In Nicaragua we discovered a smallMusical treasurehidden in one of the most remote areas of the capital. We got in touch with Alex Scott to know the project“Bluefields Sound System”that tries to recover, grabar y compartir el talento musical del Caribe nicaragüense.

Due to the isolation of this area had been able to record very little of its rich musical history. This project seeks to recover the veteran artists and young people to learn from them. Nosotros queríamos saber si entre estos saberes a punto de desaparecer aún podríamos rescatar alguna canción de cuna de esta región tan singular.

The trip to Bluefields is not easy.La FurgoNanaonly took up Rama, were about 5 hour drive from ManagThe FurgoNanahad to leave us all alone to wait a few days in a port that does not inspire much confidence, but what could we do? At 5 am out our “panga” (a wooden boat going full speed), we mount up the Rio Escondido on a voyage of more than two hours in which, inexplicably (in this tropical climate) nos pelamos de frío.

Closer to home were pateándonos, computer in tow, every hill in search of Nanas Bluefields. It was exhausting, but it was worth. Antón os cuenta un poco más sobre esta región en este video.

One person who had the pleasure of meeting was to Joseph Sinclair, better known as “Mango Ghost”, who may be the last living composer of a whole generation of artists from Bluefields. He was a member of“Barbarians of Rhythm”, a group that promoted and released the May Pole, la mayor celebración folklórica del calendario Bluefileño.

He told us that he is called Mango Ghost because next to his house had a Mango and children always went up to steal their fruits. He was hiding and scared them to stop taking them. Apparently each person tells a different story. What is the true story of “Fantasma del Mango”?

Here I leave you with one of the lullabies we sinMango Ghostito and speaks of a Hummingbird, Tininiska. The guitar is accompanied by Claudio Weil. Esperamos que les guste.

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Maria Royo | . | Guatemala domingo 13/11/2011

Before starting the journey, crossing the border in Tijuana and start searching for stories for the documentary, and we had some ideas in the bag. One of them gave rise to the reporting of Guatemala, and met as students at our stage in NY, a time when surviving on offering our services to independent filmmakers from the thriving New York scene. It was at that time when we metLuis Argueta, a courageous documentarian based in Guatemala NY, and history of the deported Postville. When Louis offered help with editing the mountains of footage that had accumulated in the production of documentary, we could not deny. When we start to watch those tapes, we realized that, one day, the FurgoNana (www.furgonana.com) also come to those characters and their stories. Guatemala was difficult from the beginning. We entered the country in full rainy season, warned that with these rains are often large landslides that impede transport and threatening people's lives. Night, a pocos kilómetros de Antigua, had the opportunity to confront one. It was after a closed curve, in a narrow stretches of the Panamerican, It sounded like the end of the world. The van hit several jumps, gave a couple of complaints, and continued, as if nothing, his peaceful march. Since then we have been lucky enough to discover that the larger bumps, blows harder and deeper rivers, does it matter whether our little warrior. Nothing stops the brave FurgoNana. Rosana Mejia lives on the outskirts of a small town called San José Calderas, a pocos kilómetros de Antigua, the former capitaa few miles from Antiguahe hours we had been editing their stories made us feel back to an old friend. We already knew of her ordeal, how it suffered abuse and mistreatment at the hands of immigration authorities, how he spent months chained to a GPS tracking device, and how they lost everything in the biggest raid, more expensive and more brutal in the history of the U.S.. He lost more than that, in fact. Many of the 123 deported from San Jose Calderas also lost what little they had managed to accumulate, with superhuman effort, before embarking on the journey north. They had to sell to repay the loan with the trip costing. This story also has a handful of voiceless victims, on which the greatest injustices committed throughout the process. Mejia Estefani, that inour trailer play carefree in her swing, is a U.S. citizen. Have passport richest and most powerful country in the world, but his mother did not earn to buy the milk it needs to grow. In fact, as her mother tells the video you will see next, radical change of diet has been growing visibly stopped Estefani. She never asked where they preferred to live. A Cole wanted to go. His mother was expelled from the American Dream, and she also played out. With it also came 14 U.S. citizen children, now struggling with poverty and malnutrition in Boilers, waiting for an opportunity to return to their homeland. Rosana us a surprise for the end of the interview. Twist the gesture, and tearfully outlines a smile.“I'm pregnant” says, tell us that shortly after heavy rains have destroyed crops on which they depend for survival. We turn off the camera without really knowing what to do or say. This time we're going to let our friend Luis Argueta, whose film “abUSed. The Postville Raid” is completed and released (do not miss), tell you the story of deportees from Postville. We tell of their children, un día no muy lejano.

