December 12, "Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe" - Mulege

Yesterday was an afternoon of pageantry in Mulege.

There is nothing like a good parade in a small town, whether it's North Dakota or Baja Sur.

Here are some photos of a parade during the "Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe"












In 1531 a "Lady from Heaven" appeared to a poor Indian at Tepeyac, a hill northwest of Mexico City; she identified herself as the Mother of the True God, instructed him to have the bishop build a temple on the site and left an image of herself imprinted miraculously on his tilma, a poor quality cactus-cloth, which should have deteriorated in 20 years but shows no sign of decay 469 years later and still defies all scientific explanations of its origin.

Her message of love and compassion, and her universal promise of help and protection to all mankind, have been a very important part of all Mexican’s lives. She is the patron of all Catholics in México who worship her truly.

The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated on December 12th with a mass celebrated with a Mariachi band.

Here in Asuncion, there is a festival at the church with a play about the apparition to Juan Diego and lots of great food stands and of course live music. the Virgin of Guadalupe statue gets driven around in a decorated pick up as part of a "gallo" which is like the procession of cars honking horns after a wedding that drives through all the streets of town.

I snapped a quick photo of her going by Bajarat's place at Ensenadita.