More on the festivities of December

Saturday, November 5, 2005--The festivities of December

Christmastime, the fiestas of the Virgin of Juquila and the Virgin of Soledad, and Night of the Radishes

It's almost as though Oaxaca is breathing a sigh of relief now that the excitement of the Day of the Dead is fading away. People are taking down the altars they so carefully created and getting back to their normal hum of activity.

Last night the zócalo was a particularly lovely place to be. It was a clear, dark night with a new moon hovering in the west, and a perfect temperature. Oaxacan families, young lovers, and groups of tourists from all over the world strolled through the zócalo, every corner of which  had its own group of mariachis or trovadores playing traditional songs.

Oaxaca's next big set of celebrations starts in early December, with the Fiesta patronal de la Virgen de Juquila, on December 8, followed ten days later by the Fiesta de la Virgen de la Soledad. On the 23rd, the zócalo will be ringed by booths displaying the amazing carvings and creations of the famous Night of the Radishes. During the last two weeks of December, various groups will organize posadas--beautiful processions in which groups of people carrying candles go from house to house singing a traditional Christmas song asking for shelter--posada. And on the night of the 24th, dozens of calendas--processions of floats, marchers and musicians--will converge on the zócalo in an explosion of color and sound. There's a lot to look forward to.

Nativity scene from the Night of the Radishes

A bizarre gigante from the Posada de las Artistas

Sleepy angels at the Zocalo on Christmas Eve

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