While many Canadians might know about Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, they might not know very much about the celebration or the traditions behind it. Actor Erika Ortega and translator Alejandra Toledo did a presentation on Dia de los Muertos to tell people in this country about it.
Celebrated on November 2 every year, the day is a celebration, and one that comes from a pair of traditions, the pre-Spanish traditions that already existed in Mexico, and those adapted from the Spanish when they arrived in the country. The current tradition is a mix between the two, with Mexican people picking what they believe is important and relevant to them from the two.
The day is about celebrating the life of the dead people, and bringing their favorite things, like toys and food, to an altar, to celebrate the people who died and remember them. It’s a celebration, marked by parades in many communities.
Ortega knows that many people in Canada love and want to learn more about Mexico, and wants to share her culture with people here.
She admits that even in Mexico there are people who don’t know all about the meaning behind the symbols in Dia de los Muertos, so it’s useful for everyone to have a chance to learn about it.
One of the challenges of celebrating outside of Mexico is that you have to do most of it yourself, Ortega admits.
Bread of the dead and traditional decorations are easy to find in any Mexican store, but here she had to make everything herself.
This is her first year doing it in Canada, and she hopes to do it again in the future. Next time, she also hopes that she will be able to do the entire presentation in English, rather than in Spanish with translation.
