Hobbies And Interests
Children's Games
Piñata's are popular games for children. Piñatas are hollow papier-mache containers that usually come in the shape of animals. The piñatas are filled with candy and toys. Children take turns striking it with a bat or stick until someone breaks it and the treats fall out. Another great game for children is called Jumping Bean. In this game children jump up and down to Spanish music. When the music stops, the children have to stop and stand perfectly still. Any child caught moving is out.
Traditional Mexican Games
There are many party games traditional to Mexico. Stealing the Sombrero is a fun and lively game. Paper sombreros are taped to the players' backs. Then music is played, and everyone runs around trying to steal other people's sombreros while not losing their own. When the music stops, everyone who has lost a sombrero is out. The music plays again, and the game resumes until only one person is left with a sombrero. The Mexican Loteria is a traditonal game that involves a special deck of cards. Each card has a picture of a famous Mexican person. Players often use beans as markers on bingo-like cards. Traditionally, the caller does not name the person on a drawn card but makes up a rhyme or clue about the person. Players then guess who the person is to mark their cards.
Musical Games
The Mexican Hat Dance is a popular game. In this game players have the opportunity to show off their dance moves while enjoying some Mexican music. The players form a circle and hold hands. The host then plays Mexican dance music and everyone dances. When the host calls out someone's name, the named person must go to the middle of the circle and dance until someone else's name is called. Doña Blanca is another musical game. In this game, a "bad hornet" tries to catch the "lady in white." The group forms a circle holding hands. One person is designated the Doña Blanca and stands in the center of the circle. Another person, designated the hornet, stands outside the circle. The Doña Blanca will skip around inside the circle, and the hornet will chase that player around the circle. The players forming the circle will dance around and sing as they protect Doña Blanca.
Outdoor Games
There are some fiesta games that are best played outdoors. One such game is "Ya me voy!" It is like hide-and-seek. Every one hides except the person who is it. That person counts to 10 in Spanish and then shouts, "Ya me voy!" He then tries to find those who are hiding. Another game is called the Mexican Hat Relay. The partygoers form two teams. Two hats are placed on the ground, and a player from each team must run to a hat, circle it three times and then run back and tag the next player. Another party game is the limbo. Two people hold up stick horizontally. Players line up and pass under the stick, bending backward, without touching the ground with their hands. The bar is lowered after each round. Playing traditional Mexican music as players bend backward under the stick can make this Caribbean game great for a fiesta.