Stumbling, perhaps
accidentally, onto some
Mexican village
fiesta
may prove to be the
highlight of your travels.
Everywhere, from the
remotest Indian village to
the most sophisticated city
suburb, will take at least
one day off annually to
devote to partying. Usually
it's the local saint's day,
but many fiestas have
pre-Christian origins and
any excuse - from harvest
celebrations to the coming
of the rains - will do.
Traditional dances and
music form an essential part
of almost every fiesta, and
most include a procession
behind some revered holy
image or a more celebratory
secular parade with
fireworks. But the only rule
is that no two will be quite
the same. We've listed the
most famous, spectacular or
curious in this guide, but
there are many others and
certain times of year are
fiesta time almost
everywhere.
Carnival , the
week before Lent, is
celebrated throughout the
Roman Catholic world, and is
at its most exuberant in
Latin America. It is the
last week of taking one's
pleasures before the forty-
day abstinence of Lent,
which lasts until Easter.
Like Easter, its date is not
fixed, but it generally
falls in February or early
March. Carnival is
celebrated with costumes,
parades, eating and dancing,
most spectacularly in
Veracruz and Mazatlán, and
works its way up to a climax
on the last day, Mardi Gras
or Shrove Tuesday, when the
only thing the inhabitants
of certain other countries
can manage is to toss the
odd pancake.
The country's biggest
holiday, however, is Semana
Santa - Holy Week -
beginning on Palm Sunday and
continuing until the
following Sunday, Easter
Day. Still a deeply
religious festival in
Mexico, it celebrates the
resurrection of Christ, and
has also become an occasion
to venerate the Virgin Mary,
with processions bearing her
image a hallmark of the
celebrations. During Semana
Santa, expect transport
communications to be totally
disrupted as virtually the
whole country is on the
move, visiting family and
returning from the big city
to their village of origin:
you will need to plan ahead
if travelling then. Many
places close for the whole
of Holy Week, and certainly
from Thursday to Sunday.
Secular Independence
Day (Sept 16) is in some
ways more solemn than the
religious festivals with
their exuberant fervour.
While Easter and Carnival
are popular festivals, this
one is more official,
marking the historic day in
1810 when Manuel Hidalgo y
Costilla issued the Grito
(Cry of Independence) from
his parish church in
Dolores, now Dolores
Hidalgo, Guanajuato, which
is still the centre of
commemoration today. You'll
also find the day marked in
the capital with mass
recitation of the Grito in
the zócalo, followed by
fireworks, music and
dancing.
The Day of the Dead
is All Saints or All Souls'
Day and its eve (Nov 1-2),
when offerings are made to
ancestors' souls, frequently
with picnics and all-night
vigils at their graves.
People build shrines in
their homes to honour their
departed relatives, but it's
the cemeteries to head for
if you want to see the
really spectacular stuff.
Sweetmeats and papier-mâché
statues of dressed up
skeletons give the whole
proceedings rather a gothic
air.
Christmas is a
major holiday, and again a
time when people are on the
move and transport booked
solid for weeks ahead.
Gringo influence nowadays is
heavy, with Santa Claus and
Christmas trees, but the
Mexican festival remains
distinct in many ways, with
a much stronger religious
element (virtually every
home has a nativity crib). New
Year is still largely an
occasion to spend with
family, the actual hour
being celebrated with the
eating of grapes. Presents
are traditionally given on
Twelfth Night or Epiphany
(Jan 6), which is when the
three Magi of the Bible
arrived bearing gifts -
though things are shifting
into line with Yankee
custom, and more and more
people are exchanging gifts
on December 25. One of the
more bizarre Christmas
events takes place at Oaxaca,
where there is a public
display of nativity cribs
and other sculptures made of
radishes.
