The day of the dead is a holiday celebrated across Latin-American countries and other cultures.  In countries like Mexico, this celebration is considered a bank holiday.  On the day of the dead family members get together to remember friends and family member who have died.  On the 2nd of November, most people visit the cemetery to clean and decorate the graves of the loved ones who have departed.

In some places people refer to the 31st of October as the day of the little angels or ¨Día de los angelitos¨ and they remember kids and infants who have died, the 1st of November as the day of all the saint ¨Día de todos los santos¨, they remember adults , and the 2nd of November as the All Soul Day or ¨Día de las animas o día de muertos¨ people visit the grave of the love ones who have departed at the cemetery.

In this celebration the family and friends of the deceased build an altar at their home and on the 2nd of November visit the cemetery and decorate the graves of the departed at the cemetery. These altars, called “ofrendas” in Spanish, honour the deceased with sugar skulls, marigolds and his/her favourite food, fruits and beverages. These “ofrendas” are also decorated with pictures and personal possessions of the deceased. Some families hire mariachis or the local “trios” to play and sing the favourite music and songs of the loved one who has departed at the cemetery.  People usually bring toys and bottles of tequila, mezcal and pulque for dead adults to the cemetery.

In some parts of Mexico such as the towns of  Mixquic, Patzcuaro and Janitizio, people spend all night beside the graves of their relatives. In many places people have picnics at the grave site, as well. The belief is that on this day the soul of the person who has died is allowed to visit his/her family and the family organises and built these¨ofrendas¨to encourage the soul of the deceased to continue visiting and listen to their prays and the comments directed to them.

The most popular flower used in this celebration is the orange Mexican Marigold ¨cempasúchil¨or ¨flor de muerto¨which is believed to attract souls of the dead to the offerings. 

Celebrations can take a humorous tone, as celebrants remember funny events and anecdotes about the departed, as a joke people can give each other sugar skull with their names written on them or those with a talent for writing sometimes create short poems, called calaveras (skulls), describing interesting habits and attitudes or funny anecdotes.

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