Day of the Dead: Día de Muertos

Saturday evening was the second day of Día de Muertos.  We celebrated by going into El Centro (the 200 year old part of town.)  The parade began in the Plaza Mercado and we had front row seats on the curb to do some amazing people watching.

Traditional attire for the parade.

There were hundreds of peope of all ages in the crowd and parade.  It made for a fun evening.  Everyone was in good spirits and we had fun talking with them and posing for pictures.

Once the parade began we could sit and watch a whole different world pass by.  Not quite the Halloween we know at home.

The donkey beer cart.

Dispersed throughout the parade were 3 or 4 donkey carts dispensing free beer.  They were definitely not checking ID, just handing beer to any outreached hand.  Mixed in the parade were several bands, elaborately costumed ladies and 100's of revelers.

Dave and Jamie had a good time with us.  They are here for a month this year.  Each year they seem to stay a little longer.  Soon they will become Mexicans also.

Canadian friends Jim and Marie joined us for the fun.

Next year maybe we will "paint up."

After the parade we walked the cobblestone streets to Olas Altas which is also a very old community overlooking the Pacific.  We sat and had drinks and finished the evening by catching a ride home in the back of a pick-up truck (a common form of taxi here in Mazatlán).  Eight of us cost 100 pesos, a little less than $1.00 per person for a 12 mile taxi ride.  The best part of the open air ride is the loud music and the people watching.  True entertainment, Mexican style.

Today, which is Sunday is the more solemne part of the holiday.  Families will be visiting their departed family members and having picnics at their gravesides.  To understand you would need to visit a Mexican graveyard.  It is definitely not just a gravestone, more of a shrine.

Life is good...... and I leave you with the "Kiss of Death."