Bugamundos en Mexico: Thursday. 1.6.11 Dia de Los Reyes - Playing in the park like kids, Rosca at night

Today is “Dia de Los Reyes” (Kings’ Day). This is the day the Kings arrived with gifts for the baby Jesus. And here in Mexico, this is the day they celebrate in a way that seems more like how Christmas is celebrated over there. The night before the kids put out three cookies and three cups of milk, one for each of the Kings. The days before, you can see balloons floating up to the sky - we were told that this is kids sending their letters up to the Kings, like a letter to Santa almost. Here Josue’s little nephew Arturito let his balloon go, before they finished tying his letter to it. At the malls, or different places, there are sets and three guys dressed up as the Kings so that kids can go take their picture with them. And days before, there are “tiangis” (swap meat style vendors) set up everywhere, mostly selling toys and gifts for kids.
On this morning, the kids open up their presents and are playing with them all day long. Josue’s cousins Arturo y Blanca got bikes for their kids, and wanted to take them to the park to give them a chance to ride them in open space. So we tagged along with them to a park here in the Iztapalapa area. It was a very big park, and we encountered a lot of kids there, who seemed to all be trying out their new toys as well - bikes, skates, skateboards, you name it!
We played on the playgrounds like we were kids. On the teeter-totters, on the monkey bars. Josue got blisters on both hands from the monkey bars.
Later in the evening when Tio Arturo got home from work, we cut the “Rosca.” The tradition of “La Rosca de los Reyes” goes like this: the “rosca” is a round loop shaped bread, that is decorated with dried sweetened fruits, and baked in to the bread are little figurines that represent the baby Jesus. When you cut the rosca everybody cuts their own piece wherever they want and however big they want and if they cut on a baby, or a baby is in their piece, it’s tradition that they are to make tamales or ponche for another party on February 2^nd, which is the day that they sit up their baby Jesus and put clothes on him.
I’m not quite sure what the significance of that day is. But who ever gets the babies, will need to make food for the celebrations on that day.
Both Josue & I got the babies, as well as his Tios and his cousin Arturo.