Bonne Annee..........

Another year has come and gone.  Bring it on 2019!!!!

You can read more New Years facts and trivia blog posts here and here. 

In Argentina at exactly 12:00, everyone takes one step forward with their right foot so they can get the year started off "on the right foot."

They also eat beans, a lot of beans with the belief of a prosperous new year.

In Chile at midnight, they eat one spoonful of lentils so the year will be filled with money.

They also grab brooms and sweep out their homes to rid the house of bad energy.

They are especially fond
of  burning Spongebob in
Ecuador.

Ecuadorians make a doll thing of sorts that usually resembles politicians, pop stars, and/or other famous people and burn them in the streets at midnight.  This burns away the old year for a fresh new year to begin.

When the clock strikes midnight, they eat 12 grapes before 12:01 which is said to be harder than it sounds to do.

In England, they believe the first person to come through your door will bring you good luck in the new year but it should be a young handsome man carrying salt, coal, money, and bread but beware of any person with red hair.  They refer to this as "first-footer."

They eat a lot of bread and drink an excessive amount of beer.

The French eat escargot, oysters, and foie gras, which is liver from a duck or a goose (besides eating anything from an animal being gross and unnecessary, the French take it one step further.  They literally force-feed the ducks and geese with a feeding tube shoved down their throat to fatten up their livers.  What a bunch of saccades!).
Side note, never tell a French person Happy New Year until it is actually the new year.  They are sensitive about that.

In the Netherlands, they eat big oily balls of dough (gross) called oliebollen.  I guess basically it is like a donut hole which sounds better than big oily balls of dough!


They burn their Christmas trees and have bonfires to celebrate.

In the Philippines, they open all the windows, doors, and cabinets and turn off all the lights and just after midnight, they race around shutting them all back.  This is to ward off evil spirits in the new year.  Not sure how that works but okay, whatever. 

They also eat foods that are round again for a prosperous new year. 

Russians write down a wish on a piece of paper and at midnight set the paper on fire and put it in a glass of champagne and drink it before 12:01.

They fancy eating sweets for the new year.

The Spaniards eat 12 grapes exactly when the clock strikes 12 and must have them all eaten before 12:01.
They celebrate with red undergarments and lots of lottery tickets.

We have gone with the black-eyed peas, cornbread, and greens over the last few years, and we have been lucky.  We were going to shake up the menu this year but decided to just add rice pilaf, vegan Italian sausage, and spiced up lentils.  Yum!

Tropical tubers.......

I'm not talking about YouTubers.  I'm talking tapioca.  Tapioca is the starch extracted from the Cassava plant.  This is a highly toxic plant and can be fatal for humans and animals if not prepared properly and yet half a billion people around the world still use this super starchy, poisonous tuber and foods containing it.

Tapioca a.k.a. Cassava plant, manioca, mandioca, Brazilian arrowroot, and yuca dates back 12,000 years to South America while today, Thailand is the highest importer of Cassava and Nigeria is the greatest manufacturer.

Tapioca can be made into chips, ground into flour, baked into crackers and breads, and grated.  While tapioca is gluten-free, it is also heavy in calories.  The process to form the Cassava pearls that you see in the US is an extremely important process.  The moistened starch has to be pressed through a sieve, either small or large depending what the finished result will be used for.  The most important goal is to properly treat the plant to avoid cyanide poising but in reality only between 80% to 95% cyanide loss occurs even under the best circumstances.

Cyanide poising (linamarin and lotaustralin) can occur with improperly treated Cassava plants.  Rapid pulse, rapid respiration, dizziness, headaches, vomiting, convulsions, confusion, thyroid problems, neurological problems, pain, and diarrhea are all symptoms of cyanide poisoning.  This is a cheap source of starch and carbohydrates but I'm not sure the risk/benefit ratio is worth eating it.

Back in 2010, a total of 27 children died and more than 100 children became ill after eating Cassava at a Philippine school.  You can read about that here.  The Japanese Ministry of Health prohibits the use of Cassava plant in any form for human consumption.  There have also been recalls on many food items containing Cassava plant (tapioca) all over the world, as well as illnesses and deaths.

The proof is in the pudding.  Here are a few tips to hopefully help you avoid eating toxic Cassava if you prepare it yourself.  You will have to take your chances if it is an included ingredient in foods you are buying.  Always check the labels on your food.  Prolonged soaking, boiling, peeling, grating, and then sun drying are all necessary to encourage fermentation.  The smaller the piece, the better.  Many nutritionist and dietitian do not recommend Cassava-containing foods.

South America continued: The Andes Mountains

Here is what we know:

Francisco Pizarro picture from the web

~This mountain range was home to the Inca Empire.  Quick background-The Inca Empire was in Peru and ruled most of the
west coast of South America from the 1400s.  The Incas remained in place until the Spanish arrived in 1532. Even though it is believed that the Inca Empire had a population of over 10 million people, the Spanish, along with Francisco Pizarro conquered the Inca Empire and took over.  This happened in 1533.  Francisco Pizarro died in Lima, Peru in 1541.

