String Quartet & Lunar Eclipse

Last weekend, we went to see a string quartet that we are considering hiring for our wedding ceremony. We were invited to the balcony to watch the musicians and witness a gorgeous, candle-lit wedding. To our surprise, the church was stunning! We were excited by it, in part, because we had seen this church in photos but we didn't know where it was. We also enjoyed the lunar eclipse on February 20th We were able to see the darkening moon from the living room sitting comfortably in the couch. The night was almost perfectly clear.

February 2nd

Over the last few weeks, I kept wondering why the nativity scenes, especially in public shopping centers, hadn’t been put away yet. Instead of asking I just figured no one was in a hurry. Now, I understand. In an earlier post I had mentioned Three Kings’ Day. On this day, the tradition is to share a special bread, called rosca, with a group of people. Inside this bread are randomly placed dolls. If you find a doll, the rule is that on February 2nd, you bring tamales and atole (a hot drink) for everyone. (I wasn’t lucky enough to get a doll!). February 2nd is exactly 40 days after Christmas and in Mexico it is know as the ‘’Candelaria’’. It is a celebration of the day when, according to Jewish practices, Christ was presented in the temple by his parents. On this day, the manger babies are lifted out and taken to the church to be blessed. I was surprised by the excitement and celebration of this day! The sanctuary was full from wall to wall with most people standing, and a huge group had to stay outside. There was loud music, king costumes and dancing everywhere in and around the church!