Carnavál de Mazatlán 2014—this year with the theme Litoralia: Skin of the Sea—is fast approaching! To build some excitement and get your energies flowing, I post a few of the videos we’ve take during Carnavál the past couple of years. Get out your masks and confetti, put on your dancing shoes, and enjoy!
2012 Preparations for 2nd Parade
Great video of the kids rehearsing, putting on makeup, eating, and horsing around:
2013 Main Parade
Video from street level of the main parade at night, with dancers coming out to dance with us in the crowd and closeups of those in the parade.
2012 Queen Karla Coronation Fireworks
Video of the fireworks over the stadium——filmed from a distance where they can best be viewed——during the coronation of the 2012 Carnavál Queen, Karla.
2012 Main Parade VERY short (30 second) view from the street, with closeups of the performers.
Remember that Mazatlán’s Carnavál is now the second largest in the world. In addition to the two main parades, the four coronations including their concerts and show productions, two huge fireworks displays, and this year’s additional two concerts by El Recodo and Los Recoditos, there is ALSO a bullfight, painting and literature competitions, a gastronomic festival, a fair (with rides, county fair style), a couple of balls (a children’s ball and a masquerade ball), and the party zone in Olas Altas, where dozens of bands will play each night, till the wee hours of the morning. View CULTURA’s calendar for this year’s Carnavál here. View details of the normal annual events here.
Shoreline: The Skin of the Sea is the closest I can get to translating this year’s rich Carnavál theme, which will unite Mazatlán with the Mardi Gras of New Orleans, Rio de Janeiro, Santiago de Cuba, and Venice, which are all located on the water, of course. Are you getting excited? It’s hard not to, with lights already hung along the Avenida del Mar parade route, and all the great photos people keep sending me. February 27-March 4th is coming soon!
Two great pieces of personal Carnavál news for me this year! One is that our recently departed dear Maestro Rigo’s two wishes, which we reported to you last year, will be realized! This year’s float for the Queen will be 15 meters tall! Secondly, on this 400th anniversary of Japan-Mexico relations, we will have a Japanese float and comparsa/dance troupe in the parade this year! And, they will do a tequila-odori!
My friend Sandra and I with our Mayor, State Secretary of Tourism, and Esperanza Kasuga, who is organizing Mazatlán’s celebration of the 400th anniversary of Japanese-Mexico relations.
While we have lost Maestro Rigo to this life, his two carrozas, for Queen and Child Queen, are about 60% finished. His sister, Ana Lewis Rodríguez, is continuing his legacy, at least for this year. She says that Rigo’s dream was to have the Queen’s float (with a Brazilian theme this year) crowned with 300 ostrich feathers. Since each one costs 100 pesos, there will perhaps be some fundraising involved to make that happen. The 15 meter height for the float, which Rigo dreamed of, also requires special materials, not just the standard papier maché. So, here’s hoping…
This morning I received photos of the seamstresses working on the royal costumes, which seem to get more luxurious and fantastical every year. Enjoy the sneak peek! Sodelva Rios de García and her team have been making the royal costumes for almost 40 years. You’ll remember that we showed you the King of Joy’s vestments she made last year.
Photo courtesy of CULTURA
Do you know that CULTURA’s costume department produces over THREE HUNDRED costumes for Carnavál each year?! Our kudos to Elisa Espinoza, head of the costume department! While the women are primarily in charge of the costuming, props are coordinated by two gentlemen: Adrián Javier Ledesma Ruíz and Jesús Julio Robles Jaramillo.
This year the Child Queen will be dressed with a French influence, in honor of New Orleans, in gold, silver, purple and green. Some of the vestments for the dancers, which have to be comfortable as well as free-moving, will be finely detailed with airbrush. The King of Joy’s theme is Cuba—the colors will be vivid, tropical colors with a lot of shine and ruffles.
Photo courtesy CULTURA Mazatlán
The election of the Queen this year will take place on Saturday, February 15th, in the Angela Peralta theater. As in recent years, the candidates will model designer evening dresses and clothing designed by Jacobo Borge and Sandra Vite, and jewelry designed by Gustavo Helguera (whose designs have been worn by Naomi Campbell and Carolina Kurkova).