~The Andes Mountains are the backbone of South America.

~This mountain range extends over seven countries.  In alphabetical order, they are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.

~The Andes cover a surface of about 2 million square km or 800,000 square miles.

~The estimated height is about 13,000 feet.

~The highest peak is Aconcagua in NW Argentina.

~Most of the Andes are volcanic mountains.

~The Andes have a variety of fauna and flora.  There are 1700 birds species, 600 mammals, 400 species of fish, 600 species of reptiles, and 1000 species of amphibians.  You can also find 30,000 species of plants.

~Have you ever heard of an Andean Flamingo?  It is the rarest Flamingo in the world, and they only hang out at the Andes Mountains in South America.  

Andean Flamingo-image from Wiki

~Check out this Andean Condor.  These New World Vultures are on the near threatened list.  These vultures nest on the mountain ledges and only lay one egg about every other year.

Andean Condor image from Wiki

~Ever heard of a yellow-tailed woolly monkey?  Me neither!  Probably because it is critically endangered and you can only find these rare species of primates in the Peruvian Andes.

Yellow-tailed woolly monkey-image from Wiki

~Another extremely in endangered critter from the Andes is the Golden Viscacha rat.  This is a rare rodent is related to the chinchilla.  They make their homes in large mounds which protects them from flood waters that arise each summer.

Viscacha rat-image and info from PBS

I guess I could go on and on but I will stop here as this is already a lot of info.  A lot of new info.

You can read more at Blue Planet Biomes.
Live science 

Venezuela

Venezuela is a little more than twice the size of California and is home to around 29 million people of which approximately 96% are Roman Catholic.  The official language is Spanish but there are numerous other dialects spoken as well.  The capital is Caracas.  The lowest point is the Caribbean Sea, and the highest point is Pico Bolivar.  Venezuela has a  tropical climate.  Nicolas Maduro Moros is the current president of Venezuela.  Their currency is the bolivar.

Venezuela is home to the Spectacle bear  (Tremarctos ornatus).  Also known as the Andean bear. The Spectacle bear is the only species of bear in South America.  It is called the Spectacle bear due to the white rings around its eyes.  They look like glasses.  

The national symbol of Venezuela is the Venezuelan Troupial (Icterus icterus).  You can read more about this "New World Oriole" here.

~Angel Falls is the highest waterfall in the world at 980 meters.
~They export aluminum, chemicals, petroleum, and steel.
~Venezuela means Little Venice.
~Carib Indians were the first to inhabit Venezuela and the first Spanish explorers settled in Venezuela in 1520.
~Part of the Amazon Rainforest is in Venezuela.
~Can you believe that gas is only 8 cents a gallon in Venezuela?  Venezuela is an oil-rich country.
~Venezuela has one of the highest kidnapping rates in the world.
~There are only two seasons in Venezuela; hot and dry and hot and wet.
~During the Christmas season, you will see people roller skating to church.

Read more at factmonster.
wiki
current news -protesting the current President Maduro leads to chaos and jail time, February 4, 2014.

Geography study: South America-The Caribbean Countries.

South America is a pretty big place so we are going to start with the Caribbean countries and work our way around South America.

The Caribbean countries consists of Colombia and Venezuela.  I am going to have to separate these two as there is so much to go over.  So for now, welcome to Colombia.

Factoids:

~Government-Republic.  The Republic of Colombia.

~Juan Manuel Santos is the 32nd and current president of Colombia.

~Capital-Bogota.  On average, there is one bank robbery each day in Bogota.

~Almost 45 million people live in Colombia.

~Religion-about 90% are Roman Catholic.

~Major exports include coffee, bananas, flowers, coal, and petroleum.  Colombia is also rich with cocaine.

~Colombia is the gateway to South America.

~The official language is Spanish but they also have 64 native tongues which are still spoken today.

Amazona festiva

~60% of the world's Emeralds are produced in Colombia.

~Their currency is the Colombian Pesos.

~Colombia was derived from the name Christopher Columbus (Cristobal Colon).

~Pico Cristobal Colon is the highest peak in Colombia at 5797 meters.

~There are no seasons in Colombia since Colombia is so close to the equator.

~Colombia has 1871 species of bird.

pygmy marmoset

~Colombia also is home to a few very special animals such as the adorable pygmy marmoset.  Colombia has approximately 450 mammals of which half are endangered due to deforestation. The Amazon River in Colombia is home to the endangered Pink Dolphins.

~The Kokoi frog is the most deadly animal in Colombia.

~Colombia is also home to approximately 130,000 plants in which many are used for medicinal purposes.

~If you have had too much to drink, don't walk home.  Walking drunk in Colombia is illegal.

~In Colombia, they dip cheese into their hot chocolate.

National Geographic Kids Colombia
Time for Kids
List of birds wiki
Animals of Colombia-fact zoo
wiki list of plants