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MEXICO - CULTURE - HOLIDAYS
Christmas
Christmas is an important time in Mexico, where 95% of the people are Roman Catholic. During the nine nights before Christmas, pageants are held that tell the story of Mary and Joseph's search for an inn where Jesus could be born. Adults and children dress in biblical costumes and carry candles and statues of the holy family through the streets of their neighborhoods as they sing carols about the journey. In Spanish, the word for inn is posada, and that is why these processions are known as posadas.
As they march, the members of the procession knock at nine doors. At the first eight doors, they are sent on their way; but at the ninth, the door is opened and the fiesta begins. Songs, prayers, food, dancing, and games are all part of the evening.
For children, the highlight of posadas is the breaking of the piñata, a specially decorated container filled with treats of candy, fruit, or small toys. Pinatas come in many shapes and sizes and are also used to celebrate other events, but for Christmas, the traditional shape is a star.
During the holiday season, many families make their own piñatas and hang them as decorations until it is time to play the piñata game and collect the treasures inside.
December 16 marks the beginning of Las Posadas. One of the most colorful Mexican Christmas traditions is the posada party, celebrated every evening from December 16 to 24. These celebrations commemorate Mary and Joseph's cold and difficult journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem in search of shelter. "Posada" in Spanish, simply means lodging or shelter. Nowadays, the posada has evolved into a religious and social celebration, paying a festive homage to the journey.
El Dia De Los Muertos - Day of the Dead
On November 2, soon after children in the United States have celebrated Halloween, the Mexican people observe a day that is also filled with the images of skeleton bones and the sweet taste of candies and cakes. But unlike Halloween, El Dia de los Muertos, which means the Day of the Dead, is not meant for costumes and pranks. Instead it is a special occasion when families remember and honor their friends and relatives who have died.
Yet, El Dia de los Muertos is not a sad time. On this day, bakers make their famous pan de muerto, or bread of the dead, delicious anise-scented loaves that are filled with raisins and decorated with crossbones made of dough or sugar icing. (Click here for the recipe for PAN DE MUERTO) A favorite treat of Mexican children on El Dia de los Muertos is the specially made dulces, sugary marzipan candies formed in the shape of little skulls and coffins. During the holiday, the bake shops and markets of Mexico are filled with these colorful confections.
Of course, food is not the only way that Mexican families remember their dead. On El Dia de los Muertos, families visit the cemeteries where their loved ones are buried. There they picnic together and discuss happy memories. Often, they bring marigolds, known in Mexico as the flower of the dead, to decorate the graves. At night, the cemetery becomes aglow with flickering candles and smoky incense that loving friends and relatives have placed on the tombstones. In this way, the past is kept alive.
Click here for Day of the Dead crafts you can make yourself.
Mexican Independence Day - September 16
Although many non-Mexicans believe that May 5 (Cinco de Mayo) is Mexican Independence Day, it is actually celebrated on September 16. On that date in 1810, in the small town of Dolores just outside Mexico City, Father Miguel Hidalgo, a parish priest, rang his church bell and shouted the words that were to begin the Mexican people's fight for freedom: "Mexicanos! Viva Mexico! Viva la Independencia! Although the first rebellion was quickly crushed by Spain's royal forces, the revolution had begun. The war continued for more than ten years until finally, in 1821, Mexico was declared an independent nation.
Today, on September 16, Father Hidalgo's famous Grito de Dolores (Cry of Dolores) demanding independence can be heard in every city and town across Mexico. People gather on the main plazas where local officials ring their liberty bells and call "Mexicanos, viva nuestros heroes" ("Mexicans, long live our heroes!") As each hero's name is read aloud, the crowd cheers "Viva!" The grito ends with the shout "Viva Mexico!" and throughout the nation, church bells toll as the people rejoice.
There is even a special dish, chiles en nogada, to celebrate Independence Day in Mexico. Long green chiles are stuffed with ground pork or beef and spices. Then they are covered in a thick, creamy white sauce, sprinkled with red pomegranate seeds, and topped with a sprig of parsley. What makes this dish the perfect Independence Day meal? Its colors are green, white and red, just like Mexico's flag!
Mexico's Flag
The Mexican Flag is a red, white and green banner whose center contains an eagle eating a rattlesnake while standing with its left claw upon a nopal cactus, and a half circle of green oak (enciño) on the left (symbolizing strength) and laurel branches on the right (symbolizing victory). The red symbolizes the blood that was shed during the battles for Independence. The white symbolizes purity. The green symbolizes the fertility of the earth.
The eagle eating a snake while perched upon a cactus is from an ancient Aztec legend in which the Aztec people were told by Huitzilopochtli (their God) that to find their promised land, they were to find the place where an eagle landed on a nopal cactus while eating a snake. After wandering for hundreds of years, they found the eagle on a small swampy island in Lake Texcoco. This new Aztec home was named Tenochtitlan (meaning "Place of the Nopal Cactus"), and in 1325, they built what is now called Mexico City.
This flag was first used on September 17, 1968 (it was decreed by Gustavo Díaz Ordaz); it was a variation on a flag first used in 1821.
Cinco de Mayo
The holiday of Cinco De Mayo, The Fifth Of May, commemorates the victory of the Mexicans over the French army at The Battle Of Puebla in 1862. It is primarily a regional holiday celebrated in the Mexican state capital city of Puebla and throughout the state of Puebla, but is also celebrated in other parts of the country and in U.S.cities with a significant Mexican population. It is not, as many people think, Mexico's Independence Day, which is actually September 16.
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