Dia de los Muertos 2022

It is time to get ready for your annual reunion with the ENTIRE family, especially with those who have passed on.

To prove you are truly mexicanidad you must set up the home's ofrenda.

"One of the most ubiquitous manifestations of Day of the Dead is the ofrenda, a word that can be translated both as “altar” and “offering” because it is indeed both.

These highly decorated tables filled with food, photos, candles, whimsical figures and more have their origins in the Mesoamerican belief that the dead return home once a year. Mexicans prepare for that occasion not in dread but rather as a family reunion." - Mexico News Daily

Ofrenda in the main square of Durango city, sponsored by one of the municipality's largest funeral homes.

Today I will be starting my 'ofrenda' by looking around for bits and pieces for the display. Of course I will take pictures

 

I know!

I love the color also. Back in the 70s there was a time when people were painting their houses in all sorts of colors up north, that seems to have stopped as uniformity became the norm.

On this street we have blue houses, yellow houses, my place is salmon colored, the place next door vibrant red, purple on the other side!

 

@Vladimir Illich Then you are a Catrin! Mate of Catrina

 

This year in the Zocalo Square in Mexico City there will be a huge gathering for the Day of the Dead, a three hour long parade ends there. Then a light show and concert are planned. All on TV locally

 

Here's an interesting tidbit from Wikipedia:



A calaca (Spanish pronunciation: [kaˈlaka], a colloquial Mexican Spanish name for skeleton) is a figure of a skull or skeleton (usually human) commonly used for decoration during the Mexican Day of the Dead festival, although they are made all year round.

Description
Tracing their origins from Mayan imagery, calacas are frequently shown with marigold flowers and foliage. As with other aspects of the Day of the Dead festival, calacas are generally depicted as joyous rather than mournful figures. They are often shown wearing festive clothing, dancing, and playing musical instruments to indicate a happy afterlife. This draws on the Mexican belief that no dead soul likes to be thought of sadly, and that death should be a joyous occasion. This goes back to Aztec beliefs, one of the few calaca to remain after the Spanish conquest.

Calacas used in the festival include carved skull masks worn by revelers, small figures made out of carved wood or fired clay, and sweet treats in the form of skulls or skeletons. Calacas are sometimes made of wood, stone, or even candy.

A popular phrase among Mexicans and those Latinos that personally know someone is "se lo (la) llevó la calaca" after someone has died, literally meaning "the calaca took him (her)" or "death took him (her)".

In Guatemala, "calaca" is understood as "death". The figure of a bare skeleton represents death and implies fear of death. Thus, it is not normally utilized as a joyful image.

Popular culture
Calacas are prominently featured as representations of the deceased in the animated films The Book of Life and Coco.

Calaca-like figures can be seen in the Tim Burton film Corpse Bride, Neil Gaiman's movie Coraline, video games such as LittleBigPlanet (2008) and Guacamelee! (2013), and the 1998 Tim Schafer computer game Grim Fandango.

In Monster High, Skelita Calaveras is a calaca and is the daughter of Los Esklitos (The Skeletons).

In El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera, the villain Sartana of the Dead is a calaca and commands various calacas that are in her service.

 

Amazing!

 

I just love the skulls.

Originally they were made from sugar, and decorated

Now they have them in porcelain, which is timeless fun!

I love going to the street market and seeing a blanket on the ground covered with a few hundred skulls. Just like above!

 

November 1 and 2 I willl be out and about taking images for the web

I have two cameras, maybe three!

Night is best... I have one camera that is good for that. I want some spooky stuff

Check out the latest cover to our local arts magazine:

 

Here are some pictures from the media of events in Mexico City for the Day of the Dead...