Today is Indigenous Peoples' Day in the United States of America.  Originally named Columbus Day to celebrate the discovery by Christopher Columbus of the greater Americas, the day now celebrates the people he and his men encountered upon their arrival.  It is high time that their cultural heritage is recognized. Regardless of one's feelings about Columbus and colonialism, he and other explorers who followed did alter the world in many ways - some obvious and others they would never have anticipated.  A case in point - food.

This strange place explorers encountered held incredible riches, not only in precious metals but in plants they had never seen nor tasted.  Plants that one could say changed cultural and culinary landscapes forever.  The list of New World foods is huge and I cannot think of a single country or culture that does not use at least a few of them  They include some of my personal favorites and I cannot imagine a world without them.  Vanilla, chocolate, corn, peppers, squash, potatoes, beans, pineapple, pecans, and peanuts, to name a few.  A tip of the hat to the Indigenous Peoples who originally discovered and cultivated these jewels, as well as to those who explored and returned to the Old World, spreading the "taste" wealth far and wide.

Peppers in a Budapest market

Peppers in Budapest, Hugary

Bagged cacao beans from Venezuela at Cafe Chokola in Taos.

Cocoa bean bag

Marigolds and gourds are both New World plants.

squash and marigolds

from the 2017 tomato harvest on the mesa

tomato crop

Old World meets New World - beautiful Native American corn, on Navajo Churro wool of sheep originally from the Old World and brought to the New World by the Spaniards.

Native American corn on churro wool

As a photographer and a person with an interest in food and its history, I try to embrace these humble plants and crops with my camera.  They provide numerous photographic opportunities in addition to the joy of eating them.  I encourage anyone who is a photographer - amateur or professional - not to forget food and its origins while exploring at home or abroad.  Some of my favorite images by professional photographers include food.

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image@