Eat My Globe and the Day of the Dead

Our friend from England (above), author of the blogs Eat My Globe and Dos Hermanos (where you can read all about his escapades here in Mexico and in the rest of the world), joined Mexico Cooks! for a week-long whirlwind tour of our favorite food sites in Guadalajara and Morelia.  In between restaurants, taco stands, and walking-around food, we introduced him to the Day of the Dead in both cities.

Papel maché skull masks at the Tianguis del Día de los Muertos, Guadalajara.

Fancy-dress catrines (skeletons), ready for an evening out on the town.

Little clay calacas (skeletons) in sombreros and serapes, the perfect size for hanging from your car’s rear-view mirror.

Muñecas de cartón (cardboard dolls) dressed in crepe paper and sequins.

Part of a large ofrenda (altar) in Morelia’s Centro Histórico.  This altar was dedicated to Don Vasco de Quiroga.

A traditional ofrenda (with a twist–note the hand creeping out of the grave) at Morelia’s Hotel Virrey de Mendoza.

The Plaza San Agustín in Morelia.  The ofrenda covered the entire plaza.  The central pyramid is made of carrizo (bamboo) and ears of corn.  It’s surrounded by cempasuchil and terciopelo (marigolds and cock’s comb flowers).  The cempasuchil fragrance leads the spirits of the dead back to earth and the deep maroon terciopelo is the color of mourning.

A skeletal pair in the garden outside the Conservatorio de las Rosas in Morelia.

This ofrenda, in front of Morelia’s Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, is dedicated to Frida Kahlo.