English Culture

lunes, 15 de julio de 2013

Mexico

Mexico

Flag

Colors:

Green:

The Independence
Movement

White:
The purity of the Catholic faith.

Red:
The Spaniards that joined in the quest for Independence. The
blood of the National Heroes

Landmarks in Mexico

Chapultepec Castle

Castillo de Chapultepec is a castle built on top of Chapultepec Hill in Mexico City. Chapultepec is Náhuatl and means "at the grasshopper hill. The structure itself has been used for several different purposes throughout its history, some of these include an Imperial and Presidential home, observatory, military academy, and in its present state a museum. It is the only castle located in North America that was ever occupied by European sovereigns.

The castles construction began in 1785 when then viceroy, Bernardo de Gálvez, ordered acountry house be built at the highest point of Chapultepec Hill. A Lieutenant Colonel of the Spanish Army, Francisco Bambitelli, was commissioned to engineer the construction. Bambitelli was eventually replaced by Captain Manuel Agustín Mascaró when the Lieutenant Colonel made way for Havana. Mascaró was accused of building a fortress
with the intent of rebelling against the Spanish Crown. He died suddenly on November 8, 1786 giving rise to speculation of poisoning by those fearing his uprising against the crown.

El Angel

El Ángel de la Independencia is a victory column located on a roundabout over Paseo de la Reforma in downtown Mexico City. It is referred to most often by its shortened name, El Ángel. Its official name is Columna de la Independencia.

El Ángel was built in commemoration the 100 year anniversary of Mexico's War of Independence, which was celebrated in 1910. In 1925 the remains of a number of the heroes of this conflict were interred at the base of the monument, making it a mausoleum. It is probably the most recognizable landmark in Mexico City, and during its almost 100 year existence has become a focal point for both celebration and protest.

On the base of the column there are four bronze sculptures, which symbolize Law, War, Justice and Peace. Also, next to the column, there is a group of marble statues of some of the heroes of the War of Independence.

On the main face of the base, which faces downtown Mexico City, there is an inscription reading La Nación a los Héroes de la Independencia. In front of this inscription is abronze statue of a giant lion led by a child, representing strength and the innocence of youth during War but docility during Peace.

Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan

The Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan rose 197 ft above the city of Tenochtitlan’s ritual precinct, Tenochtitlan was of capital of the Aztec empire and current site of modern day Mexico City. The Great Pyramid, or Temple Mejor as it is also known, was surmounted by dual shrines to the god of war Huitzilopochtli and god of fertility Tlaloc.

The temple was almost entirely destroyed in 1521 after the conquest of the Aztec empire by the Spanish conquistadores. Remains of the lower portions of the temple complex have been discovered by modern archaeologists buried under a portion of modern Mexico City.

The temple was enlarged several times during its history, and for the last time in 1487, when between 2,000 and 20,000 people were sacrificed over 4 days during its reconsecration.

National Palace

The National Palace is holds the federal executive in Mexico. It is located in Mexico City's main square, the Plaza de la Constitución or El Zócal.

The Origins of the Palace

The palace was constructed in 1563 after the conquest of New Spain. After fires in 1659 and 1692 left the building in disarray, the palace was reconstructed in its present day form.

The building was renamed the National Palace in 1821 with the culmination of the War of Independence against Spain. The Executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government were all housed in the palace at that time.

Typical Food

Tacos

This is usually a bit confusing for most - the generalized idea is that a taco is made using a hard, u-shaped corn shell filled with seasoned minced meat, lettuce and tomatoes, grated cheese and some sour cream. However this is not the case. Rather, truly authentic tacos use the soft corn tortillas and are stuffed with either meat, chicken or seafood fillings.

Tortillas

Made of wheat flour or maize (corn flour), these traditional flat savory pancakes formed the staple food of Mexican people for centuries. They are used in a host of different dishes such as enchiladas or quesadillas and are often served instead of bread.

Frijoles

Mexican for beans, this was and still is a primary source of protein in the Mexican diet. Used both as main ingredients and as garnishes to other dishes, beans can be boiled or fried.

Enchiladas

Made with tortillas, enchiladas are basically folded or rolled tortillas stuffed with chicken, pork or vegetables and then baked

Education

United States
United Kingdom

United States

Flag

The national flag of the United States of America often simply referred to as the American flag, consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton (referred to specifically as the "union") bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars. The 50 stars on the flag represent the 50 states of the United States of America and the 13 stripes represent the thirteen British colonies that declared independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain and became the first states

in the Union. Nicknames for the flag include the "Stars and Stripes"

Landmarks in United States

Capitol Building

The Capitol Building is the home of the United States Congress. The Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The Senate and the House of Representatives meet in the Capitol Building to make laws that govern the country.

