¡Basta!

It's about time I inform you of Mafalda- a young Argentine icon that rivals Evita in popularity. Fortunately for Ms. Perón, Mafalda is two-dimensional and never grew out of her frizzy hair and Mary-Janes... seeing as how she's a cartoon character.

Tell 'em Mafalda

[You may be asking yourself, "What is it with you and cartoon characters, Anna?" But it's not me this time with the fascination, it's the fine people of Argentina! And as a culturally conscious guest, I too have adopted the obsession. So there.]

Mafalda is kind of like the Argentine equivalent to Charlie Brown. Juáquin Salvador Lavado aka Quino (his pen name) gave Mafalda life in 1964, and between then and 1973, Mafalda reminisced about world peace and humanity. She was quite a cynical six-year-old who criticized society and rebelled against it, teaching all her viewers lessons along the way.

Hmmm, I guess this post turned out being an obituary for a cartoon character. Oh, well. Long live Malfalda!

Oh, and here's a shameless pitch for my director, Carolina Escudero. She just sent me a link to the published article she wrote (in French) about Mafalda. If only I could understand ze most romantic language that is French... and sit beneath the eiffel tower all day munching on cheese and sipping wine, with the Amélie soundtrack playing in the background... oops. What am I saying? I'm in Argentina. Excuse me for the digression. For the French-speakers: « Arrêtez le monde, je veux descendre ! », Mafalda, 5 ans