Our House In…

November 2, 2022:

On Halloween we ventured into the neighborhood of Jalatlaco.

Marigolds are the flower traditionally associated with Day of the Dead celebrations. The city is filled with them.

Friendly neighborhood ice cream shop:

We then ventured into the center of town.

The speaker behind these figures is playing the song that bread sellers traditionally play as they go around the city (and still do, though no longer on bicycles).

In the Zocalo, a marimba playing traditional tunes.

We had some good ceviche in the Reforma neighborhood where we’re staying. This is in a peanut sauce, thus “encacahuatado.” Great word.

Lots of good looking street dogs in this neighborhood.

We stumbled upon another impromptu dance party as a band played for a crowd before wandering up to the Xochimilco neighborhood. Trick-or-treaters were in profusion.

Part of the city’s aqueduct, built in the early 1700s, and providing water to the city until 1941.

This figure is a tiliche, which we have seen quite a lot. They come from the town of Putla Villa de Guerrero and are symbols of Carnaval in that area. As we understand it, it’s a poor dude who knows how to party.

In Xochimilco, we made our one venture into a cemetery to see the traditional honoring of the dead. It felt somewhat awkward gawking at people decorating graves, with some actively mourning, even though the public is expressly invited to come inside.

This family invited us to photograph their impressive display.

That’s it for Day of the Dead in Oaxaca. It was a beautiful time of year to be here. We’re not going home yet, though. More to come.