Little Boys with Mustaches
Desi Arnaz and Xavier Cugat performed at the fiesta, and National Geographic magazine once did a feature story on the unique celebration in Texas.
Charro Days is a cultural festival that began in Brownsville in 1938 and still takes place every February. The oldest fiesta in the Rio Grande Valley commemorates the friendship and tradition that exist between the people of Brownsville and its sister city of Matamoros, Mexico.
Only the Rio Grande River separates both cities.
“The event is named for the charros, who are cowboys in the Mexican culture,” says Henry LeVrier, president of the Charro Days Association. “The festival also includes china poblanas, who are women wearing traditional colorful Mexican dresses. And many mothers paint mustaches on their little boys in honor of the tradition and romantic legend that is linked to the Mexican cowboy.”
There is also annual recognition paid to “Mr. Amigo,” spotlighting a person from Mexico who has contributed to the relationship between both cities and both countries. |
