Its culture has preserved lively traditions that spice up daily life through music, dance, and a symphony of colors and flavors.
The pre-Columbian pyramids and the turquoise waters of Playa del Carmen make up the iconic postcard of Mexico, which is also worth a visit for its atmosphere.
As soon as you arrive, you won’t be able to miss a group of Mariachis in tight pants, short jackets, and embroidered sombreros, singing about their land, their battles, and their loves while accompanying themselves with violin, guitar, and trumpet.
A great opportunity to improvise dance steps in the street, following the rhythm of the Mexicans. They do not detract from the celebration, whether it is civil, family or religious. In the capital’s pastry shops, extravagant pastries are not only reserved for weddings, but also await children for grandiose birthdays where they join piñatas. Families go to the extent of going into debt to celebrate their daughter’s 15th birthday, sometimes inviting the whole village for this event, as symbolic as a wedding.
Expect to see dancers in brightly colored costumes, carrying on ancestral traditions that reflect the diversity of the country. In the state of Oaxaca, with the greatest ethnic and linguistic diversity, the danza de la pluma – dance of the feather – evokes the meeting of the Spanish colonists and the Aztecs, which resulted in the evangelization of the indigenous population.
It was done with a syncretism whose most striking ritual is the practice of honoring the deceased with candles, food, and decorations, with effigies of skeletons dressed in joyful colors for el día de los muertos.
The crafts echo the richness of these living customs. The mixture of influences is also found in the cuisine. Reserved for the Mayan aristocracy, cocoa beans are crushed and mixed with spices to make tasty drinks, and poultry is flavored with the famous mole poblano sauce.
In Mexico, the surprises are endless.
Sophie Reyssat
