Being a chambelan has been one of the best experiences I've ever had. For those that don't know, a Chambelanes are escorts that are chosen by a quinceanera. A number of chambelanes chosen often vary for how much the quinceanera wants. Not only do chambelanes have to escort the quinceanera to the party but, they have to go to an area to take pictures with the quinceanera and be recorded doing this. They usually have to do 3 main dances for the party and 2-3 surprise dance for any music genre the quinceanera wants.
I was approached to be a chambelan by my 1st cousin once removed, Evelyn, who was going to be making her sweet 16th birthday. She was already recruiting and she said: "that [she] was already scouting for chambelanes and [she] felt that I would be a good fit." When she asked me If I wanted to be her chambelan, I was really excited for this offer and immediately accepted. After accepting, I was told that in a few months I'd get more information in where practice will be happening. When the first day of practice arrived, I was nervous and excited because this was my first time doing this. I met up with Evelyn and the other five chambelanes who I'd be cooperating with. Luckily for me, I've already known two of the five because they were Evelyn's younger brothers. Eduardo was one year younger than Evelyn and Eric was about 10 years old. The other three I didn't know but they were Johnathan a 12-year-old, Angel who was 11 years old and finally Andy was the oldest at 21 years old.
Learning the dances that we are going to perform the day of the party was easy at first but then as we progressed they started getting a bit more difficult. Thankfully, we had started practicing 3 months to prepare before the day of the party. We'd practice every Saturday for an hour which was a good system to do. There were times where I'd get frustrated because I wouldn't be able to execute the moves right. It would get more frustrating for me when we started practicing the surprise dance. There was a certain move that I couldn't manage to pull off and it annoyed me to no end. So, I would practice at home and eventually, I got it right. About 2 weeks before the party I and the other 5 chambelanes went to get our size fitted for our tuxedo that we'd wear for the party. A week later we'd each individually come and pick up our tuxedos when we had the chance.
The day of the party I had woken in the morning and took my tuxedo and traveled to New Jersey, where Evelyn lived and once I arrived I had to change in their bathroom. Once I was dressed I went to the room where the other chambelanes were already dressed. Meanwhile, Evelyn was in her room already in her dress being recorded by the camera guy. While I was in the room with the other guys, I had trouble tying my tie which eventually led to me getting help from Eduardo who helped me. After we were ready we had to go to the church which was boring but after that, the limousine came where it would take us to Central Park to take pictures with Evelyn. Inside the limousine was very excited as we all chilled with music playing and the cameras recording. When we arrived at Central Park, we took pictures with her and solo pictures and in different poses. After taking pictures we returned to the limousine where it would take us to the venue where the party was taking place.
During the ride back we had fun moments as my fellow chambelan Angel was dancing in the see-through window portion in the back of the limousine. This was hilarious as we drew the attention of pedestrians who were smiling and laughing. Heck, even some started recording him. As we approached closer to the venue my nerves started acting up and I started becoming nervous. Luckily, I was given a pep talk by Andy who encouraged me and told me not to be nervous. Entering the venue we still had time to practice which I was grateful for because I felt that it would be a good warmup. After about 20 minutes later it was time for us to start the dance. When we started the dances it felt amazing because after all our hard work we show what we practiced. The dances came out perfect as we were in perfect sync with each other. After we completed the 3 dances we left and changed for the last two dances. We then returned to finish the surprise dance which I put my effort to do good. After all was done we all had fun and danced for the remainder of the party. It was a night I wouldn't forget as I gained experience and was something that I would treasure.
