Uno, Dos.....Quince

Ana, Maribel, Josie, me and Jody

Today was the Quincenera of my good friend Maribels daughter. For those who are unfamiliar with a Quince, it's the Mexican version of a "Sweet Sixteen" only it happens at the age of 15 and involves a church service. This happened to be my first Quince and the last big shin dig of my stay here. I certainly was not prepared for all the festivities of the day.

The church service began at 12noon. It is Catholic and almost entirely in Spanish. The service basically in essence is a commitment ceremony for the girl and her parents, consecrating herself in womanhood to the church (or at least that is what I gathered from what little Spanish I understand). The ceremony mimics that of a wedding, complete with attendants, both male and female. The service lasted about an hour. Following the service the "court" (the official name), hop in a limo to go take pictures and in this case, return to the parents house for snacks and drinks with the rest of the extended family and a few guests.

The reception (again, much like a wedding reception) started at 5pm. So around 400, the court jump back into the limo and cruise around arriving slightly late in order to make an entrance in front of the 200+ guests. A full course dinner is served around 6pm followed by a presentation by the "princess and her court" which involves traditional dances and "the passing on of youth" to a younger sister or cousin. After the presentation, the Father of the "princess" gives a toast and the cake (again, exactly like a wedding cake) is cut.

After the formal presentation is done, the real party starts. This Quince had a live band that alternated with the DJ that was also there. There is every type of music and dancing- Salsa, Meringue, ragatone, hip-hop, banda, instrumental....etc. You get the point. The dancing lasts into the wee hours of the morning. I called in quits at 1130pm, while my friend Maribel and her daughter Franceska were still tearing up the floor- After all, I need to do laundry so I can get all my stuff (which seems to have grown enormously) packed. I still have one crazy full day before I hop on the plane tomorrow night.



*stay tuned for part two of UTOPIAN LOVE STORY.........