Monday, May 18, 2009

Nuestra Belleza Latina 2009



Nuestra Belleza Latina is a new pageant for me. Apparently, it is an Univision creation, a reality TV show leading to a pageant, and this year a young Cuban-American woman won. Her name is Greidys Gil, and here she gets a very special shout out from her mom directly from Cuba. Her mom's name is Kenya. You cannot make this stuff up. Fabulous. Frankly, just for naming the daughter Greidys, the woman deserves a free plane ticket to Miami to see the pageant, but I guess they could not flout the travel restrictions?

(Now I am hesitating - does it go under my "Foucault and You" reality TV category, or the "Real News/Miss Universe." Ay, Dios Mio! What a dilemma.)

http://www.univision.com/content/content.jhtml?chid=10&schid=10753&secid=24279&cid=1948042&pagenum=2

Ay, bendito! Here is some more bochinche:
Veteran Pageantry master Osmel Sousa was one of the Judges. I am sure my abuela would be delighted to have him give me a make over - lipo, skin lightening, lasik surgery, bleach blond hair (which, being pelo malo, would promptly fall off), blue contacts.....the sky is the limit for ethnic Pageantry cleansing, gente!

Here too the names are a heady bouquet of Dada poetry: According to Wikipedia (I am now officially a hypocrite as I tell all students that "this is not a reliable nor appropriate academic reference"), the Miss representing Puerto Rico was eliminated for visiting her novio. Hello? She needed the quality time over a steaming bowl of mofongo. But her personal tragedy gave us the joy of being represented by a woman called CHASTELYN. Wepa!

Here is the lovely Chastelyn:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuestra_Belleza_Latina