Are you trying to plan your trip here or your friends’ stays? Or how you’ll navigate all the Carnavál events? Check out this “Why We Love Carnavál” so you can pace yourself and your energy. Remember that this year El Recodo will play Monday night, which is traditionally the night of the fireworks on the malecón and the light parade—even more events than in a normal, very full Carnavál year.
I keep wanting to make it over to Maestro Jorge González Neri’s taller, to see what he’s up to (LOVE seeing the works in progress!), but life has just been too busy (5 sets of visitors over the holidays, the 25th anniversary of my business in 2014, and the 10th anniversary of my Cultural Detective project coming up in February, plus just so many events in town)! Here is a peek from last year at this time: Monigotes—The Making of a Giant Statue. The work these artists do for our pleasure is truly remarkable!
photo from CULTURA
I’m excited with all the musical acts this year, and that amidst the international-caliber classical music selections we also see three major banda that originate in our hometown: El Recodo, Los Recoditos, and Chuy Lizárraga. What a proud reclaiming of our roots! Say, do you recall the songs of Carnavál from recent years? While, to my knowledge, there is no annual “official” Carnavál song, each year there seems to be that song that gets played and replayed so much that it comes to represent our memories of that year. Greg wrote a post about that, read it here and test your memory.
I suppose the next thing is to wait till the monigotes or giant statues get put up, as well as the flags along the parade route. While we wait, I suggest we all get our “skin of the sea” wear in order!
We have been very excited about the incoming mayor, Carlos Felton González. We first met him during the inauguration of the photo event up on top of the lighthouse. While all the other dignitaries were sweating and heaving with the effort of climbing up, Felton bounded up with energy and later ran down with great glee. He’s obviously fit. We see him in Playa Norte at many of our fair city’s athletic events, and were overjoyed this morning to hear his support for the ciclovías/bike lane plans that have been previously announced and so long in coming to fruition.
One man alone can not make change happen, so we can only hope that his Cabildo, cabinet, committees, staff, and all ciudadanos can jump on board and make this new administration the best it can be for our beloved adopted hometown!
The swearing-in ceremony in the Angela Peralta Theater this morning began promptly at 8:00. Five key opera singers from CULTURA regaled us for 30 minutes. While that took place, the official swearing-in ceremony—oaths of office—were taking place in the Cabildo.
At 8:30 am, the dignitaries walked into the theater: the Governor of Sinaloa, Mario López Valdez; the Secretary of the Government, Gerardo Vargas Landeros; the Commander of the Third Military Region, Moisés García Melo; the Commander of the Fourth Naval Zone, Francisco Márquez; and the Governor of Durango, Jorge Herrera Caldera; and a stage filled with other prominent people. Click on any image to enlarge it or view a slideshow.
Settling in
Finishing up
The abrazo with the gov
Opening introductions and thanks took a full 10 minutes. What impressed me was the sincerity of those thanks—Felton mentioned so many people by name, describing his affection and respect for so many of them. He definitely seems to be a man not driven by pure ego, as is so often our political fate.
The theater was over-filled, with dozens of members of the press standing to get photos, the ground floor and all balconies standing-room-only. A viewing area with seating had also been set up in the Plazuela Machado, with a huge screen streaming events from inside.
Felton shared with us a very clear and highly motivating vision, and seems to have plans in place to get started putting those plans in action. I was sure impressed with his slate of functionaries/cabinet officials that he announced yesterday. Points in Felton’s remarks this morning that stood out for me included:
Almost his very first comment was that he is a padre de familia, a parent, and that he is committed to a community in which families thrive, are valued, feel safe, and have the resources they need. Such values and priorities sure resonate with me.
His commitment to reaching out to all citizens, and his commitment to serve—especially those who are poorest and most marginalized. He also talked of his commitment to the differently abled.
His focus on creating a strong and sustainable economy here in Mazatlán, one in which our children, older and experienced adults—everyone—can find jobs worth having. His commitment to partnering with private industry and to retaining talent here in our port, rather than continuing the brain drain of our top talent to other cities, was music to my ears.
He thanked all foreign residents for their choice to live in Mazatlán, for the affection we show for this city, and for so often setting a good example for others in how to care for and show responsibility for creating the best living conditions possible. This was remarkable—one of maybe three times people interrupted his speech with applause. Given that 95% of the audience or more were locals, this was remarkable.
