The Caribbean Bridal Expo, Destination: Puerto Rico!

I’ve just returned from an awesome experience at the Caribbean Bridal Expo in Puerto Rico; a dizzying display of 300 exhibits, fashion shows packed with the latest in bridal and formal wear and oodles of product sampling. But the scale and magnitude of the show is not surprising, considering that weddings in Puerto Rico are a huge affair, and culturally, one of the most auspicious events there, along with Christmas time celebrations and the “sweet fifteen” parties called the “quinceaňeros.”

In Puerto Rico, it’s pretty normal for parents to spend as much as USD$10,000 or more, on their teenager’s “sweet fifteen” party! Gulp, can you imagine this kid’s wedding, ten or so years down the road?

Anyway, apart from browsing the booths and meeting scores of interesting people who are part of the Puerto Rican wedding industry, the highlight of my trip was undoubtedly having the opportunity to meet and interview, Leonardo Suria, owner of the Leonardo Men’s fashion emporium. Leonardo is somewhat of the “Godfather of the Puerto Rican bridal industry.” So it came as no surprise that his chain of high-end stores, “Leonardo’s” had the largest display at the Expo and was also one of the Expo’s major sponsors. You can see some of my amateur ( I stress this!) video footage on the TW Video bar to the top right of this page.

In fact, as my new acquaintance Carmen told me, (she looks like a petite version of Cher and she’s believe it or not, an attorney-turned-decorator!) Leonardo was the one who first brought the idea of bridal expos to Puerto Rico, twelve years ago. She went on to say that he's a multi-millionaire and despite that, he was such a humble and nice person. And true to form, just as Carmen had said, Leonardo was indeed not only affable but also debonair and impeccably dressed. He seemed as though he’d fit comfortably into a spread for Men’s Vogue magazine! We easily chatted about the wedding industry in Trinidad and Tobago and about groom’s fashion trends for 2009; such as the return of the “ascot tie” and colour-combination suits ( e.g. white/ivory jacket with black trouser and vice versa).

There were also fashion shows starring stunning gowns and evening wear by David’s Bridal, gorgeous gowns by Kation and my absolute favourite - Stella Nolasco, Puerto Rico’s most avante-garde fashion designer, whose line has been featured in the exclusive Neiman Marcus store. Her pieces have been worn by celebrities such as: Beyonce and Dayanara Torres. I visited her boutique when I was in Old San Juan, but sadly, it was closed on the day I was there. Oh well, there’s always next time!

See some of the show's high fashion here: http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee16/simoneweddings/

During the expo, I was plied with all sorts of beverages from the exhibitors ( not that I was complaining!): wine from Chile, sangria offered up by the Sheraton Old San Juan Hotel and “coquito” a milky drink, quite similar to our “ponche de crème.” Sangria and coquito are usually the cocktails of choice at Puerto Rican weddings.

For wedding favours, many Puerto Rican couples are going the route of edible favours – the traditional favourites are “merenguitos” or small meringues which can be plain or drizzled with chocolate. Other edible delights which are popular right now are chocolate truffles, decorated Jordan almonds, chocolate lollipops, brownie lollipops, marshmallow lollipops (e.g. 3 marshmallows on a skewer covered entirely in white or milk chocolate) and miniature wedding cakes

At the Expo, I also interviewed one of Puerto Rico’s finest musicians, the renowned Qique Talavera, whose 14-piece orchestra has backed up legends such as the Supremes and the Temptations ( it costs USD$5000 to hire them for a wedding!). Go figure that the last wedding his band played at, was at the Ritz Carlton in San Juan! After talking to Qique, I then met the leader of a band called “Batukealo.” This band plays the popular Plena music of Puerto Rico as well as Brazilian Batucada music.

I’d never heard Plena before and was intrigued; luckily the band leader told me I’d get an opportunity to hear them at the close of the show. And I wasn’t disappointed, Plena music is infectious and frenetic, similar to our tassa and rhythm sections! The musicians use scrape gourds and hand drums that resemble tambourines just without the cymbals. You can check out some footage on the TW Video Bar to the top right of this page ( scroll up to view!)

And at 7pm, as the expo crowd all sang, clapped and danced with the band Batukealo, the curtain came down on the Caribbean’s biggest bridal extravaganza…

But, when I wasn’t at the Expo, I spent my time sight-seeing, shopping and eating ( the stuff great vacations are made of, right?). I took a trolley bus tour of Old San Juan, where we stopped at two ancient forts, El Morro and the Castillo de San Cristobal, at Plaza de Armas (a square where people can feed huge flocks of pigeons and take photos against the backdrop of a lovely fountain) and a few other historical spots.

After the bus tour, I hopped out and enjoyed strolling along the cobble-stoned streets of Old San Juan, where posh boutiques like Burberry and Ralph Lauren are sandwiched amongst quaint little shops like “Boveda” (a groovy, treasure trove of ethically-inspired and mostly eco-chic clothing and jewellery) and “Mi Pequeno San Juan,” a shop owned by a local poet and her husband, who is a French painter. This shop produces painted terracotta replicas of prominent buildings in Old San Juan and the detail of the artists’ work there is just stunning.

I also made a pit stop at Galeria Botello, an art gallery housed in a 300 year old building. It was a cool sanctuary in the heated city, dotted inside with huge sculptures and fine art. Last but not least, I went into the Catedral de San Juan, a serene, white structure, which is actually the second oldest cathedral in the Western Hemisphere.

On other mornings, I took the bus and went adventuring (the Puerto Rican bus system gets crazier to figure out every time I go there! So beware, if you try it) and I took walks up the blocks that surrounded my hotel, all the while loving the salsa music that wafted from the windows of some of the condominiums.

And before, I knew it, it was time to come home. A two hour and ten minute plane ride later, I was back on Trini soil, relaying the happy moments I’d had in Puerto Rico to my husband, as he drove us home.

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