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New Year's Eve in La Sala
Even when I go to Cleveland to spend Christmas with my family I always make sure I'm home for New Year's Eve for the celebration with my adopted Cuban family. New Year's Eve is always at Cousin Tony's and Aunt Vera's home. Aunt Vera's husband passed away the year I moved here so I never got know him. His brother lives next door and his daughters Liz and Tish are my good friends. Anyway, I love this New Year's Eve tradition. There is always tons of incredible Cuban food... the pork in mojo sauce and black beans and rice made from scratch are my favorite.
Aunt Vera's house is a very nice Florida home. It has a formal living room (known by the family as La Sala "the room") a large family room, dining room, bedrooms, bathrooms, and large lanai. When my friends were kids and they would have New Year's Eve at Aunt Vera's they were not allowed in La Sala where all the antiques and crystal vases and stuff were located. So they would stand in the doorway between the living room and the family room and stick their foot in the living room and then pull it out and say "la Sala, not la Sala, la Sala, not la Sala). Even as adults they stayed out of la Sala. But over the past few years the restrictions on la Sala have been relaxed and are now gone. Aunt Vera invites us into the la Sala to sit and started a couple of years ago we could even drink in there. Liz and I now always end up toasting in the new year in la Sala.
A Cuban and Latino tradition for New Year's Eve is 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight. They have small wine glasses all prefilled with 12 grapes each. At midnight we get a glass of champagne and a glass of 12 grapes. You eat the 12 grapes by the 12th bong of midnight to bring you good luck for the new year. Of course we toast the new year with the champagne and then there are lots of hugs and kisses and wishes for a great new year.
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