Day Of The Dead In a Real Cemetery!
Today November 1st, is the Mexican Day of the Dead or Dia de los Muertos. It’s a holiday with a Halloweenish flavor. Last week, I was invited by a friend who eats fire and walk on stilts for a living named J7 to go to a Day of the Dead ceremony in a real San Diego cemetery, La Vista Memorial Park in National City on her Facebook page. It was amazing!
J7 on the right and her friend
Here I am below with face paint on for the event as the clown of death. The face painter liked my autobiographical novel, “Naked Skydiving” so much, she traded me her work for a signed copy of my book. The face painting cost less than my books so she gave me $5 on top of that!
The event had a carnival like atmosphere in the cemetery. There was a main stage
where many people were in costumes wearing day of the Dead skeleton face paintings.
The one in the middle represents the artist, Frida Kahlo. Day of the Dead celebrates the passing of relatives in a fun party atmosphere. Food and drinks for the living were also available for purchase right in the cemetery. Altars were created of the person’s favorite foods and drinks
and personal items. Here are some altars that are homages to dead relatives:
This is how we celebrate Day of the Dead, San Diego Style!
This couple is dressed in traditional Aztec costume and is representative of the San Diego State University sports mascot, the Aztecs. If you attend this event at a cemetery next year, make sure to tip toe around the graves!
