This traditional holiday, “Day of the Dead”, is one of the most important in all of Mexico. In Guanajuato, many of the municipalities celebrate with a variety of activities and festivals that have themselves become a tradition within the state. The people of Guanajuato have the custom of setting up altars that include the Cempoasuchil flower (marigold), sugar skulls, traditional food that was of the liking to the celebrated dead, a sweet pastry called pan de muerto, among other items and objects.

In our area, the main festivals are celebrated in the cities of Guanajuato, Leon, Morelia, Salamanca, Celaya and Mineral de Pozos. This is not a mourning celebration, rather, it is one where Mexicans welcome their visiting departed with the brilliant color of an array of flowers, glee in their hearts and minds, and mesmerizing aromas of food and incense.  

As children, my siblings and I looked forward to Dia de los Muertos almost as much as we did Dia de Reyes (when we got Christmas-related gifts). It was an exciting time to remember the departed, but also time to each lots of candy and other goodies only available during this time of the year. On the darker side of our human sensibilities, Dia de los Muertos also saw a spike in invented ghost stories being shared and told, and related terror-inducing mind games played among the children.