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Posted on: 27-Nov-2007 12:00AM
Festival of the Virgin of GuadalupeLa Guadalupana, the festival celebrating the Virgin of Guadalupe, is one of the most unique and colourfull Celebrations after the Day of the Dead you can witness in Mexico. The first 12 days of December include a colorful and joyful spectacle perfect for those interested in real cultural experiences, real photographic opportunities and a perfect family oriented vacation. Mexico's Patroness is celebrated across Mexico in the plazas of villages and cities where ever a church large or small bears the name of the Virgin. From the enormous main zocolo in front of the Cathedral of Guadalupe in Mexico City to the tiny plaza in the mountain village of San Cristobal de Las Casas in Chiapis and dozens of towns in between, one can observe the approach of barefoot torch bearers and the procession of pilgrims. But, no where is the pageantry of Guadalupana more impressive and community-wide than in the charming pueblo of Puerto Vallarta. The famous cathedral in the center of town is named after the Virgin of Guadalupe. According to Mexican tradition, a dark skin virgin appeared to the peasant Juan Diego on December 12th in the year 1531, with the message that a church should be named in her honor. She is known as Our Lady of Guadalupe. The festival is a time for pilgrims to bring gifts and prayers to the Virgin. It is not an event staged for tourist, but a very important spiritual and cultural exercise for the people of Mexico. However, like most things they do the Mexican people celebrate their Virgin with a spirit of joy, outrageous color, music, fireworks and generosity of spirit. It is acceptable for visitors to join in and photograph the festivities, while respect of the event and participants should be mind. In Puerto Vallarta the celebration of the Virgin brings processions, small and large, to the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe adjacent to the main Plaza in the central district of Puerto Vallarta. These processions fill the streets around the plaza and the church with color, music and the festive spirit of the pilgrims waiting their turn to enter the Church to make their offering to the Virgin of Guadalupe.
Processions are organized by pilgrims with a connection to each other; family, neighborhood, church, school, class, union, club, workplace, favorite cantina or coffee shop. During the twelve days of the celebration, one person may participate in several processions or pilgrimages, possibly one or more a day.Each procession is as unique and colorful as the group mounting it, yet there is a formula to the procession. Each procession is led by a representation of the Virgin of Guadalupe. This may be as simple as the leader of the procession carrying a painting, a drawing, a carving or a sculpture, a tapestry or a pillow of the Virgin. Frequently the representation includes Juan Diego, the peasant to whom the Virgin first appeared, and in these cases most often involves a re-enactment, accomplished by creating a parade float with two members of the group dressed as the Virgin of Guadalupe and Juan Diego. This float may be on the back of a pick-up or on a cart pulled by a horse or donkey. Often the actors are children and the float is created from a child's wagon.Leading or following the representation may be a banner announcing the group involved in the particular procession. Next come individuals carrying the gifts to the Virgin, which the group has brought to place at the altar. Often the gifts are the symbolic wine and bread; frequently it is other groceries which will later be distributed to the needy or more elaborate items. Music sources proceeds or follows the giftsa single guitar player, a pair of trumpeters, an entire Mariachi group, a group of singers. More recently it may be someone carrying a boom box or pulling it on a wagon. The tune is the same with every procession, the hymn or chant of the Guadalupana. The pilgrims, the remaining family members, union members, employees or neighbors, follow all singing the hymn. A pilgrimage can involve a half dozen people to over a hundred, depending on the entity it represents. At the moment gifts from a procession reach the altar the church's bells begin to ring. The peal of bells fills the city and in the last days of the celebration, when the processions fill 18 to 20 hours of a day, the bells are ringing every 15 minutes.
The plaza is filled with tables of home made foods, lots of sweets and drinks and traditional Mexican treats, to revive the pilgrims after their long walk and to sustain the many observers who fill the streets watching the processions arrive. More music and fireworks end each night of processions, with a spectacular show of fireworks and music on the last night.Visitors should avoid entering churches in Mexico wearing shorts or immodestly dressed at any time of the year, but particularly during this celebration. Do not take photos inside any church at anytime without permission and never in the middle of a religious event. In some places you may see a posted sign prohibiting or permitting photos inside a church. These usually apply to times of day that the church is open but a service is not in progress. Be respectful and pay attention to these posts. During the Guadalupana you will get more than enough opportunities for stunning photographs outside during the processions.
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