Tzintzuntzan
(sin-soon-san)
Population 5,000

Day of the Dead celebrations here contain a carnival atmosphere. The town features dances, singing, games, and theater performances. Food and regional craft vendors spill into the streets. Hundreds of tourists come to participate in the festivities and tour the graveyard.

In the evening of November 1st., families congregate at grave sites in the large cemetery. Hundreds of candles illuminate the elaborately decorated graves. Relatives bring blankets and build small fires to keep warm, waiting for the annual vigil, which begins after midnight. Families stay at the graves all night, returning home at dawn.

Tourists jam the streets and stream through the cemetery, taking pictures of each other beside graves garnished with flowers, candles and personal mementos.