Day of the dead comes alive - 15th November 2023

Thousands flock to Mexico City for one of Latin America’s most spectacular annual festivities, the Day of the Dead parade, which commemorates the cycle of life and death. While these celebrations coincide with the Christian All Souls observations in early November, they’re anything but a solemn affair.

As well as revelling in colourful parades, festival participants gather at the final resting places of their departed relatives in loving celebration.

Festivalgoer: "The closeness between our souls, the closeness to our dead, more than mourning them is to celebrate, so we’re happy."

The origins of the festival are shrouded in mystery. Experts disagree over whether ‘Día de Muertos’ is rooted in Christian customs or the pre-Columbian era. Elements of ancient Aztec ritual could represent an unbroken lineage predating Hispanic Mexico or a 20th century movement reclaiming Aztec identity. Regardless of the true origins, the festival’s continual evolution’s a point of pride for festivalgoers.

Festivalgoer: "It is a tradition that we have had for a long time, and I am glad that we have been improving it little by little with different carnivals and parades, it is something that has always been like that."

Unique in cultural significance, the festival’s been recognised on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity since 2008. This has piqued international interest, drawing in tourists from far and wide to witness the spectacle, which has even featured as the opening sequence of the James Bond film 'Spectre'.

Photographs of the dead adorn home altars, and favourite dishes are left at the graves of the departed. Meanwhile, it’s become customary to present sugar skulls to friends and relatives, and for revellers to paint their faces with vibrant skull designs.

Tourist Sapeer Kadoch finds it holds a life-affirming quality.

Sapeer Kadoch: "I think it's really beautiful the way that Mexicans celebrate death. I think it's so special and so unique, it's not something that you see anywhere else in the world so it really, it warms my heart."