Feliz año everyone!
I just got back from the beach where I got to celebrate the New Year with Andrea's family and friends. It was so much fun! Right before midnight, we walked out to the sand where we ate twelve grapes each to symbolize good fortune in the months to come. The grapes were giant and delicious! The sky was bright with paper lanterns that other families had set off, each one allowing them a wish. With just a couple minutes until midnight, the sound of Marc Anthony's Vivir mi Vida started blasting from speakers behind us and everyone was singing along. After midnight, there was the tradition of jumping over three waves and making a wish for each one. There was much wishing to do that night! The new year in Latin America is as much about chasing away the old year as it is about welcoming the new one, though, so many families were also burning giant dolls to rid themselves of the old year. Sometimes the dolls were even wrapped with old clothing if the families were particularly dissatisfied with the old year. Andrea's aunt asked me if I wanted to jump over the burning dolls to make a wish, but knowing myself I would have probably caught on fire so I decided against it. The rest of the night we spent dancing until the party shut down at 6:30 am, and we jumped in the ocean before napping the first morning of the 2016 away.
I was having camera struggles while I was at the beach, so I only was able to take a few photos on our last day there which I'm adding here. I also took some photos with my film camera, but for obvious reasons I won't be able to upload those until I can develop them back at home. There was actually a photo I took of a man and a child sitting in a moat they built with a giant sand pile behind them, and the man yelled for me to send him the photo! He recognized it wasn't a digital camera but I told him I could send the photo after I get back home to develop it many months from now. I pulled my notebook and pen out of my back pocket to write down his email and hopefully he'll have a pleasant surprise this summer when I return. I'm wondering how many times this type of exchange will happen again. :)
I just got back from the beach where I got to celebrate the New Year with Andrea's family and friends. It was so much fun! Right before midnight, we walked out to the sand where we ate twelve grapes each to symbolize good fortune in the months to come. The grapes were giant and delicious! The sky was bright with paper lanterns that other families had set off, each one allowing them a wish. With just a couple minutes until midnight, the sound of Marc Anthony's Vivir mi Vida started blasting from speakers behind us and everyone was singing along. After midnight, there was the tradition of jumping over three waves and making a wish for each one. There was much wishing to do that night! The new year in Latin America is as much about chasing away the old year as it is about welcoming the new one, though, so many families were also burning giant dolls to rid themselves of the old year. Sometimes the dolls were even wrapped with old clothing if the families were particularly dissatisfied with the old year. Andrea's aunt asked me if I wanted to jump over the burning dolls to make a wish, but knowing myself I would have probably caught on fire so I decided against it. The rest of the night we spent dancing until the party shut down at 6:30 am, and we jumped in the ocean before napping the first morning of the 2016 away.
I was having camera struggles while I was at the beach, so I only was able to take a few photos on our last day there which I'm adding here. I also took some photos with my film camera, but for obvious reasons I won't be able to upload those until I can develop them back at home. There was actually a photo I took of a man and a child sitting in a moat they built with a giant sand pile behind them, and the man yelled for me to send him the photo! He recognized it wasn't a digital camera but I told him I could send the photo after I get back home to develop it many months from now. I pulled my notebook and pen out of my back pocket to write down his email and hopefully he'll have a pleasant surprise this summer when I return. I'm wondering how many times this type of exchange will happen again. :)