I went to my first Quinceanera (Sp?) here in Argentina the other night. For those of you not familiar with Latin Culture, it is an old school event that still happens today. Much like the "Sweet 16" Birthday for girls in the US, this is for a girl's 15th birthday party. Back in the day, it was a "coming out party" for the young ladies. It was probably a much bigger deal back in the day when life was hard, life spans were short, people grew up fast and got married way earlier than these day.
Anyway, in some cultures, like in Mexican culture for instance, it is a REALLY big deal. Some families will spend as much money on it as a wedding! Some of the girls will even buy wedding gowns to wear for their party! Yeah. It's that big.
Being new in Argentina, and this being my first one here, I was not sure just how important it is here. It was a big deal, although no where near as big as in Mexican Families.
What I should have known better about was the time frame. Some things in Latin Culture are very on time - getting to work on time, getting to school on time, starting a church service on time, etc. But, most social events...well, time is definitely NOT the priority, the event is.
The event was supposed to start at 8:30 PM. I was stressing because I was trying to get a bunch of important errands done and help Heather out with some things at home. I was running "late." (That is such a North American mindset. : ) - I arrived at the church at 9 pm - a full 1/2 "late." Well, there were not too many people there. No one was in a hurry to get started. I wasn't even sure it was still happening anymore.
It was. lol. It didn't really get started until about 10:30 pm & I ended up being one of the first to leave at about 1 am. Lol. Silly me. I should have known better by now.
Good Night all
Good bless &...be careful to remember what you should already know by now -
Paz y favor del Padre -
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