Tuesday, December 26, (martes, 26 de diciembre)
Well Christmas was ... pretty much just a regular day for those of us who live here with the Dominicans. I learned a lot though. I was fortunate enough to be invited to a traditional Christmas Eve dinner in the barrio with my dominican friends.
Today's entry is all about that. But, outside of that, I found it very difficult to feel any kind of Christmas spirit. I have grown up associating Christmas with cold weather. Experiencing Christmas when it is 85 degrees is very different.
The traditional Christmas Eve meal is a pig roast. I celebrated with several families who live near one another in el barrio Policlinica.
For the past several weeks I have seen this pig tethered here and there in the neighborhood. At first, I assumed Mr. Puerco (pig) was a family pet (animal domestico). But, noooooooooo, Mr Puerco was the Christmas Eve feast.
I hate it that I did not get a picture of Mr. Puerco before his demise on the 23rd, but just failed to do so. It is hard to make a picture of a pig a priority. Anyway...this entry should begin with a nice picture of Mr. Puerco sniffing around, unaware of his fate. However, you will have to imagine that picture.
Angela and a neighborhood girl preparing the seasoning for Mr. Puerco, on the evening of the 23rd.
Angela crushing ajo (garlic).
This is the daughter of Claudia, who works at Hamburger Paradise in the evenings for Tom. She is preparing the cilantro for the meal. Cilantro is an important part of most dominican meals and I have learned to really like food that is seasoned with it. Little girls in the barrio learn very early in life how to cook.
All the neighborhood kids are interested in the preparing of Mr. Puerco on the evening of the 23rd.
Taken the afternoon of the 24th. You can see how the men prepared the pit and the fire for the roasting. There are actually two pigs being roasted.
The men turn the pig over the fire all day long. I made several trips up to the colmado for beer to keep them fortified during the process.
Almost ready!
Christmas is about kids and so is the barrio. They are everywhere.
While the men roasted Mr. Puerco, the children toasted bread over the fire. Kind of the equivalent of an American marshmallow (malvavisco) roast I guess.
Whenever I am seen in the barrio, the kids rush up to have their pictures taken. They are such 'hams.' Hmmmm no pun intended.
Cutting the pig into small pieces for dinner, just an hour or so away.
The Christmas meal ready to eat. Tons of Presidentes not pictured, but definitely present.
The women scurry around making sure that the men and the children are fed first. Then they fix plates for themselves and join in. Kind of like old times long gone in my culture. God, how I love the machismo culture.
This is my Christmas Eve guest, Ramonita. I think she thought I would be taking her to some kind of upscale restaurant for the evening, but she was happy enough to go with me to the barrio. I will treat her with a meal at a nice restaurant, perhaps New Year's Eve if she is with me that night.
Dominican Baseball ... is switching into "high gear" now that it is time for the playoffs. I love baseball and after following my Cardinals all summer, I switch to the Dominican Winter League once I get down here. Of course, I am a big fan of Aguilas de Cibaenas, the Santigo team as most people in Sosua are.
It is a 6-team league and league play takes place from the end of October until Christmas. The top 4 teams qualify for the next round, which is "round robin" play between each other until the 16th of January. Then the top two teams, I believe, qualify for a best 5 of 9 playoff to determine the Dominican Champion, who will play in the Caribbean World Series against the winners from Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
The "round robin" playoff will feature games between Aguilas de Cibaenas (Santiago), Tigres del Licey (Santo Domingo), Gigantes de Cibao (San Francisco de Macoris) and Toros de Azucareros (La Romana).
Many thanks to Renato for sending out the "round robin" schedule. I hope to get to Santiago to watch a game. What an experience that will be. Baseball games here are much different than in the states. It is like a huge party with cheerleaders, whistles, flags, dancing etc. That should not surprise anyone. Dominicanos are such happy people and they do love to party!
Word for the day ... ademas
ademas = in addition to ... or ... besides ... or ... more later
Life is Good ... Stay Tuned!
