Dia de los Muertos Festival

I don’t feel like writing a separate category, but I went to the same festival, but this one took place in Phoenix at Margaret T. Hance Park. It was the first year of the festival, while Mesa was doing there show for the 33^rd straight year. The Phoenix event was small and is mostly for families with lots of face painting and stuff. Only two food vendors and about a dozen booths selling trinkets. There was some dancing too with drums and a big altar. Spirits do exist, so this festival will grow and get better.

I had never been to a Dia de los Muertos festival, but I had seen various incarnations of them on TV. Always willing to learn more about different cultures, and always up for an adventure, we headed over to the Mesa Arts Center to see what the festival would be like. There were several booths lined along the walkways selling various Dia de los Muertos crafts, mainly skull-​themed for obvious reasons. There was a large section partitioned off as a memorial for people to look, think and reflect upon. In the back, there were a few stands selling food, but by the time we got here (In mid-​afternoon) some of them had already stopped selling food, or were out of certain foods (Such as the tamale stand, which ran out of half of their items). The festival here seemed small compared to others, but it seemed to capture the essence of Dia de los Muertos pretty well (As far as I know, since this is my first time at one of these festivals). For music, there was always an artist performing when we were here, both in the front area and in the back.

I love the Day of the Dead and the celebrations surrounding it. Mesa puts on a really fun, colorful event with dancers and vendors selling their folkart.
Events all around the city usually take place between October 31 — November 2. Check this site for details —