Las Cruces

We arrived in Las Cruces for Halloween/Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead).  The second celebration lasts four days.  The 3000 year-old tradition originated in the Aztec and Meso-American civilizations.  It honors and celebrates the dead who souls come back on earth for a month each year.  Altars or ofrendas (offerings) are erected in front of homes and the Old Mesilla town square.  They contain photographs, personal comments and items that were important to that person or family.  These altars are generally quite colorful. 

Another way to honor the dead is to dress as a calacas or skeleton or as someone from the distant past.  Children, adults and seniors had their faces painted in lovely and ghoully fashion.  Calavera (skulls) decorated everything from jewelry to cupcakes.  Booths sell everything to help celebrate this holiday.

Even our servers at Andale, the restaurant where we started our evening, were in costumes. 

After brunch the next day at The Shed, one of the best brunches in both food and service we have had, we returned to the square.  We visited the Basilica of San Albino, designed in the French style under the direction of the newly appointed French shepherd of the diocese.  This structure replaced the traditional adobe Mexican church.

The square was filled with people dressed to honor the dead and many visitors like us enjoying learning about this tradition.  The “nun” carried two dogs and a cross as she wandered the square.

 These altars commemorated the military loses in Iraq.

  

The dancers came from El Paso to perform

She is a real balloon artist.

 

Before leaving Old Mesilla we drove around finding wonderful doorways.

 

 We also found adobe bricks drying.

 

Heading beyond the square we saw fields filled with New Mexico’s State vegetable, chile/


 We saw a blue heron and an egret on our drive along the Rio Grande in Mesilla State Park.

 

State Minutia:

The state aircraft is the hot air balloon.  The bird is the roadrunner.  State cookie, the biscochito, an overly sweet and dry wedding cookie, but good dipped in coffee.