Navidades Boricuas!!! Puerto Rican Christmas!!

The best season for me to write a post is Christmas Season, beacause in Puerto Rico you have the longest Christmas you can imagen. We begin our Christmas right after Thanksgiving Day, after you eat the turkey all the decorations and the tree is set up. In Puerto Rico we have something call Parrandas or Trullas Navideñas, which could be compare to the Carolers but with an up beat  music and a lot of spirit. The Parrandas are made by a group of people with traditional instruments, being the percussion instruments a very important part of the great sound that comes out.

With the music you can't let out the food! First we have lechón, which is roosted pork on a metal stick under the fair. Then the traditional arroz con gandules, combination of rice with pigeons peas, and of course the morcilla, which is like a sausage made with pork blood and cooked rice. Also there is the pasteles, green bananas mass with pork or chicken inside made with different ingredients like chickpeas, olives, bell pepper, and other recipes, all this wrapped with the plantain leave and wax paper.

Arroz con gandules and pasteles, all the rights of the picture to its respected owner.

Morcilla, all the rights of the pictures to its respected owner.

But you need to drink something with that incredible food! Not a problem, you want something sweet with a little alcohol on it, well we have Puerto Rican eggnog...Coquito!! Without the egg is better, some people do it with different kinds of ice cream (vanilla, chocolate, pistachio, etc.) and now some also use Nutella, but the traditional is with coconut milk or cream, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and of curse Rum, some people use Ron Caña or Pitorro. Oh, you don't know what is Ron Caña? Well, let me tell you about it. This strong alcoholic beverage is a traditional drink made with molasses, water, and yeast. People who makes this kind of rum tend to mixed it with fruits and curated it by burying the bottles in the ground for a long period of time.    

Pitorro or Ron Caña, all the rights of the picture to its respected owner.

All the rights to its respected owner.

Well all this food, drinks, and music are part of our Puerto Rican culture. But our Christmas don't end on this particular day, it goes till eight days after Three Kings Day on January 6. And right after this the Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastian on Old San Juan, three days with all the Puerto Rican Culture you can get on one place. With this our festivities end, and we came back to our normal agendas. I hope you like the post and come to visit Puerto Rico on its best season, our temperature is the same all year ^.~ Comment and share, Merry Christmas!!!

Did They Got Married?

Variety world in South Korea is very clever and refreshing. An example of this is the variety/reality show We Got Married from channel MBC. Who else thought about pairing two celebrities and start a fake marriage? Well, Koreans did, and they did it good.

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They show started on February of 2008 and it aired on Sundays, with every week giving the couples missions to complete. It was a way of showing how would it be if they where really married. At first, the couple didn't know who their partner would be until their first meet. After their filming the production team interviewed the couples separately to know how they felt around their mates. The program also has a panel of host that are watching what the couple did along the week, also commenting on their progress along the show. Remember that Korean television is not like American TV, it's a show very innocent and pure who is aiming to younger audience, so don't expect all the drama and full make out sessions from shows like the Bachelor or Bachelorette. A simple gesture like holding hands is a big deal to them, skinship is more restrictive for Korean TV.


I personally don't watch all the show, just look for the couples that I have an interest to watch. First of all, I haven't seen a couple from the first season, I started with the second season with the Khuntoria couple (Nichkhun and Victoria). From now on I will mention some of the couples that I liked and the ones that didn't got to me.



1. JoKwon & Gain, Season 2: The Adam Couple
    JoKwon is a member of the ballad boy group 2AM, while Gain is part of the girl group Brown
    Eyed Girl. Since the first episode you don't stop laughing, they knew each other before the show
    and where a little awkward at the beginning but it changed real quick. JoKwon is well known on
    the on the variety world because of his exuberant attitude, while Gain has an strong character
    for which they sometimes fight but it wasn't for a long. They are two years apart, being Gain the
    older one on the relationship. The name Adam Couple comes on the third episode when her
    brothers in laws pointed out that they are small, and the Korean word for small its pronounced
    like Adam.

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2. Nichkhun & Victoria, Season 2-3: Khuntoria Couple
    Nichkhun is one of the members of the male idol group 2PM, while Victoria is the leader of the
    girl group f(x).The Khuntoria Couple was the longest couple on the show, followed by the Adam
    Couple and the Goguma Couple. They were also the first international couple, since he is
    Thai-American and she is Chinese. The interaction between them was something very refreshing,
    he always was attentive towards her and she was to him. There where some feelings around.
    The first couple that I wished they where real ^.~

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3. Eunjung & Lee JangWoo, Season 3: WooJung Couple, Walkang Walkang Couple
    Ham Eujung is member of the girl group T-ara, and also an actress better know for her character
    on Dream High and Coffee House. Lee JangWoo is an actor which also has a really good singing
    voice and talent on the acoustic guitar, he got really popular with the drama Smile, Dong Hae
    where he was the antagonist. They got the Walkang Walkang name when Eujung said the
    expression while walking on the grass at their honeymoon vacation.

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4. Leeteuk & Kang Sora, Season 3: Dimple Couple
    Leeteuk is the leader of the boy idol group Super Junior, and Kang Sora is an actress that was
    famous at that time for the movie Sunny and from a few dramas back then but now she is well
    known for dramas like Misaeng and Mendorong Totot (Warm and Cozy). The name Dimple
    Couple was given since both of them have dimples. I really wished that this couple was real
    because they seemed very genuine towars each other, they even shared a kiss on the last
    episode. I'm still waiting the announcement of their relationship!