Mount Rushmore

Carved into the granite wall of Mount Rushmore are the faces of 4 presidents: Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. These presidents symbolize the United States ideals: Washington standing for independence; Jefferson for democracy; Lincoln for equality; and, Roosevelt for the role in world affairs.

Gutzon Borglum, a Danish sculptor, and a crew of over 360 people carved the monument from 1927 to 1941. The faces measure 60 feet from chin to top of head, and would be 465 feet tall if the whole bodies were built to this scale.

Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty is one of the best known American landmarks. It was a gift to the United States from France to commemorate their alliance during the American Revolution. It is located in the New York harbor near Ellis Island. The statue welcomed new immigrants to the United States who entered the country through Ellis Island between 1892 and 1954.

The statue is 111 feet, 1 inch tall and made from 225 tons of copper.

It was given to the people of the United States by France on July 4, 1884 to commemorate the 100 anniversary of the American Revolution. It was dedicated on October 28, 1886.

The white house

The Whitehouse is the home of the United States president. It has been the home for every U.S. president, except George Washington.

Construction was started on October 13, 1792, on a site selected by George Washington. The house was not completed until 1800, when President John Adams moved in.

The original home was burned by the British in 1814, during the War of 1812. The house was rebuilt and painted white to cover its fire-blackened walls. This is how it got the name the Whitehouse.

Typical Food

Thanksgiving dinner

No fancy centerpieces or long-simmering family squabbles at that first Thanksgiving when the Pilgrims decided not to fast but to party with the Wampanoag Indians in 1621 Plymouth.

Today we eschew the venison they most certainly ate, and we cram their three days of feasting into one gluttonous gorge.

Indigestion notwithstanding, nothing tastes so good as that quintessential all-American meal of turkey (roasted or deep-fried bird, or tofurkey, or that weirdly popular Louisiana contribution turducken), dressing (old loaf bread or cornbread, onion and celery, sausage, fruit, chestnuts, oysters -- whatever your mom did, the sage was the thing), cranberry sauce, mashed and sweet potatoes, that funky green bean casserole with the French-fried onion rings on top, and pumpkin pie.

Cheeseburger

Lunch counter, traditional, gourmet, sliders, Kobe. White Castle, Whataburger, Burger King, In-N-Out, McDonald’s, Steak N’ Shake, Five Guys, The Heart Attack Grill. It’s hard to believe, but it all began with a simple mistake.

Or so say the folks in Pasadena, California, who claims the classic cheeseburger was born there in the late 1920s when a young chef at The Rite Spot accidentally burned a burger and slapped on some cheese to cover his blunder.

Hot dogs

Nothing complements a baseball game or summer cookout quite like a hot dog.

For that we owe a debt to a similar sausage from Frankfurt, Germany (hence, “frankfurter” and “frank”) and German immigrant Charles Feltman, who is often credited with inventing the hot dog by using buns to save on plates.

But it was Polish immigrant Nathan Handwerker’s hot dog stand on Coney Island that turned the hot dog into an icon. Every Fourth of July since 1916, the very same Nathan’s has put on the International Hot Dog Eating Contest (current five-time winner Joey Chestnut took the title in 2011, downing 62 hot dogs and buns in the 10-minute face-stuffing).

Apple pie

According to a pie chart (seriously) from the American Pie Council, apple really is our national favorite followed by pumpkin, chocolate, lemon meringue and cherry.

Not to burst the patriotic bubble, but it’s not an American food of indigenous origin.

Food critic John Mariani dates the appearance of apple pies in the United States to 1780, long after they were popular in England. Apples aren’t even native to the continent; the Pilgrims brought seeds.

So what’s the deal with the star-spangled association? The pie council’s John Lehndorff explains: “When you say that something is ‘as American as apple pie,’ what you're really saying is that the item came to this country from elsewhere and was transformed into a distinctly American experience.”

Education

In United States, as in many countries, public education is divided into four basic levels: primary, secondary and higher education.

The education in the United States is provided mainly by the public sector, with control and funding from the three levels of government, federal, state and local. Child education is compulsory.

Preschool

Pre-kindergarten 3 (3-4)