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Yeltsin Loango

English 101

Professor Batty

March 30, 2017

A Cultural Plaza that Brings back Home

People who migrate from one place to another often have to adapt to a new way of living.

Adapting to something new is never easy for anyone. For that reason, many of the people

moving somewhere new take their traditions as well as their culture. When people bring this

from Latino cultures and spread it around, it is known as Latino urbanism. One perfect

example of this is Plaza Del Valle located in Panorama City. As one drives or walks past this

plaza they could see it just as a bunch of small chain of stores, or an outside swap meet.

Although many could just see it as that, a secondary meaning is found which a place where they

feel at home is. Being homesick is a horrible feeling, the plaza has certain aspects that make

people feel at home including; the people, the atmosphere, the events and imported goods found

in this place.

The plaza is a gathering place for many people from latin culture. California is not known

for having one outstanding race, since there are so many people from around the world that have

come here. Despite this, many times people wish to be with their kind and people they can relate

to. What better place to find people one can relate than here at the plaza. Many times when one

first arrives to the United States there's that sense of sacredness, I've seen this in my own family

that has come here, as well as in school. Latinos tend to find people that they can relate to and
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communicate to with. The plaza can be seen as a place for comfort for many, where they don't

have to fear what he/she would say about them since they come from the same, or close to the

same lifestyle. Observing the place I could tell that even people that did not know each other

would get to know each other really quickly. Another important thing I observed was the age

groups of people. I saw all sorts of ages from grandparents to teenagers hanging out with their

friends, and babies with their mothers. The babies with their mothers I related to a lot because I

remember when I would be taken here against my will and just see so many different things at

the time that I wouldn't understand. As a kid people see and hear the things around them, but

don't really get a full sense of what those things are. There is an age when you come to realize

what surrounds you and the function your 6 senses play in your life.

Every place gives a different vibe according to the atmosphere you're in, including the

Plaza del Valle. Which has a familiarity to Mexico, home for many people at the plaza. It goes

from seeing different colors all around you, to the music you heard as a child in your homeland,

to the smell of foods you would eat day after day, etc. According to the article On Fences,

Plazas, and Latino Urbanism, which talks about the emotional impact of leaving their home

which includes their lifestyle as well and how they act on it. It states that, Latinos bring their

traditions and activities to the existing built environment, being miles away they still have

brought everything with them (Kim). People gathered around the food court to eat foods very

Hispanic such as tamales, tacos, empanadas. This wasn't like in a mall where you see burgers,

subway, etc. Music plays a huge rule in the Hispanic life, and that exactly what you hear in the

plaza such as mariachi and Banda. It's so important that there is some statues of mariachis.

People have expressed different emotions or history through painting and many painting are
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found around the plaza.Something that caught my attention was the different murals that were

painted around the place. I would see the way people would talk about a certain one that stood

out to them and then impacted my life. The mural we were looking had a very strong message.

This mural consisted of a hallway of a town and first thing that comes to mind is it's somewhere

like Mexico. I think this mural said a lot itself in saying this is where we are, that we are in a

different place but here will make it our new home. As well as the location, it was towards an

entranceway to the plaza and I just taught how this said so much.

Plaza del Valle has events that remind people of home. The Hispanic culture is highly

known for parties. They will make the biggest parties for the smallest reasons just because they

love to spend time with family and friends. Believe it or not the plaza also brings that to the

table. We understand that to a party we invite family and friends and everyone gets to know each

other, in this case it's almost exactly the same although not everyone may know everyone, all

people are invited to go spend a good time. Events that have happened in the past have consisted

of Christmas, Halloween, sometimes mariachi will just go and everyone has a good time. They

make sure that everyone takes part in this, not forgetting the kids they always involve them in

small activities to enjoy themselves.

The plaza has imported good that also remind people of home. This place might just have

anything you're looking for and for good prices as well. If you look well enough you will find

what you're looking for, they having things from Colombia all the way to Mexico. Many of these

things are exported straight from a certain country. I spoke to a store clerk and saw many

handmade things she was selling and the question was asked Where do you get this from? Her

name was Cindy a lady from Salvador and she had told me that much of the stuff she was selling
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was exported from Salvador. Even though Cindy had her stuff exported, not all stores were

selling imported items. Competition is an issue that arises for many of them, there may be up to 5

stores selling the same things and business is tense. Not only does that occur with items but

another example would be barber shops, I counted at least 4 walking down and I wasn't even half

way to the other side.

As the year have been going by I have seen how this plaza has been increasing in the

number of stores and vendors. Seems to me that every year more stores open and that's great for

people to have more options and great for business. Nevertheless, this place isn't and never will

be only a shopping center for the Latino community. The greatness about this, is that it's not the

only one the Latinos have brought and created the idea they once saw back in their homes "In

Mexico, every town has the local plaza, the town square"(Hawthorne). History will follow us

wherever we go and we must learn to take it wherever for it shapes who we are and where we

come from. Sometimes as a kid you don't fully understand what you're living through, but as you

get older you remember those parts make you who you are.

Growing up and being at the plaza was never enjoyable for me as a child. As I now

understand that it has a second meaning to it, I feel like I belong there and that it wasn't just built

to sell items. It's very possible that they may be selling an item I need or want, but I think I

would like to go there and just spend time with the people. Everyone has an important story to

tell that could change someone's way of living, maybe I can help someone move forward in life

by telling them one of mine.

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Works Cited

Hawthorne, Christopher. "'Latino Urbanism' Influences a Los Angeles in Flux." Los Angeles
Times. Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2014. Web. 29 Mar. 2017.

Kim, Sojin. "On Fences, Plazas, and Latino Urbanism: A Conversation with James
Rojas."Smithsonian Institution. Talk Story, 24 Feb. 2015. Web. 29 Mar. 2017.