‘La Kermés Latina’ offers cultural delights
by Breena Siegel
Latin American culture has a world reputation of holding colorful, vivacious festivals. “Carnaval” is one of the finest examples of such festivals. The largest celebration is held in Brazil and lasts for four days and nights with a roar of samba dancing. Or, for a festival solely focused on dance, there is the World Tango Festival, which takes place in Buenos Aires, Argentina each year.
Although Earlham students may generally be willing to have festivals extending four days, a two-hour event last Saturday was our version of a Latin American festival. The festival was advertised as “La Kermés Latina.” Kermés signifies a time of merriment and carnival activities.
Complete with music, dancing and a beautiful array of dishes, the festival reeled in at least 60 students, faculty and Richmond community members.
Festival coordinator Ricardo Garciaherreros Quiñones, sophomore, spoke of the importance of the festival.
“The purpose of this is for Amigos,” he said. “We are trying to support them.”
The proceeds of the festival will be donated to the Richmond Latino community center. Festival coordinators estimated that the proceeds totaled at least $200 to $300.
Students reacted happily to the choice of the location for the festival: the Heart.
Waseda University exchange student Atsushi Lizawa commented, “The outside location was good.”
A makeshift stage was also placed at the forefront of the festival. Traditional Mexican dances were performed from the states of Jalisco and Veracruz. The festival also included student performances from Mermaid on a Mountaintop, a recited poem by senior Patrick Raines and a violin piece by sophomore Charlotte-Anne Malischewski.
The food selection ranged from “carne salada” to “arepas con carne molida” to “tostadas.” Arepas and tostadas are both popular kinds of bread in Latin America. Arepas are small in size, round shaped and thick. Tostadas are a kind of tortilla and are round-shaped as well, although deep fried, crisp and flat.
The dinner was followed by an inviting desert of flan, which is a popular dish around the world. The food was accompanied by a popular drink from Latin America called horchata, which has a sweet, milky taste flavored with cinnamon and vanilla.
Senior and event emcee Hannah Reed commented on the experience of the festival.
“I really liked participating because I felt welcomed by the Latin community on campus. There was intergenerational happiness,” she said.
This was definitely felt by the laughter and giggles of children from the Richmond community. Luckily there were balloons, bubbles and even a baby Chihuahua that kept people charmed and afloat.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