• The FurgoNana consists of three adventurers who embark on a journey more than
• Previous videoblogs: Childhood obesity andDisaster in Oaxaca

Maria Royo | . |  miércoles 02/11/2011

After Oaxaca, Our route led us to Chiapas, that would be our last stop in Mexico.We arrived in San Cristobal, una bellísima ciudad colonial rodeada de montañas con un clima privilegiado.

We wanted to do a story about the reality of indigenous children, pero nos dimos cuenta de que Chiapas tiene escondida en su interior una joya que hace que la situación que viven muchas comunidades sea bastante más compleja de lo que imaginábamos.

This jewel is the biosphere reserve “Montes Azules”. The reserve has an area of 331, 200 hectares, and is located in the Lacandon Jungle. Just, in the Lacandon jungle strongholds settled most organized of the EZLN. The low-intensity warfare implemented by the militarization of the region and the formation of paramilitary groups, led many communities to move into the territory of the Lacandon area. It is home to people from communities around 15mil Chol, Lacandon, Tzeltal, tzotziles y tojolabales.

The biodiversity of this corridor that is the most important humid tropical reserve in North Americaand the main supplier of fresh water in Mexico, is of undeniable interest to the biotechnology industry, pharmaceutical and agri-food and bottled water for. According to the COMPITCH, in this area, corridor that connects the flora and fauna of the two Americas, natural varieties can be found anywhere else in the world exist only in a fossil. For this, el contexto socio-político que ha vivido en los últimos tiempos ha ido ganando en complejidad y tensión.

From the arguments of ‘environmental conservation’ claimed the eviction of people living nature reserves, as in the case of Montes Azules, stating the nature of “asset of humanity” of natural resources. The practice of burning and clearing of pastures new indigenous people, in his remarkable effort for survival and autonomy, they face economic and environmental interests, well as political, que se sirven de esto para intentar acallar focos de resistencia.

Guided by some members of COMPITCH, Organizations Council of Traditional Indigenous Doctors and Midwives of Chiapas, decidimos internarnos en la reserva para poder intentar comprender desde adentro la complejidad de la situación.

The trip was not easy, As our dearFurgoNana planted in Ocosingo, and said “See you later Alligator”. In Ocosingo took a transport, April 1×4 with a compartment to carry both animals and people. In that kind of cage would go a 20 personas.

Mary was sitting on a drum 50 gallons of gasoline had to lead the community, Anton and was ordered to go stand, trying by all means get one of the crew did not fall on any of the mothers who protected their children in.. The master had decided to take a drink to make more bearable 8 potholes hours waiting for us, but hardly had happened and kept upright.

We were attending a Tzeltal community immersed in Montes Azules and for this, still had to get to the heart of the reserve. We arrived at Bethany, where did the other night to catch the next day transport to take us to our next stop, a suspension bridge to be crossed on foot, tras el cual nos recogería otra camioneta para llevarnos hasta Amador Hernández.

From there we walk, led by Gerardo, Tzeltal child, accompanied by a small horse that carried the team to Pichucalco uphill.The increase was of myocardial. Very steep hills in a quagmire that would steal the boots at every step. Rivers that threatened to drag and horse equipment, provocando momentos de autentico pánico.

