Mexico Real Estate – The Appeal of Culture Part 2: Religion and Festivities

This is the second of a four-post series about the appeal of culture for buying Mexico real estate and living in this country. In yesterday’s post, I looked at history, pre-hispanic and colonial. Today I will look at two of the central items in Mexican life: religion and the often closely related festivities.

Religious Sites

Whether you’re religious or not, there’s something awe-inspiring about the grand old cathedrals found in the major cities; beautiful old churches with tall towers and baroque paintings can be found in any town from colonial times.  Even just the sound of the bells ringing has something magical about it.  There are also pilgrimage sites such as the Basilica of the Virgin of Guadalupe, where the Virgin Mary is reported to have appeared to an indigenous Mexican just after the conquest; the cloth on which her image was branded into at the time of the appearance is kept on display.  Not all sites are colonial or even old; one state boasts a giant statue of Jesus on top of a round church shaped as a crown built in the middle of the 1900’s (Cerro de Cubilete in Guanajato.)

At sites like these last two, we northerners can also get a taste of how religion manifests itself in Mexican culture.  People will come on real pilgrimages; many are not visiting as tourists, and they don’t have a big camera hanging around their neck.  People may arrive shuffling along on their knees carrying a sick child to ask for healing (some having approached in this difficult and humble way for several miles!)

Festivities

Mexico has many, many festivities. Those who choose Mexico retirement will likely enjoy some of these, at least “observing,” but more than likely joining in; Mexico is a very inclusive culture.  Just about any important event is a good reason to celebrate good and hard.  A large celebration could be a long-standing tradition like Carnival, or simply to celebrate someone’s birthday (often a neighborhood event!)  Mexican celebrations include lots of food, music, dancing and, of course, tequila (as well as other drinks.)  You may quickly realize that in some settings, even if parents are celebrating their daughter’s 3rd birthday, the party will continue long after the toddler is sound asleep – and it may not seem like what you would consider a “kids party.”  Some wedding celebrations are known to last for several days.  Just about every community will have its local celebrations, and many of these will also include artwork and handicraft sales.

Tomorrow’s post will be about Food and Drink.

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