So, in the US we celebrate Halloween. Well in Mexico they celebrate the Day of the Dead on November 1st and 2nd. Sounds unusual but for people in Mexico its just the same as kids dressing up on Halloween and going trick-or-treating. The ancient people of Mexico believed that the dead come back to earth each year to celebrate with their living relatives, just as they would when they were alive.

On November 1st, they celebrate the death of children, referred to as little angels, known as All Saints Day. On the first they celebrate by decorating the childrens graves with toys and colorful balloons. The next day is celebration for the adults which is known as All Souls Day, they are honored with displays of the departeds favorite foods and drinks, and some of their favorite belongings. The spirits are guided home by the placing of flowers and candles on their graves placed by their loved ones. During this time homes in Mexico are often decorated in the same fashion as the graves are. They celebrate these days on ceperate days was somewhat started by the arrival of the Spainards in the 15th century.

Other symbols include a coffee cake decorated with meringues in shape of bones, skull shaped candies and sweets, marzipan death figures and papier mache skeletons and skulls, the Nahua people of pre-columbian Mexico saw the skull of a symbol not of death but of life. By mid October stores are of course filled with these items just like on Halloween.

To the rest of the world these activities seem abnormal and somewhat weird. Although the Mexicans believe in the life/death/rebirth continuum, they dont treat the matters of death lightly. It's just that they recognize it, mock it, even defy it. Death is part of life and, as such, it's representative of the Mexican spirit and tradition which says: "Don't take anything lying down - even death!"

The process on the two nights goes as follows. The graves are prepared by the family of the departed ones and they bring along the favorite food and drink. They light the candles and burn the incense copal, they then pray and chant for the dead and then they have a picnic like deal. At 6:00 pm, bells begin to ring every 30 seconds summoning the dead.

The best place to witness the Day of the Dead festivities is on the island of Janitzio in Lago de Patzcuaro. The fun starts as soon as the sun comes up on the 1st the Purepechan Indians go on a ceremonial duck hunt. At midnight the duck and other foods are brought to the cemetery were thousands of candles are lit. The women visitors pray and the men chant all through the night.

According to the legend, the Aztecs were looking for this particular place and, after several years of wandering through Mexico, they found it on Lake Tenochtitlan in 1325, on the same spot where Mexico City now stands.