Annual Maya Fiesta in Jupiter celebrates Guatemalan heritage – Florida

While most Americans geared up for the biggest football game of the year Sunday, Guatemalans near Abacoa Town Center got together for a different celebration.

Symbolizing the ritualistic hunt for deer, a group of dancers gathered near Roger Dean Stadium donned intricate blue or black costumes lined with strips of bright yellow or white cloth and wore masks made to look like dogs, lions, monkeys or tigers.

Jose Luis Hernandez got to be the main character, wearing a deer mask for the length of the Baile del Venado (Dance of the Deer), at the seventh Fiesta Maya, a yearly celebration of Mayan and Guatemalan culture. The event coincided with a festival in the town of Jacaltenango, Guatemala, that honors its patron saint, the Virgin of Candelaria.”We dance so we won’t lose our culture and forget where we come from,” said Hernandez, a native of Guatemala who now lives in Jupiter.
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*From: www.sun-sentinel.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

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