He had another huge round of applause thanking the police and the military leaders for all their work in securing safety here in Mazatlán. Felton pointed out that no matter how much economic or tourism success we might have, if our port experiences violence, it’s all for naught. Again, it was refreshing to hear a politician giving others credit for the work they so ably do. I attend far too many events where you’d think the only capable person present is the one speaking.
He quoted Khalil Gibran in closing, while thanking his mother, and also extended thanks to his wife and children. He recognizes that his public duties will mean less of him and his time for his family. For me, it was gratifying to hear public acknowledgement of that.
After the official events (outgoing Mayor Higuera was missing from this event), Felton hosted a beautiful reception in the Plazuela, complete with empanadas, donuts, canapés, and nonalcoholic sangria/jamaica cocktails, served in champagne flutes. I was gratified to see that the public was welcome to this reception; many children and obviously lower income people were enjoying mingling with the city’s rich and famous. Playing was my favorite local band: videographer and talented singer Julio Recinos with La Falsa Orquesta Cubana Sazón. Given the perfect, sunny yet cool and pleasant morning and the gorgeous architecture of the theater and the Plazuela Machado, it all seemed auspicious, indeed! As we exited the theater, luck would have it that we crossed paths with Governor Malova, just in time for me to get a good morning kiss.
We are all skeptical of politicians these days, sadly. We hear good words and take them with a grain of salt. It is my sincere hope that someone with such deep ties to Mazatlán as Felton has, someone who has over the years shown his love for our city and its downtrodden, someone married to someone as wonderful and values-focused as Sylvia Treviño, someone who loves sports, the outdoors, the environment, and who respects history and heritage as well as diversity, might have a hope of truly making a difference.
May our city pull together and, as Felton says, truly transform itself!
One final note: We shared with you recently the gorgeous dress that the town of El Rosario had created to honor its town. Evidently Mazatlán has taken their example, as today we witnessed the unveiling of two new dresses representing our port. Photos below.
More chickens than ever (2300 families), more despensas/food packets than ever (1164), more routes and more volunteers. Handing out of the chickens this year was a terrific time, as usual. Hearty thanks to all who participated, and to Yolanda for leading us in this effort for 21 years.
Merry Christmas, everyone! We are so fortunate to be able to share with others in this way. The smiles and hugs of the people on our route in San Antonio, their joy, was the best gift I can imagine. See below for photos from this year (mouseover to view larger; click to view slideshow).
The Bachoco truck delivering the chickens in the early am
Sacks of food/despensas
Counting money so we can pay for the chickens
Some of the donated clothing
It’s soooo early!
The assembly line is ready!
Loading the first truck
The power of the pen! (Greg in charge of the route list)
We have long loved the small town of Cosalá, the first and very well deserved “Pueblo Mágico” (2005) of Sinaloa. It’s history is well preserved in its lovely architecture as well as the lifestyle of its people. This year we were able to take time off work to attend the Fiesta de las Velas, which is held every December 11th, on the eve of Virgin of Guadalupe Day.
The candlelight procession was an absolute delight! It was not a “spectacle” or performance, as so many of these events become in larger cities. Cosalá’s homage to the Virgen is home-spun loveliness. The procession is a tradition that dates back over 300 years, and is the only event of its kind in Mexico or throughout the world! As Cosalá is only 2-1/2 hours from Mazatlán, we highly recommend you make the journey!
Mouse-over any photo to view it larger or see a slideshow, and be sure to scroll down to read the full post—there are lots of pictures in this one, as so much happened in such a very short time!
People all over town began lighting candles at dusk, setting them out in front of their homes and businesses, along the curb, on window ledges, and atop rock walls. We saw a wide variety of different candles: tapers, candles in glass, votives in glass, candles in plastic cups, and even beautiful Virgen de Guadalupe votives, so we supposed that each family buys its own candles to put out on this very special night.
Father and son placing their candles
Some people set candles on the curb for later lighting
Others placed lit candles on the curb
Setting down lit candles
As soon as the candles are lit, the children, of course, begin to have fun with them. What little boy can resist a burning flame? I very much enjoyed watching these three boys light sparklers from the candles their mother had just lit, squealing in delight. The entire night was just a joy.
Lighting a sparkler
The sparkler catches fire
Lighting another sparkler
Wooo!
