Festival Photos and Videos
A few videos and a slideshow of the 2012 Festival of San Miguel
Danza al Pie de La Bufa de Zacatecas
Raza de Bronce Los Olmecas de Aguascalientes
The Saturday Horse procession, Xuchiles, and big parade
The Slideshow:
2012 Festival of San Miguel
The festival of San Miguel begins in the wee hours of the morning tomorrow so I thought I would publish the schedule of events which varies little from year to year. Along with it, slideshows of years 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011.
2007 Festival Slideshow:
SATURDAY
3 am: Meeting of the dnacers & Mojigangas, corner of San Francisco/Nunez & procession to Jardin
4 am: Alborada – fireworks in the Jardin
7 am: Mananitas – happy birthday to San Miguel at the Parroquia
8-11am: Dancers in the Jardin & Plaza Civica
11 am: Mass to honor San Miguel Arcangel, Parroquia
12 noon - horseback riders from the ranchers parade from the train station to the Parroquia.
1pm: Voladores of Papantal in the Jardin
2pm: Blowing up the paper mache monos in the Jardin, 2pm (Parade down Calle San Francisco before)
5pm: Big Parade! Mojigangas, Xuchiles, dancers from all over Mexico (Calzada Estacion to Jardin)
7pm: dancers in Jardin
8pm: voladores
9pm: Rockets and fireworks
Of course we are on Mexican time so anything can be early but more likely a little late!
2008 Festival Slideshow:
SUNDAY
7-9am: Dancers in the Jardin
11am: Another big parade through the downtown starting on Zacateros near Calle Nuevo
1pm: tribute to San Juan de San Miguel, the city founder
3pm: 7pm Voladores
9pm: The BIG fireworks
2009 Festival Slideshow:
2011 Festival Slideshow:
Cañada de la Virgen
Today we visited Cañada de la Virgen, the pyramid site outside of San Miguel de Allende. The site was built by the Otomí Indians around 500 BC and was inhabited until the 1500′s.
You go with a guide and are driven to within a 20-25 minute walk of the pyramid site & you hike in climbing volcanic rock steps. Besides the Otomí, we were told that the Toltecs also used the site during this time, however they were a nomadic tribe who did not settle permanently here.
Slideshow:
The pyramid is situated so the light of both the sun and moon come directly into the center at specific dates of the year during which ceremonial activities were performed.
As you can see the landscape after a good rain year is lush and green and today, in full bloom.
Quinceañera!
Karen, Elvia’s daughter, turned 15 last week. Her quinceañera was last night.
Karen and her ChambelanesEverything up through dinner was as expected, but the “dancing” begins with an hour long ritual that includes dance, performance, fireworks (inside) and showers of confetti all of which acknowledge moving out of childhood and becoming a woman.
She receives her last doll, a tiara, her first high heels and acknowledgement from her entire family and extended network of friends. All of this is enacted out in a series of practiced acts where her chambelanes carry her on their shoulders, dance with her one by one while she pushes them away, each for the next. It’s traditional and modern mixed with the essence of a fairy tale, an elaborate, moving and sometimes funny ritual to end childhood.
Video coming soon.
Gelatina, As Art
What can I can say about these beautiful gelatin desserts but WOW! They are made by a local person who has obviously spent years in her kitchen playing around in this medium. They are works of art, almost impossible to imagine how she made each one by hand. When you look at the photo above, each miniature petal and stamen is hand made out of gelatin and arranged in layers around the tiny stamens to form these gorgeous edible flowers.
Diego Rivera’s Anahuacalli Musem
One Reason to love Mexico City:
Diego Rivera’s Anahuacalli Museum in Coyoacan.
Over his lifetime, Diego Rivera collected 50,000 pieces of pre-hispanic art. According to the museum staff he bought from ‘archaeologists’ who robbed temple sites and had a hand in taking pieces himself.
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Trees of Life and Other Clay Work
Arbol de la vida, the tree of life. They come in a variation of themes – Adam and Eve, the nacimiento, Noah’s arc, God overseeing his kingdom as well as scenes from nature, the animal kingdom, traditional Mexican scenes and dia de los muertos trees.
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The Molcajete
Not much I can say that the video doesn’t convey. The Molcajete meal at Ten Ten Pie – the bubbling one pot meal which is as good as it looks! A combination of arrachera, chorizo, fried panela, grilled nopales, green onions, avocado and cilantro in a bubbling tomatillo sauce.
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New Church Announcement
They came by at 6am this morning, rockets and all. The procession wound through town, past all the other churches for a blessing, then returned to our street about 1pm.
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Virgen de Guadalupe
Last night was the 6th Novena for the Guadalupe in our neighborhood. Each day more people come and live music arrived on the fourth Novena.
Don’t let the peacefulness of it fool you or make you nostalgic for simpler times because once it got started, about 30 boys under 12 showed up.
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Dia de los Muertos 2011
A slideshow of altars, celebrations and the cemetery, 2011
You can view our slideshow here on our old blog
The Blessing of San Miguel
Pilgrimage of San Miguel to the Parroquia to be blessed for the upcoming town celebration - The Festival of San Miguel
This Weekend’s Festivities:
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Museo Antropologia
Mexico City, the museum of anthropology.
There’s more than I can write pecking a letter at a time on my iPhone so here’s some photos until I can get to my computer
Locos Parade 2011
Every June in San Miguel de Allende, they celebrate the feast day of San Antonio de Padua with first, Rockets beginning at about 4am, followed by religious processions and masses and a full size carnival with lots of kiddie rides, ending a week later with the Locos blessing and Parade.
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Elvia’s Family
I haven’t done an update on Elvia’s family in a long time. For those of you who haven’t read about Elvia, it begins with the post titled The Novena and a Tragedy. Other stories about her family can be found by searching ‘Elvia’
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