You may know the baraja española, the Spanish deck of cards, with its classic renderings of kings and knights in four suits. Our illustrator friend Antonio Vargas created a uniquely Mexican baraja with native imagery drawing from the pre-Columbian Aztec, Olmec, Toltec and Mayan cultures.

Nelly Ocacia and Benjamín Moldonado are both 19-year-old university students, and enjoy dancing with the Ballet Folklórico Guamanique when not studying. We caught up with them at the airport in San Juan, where they were welcoming new arrivals and seeing off departing passengers, much to the delight of travelers.

Although the Colombian version of The Wonder Years is based upon the well-known American series, Carlos explains to us some similarities and differences between the two versions.

Within the second part of the first episode of the Colombian version of The Wonder Years, Carlos points out several examples of a manner of speaking that is very typical to Bogota.

Ecuadorian "Poné," or shamans, utilize plants for their medicinal effects. In this video, we learn about some of their beliefs and wisdom.

Vela, a word often used for “candle,” or “sail,” can also mean “wakefulness,” as in “vigilance.” It’s related to the verb velar, “to stand watch.” The name of the port city of La Vela de Coro refers not to the “sails” of merchant ships (as many assume) but rather to this town’s role as a “lookout” point for marauding pirates. One-eyed peg-legs are now less common, but the carnivalesque annual festival of Los Locos continues on.

Most English speakers have at some time in their lives heard Donovan sing “The Hurdy Gurdy Man,” but how many knew what such a man did? The woman in this video talks about a musical family that used to play the sinfonía, and indeed this is the Spanish name for the hand-crank organ known as a “hurdy gurdy.”

It’s quite possible that El Día de Los Locos, as celebrated in La Vela de Coro, has its roots as far back as the Roman Empire, which celebrated Saturnalia at the same time of year. Both festivals, historically, involve turning the social order on its head, with slaves dressing like their masters.

La Vela is a small town in the state of Falcón, on the northwest coast of Venezuela, where every December 28th Los Locos [“The Crazy Ones”] arrive wearing colorful and elaborated costumes. The whole town becomes a party, with businesses closing and people dancing in the streets. It’s a tradition that could be in any magical realism novel and that desperately struggles to not fall into oblivion.

Meet Joaquín Pérez, an award-winning Andalusian Nativity Scene sculptor.

At Colombia's Mono Núñez music festival, many indigenous musical instruments can be heard. Learn about some of them in this video.

Mario learns that diversity at the Mono Núñez Festival extends beyond the various Colombian musicians, as English people seem to enjoy Andean music as much as Colombians do!

Singing in Nasa Yuwe, their native language, is one way in which Colombia's indigenous Nasa population strives to preserve and make more visible their language, culture and customs.

Guillermina and Candelario tell their grandfather how, aboard a submarine, they managed to recover Candelario's lost boat.

Guillermina and Candelario tell their grandfather about their flight above the sea aboard a unique balloon.

Guillermina and Candelario tell their grandpa about their cake-making adventures and what they learned about coconut in the process.

Guillermina and Candelario tell their grandfather about their strange encounter with pelicans one day while racing their paper boats.

In the process of recounting to their grandpa their adventures while looking for Guillermina's lost kite, Guillermina and Candelario learn all about volcanoes and islands.

One day while looking for shells for Guillermina's collection, Guillermina and Candelario find themselves in the mangrove, where they experience yet another wondrous adventure.

Guillermina and Candelario enjoy a day at the beach with the help of a palm tree that they use as a swing, but something incredible happens when Guillermina gets tangled up in it.

Guillermina and Candelario experience yet another adventurous outing in the jungle, where they play "King of the Jungle," a game in which they include their grandpa upon their return.

Guillermina and Candelario go to play at the lighthouse- and learn a lot in the process!

When the doll house that Guillermina is building gets swept away by a wave, Mister Snail offers his expertise to help build a new one.

During their visit to the City of Crabs, Guillermina and Candelario encounter both the ghost and fiddler crabs- and take a lot of pictures along the way!