Well Christmas was ... pretty much just a regular day for those of us who live here with the Dominicans. I learned a lot though. I was fortunate enough to be invited to a traditional Christmas Eve dinner in the barrio with my dominican friends.
Today's entry is all about that. But, outside of that, I found it very difficult to feel any kind of Christmas spirit. I have grown up associating Christmas with cold weather. Experiencing Christmas when it is 85 degrees is very different.
The traditional Christmas Eve meal is a pig roast. I celebrated with several families who live near one another in el barrio Policlinica.
For the past several weeks I have seen this pig tethered here and there in the neighborhood. At first, I assumed Mr. Puerco (pig) was a family pet (animal domestico). But, noooooooooo, Mr Puerco was the Christmas Eve feast.
I hate it that I did not get a picture of Mr. Puerco before his demise on the 23rd, but just failed to do so. It is hard to make a picture of a pig a priority. Anyway...this entry should begin with a nice picture of Mr. Puerco sniffing around, unaware of his fate. However, you will have to imagine that picture.
Angela and a neighborhood girl preparing the seasoning for Mr. Puerco, on the evening of the 23rd.
Angela crushing ajo (garlic).
This is the daughter of Claudia, who works at Hamburger Paradise in the evenings for Tom. She is preparing the cilantro for the meal. Cilantro is an important part of most dominican meals and I have learned to really like food that is seasoned with it. Little girls in the barrio learn very early in life how to cook.
All the neighborhood kids are interested in the preparing of Mr. Puerco on the evening of the 23rd.
Taken the afternoon of the 24th. You can see how the men prepared the pit and the fire for the roasting. There are actually two pigs being roasted.
The men turn the pig over the fire all day long. I made several trips up to the colmado for beer to keep them fortified during the process.
Almost ready!
Christmas is about kids and so is the barrio. They are everywhere.
While the men roasted Mr. Puerco, the children toasted bread over the fire. Kind of the equivalent of an American marshmallow (malvavisco) roast I guess.
Whenever I am seen in the barrio, the kids rush up to have their pictures taken. They are such 'hams.' Hmmmm no pun intended.
Cutting the pig into small pieces for dinner, just an hour or so away.
The Christmas meal ready to eat. Tons of Presidentes not pictured, but definitely present.
The women scurry around making sure that the men and the children are fed first. Then they fix plates for themselves and join in. Kind of like old times long gone in my culture. God, how I love the machismo culture.
This is my Christmas Eve guest, Ramonita. I think she thought I would be taking her to some kind of upscale restaurant for the evening, but she was happy enough to go with me to the barrio. I will treat her with a meal at a nice restaurant, perhaps New Year's Eve if she is with me that night.Dominican Baseball ... is switching into "high gear" now that it is time for the playoffs. I love baseball and after following my Cardinals all summer, I switch to the Dominican Winter League once I get down here. Of course, I am a big fan of Aguilas de Cibaenas, the Santigo team as most people in Sosua are.
It is a 6-team league and league play takes place from the end of October until Christmas. The top 4 teams qualify for the next round, which is "round robin" play between each other until the 16th of January. Then the top two teams, I believe, qualify for a best 5 of 9 playoff to determine the Dominican Champion, who will play in the Caribbean World Series against the winners from Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
The "round robin" playoff will feature games between Aguilas de Cibaenas (Santiago), Tigres del Licey (Santo Domingo), Gigantes de Cibao (San Francisco de Macoris) and Toros de Azucareros (La Romana).
Many thanks to Renato for sending out the "round robin" schedule. I hope to get to Santiago to watch a game. What an experience that will be. Baseball games here are much different than in the states. It is like a huge party with cheerleaders, whistles, flags, dancing etc. That should not surprise anyone. Dominicanos are such happy people and they do love to party!
Word for the day ... ademas
ademas = in addition to ... or ... besides ... or ... more later
Life is Good ... Stay Tuned!
posted by Miguel at 9:45 AM
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