Thousands march in Mexico City's 13th Catrinas procession ahead of Day of the Dead

The route and the crowd

Thousands of people walked the Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City during the 13th Mega Procession of the Catrinas, a parade that anticipates the Day of the Dead celebrations. Participants dress as the elegant skeleton figures, a tradition rooted in the idea of taming death. The march set off in the late afternoon from the Angel of Independence and headed for the Plaza de la Constitución, known as the Zócalo. Floats and musical groups travelled with the marchers, while city police supervised the crowd and set up wide traffic diversions to keep the whole route safe.

Origins and meaning

The parade started in 2014 as an independent initiative with 300 participants and has since grown into a large cultural movement. Mariachi music, dancing and elaborate costumes turn the streets into an open-air stage. The event turns mourning into joy, satire and cultural pride, and in Mexico death is treated as a familiar presence that people live alongside and can even joke about. Dogs were dressed up for the commemoration as well, a detail Süddeutsche Zeitung reported.