Día de Los Muertos on Isla Mujeres, the Day of the Dead (People)

Inside the two Isla Mujeres cemeteries, freshly cleaned and painted tombs are adorned with bright flowers, plus flickering candles, favourite foods, personal possessions, and photographs.

It’s time to celebrate, to share a graveside meal, and to remember the departed.

The Day of the Dead (People) begins on October 31^st. It includes November 1st, the Day of the Dead for children, and November 2^nd, the Day of the Dead for adults. Hanal Pixán, as the Mayas call it, translates as ‘food of the souls’. It is a 3,000-year-old Mayan tradition integrated into the Catholic Church rituals as La Día de Los Muertos in the mid-1500s. 

San Miguel de Allende 

Día de Los Muertos is a private family celebration that has become a public event, drawing a huge number of visitors to nearby Mérida and other cities such as San Miguel de Allende.

A Facebook friend recently asked if there were any activities planned on Isla for the Día de Los Muertos. I had to reply, “I don’t know.” City-organized events tend to be advertised very last minute, so maybe or maybe not.

 Although last year, for the first time, the Jean Piaget private school sponsored a silent parade, the Festival de Los Animas. It was fascinating to see the students and public figures beautifully dressed.

They silently walked the length of Hidalgo Avenue past bustling restaurants and bars, culminating at the Casa de Cultura with a public display of altars or ofrendas.

Festival de las Animas

We put up an altar at our house in remembrance of our parents; Lawrie’s and his sister Linda’s, brother-in-law Richard Grierson’s, and my parents.

A few years ago, we had a neighbourhood gathering to celebrate our friends’ parents as well. The years have flown so quickly, and now many of us find ourselves representing the oldest generation in our families.

One of our 'ofrendas' 

There are no set-in-stone rules for building a Día de Los Muertos altar, but it should at least incorporate the basics. If you can, include an archway to represent the passage between life and death. The archway can be made of something light and flexible and covered with flowers.

Then add candles to light the way. Marigold flowers, to attract the souls of your loved ones. A glass of water to quench the thirst of the spirits (although beer or tequila seems to be an acceptable option). A few personal trinkets, toys, and chocolate for children, plus photos of the people you are honoring. If you live in Mexico, don’t forget to include the pan de Muertos, a special bread available at most grocery stores and bakeries at this time of the year. Add other favourite foods to feed the hungry souls, and burn incense to chase away bad spirits.

Yani Medina, Mayan meal for the celebration.

The altars are traditionally set up in three levels by using a series of empty boxes and crates covered over with a large tablecloth or material. The number of levels depends on the personal beliefs of the altar designer. Two levels might symbolize heaven and earth, while three would represent heaven, purgatory, and earth. Some altars include seven levels to represent the seven steps to Heaven.

Whatever your personal beliefs, the basic idea is to create a display that celebrates your loved ones.

Cheers from paradise, Lynda, Lawrie, Sparky, & Max

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Yasmin and Jessica are back, and the gold they found in Treasure Isla is still haunting them, especially when Carlos, their boss at the Loco Lobo, and Yasmin’s new lover, is kidnapped. No spoilers here, but his captivity and the girls’ efforts to free him, with the help of Carlos’s pals—including local Isla Mujeres fishermen and a Mexico City cop—are the crux of this fast-paced story. Lock has created not only a compelling and authentic setting but a well-developed ensemble cast. The next Isla mystery can’t come fast enough.

Animas Festival: the Parade of Silence, Dia de Los Muertos

Ghostly brides. Half-faced children. Phantom cowboys.  Gentlemen apparitions in formal wear.  

Ladies in flower bedecked headdresses and jeweled Catrina makeup all gathered in Centro for a relatively new event on Isla Mujeres, the Parade of Silence, paying tribute to the souls of the departed.

Ru Perez Director Casa de la Cultura, on right

Organized by the Casa de la Cultura and the Jean Piaget private school, the procession was scheduled to start at six in the evening at the old cemetery located at the north end of Hidalgo Avenue, culminating at the Casa de la Cultura on Guerrero Avenue.  

Six o’clock Mexican time: más o menos.  In this case, the event was surprisingly not too far off schedule, starting at six-thirty.  

A group from our neighbourhood agreed we would meet downtown, watch the parade, and then go out for a light dinner. 

It should be easy for seven people to meet up on a five-mile-long island…wouldn’t you think?  

However, by the time I had snapped nearly a hundred photographs and the procession had passed us by, we realized that four of our friends had still not arrived.  

We did see several other well-known locals who were enjoying the spectacle, relaxing street-side in the various bars and restaurants that line Hidalgo Avenue.

Lawrie and his sister Linda decided that they would head to The Reef, where the group had planned to pop in for a drink with our favourite island bar-tender, Freddy Medina.

In the meantime, I scouted around Hidalgo Avenue for the others. 

It turns out they waited twenty minutes for a taxi, not wanting to risk the new Breathalyzer sobriety roadblocks that were initiated a week ago.  

For those of you unfamiliar with life in Mexico, drunk driving has been tolerated until very recently. Open liquor in vehicles, on golf carts, or even motos – no problem.  

A few times, we have witnessed motor scooter drivers so bombed that when required to stop for traffic or pedestrian crosswalks, they forget to put their feet on the ground. The result is a comical slow-motion toppling of the driver and the motorcycle into a heap on the hard pavement, in one case conveniently beside a police officer. 

The Breathalyzer sobriety checks are a step in the right direction; however, according to the island coconut-telegraph, the testers are re-using the same plastic ‘straw’ for every person.  It’s a very unsanitary practice, to say the least.  Hopefully, this is just a rumour.

Ashley Blogin

But I digress, Julie, Rob, Brent and Dé were about to start hoofing it into Centro when an available taxi finally arrived.  Having rounded up the strays, we trailed after the procession, heading in the direction of the Municipal Square and The Reef Bar at the south end of Hidalgo Avenue.  

The colourful, but quiet group slowly wound its way between the tables and chairs pushed out into the street by restaurant managers trying to maximize every possible square inch of serving space. 

Hidalgo Avenue has a fun, chaotic atmosphere with cramped spaces, colourful tables and chairs, wait-staff hawking menu choices, and the delicious smells wafting from open-air kitchens.

The Parade of Silence continued a few more blocks, culminating at the Casa de la Cultura.  We turned a sharp left and up the stairs into The Reef for an adult beverage.  We finished up our fun evening with a yummy dinner at Javi’s Cantina on Juarez Avenue.  The beautiful live background music was provided by Jorge and Martine.

  

Jorge with Javi on drums

We are already anticipating the procession of the souls next year.  Sometimes life in paradise is just so darn difficult.

Cheers

Lynda, Lawrie, Sparky, and Thomas

Julie and Linda G. with their new friend

Isla Mujeres Mystery series

Or

Death in the Vineyards