Happy halloween! Here in the DF there's a strange mix of Day of the Dead and Halloween. Obviously right now there are lots of ofrendas, marigolds, candy skulls, etc for Dia de los Muertos, but I've also seen Halloween decorations, people dressed up in costumes (Fri, Sat and today) and kids carrying orange plastic pumpkins. A friend from Mexico said that when he was growing up (in Veracruz, not in the DF) there wasn't much influence of Halloween. If people dressed up, it was as La Catrina, La Llorona, a skeleton -- things relate to Dia de los Muertos. Now Halloween has become much more popular and, at least for the younger generations, intertwined with and sometimes associated with Dia de los Muertos.
Today I went to Coyoacan and saw:
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| Ofrenda in the centro of Coyoacan |
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| An installation representing souls of deceased migrants |
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| Skeletons playing various childhood games |
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| Ofrendas representing the canals and trajineras in Xochimilco |
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| the Chocolate and Pan de Muerto Fair |
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lots of food mostly representative
of other Mexican States |
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| Chapulines (grasshoppers) -- I tried one. Not terrible, but not my favorite |
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We ate pan de muerto filled with chantilly, a tamal with mole, hot
chocolate,and a drink from Chiapas made with cacao, corn and cinnamon |
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| Sugar skulls and other Dia de los Muertos treats |
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| more skeletons -- El Pachuco |
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| the paleta (popsicle) seller |
