Puerto Rican actor Carlos Ponce and Mexican journalist Karina Banda have secretly married during an intimate ceremony that took place on July 30 in Florida. In an exclusive interview with HOLA! USA, the couple reveals the details of the event which featured the daughters of the singer, Sienna and Savannah, as witnesses to the civil union that took place practically without guests and in the deepest secrecy.
After three years of romance and in the midst of forced confinement due to the pandemic, happiness has arrived for both in the form of a wedding that, although secret, has not been entirely unexpected since the couple had gotten engaged on the eve of the Year New from this ineffable 2020.
With the prudence that has always characterized them and the care not to expose their private lives too much to the public eye, the brand new spouses gave us details of the place where they decided to share their vows and the destination they chose to enjoy a well-deserved honeymoon.
Likewise, during the pleasant talk that followed the first photo session that they shared exclusively with us as husband and wife, Carlos and Karina also told us about the hard process they have had to face on a personal level with Sienna‘s depression, the death of a dear relative of El Gordo y La Flaca’s host and the criticisms that always revolve around public figures like them.
Although we still have in our memories that beautiful marriage proposal made by Carlos, it fills us even more with joy knowing that they are currently living the climax of their love story that began in 2017 and which will continue to be written with capital letters.
Photos: Gerardo Briceño | Stylist: Claudia Zuleta |Hair & Makeup: Franz Muñoz | Location: The Bath Club Miami</br>
Congratulations on the wedding! How are the bride and groom?
Karina: We are super happy. I think that happiness really cannot be hidden and the truth is that something very funny happened to me right after we got married, people told me that they saw a special shine in me, they even asked me if I was pregnant, that it showed something different in my face and I think that‘s it, that I was happy because it really was knowing that I am going to spend the rest of my life with him, if God allows us. It wasn’t so much that we didn’t know; but I am already his wife, we are officially a family and yes, I am happy because… I even gained pounds because love makes you fat (laughs).
You married in secret, was it a small wedding?
Carlos: It was not an intention to get married in secret, that was not necessarily the intention; I think I speak for both of us. Simply, the commitment was in the new year, welcoming 2020 and our union and my commitment to Karina and to God that we are going to make a life together forever; however, well, things happened that tried to derail our plans, but the wedding was also planned for the same year. This is simply a union that we made, but we considered that we needed the wedding. That is why I say that it was not in secret, we simply decided not to necessarily make a lot of noise with this because our families also deserve to see us in this union and happy and we owe it to them, and we owe it to each other, a beautiful family reunion.
Who was present at the ceremony and where was it held?
Carlos: The only ones who knew were our parents and they weren‘t there. Her parents were out of the country, mine were here but each one was in quarantine and at that moment, just when it was our turn, they were locked up because they are of population at risk due to their age and we did not want to expose them to anything. There were two witnesses who are my daughters Sienna and Savannah, they were the only people present and some friends that we have, an excellent photographer, a florist who lent us their house so that we could document the moment, because for us it was very important.
But where was it?
Carlos: That is private, it is still hidden.
And the official wedding, have you already planned where to do it?
Carlos: The idea was to do it in Mexico, even before. That same weekend, before we entered the quarantine, we were in a very nice place in Mexico that we had decided that this was going to be the place for the photographs. Later, I had a work meeting and they told us: “run to Miami before they lock you up in Mexico.”
Let‘s talk about coexistence ...
Carlos: Coexistence made me reiterate that Karina is the woman I want to be with, Karina‘s coexistence made her learn to cook my favorite food. Honestly, there are many things, we knew that we are a couple that complement each other very well but for now new things are emerging and they are all good. Usually one has to learn to live with each other, there are little things that bother you here, in my case (I don’t know, I can’t speak for Karina) everything was like a bonus: ’Ah, that too! How good that was, how wonderful! ’ I am still very surprised by many things.
¿Are you planning to have children?
Karina: When you are going to give yourself the opportunity to meet someone, I think the most important thing is to know that you are both on the same page and that you are going the same way. I do not waste your time nor do I waste mine, nor do I get excited or have illusions. He told me: what are your plans? And I told him: ‘look at the truth: I would love to get married, I would love to be a mother’; And casually, : “Are you going to marry me?”, communication. The worst thing you can do is assume, right? Then things are asked, they are spoken.
Photos: Gerardo Briceño | Stylist: Claudia Zuleta |Hair & Makeup: Franz Muñoz | Location: The Bath Club Miami
Speaking of children, how does Sienna handle the issue of depression?
Carlos: It has been a very difficult process. I did keep it very guarded because it was not in me to comment about it. Even with family members at some point she begins to open up a little, to tell more. I do not want to talk much because I do not know how much it corresponds to me, but I can say that she is a very good girl, she is a girl who when she is happy is very happy and that yes, this has its process and I believe a lot in God, I am a man of a lot of faith and I have seen him perform miracles in my house. I know that we are going through something that is a learning experience and we have seen it improve a lot, so the things that scare us have their purpose. I know this is part of the divine plan and there are many people in the world who are going to benefit from it, I feel it in my heart.
Photos: Gerardo Briceño | Stylist: Claudia Zuleta |Hair & Makeup: Franz Muñoz | Location: The Bath Club Miami</br>
Have you already gone on your honeymoon?
Carlos: We already took a little getaway, we went to Los Cabos. We knew it was a time when it was very quiet (precisely because of the pandemic) and they let us know how well they were taking care of those places, the precautionary measures that were being taken, so we arrived at a resort where we were almost the only ones.
How would each of you describe yourself?
Carlos: Her sense of humor is wonderful, she has a genuine sweetness, she is innate and not only for me, many people that I have met, friends we have in common, immediately tell me: ‘how wonderful, how sweet, how lucky, take care of her… ’I get an award. She is simply a very real, very genuine woman, she is a woman of the family, of her home, those values are carved into the last bit of her being and simply a gift from God.
Photos: Gerardo Briceño | Stylist: Claudia Zuleta |Hair & Makeup: Franz Muñoz | Location: The Bath Club Miami
How did your love story begin?
Carlos: She is not counting the 3 months that I was chasing her because she is doing the one that: “oh, we were immediately so beautiful” (laughs). Not so pretty and not so immediately. For me it‘s three years, I even once told her (and that’s why she calls me a good father): “No, I can’t anymore, I’m going out with my daughters.”
How do you both see yourselves a year from now?
Carlos: I have my big plans and I visualize myself a lot, because I do believe in visualizing you and I believe in decreeing a lot, I do it constantly, but I don‘t get discouraged when things don’t happen the way I want because I’ve had many samples from God that for there it was not. I am very happy, at this moment there are little things happening in our lives, there are moments; In other words, I cannot be fully happy when we know that there are many things in the world that are beyond our control but that are not right.
