Everywhere you turn at christmas in Mexico there are piñatas of all forms, sizes and colors, as well as candles for the posadas, nochebuena flowers, better known as poinsettias, and figurines made of wood, ceramic or paste for the nativitys
Very shortly after the fiesta for Our Lady of Guadalupe ends, the preparation for the Christmas season begins. The first of nine posadas is held on December 16.
These are fiestas, which represent Joseph and Mary's arduous pilgrimage on their way to Bethlehem, and there are nine posadas, from the 16 to the 24 of December,because they symbolize Mary's nine months of pregnancy.
The whole community is organised for the posadas . Beforehand they decide which and how many houses will not offer a place where Mary and Joseph can stay, and where they will finally find shelter, and break thepiñata. The community also decides how many posadas they will have. Some only hold one or two of them during the season.
The posada begins with the procession of the pilgrims.
At the head is Joseph, holding Mary's hand as she rides on the donkey. Sometimes, instead of having someone dress up as Mary and Joseph, and ride a donkey, a couple of neighbors carry a nativity scene.
Following them are all the neighbors, carrying candles and singing traditional songs to ask for posada, a place where they can stay. At the end of the trip through the streets of the neighborhood they reach their final destination. Doors open and the big party begins!
The piñata is strung up and everyone gets ready to break it! The children are blindfolded so it is harder to break! One by one the children try to break it, while they are hitting it, the rest of the people sing the traditional song for breaking the Piñata .
Afterwards people will enjoy the food prepared such as tamales, buñuelos, churros and hot chocolate.
During the Christmas season there are Pastorelas, which are theatrical representations of the shepherds on their way to honor baby Jesus. They must follow the star in the East to get there, but there will be many obstacles, set by the devils, for them to overcome. The pastorelas are comedies of course, and display a traditional sense of humor. Sometimes the characters even get to deliver political jokes, which the audience obviously enjoys!
Los Reyes Magos
All Mexican children anxiously wait for January 5, because this is when the Three Kings arrive with gifts for them! In Mexico city many children go to the Alameda park to see the Reyes Magos and ask for gifts and also in many shopping centres there will be the 3 kings talking to children.
In the afternoon, family and friends gather to share the "Rosca de Reyes" , which is a traditional wreath-shaped
bread that is made only during the first days of January. Although the name indicates that it should be round, the Mexican “rosca de reyes” generally has an oval shape due to the need to make cakes larger than 30cm across for larger parties. For luxurious decoration, Mexican people use tanned and fig fruit, quinces, cherries, etc.; which besides from making it pretty, enriches its flavor.
The Rosca is served with hot chocolate and tamales.
Hidden inside the rosca is a figurine of the Baby Jesus. The baby Jesus, when hidden in the bread, represents the flight of Jesus, fleeing from King Herod's evil plan.
Each person cuts a slice of the rosca, and whoever gets the baby figurine has to invite everyone present to a new party on February 2, Candelaria day.
On February second, Candelaria day, the many Baby Jesus figurines are taken from the nativity scene to the church to be blessed. Practically all the markets will restore, paint and dress these dolls for the occasion. The nativity scene is then put away on this date until the next year when the new Christmas season begins.
