a quincenera (pronounced "kin-sin-y

a quincenera (pronounced "kin-sin-yera") is a special celebration help for many girls in Spanish-speaking communities of the United States and in Latin America on their fifteenth birthday. The celebration may be different in different countries. The words quincenera ca n refer to the celebration or to the girl. This birthday is special because it celebrates that a girl is not a child anymore and has become a woman. It is a very important day for many young girls, a day they dream about for a long time. Everyone who knows the girl will celebrate it with a church ceremony and a big party.
There is a lot of preparation before a quincenera celebration. The most important and expensive thing is the girl’s dress is like a bride’s but is usually pink; however, today many girl wear dresses in other light colors, also. The birthday girl chooses fourteen girls and fourteen boys who will be her attendants at the ceremony and the dinner dance that follows. Traditionally, these girls and boys are younger than the birthday girl, but sometimes they are the same age. The dresses for the girls must be in the same color and style, just as the suits for the boys are in the same color and style. The reason for this is that all eyes will go to the birthday girl on that special day. Then the family orders a cake that is special like a wedding cake. Sometimes the godparents pay for it. Many times, the cake is so big that it needs a special table. Next, the parent rent a hall for the party and rent a band to play music. After that, they decide on the special food to serve the guests. Often a quincenera celebration can cost as much as a big wedding; the size of the party depends on how much the girl’s parents can afford.
On the night before the girl’s fifteenth birthday, a band plays in the evening outside her window. Then the day of her birthday arrives. First, the girl’s family, her godparents, and her attendants go to a religious ceremony in the church. The girl receives a bouquet of flowers and blessings and prayers that will help her live a strong life. Her parents are proud of their grown-up daughter, and they embrace her. Then she leaves the church with her attendants and goes to the hall for the special party. Before they go to the party, they pose for photographs.
The hall is beautifully decorated with flower, and it is full of guests. They wait for the girls and her family to arrive. The band plays music, and the party begins with a dinner. After the dinner, the girl dances the first dance with her father. Then the other attendants start to dance, followed by the guests. Everyone has a good time, and they all dance until midnight. It is day she will always remember.