Dias de los Muertos

So here we are on Hallowe’en and the whole town’s focused on All Hallows Eve.  Who’d a thunk?

Mexico has traditionally celebrated the two days of Dias de los Muertos rather than the American Hallowe’en with visits to their families’ gravesites, decorating them with flowers and pictures, and sharing a meal with them.  It is one of the largest religious and cultural events celebrated nationwide in Mexico.

In the far past, the dates were not November 1^st and 2nd, but with the coming of the Spanish and the Catholic church, the celebrations were moved to more ‘appropriate’ days in the church calendar.  It takes two days of celebration: the first day is for infants; the second day is for adults.

Both yesterday and today even expats are visiting our local cemetery and spiffing up the graves of past expats of whom we have only heard tell.  Since many expats have no family in Mexico, the responsibilities fall upon the current expats, and some gladly accept them.

Hallowe’en, however, is overtaking the traditional celebration as youngsters find running around with their friends getting candy is more fun than sitting in a cemetery with your family.  We’ve been warned that if we go to the Jardin Monday night, to have plenty of hard candies (dulces) on hand to distribute to kids in costumes trick-or-treating.

We were supposed to join a group cleaning the headstones on Saturday morning at the currently used cemetery, but grocery shopping got in the way.  We’ve recently gone to a nutritionist who is setting up a plan for living that will result in effective athletic activities and eating right.  We began the plan today, so yesterday was shopping for the good stuff we’re to eat, as opposed to going out all the time, eating (and drinking) the wrong types of foods (witness our slow weight loss since moving SoB).

And, of course, last night was a pizza party at two friends’ house with wonderful homemade pizzas: traditional (the Works), roasted veggie, arrachera and chimichurri sauce, and Moroccan chicken with a ginger-honey glaze.  All followed by homemade ice cream, including a Mexican chocolate with espresso and cinnamon.  

What a way to start a new way of eating, right?  There were several new folks we met and we ran into one of them this afternoon on our way back from the Jardin where we’d been checking out the big Dias de los Muertos altars being set up.  We had shared a shuttle to the airport with another.  It’s a small world here in SMA.

For those planning on visiting us over the holidays, don’t worry:  we’re eating out every meal and having more than the one-drink-a-day that we’re allowed.  Wouldn’t want to feel deprived, would we?  High times all around!