While the United States was celebrating Thanksgiving Day on November 23, 2017, Alex Fernando Cardin of Boston, Massachusetts, USA was in a foreign land representing the country at Mister Ocean 2017. Recently, he shared how he spent the national holiday while in Asia.
In 2016, Cardin won Mister Gay World Massachusetts. He is a professional model, runway coach, creative designer and a facilities supervisor in a biotech laboratory with a bachelor’s degree in administrative communications.
Before Mister Bosnia and Herzegovina Ermin Poturak was crowned Mister Ocean 2017 on November 24, 2017, he, Cardin and their 47 fellow candidates participated in various activities for several days in Taiwan, the host of the inaugural male beauty pageant. It was a unique experience for the representative of the U.S., who is Latino-American.
“The most memorable moment during the pageant was spending Thanksgiving Day with the Taiwanese kids at the ice park,” Cardin said in a statement exclusively obtained by CONAN Daily. “I had mixed emotions that day. I am an uncle myself and my nephews are everything to me.”
“Those kids teach us that we don’t need to speak the same language or have the same culture to be friends,” Cardin continued. “Seeing those kids happy was one of the best feelings in the world!”
Cardin is fluent both in English and Spanish. Coming from a Latino background himself, he felt close to the 12 Latino contestants namely Mister Brazil Igor Costa Alves, Mister Colombia Juan Camilo Uruena Castellanos, Mister Costa Rica Daniel Antonio Alfaro Barrantes, Mister Dominican Republic Argenis Grullón, Mister Ecuador Adonis Cantante, Mister Honduras Gustavo Paiz Casasola, Mister Mexico Fernando Kolbeckc, Mister Montenegro Marko Rogac, Mister Paraguay Jose Felix Morilla, Mister Peru Ronald Freddy Mayorga Peixoto, Mister Spain Antonio Perez Vargas and Mister Venezuela Ronald Freddy Mayorga Peixoto.
“Since the pageant doesn’t have an official translator, I assumed the role during the two-week competition,” Cardin revealed. The bilingual Mister Ocean 2017 candidate from the U.S. became the translator of the Latino candidates during their personal interviews.
“Latinos are a very happy, unified, proud and passionate community,” Cardin stated. “As the very first Latino Mister Ocean USA, I take pride in this accomplishment.”
CONAN Daily 