El Dia de los Muertos

I was noticing several of our partners and sponsors (Univision 62, 3M, Telefutura, City of Austin and Ahora Si) are sponsoring Mexic-Arte Museum’s Annual VIVA la VIDA FEST this Saturday, October 23 from 2 – 10 p.m. on 5th street. Admission to the event is free.

A portion of the proceeds benefit the Museum’s Educational Outreach Programs, so I thought I’d check the site and found some interesting and fun things to share.

First, you can download the Day of the Dead Educational Activity Guide. I did and found 20 pages of information and illustrations about the history of Day of the Dead. Sprinkled throughout the pages are activities that would be great for the kids, or the kid in you.

Activity one is Make a Guide to Your Traditions. This one asks about family rituals, food and dress associated with each tradition. It’s kind of fun to think about. Other activities include crossword puzzles, quizzes about the origins of customs from Mesoamerican and Spanish people, writing a satirical calavera poem, and more.

There’s also some papier mache patterns for the creative types.

And for the environment, Mexic-Arte Museum is urging participants to to create their props out of recycled and re-used materials.

According to their website, the theme of this year’s festival will be the Bicentennial of Mexican Independence and the Centennial of the Revolution. They are encouraging festival attendees to come dressed as Pancho Villa, Emiliano Zapata, Miguel Hidalgo, Adelitas, or another favorite historic political figure from Mexico.

The grand procession is from 6 – 7 p.m. See you there.