Day of the Dead Cultural Articles
 

• Celebrating the Day of the Dead
  Since pre Columbian times, El Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead has been celebrated in Mexico, as in other Latin countries. ...it is the day in which the living remember their departed relatives.
   

• Common Misconceptions About the Day of the Dead
  It is not the Mexican version of Halloween. Mexicans have celebrated the Day of the Dead since the year 1800 B.C...
   

• The Day of the Dead Offering in English
  The sound of the rain, the smell of wet earth, the heat of fire, the color of the sky glowing in the afternoon and the taste of hot coffee: all sensory experiences .....as we go through our life on earth.
   

• The Day of the Dead Offering in Spanish
  El sonido de la lluvia, el olor de la tierra mojada, el calor del fuego, el color del cielo arrebolado en la tarde y el sabor del café caliente: sensoriales experiencias .... a través del recorrido por la vida terrena que transitamos.
   

• Day of the Dead Glossary  Altar de Muertos The offering that the family sets for their dead relatives. Arco Decorated arch sometimes placed on the graves or on the altar de muertos.....
   

• Teacher Suggested Activities
  I've taught my Spanish classes about Day of the Dead...  Then I invite them to think about a person they'd like to celebrate...
   

• Mexican Proverbs & Riddles 
  Hay más tiempo que vida There is more time than life.   Se me subió el muerto....
  
   

• Mexican Recipes:

           *Pan de Muerto  
Knead the mixture on a floured board for 10 minutes....Place the dough in a greased bowl and allow it to rise until it has doubled in size.....On top put some strips of dough simulating bones, and a little ball (tear).

           *Easy Recipe! Calabaza en Tacha
Calabaza en Tacha is another traditional dessert, that is prepared during the Fiestas de Muertos.  It is very easy and delicious!
 

• Crafts for the Day of the Dead

          *Decorate a Paper Calavera
Click and print .....Color or decorate with sequins, buttons, threads..
          *Make A Day of the Dead Skeleton Puppet
Click on the pictures to enlarge..Then print each one.....Cut the parts of the skeleton.
          *Sugar Skulls Recipe & Interview with Artisan
I have to start early in the year so I am ready for the Day of the Dead  fiestas....Following is the recipe for Sugar Skulls:    2 cups powdered sugar....1 egg white...

• José Guadalupe Posada: Creator of La Catrina
  José Guadalupe Posada, an ingenious artist, lived during one of the most turbulent times in Mexico...capture the essence of this turbulence in his lithographs ...the icon of Revolutionary Mexico.
   

• La Ofrenda
  Ofendas are an essential part of the Day of the Dead celebrations. The word ofrenda means offering in Spanish...food is specially prepared for the souls.
   

• La Rotonda de los Hombres Ilustres
  ....created a special place in the Dolores cemetery of Mexico City to honor all the Mexicans who gave “prestige to the Nation.”
   
• Teaching In Mexico:Halloween & Day of the Dead
  Halloween, as it is celebrated in the United States, is a holiday, which derived from the Druids...Mexico’s Day of the Dead has remained much more traditional, though Halloween is often celebrated here now as well. 
   

• A Day of the Dead Story: Those Good Old November Days
  “Grandma, when will we go to the market to buy the papel picado"(paper with cut-out figures)? ....
   

• Pre-Hispanic Poem About Life & Death
  ....Will we live again? Your heart knows this: We only live once!
   

• Those Sparkling Sequined Eyes:Sugar Calaveras
  These are the calaveritas, the sweetest and most popular of all the Day of the Dead offerings. These mischievous characters that appear only in November .....
   

• Juan Rulfo: The Sound of Death
  “Have you heard the cry of the dead ?”  asks Juan Rulfo through the voice of Doña Eduviges in his masterpiece Pedro Páramo.  If your answer is no, prepare yourself. 
   
• Juan Rulfo: El Sonido de la Muerte Spanish
  “--¿Has oído el llanto de un muerto?” pregunta Juan Rulfo en la voz de Doña Eduviges en su obra cumbre Pedro Páramo. Si tu respuesta es no, entonces preparate,
   

• Janitzio Song  by Agustín Lara
  Son las redes de plata un encaje tan sutil mariposas que duermen en la noche de zafir...Silver nets of such a delicate lace Butterflies that sleep during the sapphire night..

• Guess....
  Can you guess what the typical headline on every newspaper in Mexico on November 2 is? ....You couldn’t guess? Well, I’ll give you a clue.

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