Day of the Dead

One of the more colorful Mexican traditions is the Day of the Dead celebrated on November 2. This is celebrated right after All Saint's Day and the purpose is to remember the dead. Of course this is celebrated differently around the country, but there are some similarities no matter which region you visit. For example, pan de los muertos is a bread specially baked for the celebration. Some families use it as an offering to ask their dead to watch over them, while some eat it as a traditional food (like eating turkey on Thanksgiving). There are usually lots of sugar candy figures ranging from the macabre (skeletons, skulls, coffins) to the cute (clowns, chickens, flowers). Another common thread is the visiting of cemetarys.

In some regions in Mexico, this is a major celebration. Each family will construct an alter filled with food, flowers (especially marigolds), and pictures of family members that have passed away. There are special prayers said to these family members asking for their protection and good luck in the next year. Later the family visits the cemetary (sometimes the celebration lasts all night) and offer more sacrifices to please the dead. Parades, parties, and dancing are all possibilities.

When I talked about this with my husband, it seems that his family celebrates a little differently from the traditional day of the dead. His family does eat the pan de los muertos simply because it's a special yearly treat. They also buy the sugar candy figures to eat (they sent me a few in the years past...I still have a chicken with her eggs on my refrigerator). A visit to the cemetary is usually made, but it's more like our Memorial Day to them. They clean up the grave site and decorate the graves with flowers. I asked if they fixed a special meal to eat there, and my husband told me that they would often take ham and cheese sandwiches since they had to walk to and from the cemetary.

For more information on the Day of the Dead, check out these websites:
"http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Gallery/26..."
"http://www.mexonline.com/daydead.htm"
"http://muertos.palomar.edu/dayofthedead...."
"http://www.public.iastate.edu/~rjsalvad/..."
"http://foto8.com/issue02/dead1.html"
"http://www.bajalife.com/v6pg50.htm"
"http://www.acabtu.com.mx/diademuertos/ho..."
"http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/egg/eg..."

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