¡feliz cinco de ocho!
(Thanks to Chris Matza for reminding me of my favorite Simpson holiday!)
It's feria time in San Ramon which means several days of events, reasons for people to get drunk and more catcalls in the streets (I love you forever!)
As with most Honduran ceremonies, there has to be a queen elected. Wednesday night was the presentation of the candiates for queen-in their best sporting outfits (I totally could rock that portion of the competition), casual wear, and evening gown-of course. To be queen of the feria you have to have a certain organiztion represent you, such as the colegio or a local NGO and then if people support the idea of you being queen, they will buy your votes. (Hey at least everyone knows that votes are being purchased from the get go and not in secret.) The person with the most money collected will be the queen.
Last night was the suspenseful "Who will be the queen of San Ramon?" There were 3 rounds to determine the winner. All the money that was collected before the event began was placed into envelopes with the box for the first round. Each envelope is opened and the amount is given. For example, "Bessy Guevara, 125 lps." The totals are read and for the 2nd and 3rd rounds people from the crowd can put money into an envelope and put it in the box in support of their candidate.
After the first two rounds, it was pretty close between two girls, Yesenia and Yajaira, each of them having connections to the municipality. The third round was exciting because the money just kept coming for both of them.
Here were the announcements:
Yesenia "875 lempiras"
Yajaira "1000 lempiras"
Yesenia "1300 lempiras"
Yajaira "1700 lempiras"
And it went on like that for a little while longer. While the exchange rate is very favorable, when you're talking in the 1000s of lempiras, that's some serious cash just to wear a sash for a day. In the end, Yajaira, connected to the mayor (naturally) won the title with a grand total of 8700 lempiras (almost $500!). The money goes to the school and the municipality. Her coronation takes place Monday. Tonight is cultural night at the grade school and people in San Ramon can participate in singing or dancing. I'm trying to convince one of the cute teachers to sing a Juanes song for me (with little success). After the crowning, there will be a dance held in the San Ramon equivalent of a town hall (someone's garage-ish place).
To be continued...
It's feria time in San Ramon which means several days of events, reasons for people to get drunk and more catcalls in the streets (I love you forever!)
As with most Honduran ceremonies, there has to be a queen elected. Wednesday night was the presentation of the candiates for queen-in their best sporting outfits (I totally could rock that portion of the competition), casual wear, and evening gown-of course. To be queen of the feria you have to have a certain organiztion represent you, such as the colegio or a local NGO and then if people support the idea of you being queen, they will buy your votes. (Hey at least everyone knows that votes are being purchased from the get go and not in secret.) The person with the most money collected will be the queen.
Last night was the suspenseful "Who will be the queen of San Ramon?" There were 3 rounds to determine the winner. All the money that was collected before the event began was placed into envelopes with the box for the first round. Each envelope is opened and the amount is given. For example, "Bessy Guevara, 125 lps." The totals are read and for the 2nd and 3rd rounds people from the crowd can put money into an envelope and put it in the box in support of their candidate.
After the first two rounds, it was pretty close between two girls, Yesenia and Yajaira, each of them having connections to the municipality. The third round was exciting because the money just kept coming for both of them.
Here were the announcements:
Yesenia "875 lempiras"
Yajaira "1000 lempiras"
Yesenia "1300 lempiras"
Yajaira "1700 lempiras"
And it went on like that for a little while longer. While the exchange rate is very favorable, when you're talking in the 1000s of lempiras, that's some serious cash just to wear a sash for a day. In the end, Yajaira, connected to the mayor (naturally) won the title with a grand total of 8700 lempiras (almost $500!). The money goes to the school and the municipality. Her coronation takes place Monday. Tonight is cultural night at the grade school and people in San Ramon can participate in singing or dancing. I'm trying to convince one of the cute teachers to sing a Juanes song for me (with little success). After the crowning, there will be a dance held in the San Ramon equivalent of a town hall (someone's garage-ish place).
To be continued...
posted by Kathryn @ 9:30 AM
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