El mes de la patria: Carnaval vegano

<<<diablo cojüelo. that yellow thing he's holding? he whacks you with it and it hurts.


February is 'el mes de la patria'. The whole month is dedicated to celebrating the Dominican Republic's proud history and, if you happen to own a grocery store, getting people to buy more food for discounted prices. Because Independence Day is February 27th and Lent also begins in February, the Church found it convenient to steer the meaning of Carnaval away from its traditional association with Lent--days and days of debauchery before we start denying ourselves in the name of our Lord--to celebrating Independence. Heaven forbid revelry have anything to do with the Church.

La Vega, about an hour and a half outside of Santo Domingo, is where the most famous Carnaval celebrations happen each year, on every Sunday in February. La Vega's best known for its diablos cojüelos. Groups of people picked by committee dress in flashy, terrifying devil costumes beat the crap out of people. Last Sunday, I went on a tour with a friend's friends. For the small fee of 1,100 pesos (about USD35), we got a bus ride in a comfy coach, open bar on the bus, a quick dip in an ice cold river, lunch at a cute restaurant, a few hours in La Vega at Carnval, and a ride back. Even though we left the capital at about 8:30, they were playing loud reggaeton, and dancing and talking (shouting) in the aisle. Dominicans are nonstop. I was tipsy by 11 and mildly hungover by 2.

Carnval itself was fun but a little bit scary. The night before, one of the bartenders at our favorite spot said the diablos are more likely to hit you if you have a big butt. Actually, they target women, especially any woman who's scantily clad. Being as narrow as I am, I mostly escaped the wrath of the diablos, but one of my friends got hit really hard because she has thick hips. Never thought I'd be grateful for my small butt. Aside from the diablos, there were tons and tons of people, most of whom are drunk and dancing to the competing sound systems from the company tents.

We had to fight our way back through the crowd to get to the bus. I was absolutely exhausted and managed to sleep some of the way back, even though the kid sitting next to me was singing along to cheesy ballads. The people on the tour were all really cool though, and we've started hanging out with them.