Possibly no other country in the world has as many festivals, fairs and feast days as Mexico. National holidays, religious holidays and people's santos (saints' days) are all celebrated with gus...
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Tiny Tlaxcala may be Mexico's smallest state but it is one of the most quintessentially Mexican in its traditions, especially in the realm of cuisine. The same artistic flair with which the people of t...
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Rosca is the name given to any ring-shaped bread or cookie. This sweet bread was once used by the friars to evangelize: a small doll, representing the Christ child, is baked right in the bread- "hidden...
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Sweet tamales, wrapped in corn husks and piled on platters, are a traditional treat at children's birthday parties, baptisms and First Communions, as well as at the Christmas posadas.
On Candelar...
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This is an account of the annual procession of La Virgen de Zapopan from te Cathedral in Guadalajara to her home in the Basilica de Zapopan, as experienced in the early 1940s. The procession always takes place on October 12th.
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In Mexico, Christmas is an important holiday season with strong traditions. One of the most colorful traditions is the posada party, celebrated every evening from December 16 to 24. These celebrat...
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A Mexican pig party plus my recipe for Mexicanized Mexissippi style crackling cornbread
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April is a warm month in Mexico and, while some people choose to spend time at the beach, many others prefer to stroll the streets of the beautiful colonial cities.
One of the most architecturally imp...
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One of the most popular of Mexico's many fairs and festivals is the Festival del Mole, the National Mole Fair, held each October in the village of San Pedro Actópan, in the Milpa Alta delegation of th...
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The San Marcos Fair, held from the second week in April to the first week of May each year, attracts thousands of visitors from all over Mexico and the United States. It dates back to 1604 when a small indigenous Indian settlement, San Marcos, was founded within walking distance of the growing Spanish city of Aguascalientes. The fair's religious origins, long forgotten, have given way to a lively, colorful three week spectacular, in which bullfights, folkloric dancing, mechanical games, cockfights, cultural events and merrymaking all compete for visitor's attentions.
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They may not have conquered Ajijic in the old days, but the Purepecha never gave up. They didn’t even ever surrender to the mighty Aztecs. Now, they are seeking to take Ajijic by artistic stealth, beginning next month when a special Purepecha Fiesta is to be held in Ajijic plaza. The Fiesta begins on October 12, “Dia de La Raza” (literally "Day of our Race"), a national holiday observing the survival and resistance of the indigenous Mexican.
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The City of Silver
If you have heard of the picturesque, old colonial Mexican town of Taxco at all, you probably associate it with that precious metal so characteristic of Mexico – silver. ...
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Posadas, Pastorelas And Nacimientos.
Few North Americans recognize that the roots of these treasured “Christmas” traditions were active long before the birth of Christ. In fact, most evolved from pagan winter solstice rituals of the Celts, Druids, Scandinavians and indigenous groups, and the much older Jewish Festival of Lights. While the most beloved Mexican Christmas traditions are firmly based on the birth of Christ, the timing of the celebration coincides with Mexico’s ancient worship of the sun. During the nine darkest days of winter, the Aztecs celebrated the God of the Sun, pleading for his return and praising both the Sun and his virgin mother goddess.
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We usually think of weddings and baptisms as rites of passage we attend on separate occasions. But November 27, 2008, marked the celebration of both in San Lorenzo Albarradas: the nuptials of a couple in their early twenties, and the baptism of their three-year-old daughter. What resulted was a melding of highly organized custom...
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The transition from childhood to womanhood is a significant passage for adolescent girls in almost all cultures. In Mexico, it is marked with the celebration of the Quinceañera, or 15th Birthday. From...
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December has been a celebratory month in Mexico since pre-Hispanic times, when the winter solstice, one of the two most important holidays of the year (the other being the spring solstice) was celebrat...
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Planning your Business or Pleasure Trip? Look at: Mexico Connect Fiesta & Holiday Calendar
The People
The Huichol Index - Culture, Symbols and Art - A complete section exploring this vanish...
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Semana Santa, or Holy Week, is a misnomer. It s NOT one week! It’s TWO full weeks of parades, processions, parties, prayers and pagentry. For me, it started at 3 a.m. March 16, 1997--two Sundays before Easter. Fireworks. Loud booms. Without a pause. That’s why I remember the exact hour.
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ESPECTACULOS EN EL INTERIOR DEL AUDITORIO BENITO JUÁREZ
ADDITIONAL PROGRAMS & LOCATIONS:
Community Service Programs · The Bohemio ...
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Semana Santa in Morelia means a vacation at home for me. For one thing, I don't want to become a statistic by hitting the open road, and for another, I don't like crowds. But most importantly, I bask in those times when the help are gone and it's just me and my Doberboys.
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On TV we saw a "Pinyada" I have no idea of the spelling. It was a stuffed shape
(rather large) filled with sweets that you hang up and hit till it breaks and the sweets
fall out. I have heard this is Mexican? My 6-year-old son thinks it is lovely - can
anyone help on how to make such a "Pinyada."
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In Mexico, May seems much shorter than it does north of the border. There are so many holidays that the country seems to call a halt to the normal workweek and honor almost everyone.
It actually begin...
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Ask about the history behind these celebrations, and a few may be able to tell you that the Mexicans defeated an invading French army on that date in 1862. Beyond that - except maybe in Puebla - general knowledge of the circumstances becomes sketchy. Why were the French there? What happened next? Did the French just go away? Many teachers in the U.S. still tell their classes that May fifth is Mexican Independence Day, which is dead wrong. (Independence Day in Mexico is September 16th.)
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There are Mexicans these days who have never attended a Cinco de Mayo celebration. The holiday has taken a back seat to the many saints' days and other festivals.
The growth of celebrations in the Uni...
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