Class blog by Anouk Alzaga

Country Overview of Puerto Rico

anoukk18 — 2023-12-08 16:54:05 UTC

While Puerto Rico is a United States territory, some people there still consider it to be its own country. The population in Puerto Rico is 3,260,314 people. For that amount of people there are quite a few cities to live in. For example the largest cities are the capital San Juan, Arecibo, and Bayamon. With all of those people the average age range there is 43.1 years old. Those are just some of the main facts about Puerto Rico.

Now I want to talk more about some of the things happening there right now. I know most of you might remember hurricane Maria from 2017 that hit Puerto Rico hard. Still, 6 years later, they are trying to recover from it. Right now there is a surge of manufacturing going on in Puerto Rico, and it is hurting their water supply. Even though these aren’t good news this is what has and is happening in Puerto Rico right now. Puerto Ricans Take Recovery into Their Own Hands 6 Years after Hurricane Maria, Stephanie Ramos, 25 Sept. 2023, https://abcnews.go.com/US/puerto-ricans-recovery-hands-6-years-after-hurricane/story?id=103377089. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

Holidays celebrated and their origin

anoukk18 — 2023-12-08 17:20:53 UTC

In Puerto Rico they have two extra holidays, in addition to the main ones that we celebrate in America. In November they celebrate Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and the Discovery of Puerto Rico Day. On the Discovery of Puerto Rico day they connect with their vast heritage and their colorful culture. In December they celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas. In January they celebrate New Year’s day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Kings day which I will get into more in the next paragraph. These are the holidays they celebrate in November, December, and January.

The two holidays they celebrate which are different than the United States are Discovery of Puerto Rico Day and Kings Day. Kings day is celebrated on January 6, Puerto Rico celebrates el Día de Reyes (Three Kings Day) or Epiphany, which commemorates the visit that the Three Wise Men paid to Jesus after his birth. While the entire island celebrates this holiday, the most renowned festivities are held in the southern town of Juana Díaz. As far as my research went I did not see how they really celebrated the Discovery of Puerto Rico day. (N.d.). December 8, 2023, https://nationaltoday.com/discovery-of-puerto-rico-day/

Traditions & the Flavor of the Holiday(food&music)

anoukk18 — 2023-12-08 17:39:59 UTC

Puerto Rico has a diverse food culture with dishes from all over the island. Some of their big Christmas foods are Almabanas, Arroz con Ganules and Escabeche. Some other big foods for Thanksgiving are Pavochon or Pavo Relleno de Monfogo for the turkey. They also have Arroz con Gandules during Thanksgiving. Those are some staples you should expect to see at the table during the holidays. Dillisrikanta, https://www.quora.com/What-food-is-traditionally-eaten-at-Thanksgiving-dinner-in-Puerto-Rico#:~:text=into%20their%20meals.-,Some%20common%20Thanksgiving%20foods%20in%20Puerto%20Rico%20may%20include%20roast,or%20family%27s%20preferences%20and%20traditions. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

Everyone has holiday traditions and I will explain some of Puerto Rico’s. On Christmas Eve most of all the Puerto Ricans will attend a midnight mass at their church called Misa De Gallo. At that mass they welcome Christmas as a commemoration of the birth of Jesus. Some churches even reenact the Nativity scene. These are the main things they do to celebrate Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Conclusion & Cultural Comparison

anoukk18 — 2023-12-08 17:57:59 UTC

As someone who has a whole lot of family from Puerto Rico I have learned stuff that I did not know. For example that there was a Discovery of Puerto Rico day. I also learned that they are still struggling to this day with hurricane Maria. I also learned that there are a bunch of cities in Puerto Rico.

There are a bunch of cultural differences but the thing that shocked me most that they are a territory and DO NOT get any help from the United States for anything.