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5. Jinwoo & Go JoonHee, Season 4: Extreme Couple
    Jinwoo is a member of the male ballad group 2AM, while JoonHee is a model turned actress.
    They where 6 years apart (7 in Korean culture), but that did not made a difference between
    them. She loved idol groups, and had a great sense of style like him which was great for the
    relationship. They are both very tall and together where a great visual. They where the
    extreme couple because of their progress on the show, with a lot of skinship in a little time.
    It was really entertaining watching them, because it wasn't as cheesy as other couples.
    They seemed real on their feelings towards each other, for which it was hard to see them
    go separate ways.

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6. Jang Wooyoung & Park Seyoung, Season 4: Young Couple
    Wooyoung is a member of the idol group 2PM, while Park Seyoung started as a singer but then
    turned to acting. It was named the Young Couple since both of their names ended the same, with
    Young. Since the beginning I liked the couple, because he was just clumsy when talking and she
    was just trying to adjust to her new life as a wife. As the time pass for the couple they got closer
    and really started to like each other, they even kissed on the last episode.

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7. Nam Goongmin & Hong Jinyoung, Season 4: Battery Couple
    Nam Goongmin is an actor, while Hong Jinyoung is a trot singer and tv personality. She was one
    of the members of the WGM panel which was more surprising to the new husband. A couple on
    their 30's was the best to watch, since they are on the best age to get married. The name Battery
    Couple comes from one of her songs, Love Battery. Since the first episode was fun watching
    them, she has a very bright personality and he is very straight forward with what he thinks.
    Their sincere personalities was what got to me, it was like watching a real couple managing
    everyday tasks. They cared for each other and it was fun to watch how they got closer with
    every episode. For me they where the best looking couple, because they seemed very realistic.

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Now the couples that I didn't like. For me it wasn't as natural as the other couples on the show, they seemed awkward most of the time and didn't have a closer relationship as the other couples.

1.  Jung Yong Hwa & Seohyun, Season 2: Goguma Couple
     Yong Hwa is member of the boy band CNBLUE while Seohyun is the youngest among the girl
     group Girls Generation (SNSD). Since the begining Seohyun was restricted towards Yong, always
     speking formal to him. For me it was frustrating watching her, the husband was always trying to
     make her more comfortable but she draw the line between them. In very few occasions she let
     her guard dawn. Goguma is Korean for sweet potato, which was her favorite food and the code
     with her members to let them know that she liked her husband.

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2. Lee Taemin & Son Naeun, Season 4: Innocent Couple
    Taemin is member of the boy idol group SHINee, Naeun is member of the girl group Apink.
    Since the beginning I didn't like the couple, they seemed awkward and more like sunbae (senior)
    and hoobae (junior) that are respectful terms use on the Korean culture. Then the relationship
    got a little closer but for me they where more like friends with some kind of feelings not like
    a couple.

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    For me the only entertaining episodes where when Key (one of the members of SHINee) and
    Eunji (another member of Apink) came on the scene. On an episode Key mentioned to Taemin 
    that he had to set up a blind date with one of the members of Apink, since he was helping him 
    with his relationship. From all the members of Apink he mentioned Eujin, since he liked her
    on a drama that she did and her attitude. With that the story of  the new couple was born. They
    shared a good chemistry on screen and I would've for them to be a couple, but it didn't happen
    (then he was cast for WGM Global Edition with Japanese model Yagi Arisa). I would say that
    the Key & Eunji Couple is a plus ^.~

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Well this is all I have to say about WGM. It's a unique show with some cuteness around, so if you like to watch a PG-13 romance you are good to go. Some are just PG on American culture, but is nice to watch some innocent love on TV for once. Hope you liked my review on the show! ^.^

To the Center of the Island: A trip to Jayuya

When people think Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, they think about the beach. But there is a lot more than beautiful beaches and tropical drinks on my Enchanting Island. At the inside of the Island you can explore incredible landscapes, filled with leafy trees and magical singing from the birds and coquíes. And the Municipio that we are going to explore on the mountainous Puerto Rico is: Jayuya, known as the center of our Taíno history. 

First stop, Museum of the History of Jayuya, there you can see a painting with iconic reference about the history of the Municpio and also a wall with all the ex-Mayors of the City, also next to the museum there is a very good coffee shop for you to try (Paliques Café). Right next to the coffee shop there is a staircase where the Monument of the Cacique Hayuya lays, a sculpture of the Cacique and a medallion of the "dios Sol" decors the stairs that lead you to the "Indio Puertorriqueño" tomb.    

"Jayuya: Cuando nos separamos de Utuado, 2010"

Grisergio Rivera Gonzáles

                                              

                                                      

The Cultural Center Alberto Suárez can be found when you climb all the way up the stairs. Stablished since 1986, this building has some expositions about our indigenous past. From tools that the Taínos used to some from the colonials, and also you can see the catholic influence on wood sculptures around the center.      

A few minutes away there is one of the most characteristics museums on town, Museo el Cemí. This museum is particularly interesting since is has the shape of one of the most well know pieces that the Taínos possessed, the cemí. A cemí is an artefact that the Taínos used for religious purposes. At the museum you can see pictures of indigenous findings around the Island, also tools and artefacts are spouse. Next to the museum you can visit Casa Canales, which is a replica of the house of Don Rosario Canales Quintero, the first mayor of Jayuya. Also there are the remains of the national hero Nemesio R. Canales.  

The last stop of the trip was to "La Piedra Escrita", an historical place on the Salientito River. The incredible rock has engravings from the Taínos, which has being subject of study from a great number of archeologists. Since 1994 there has being great efforts from the Education and Cultural Commission of the House of Representatives to declare the Petroglyphs a National Monument.     

Well, this is just a pick of what you can explore at the center of Puerto Rico and Jayuya. There is a lot more you can do on the Municpio, and on the Island. Hope you enjoy your visit to Puerto Rico anytime soon!! ^.^♥