Two Little Huasas

The girls and I went shopping at a local market downtown on Saturday, in search of the perfect dresses for their school program. Even though I wasn't looking forward to spending more money (September is such an expensive month in Chile!) I was still very impressed with the selection here in Iquique. As I've mentioned before, festivals and dressing up are a big deal in this city and so the colors and variety are fantastic! I loved the extra special touch on the aprons as well, the embroidered copihues - Chile's national flower.

I was thankful that both girls were assigned the more traditional dresses rather than, say, the Easter Island get-up that other classes were using! Typically, Dieciocho programs try to highlight the songs and dances from every part of Chile so there is no telling what the kids might have to do each year. The most traditional dresses, however, are those of the Chilean huasa (pronounced wah-sah) - of which there are two kinds, the "huasa de salon" and the "huasa de campo" (also known as the "chinita.")

As you can see, Eva and Isabel both looked beautiful tonight! We were very proud of them and excited for them, as they have been looking forward to participating in this program after practicing for quite awhile. They did a wonderful job. Our little girls are growing up before our eyes!

pretty in pink, posing for the camera

love these bright colors on her

and brother makes three