December 1st was International World AIDS Day, so my youth group (Escojo mi vida) and I planned an AIDS march through our community. First we met in our community center to make signs, then we marched through the community shouting AIDS messages, like “Si a la vida, No al SIDA’ and ‘Escojo mi vidi contra el SIDA.’ At first the girls were a little shy when we passed a group of people, but by the end they were shouting really loud. They were great!
And now, the best thing of all: Noche Vela (literally ‘candle night’)! Saints here are a very big deal. Every region of the country has their own patron saint, which warrants a 1-week long celebration (Patronales) which I have yet to witness! There are also a bunch of days in the year devoted to the celebration of certain saints. Anyway, Noche vela was December 2 and celebrates saints in general, and the Virgin of Altagracia in particular. There’s about 4 Noche Velas throughout the year, which I couldn’t be happier about. Ok here’s why it’s so great: during the day, they dig these long pits in the ground, fill them with firewood, and put these huge pots on top, cover with banana leaves, and cook for hours. There’s chen-chen, which is a polenta-like goup of ground corn, there’s goat, and then rice and beans of course, because what’s a Dominican meal without rice and beans? When the food was ready, half the community suddenly appeared to chow down. Oh yea, and the goat head was hung up from a tree for a domestic touch. Then came the palos (literally ‘sticks’). This is a music group with big tambora drums, and they play the drums and sing/chant while people ‘dance palo,’ which is pretty much however you feel like dancing. It was amazing, and it went on all afternoon and night. I danced a lot with the kids and the Doñas. Love the doñas. I forgot to take pictures, but there’s another Noche Vela at the end of January, so I’ll try to get some then. It’s really cool to see a tradition that clearly has Taino Indian and African influence. Apparently the palos are only in certain regions, so I’m lucky to be in San Juan!
