The Story
“Looking back, I learned that the most important information is the one that you get from within, learning to discover oneself and listen.”
Meet Andrea
La Carishina
My grandmother was an opinionated business woman who dressed exquisitely and ran several restaurants with my grandfather in the 60’s. On my mother’s hand my grandfather was born and raised in the ecuadorian countryside “el campo” and closely engaged in the “montubio” culture ( people from the countryside in the coast of Ecuador) became a successful businessman starting with very little. Raised with this as my background, I was born in Guayaquil, one of the biggests cities in Ecuador, the hottest in climate and the one with most foreign influence. Having this close connection and pride is what motivates me to rescue folklore and cherish culture. As a young adult I fell in love with New York City and its magic. Looking back, I now know the most appealing aspect of New York to me is its diversity. I went to college in New York and learned about diversity and culture like many other New Yorkers do, by living in the most diverse city per square mile.
10 years in NY, a husband and two daughters later, I feel all the experiences in my life have helped me turn into a person who’s goal is to research folklore, culture and identity and what makes us proud of who we are . Being a migrant, I have two homes. Looking back, I learned that the most important information one gets is from within, learning to discover oneself and listen. As well as many opportunities overcame me thru these years; many challenges and experiences also showed me the difficulties of life with cultural diversity. I witnessed and was subject of discrimination, misunderstanding, confusion and many things that “get lost in translation”, when you work in a city as diverse as NYC. But on the flip side NY is one of the few places where being different is truly encouraged and celebrated.
I noticed there is little information, forums and spaces in media to discuss these challenges, and there is where my journey towards creating La Carishina begins. Thru these space we will like to create a community of people who love people, who thrive in discovering new and exciting places, and feature people who find folklore and communicate this for the world’s admiration. We want people to feel pride of their own culture and share it for others to embrace. Knowing our differences will help us understand and value each other. At La Carishina we want to create a community who is excited about getting to know each other and to contribute to self and the world’s discovery. We truly believe that by understanding each other we get the world and make it a better place. We look forward to contribute breaking barriers, taboos and we are able to show the world thru its diverse array of cultures, and traditions. We tap into the simple things of life that make it extraordinary and we hope we will be able to communicate this to you, so you’ll go and find it yourself!
Love,
Andrea
