit of Yeneka’s villagers.
The Great Rhino Race
The one mile race is meant to re-enact Yeneka’s charge against the Spanish. The winner gets to marry the queen of the Red Rhino beauty pageant. It tends to be a rather slow race. Getting close enough for a kiss is the most dangerous part of the ritual.
The Red Rhino Beauty Pageant
The Beauty Pageant takes place after the race. It is a tough competition because there are so many compelling beauties.
Tenochtli Stick Dance
The stick-dance represents the enduring heart of the ancestors. The Tenochtli is a tree that produces a red, hard, prickly pear. People throw prickly pears at the dancers who defend themselves use the sticks.
The Great Rhino Question
Over the centuries the ancient riddle has been forgotten and the traditional answer is a shrug. The wisest say, “The quest to illuminate the unknowable is a Cortez.” (ie:useless pursuit)