Very fun!
At 7:00 pm, the electric lights in the city went dark, and the entire pueblo took on the lovely glow of candlelight. It was truly a sight to behold! The streets were nearly empty except for those waiting for the procession to reach them, so they could join in. The winding streets lined with glowing candles, street lights draped and shaded, it was truly magical.
As we walked around the pueblo, marveling at the beauty, we noticed a miniature Christmas village displayed in a window. The lady of the house quickly came out to invite us inside. This very humble-looking-from-streetside home was huge and wonderful inside! And its family was so very hospitable! We entered into a courtyard with a life-sized nativity, through to the living room with a huge Christmas tree and the village we had first noticed, past a large statue of the Virgin to another living room with a tree hung from the ceiling, out to a back courtyard that was strung with beautiful twinkle lights. Later on, we met the ladies of the house again during a procession.
The procession wound around town, lasting perhaps an hour and a half, growing larger and larger as more and more people joined in. The procession is most definitely inter-generational: grandmothers and children, husbands and wives, groups of teenaged friends or middle-aged women, all walking with candles in hand. This event was most definitely a photography challenge! In addition to low light, you have constantly moving targets! How to possibly capture candlelight and people moving? I’m sure many have done better than I did, but at least you’ll get an idea of the beauty and preciousness of it all, I hope.
The painting of the Virgin is held high, on the shoulders of local men, as she is fêted. In addition to the main image in the procession, there are of course images of the Virgen all over town to celebrate her on her special day.
People in the procession were singing and praying as they made their pilgrimage through town, from one church to another and back. There were also two groups of dancers in the procession. One group of mostly young girls carried a candle in each hand and danced in a choreographed way each time La Guadalupana was sung. They had their heads covered and were dressed in gowns, to represent the Virgen, I believe. The drummer accompanying this group was a boy dressed in a shirt with a beautiful image of the Virgen on the front.
The second dance group of the evening were the teenagers who performed the Danza del Jaguar, native to Cosalá. The young men act as hunters, while the young women act the role of jaguars, hiding, running from, and occasionally leaping at the young men. They play these terrific instruments called rotares: hollow so they’ll reverberate, with a leather cord attached that is pulled to create the sound of a jaguar roaring. Accompanying the dancers was a small band, in the back of a pickup truck, with several drums, more rotares, and other percussion instruments. This group walked immediately in front of the Virgin, and we were told that their dance clears the way of any bad spirits, cleansing and purifying the route for today’s honored guest.
The following morning as we were walking through the plaza, we noticed two of the jaguar dancers from the night before. The young woman, Maribel, had such striking eyes that we immediately recognized her. She was very congenial and outgoing, and was so very pleased when I asked her to tell us the story of the jaguar dance.
The procession ended at one of the town’s churches, where an outdoor Mass had been set up. The painting of the Virgen was proudly displayed on the altar, and Father Nahúm Villalobos said a heartfelt Mass attended by hundreds who crowded into the yard and filled the church proper to overflowing.
During the Mass, Victor Franco debuted a new song he had written for the town, Cosalá Bendita. We felt very privileged to be able to hear it as it was performed for the first time ever, in the presence of so many Cosaltecos who seemed incredibly moved by its words and melody.
After Mass concluded the outgoing Mayor of Cosalá, Mario Cuauhtémoc Padilla, and Francisco Córdova, State Secretary of Tourism, announced that the town had just officially named Fiesta de las Velas as a cultural heritage event. Next steps will be to seek state, then national, and finally, hopefully U.N. designation for this gorgeous event. I can not imagine it will stay small, sweet and uncrowded for many more years.
Following that ceremony was a singing performance, which culminated in singing Las Mañanitas to the Virgin.
Our friends Sandra and Hector took us on this wonderful trip. They seemed to know absolutely everyone in town, so we felt so very welcome, and our friends Jeanette and Emery joined us as well. I will later do a post on the town itself, and our adventures the day following the procession, but let me leave this post here. It is definitely worth planning for next year. There are good restaurants in Cosalá, and several categories of hotels as well. I’d recommend you go up and stay two nights, as on the 12th there were fireworks, a town fair, and a children’s parade.
I put together a two minute video of the procession, including a bit of both dances and the prayers. You can view that below.
¡VidaMaz! 