Día de Muertos
Thursday, November 2
Finally it was November and the “Día de Muertos”, the Day of the Dead, had come! After days of decorating the city and setting up altars in Oaxaca, the celebrations began on the first of November.
For weeks, posters had been hanging all over the city informing the residents of Oaxaca about the program on the first two days of November. In addition to concerts and theater performances on various stages around the city, there were a few Day of the Dead parades throughout the city every day. The parades were our personal highlight and one of the reasons why we wanted to spend the day in Oaxaca. Similar to carnival parades in Germany, various groups of adults, clubs and primary school classes took part in the parades in Oaxaca. Each group was dressed in a specific costume and had their faces painted as skulls. Several brass bands played between the dancing groups and the atmosphere was great! On the Day of the Dead, the deceased are not only mourned, but also celebrated!
Mexican families celebrating the Day of the Dead set up altars in the city, at home or in the cemetery. The altars display photos of the deceased family members and are decorated with the typical orange “cempasuchil” flowers. According to Mexican belief, the deceased have the opportunity to visit their families on earth once a year (November 1st and 2nd) if they have put up their photo. In Oaxaca, these altars can be seen throughout the city — in markets, in cafes, and in public squares throughout the city. A particularly large, great altar can be found in the town hall of Oaxaca. This is magnificently decorated with small skeletons, garlands and many of the typical “Cempasúchil” flowers. If you want to marvel at the town hall altar, all you have to do is stand in line in front of the town hall and wait patiently. Entry to the town hall courtyard is free.
We spent Día de Muertos in Oaxaca and had never seen an entire city celebrating so hard all day and night! It was an unforgettable experience and one of the most beautiful days of our entire trip.