The voluptuous vegetation, the heat, and penetrating aromas of the jungle takes us on a remote reality, to a corner of our humanity that we often forget. It is enormously gratifying to be part of all this beauty, although one can not help but feel overwhelmed and helpless. Mary had to stop every 5 minutes with his face red as a tomato, while Gerardo, perfectly integrated into its surroundings, saltaba gracilmente de piedra en piedra.

Anton suggested that records the rise, but she was the last thing you thought. Just recorded a few minutesand took some photos of that trip, like this giant beetle species found, Gerardo and informed us that it was edible…

The experience with the Indians and friends of COMPITCH was one that will be with us forever. And that we could not film as much as we wanted. After an eternal assembly, a couple of members of the community (supposedly) permeated by political parties opposed the proposal, y nos estuvieron vigilando de cerca el tiempo que permanecimos con ellos.

There we discover a new reality on the loss of identity and culture, one that transcends the disappearance of the songs and ceremonies, and is if anything even more shocking.Without culture itself is much more difficult to survive.

In the reserve met entire communities, after generations of exploitation in monoculture plantations, habían olvidado parte de la gran sabiduría que tuvieron sobre cómo relacionarse con su entorno.

Many of the ancient farming practices, hunting, knowledge of natural medicine, much of what the natives allowed to survive centuries of dispossession, quedó olvidado en los latifundios de café en los que algunos se negaron a morir.

According to UNESCO, losing a losing culture is a way of seeing the world. For us it is also the great Coco haunts the American Indian. Last week we were unresolved the mystery of the song Mixe. For those who do not understand babies Mixes, We subtitled the video. Esperamos que les guste.

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• La FurgoNana consists of three adventurers who embark on a journey more than
• Previous videoblogs: Guadalajara's double standards andChildhood Obesity

Maria Royo | . |Oaxaca (México)  miércoles 26/10/2011

Today we want to tell another side of the production process of this documentary(La FurgoNana) As wThe FurgoNanaonce before starting this project,there were some scenarios that cause us real nightmare. One of them occurred in Oaxaca, México. A 40.000 km through 12 countriesMexicoombi that you have 42 years ago suppose to be prepared to live the odd hiccup ...

Mary had just returned from Los Angeles to collect aStudent Oscar we had been given by our previous documentary and Anton had been in Oaxaca with theFurgoNana, ya que solo nos concedieron un billete de avión.

The reunion was difficult, Mary had spent a week getting to know important people in the film industry, with dinner organized, red carpets and awards galas, and Anton had been working in Oaxaca, the city taken by the teachers' strike, and traveling to nearby villages in search of the next interview for the documentary. During this time had erased 2 full days of valuable material, mistakenly formatted a memory card to a film that ultimately could not be performed. She could not get angry, él no podía quejarse. La tensión estaba servida.

With this backgroundwe embarked to seek a lullaby to the Sierra Mixe, guided by one of the teachers I had met Anton in his solo odyssey. The teacher tells us that the place we go is more than an hour away, and promises a lullaby we sing Mixe his sister trying to sleep for your baby. Mary thinks it's too late, that there will be enough light to record arrival, Antonio, feeling the weight of lost work, quiere ir de todos modos.

When it took more than two hours in a very difficult road for our beloved FurgoNana, starts to rain as if the clouds would like to emphasize environmental stress. The poor woman looked ready FurgoNana, as in Mexico City we had fixed a problem of rust on the roof, and finally we had removed the tape that covered their “sunroof” the ̶sunroofos” as they say in Mexico. We did not know was that, although the oxide was fixed, drains were clogged water drain for four decades of corrosion and dirt. And, Ladies and Gentlemen, cuando aquí llega la temporada de lluvias, llueve de verdad. Y no me refiero a lo que conocemos en España por lluvia. En una tormenta tropical caen auténticos torrentes del cielo, que en minutos convierten los caminos en lodazales, las laderas en riadas, y las FurgoNanas en bañeras. Empiezan a entrar chorros de agua al interior del compartimento, just above where it was placed recordi  equipment. Mary is back and drying by covering with blankets and sheets equipment, gritándole a Antón que todo se está mojando. Antón va alante con la profesora, que se siente culpable y no para de disculparse, ya que lo que iba a ser una hora de viaje, parece que se van a convertir en más de tres.

