It’s midnight on the fringes of Mexico City, and the San Gregorio Pantheon is not just alive, it’s booming.
The roar of mariachis echoes over families adorning the graves of lost loved ones with rows of candles, orange cempasúchil flowers and their favorite treats ranging from pan de muerto to bottles of Coca-Cola.
Every year this time Mexico erupts in celebrations during the Day of the Dead. Families gather at cemeteries across the country on Nov. 1 to reconnect with their dead just as their ancestors have done for centuries.
For many more in small communities like this, it’s also about preserving the core of their traditions as celebrations in places in bigger hubs have increasingly been marked by mass tourism.
“We’re conserving our tradition, part of our heritage that my mother instilled in me,” said 58-year-old Antonio Meléndez. “We can’t let it be lost.”
Meléndez was among throngs of people gathered in the cemetery, tucked away in the maze of canals and brick buildings in Xochimilco, a borough in south of Mexico City that has long carried on traditions that have faded away in other parts of the country.
He gathered with his two daughters around the grave of his mother, marked by orange flower petals spread out in the shape of a cross and bouquets of pink flowers, his mother’s favorite color.
Meléndez said she died last year, and the loss was still fresh, so he was trying to remember her by continuing with the same rituals he watched her carry out growing up, this time with his daughters. He has started preparing for the celebration four days before, making tamales from scratch and building a small altar for her in their home.
Day of the Dead dates back centuries to ancient Indigenous civilizations, which would organize parties when someone died to guide them on to the next life, and lay out food in altars to nourish them on their journeys, according to the Mexican government.
Source : https://apnews.com/article/mexico-city-day-of-dead-d123f43e9adcfe51b39e57409b11ca99