Yerba Maté

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I bought a giant 3 lb bag of yerba mate when I visited Argentina, a year and a half ago.  I finally opened the long, sealed bag and am drinking some now! For those that don’t know about it, it’s a tea-cult in Southern Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Chile. People drink yerba mate to socialize, relax, contemplate on life and as a form of caffeine, basically all day everyday. I kid you not, my friends and I saw people drinking it in bus stops, inside buses, while they were walking on the street, at the airport, even while shopping. Moreover, there are specially made leather purses to hold your thermo cup and mate tea leafs. Mate is not as easy user friendly as a cup of coffee from starbucks is. The tea leaves and water can only be mixed right before drinking in the owner’s own pumpkin cup (especially made for yerba mate to soak in all the flavors from each use). Here’s what it looks like:

As you can see, it’s quite a hassle to carry around, but definitely worth it for all its antioxidants and much needed caffeine to power one’s day.

Also, most importantly, yerba mate is normally drank in a group of people, so if you ever find yourself in Argentina and someone offers you their mate, be flattered and take this as a sign of trust. The bombilla, a specially made straw to keep the tea leaves out, is shared along with the yerba mate. Only someone that trusts you, and your saliva, will share their mate with you.

Enjoy~

Yoani Sanchez Stands up to Raul Castro’s Daughter

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So apparently Raul Castro’s daughter, Mariela Castro, made a twitter account. My ever-so-favorite blogger Yoani Sanchez, whom I’ve written about somewhere on here, challenged her freedom of speech and also challenged Mariela’s only defense of gay rights and no other areas pertaining to the Cuban community.

Yoani Sanchez: you rock!

Here’s the link to the article that cheered up my day.