Conseguimos taponar con telas los chorros de agua y goteras y seguimos el camino. Ya se ha hecho de noche, habrá que grabar con luz artificial, y la lluvia ha hecho que el camino se haya puesto aún más difícil. Por fin parece que vamos a llegar a nuestro destino, y cuando estamos a menos de 2 km…

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Cuando conseguimos llegar a la casa, resultó que la hermana no se sabía ninguna canción de cuna Mixe. Pero Mamá, Tía y Abuela pusieron todos sus esfuerzos en intentar dormir al bebé. No lo consiguieron, pero esa es una historia que les contaremos más adelante…

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Travel, when done right, is an experience involving all five senses, and sometimes, some more. Explore Mexico was like diving into new and exciting colors, aromas, textures and melodies, but, above all, discover an almost unparalleled gastronomic wealth in Latin America, patrimonio inmaterial de la UNESCO desde noviembre de 2010.

Fortunately, no story, video or photograph can recreate the wide range of flavors of Mexican cuisine, its infinite variety of sauces and seasonings, nuanced; Spicy, bittersweet, amarguillos and fruity, and the intriguing fusion of traditional and new, lo autóctono y lo asimilado.

In Mexican cuisine there is another unusual phenomenon, and Mexico is one of the few countries where there is no need to make greater efforts, or any economic or, para saborear deliciosas pitanzas.

The food in Mexico is everywhere, flooding the streets of aromas and flavors, shouting from every corner and square. And as regards mobile food, Mexico City is, clearly, uno de los más espectaculares escaparates que existen en el mundo.

Unfortunately, such culinary needs a legislative effort and educational, si hemos de enseñar a nuestros jóvenes a hacer un uso responsable y equilibrado de ella.

With the new General Health Law, Assembly recently approved in Mexico, aims to address this problem, al and the insidious problem of childhood obesity, affecting Mexico more than any other country in the world according ENSANUT data (National Survey of Health and Nutrition). The law, banishing junk food from schools and places of daily physical activity of students, aborda también el tema del equilibrio en el consumo de proteínas en los alimentos que se consumen en escuelas del país.

The Secretariat of Public Education (SEP) determined that the 30% of children are overweight and obesity, and that one in ten children is obese to reach 10 years ago. Besides the impact this has on children's health, concerned about the effects of long-term problem, ya que un menor con esta enfermedad tiene más probabilidades de presentar un mayor número de enfermedades crónicas a largo plazo.

‘Cardiovascular diseases can be, diabetes, Hypertension, certain types of cancer and respiratory problems'. De esto no solo tienen la culpa las delicias de la gastronomía ni su ubicuidad.

According to Dr. Blanca Navarro River, coordinator of the Obesity Clinic Children's Hospital in Mexico City, the introduction of “junk food”, American influence, in the Mexican diet has been a serious aggravating, “especially for the lower strata of the population”, they see as the sugary soda, the “snacks” y la bollería industrial son a menudo más cómodos y económicos que los productos de la cesta básica tradicional.

Also mega national companies such as Bimbo and Sabritas (Today the U.S. subsidiary of Pepsico), to monopolize the entire market practice, must make a consistent exercise social responsibility, habiendo inundado el país de productos de bajo aporte nutricional e ingentes cantidades de grasas y azucares.

The reform of the General Health Law was referred to the Senate for review and approval. Meanwhile is everyone teaching good eating habits for our children, y que detrás del atractivo y juguetón monstruito que les incita a devorar golosinas puede esconderse un Coco despiadado.

In the near future we can offer this report on our web documentary, FurgoNana As I leave you with a gem that we are on the way to Mexico City, when we stopped at Morelia, Michoacán, and met Elba Rodriguez. This fabulous artist and best person we sang a beautiful  llaby that he composed his daughter Rain, and we caught it from his devotion to work with children. Esperamos que les guste.