Happy Halloween

Halloween is really a US import that really hasn't taken to big of a hold here. Kids will get dressed in costumes often bought at the store. You really don't see the all out costume making marathons, huge parties or trick or treating that goes on in the US. For Mexico the 1st and 2nd of November are the church holidays which are celebrated. On the first the souls of the innocents are honored. Those babies and children that have died. On the 2nd the adults are honored. Graves are visited and alters are created at home. Here death is just another step in life so that it doesn't have the fear and stigma it does in Anglo cultures. Skeleton figures are created to look and do what their live bodies would do. In fact a Mexican artist "José Guadalupe Posada created a famous print of a figure that he called "La Calavera de la Catrina" ("calavera of the female dandy"), as a parody of a Mexican upper class female. Posada's striking image of a costumed female with a skeleton face has become associated with the Day of the Dead, and Catrina figures often are a prominent part of modern Day of the Dead observances." Catrinas are now created out of all kinds of mediums and are collected. I enjoy the Catrinas that are made out of the common red clay and painted. They come in all sizes from 1/4 inch to many feet tall. I have only a few. Here are two of them. The third on is an angel made out of papermache. So then riddle me this how can an angel be a skeleton?? :c} Okay so I'm thinking there must be some kind of hob-goblin living in the camera or these Catrina's really didn't want their pictures taken today. Oh heck just pretend you are looking through spiderwebs :c}

Tomorrow LW and I will hit town with the camera and bring back pictures of some of the alters that are made to honor the dead family members.

Okay all you little Bloglandian goblins stay safe and don't eat all those Smarties at once!! :c}