A great many festivals are celebrated in Tlayecac, the most important being the one on April 25, the feast of San Marcos. Even so, you will find activities throughout the whole year.
New Year’s Day is the continuation of the Christmas and Virgin of Guadalupe celebrations, a perfect opportunity to celebrate another year of life in the presence of your loved ones; for the occasion, food, desserts and drinks are prepared in abundance.
In Tlayecac, as in many places, the “misa de gallo” at midnight is traditional: a Mass to give thanks and reflect on the year that ends, and to ask for and plan the year that begins.
Without a doubt, one of the days Mexican children look forward to most is Three Kings Day. A tradition brought by Christianity and deeply rooted in our country, it is the day when the Magi bring gifts to all the children who have behaved well during the year. It is a day when the most common sight is happy children running from one side to the other with new toys.
Just as traditional is the rosca de reyes, a ring-shaped bread that hides inside, for a new celebration, little plastic figures: whoever is lucky enough to get one will also have to help with the celebration of Candlemas on February 2.
This is Tlayecac’s day, the day San Marcos is celebrated and the town’s fair is held. The celebration begins with a Mass at the church of San Marcos de Tlayecac at midday; when it ends, the family that was entrusted with the saint during the year offers a meal to anyone who wants to celebrate, with wind music, fireworks and plenty of atmosphere. At night the burning of the “toritos de lumbre” is also customary, a game full of adrenaline and color. And in the “plazita” (the center of the town) there are mechanical rides, games of chance and food stalls for every taste.
The next day, the 26th, is one many people look forward to most: the start of the carnival that is Morelos’s hallmark, Los Chinelos! The first day has an extra touch, the “mojiganga”, which consists of throwing a coffin with all the bad vibes and feelings into the ravine of Tlayecac so that they burn at the bottom, accompanied by the prettiest “women” of the town (at least men who want to look like them) and a large crowd. Once the bad feelings are gone, the carnival begins: a wind band carries the rhythm of the carnival through all the streets of the town, stopping at those houses that voluntarily offer water to all the dancers; the last stop is the auditorium, where each day the carnival reaches its climax. The Chinelos carnival continues on April 26 and 27 with a great turnout.
When the Chinelos days are over, a new part of the Feria de San Marcos Tlayecac begins: the jaripeos. For about two weeks, riders and bulls from the region bring together large crowds in a spectacle full of emotion and passion. With this, the celebration of Tlayecac’s patron saint comes to an end: without a doubt, a fair you have to visit.
The Day of the Dead is a very Mexican tradition, the result of the rich pre-Hispanic heritage of respect and coexistence with death. This celebration could not be left out in Tlayecac: on November 1, before 12 pm, an ofrenda is set up for the dead with fruit, bread, water and every kind of dish the dead enjoyed in life, such as mole, tamales, rice pudding and pipián, among many others. A colorful decoration of cempasúchil and velvet flowers is also put up, giving the typical color of November 2 all over Mexico. The ofrenda is taken down on the 2nd after 12 pm.
On the night of the 2nd, or “noche de muertos”, the whole town goes to the cemetery for the “alumbrada”, that is, the vigil of their dead, with cempasúchil and velvet flowers, candles and votive lamps and the melancholy sound of the bells; each family accompanies its dead.
This day commemorates the appearance of the Virgin of Guadalupe to a Mexican indigenous man named Juan Diego, and it is a whole national holiday. Pilgrims from all over Mexico set out for the Basilica of Guadalupe to give thanks and ask for the Virgin’s help, in what is the largest pilgrimage in Latin America.
In Tlayecac, at the first light of dawn the mañanitas are sung to the Virgin of Guadalupe, a Mass is held at midday and afterwards there is a celebration with wind music and food, to which everyone is invited.
The posadas are a national tradition and, as such, could not fail to be celebrated in Tlayecac; they are part of a Spanish heritage adopted and enriched by the Mexican people. The posadas begin on December 16 and end on the 24th; each day, pilgrims are led through the streets of the community amid songs and prayers until they reach the house where they will be given lodging. On arriving at their destination the last prayers are said and aguinaldos are handed out to all the happy attendees.
The night of the 24th is an important religious date, but also a whole celebration and an opportunity to bring the whole family together. It is customary to make a dinner with many dishes and desserts such as Russian salad, sweet salad, roast chicken, fruit punch, gelatin, flan napolitano and even barbacoa and mole.
This is also the day the last posada takes place, which will have the church as its final destination once again. Between 9 and 10 at night the Christmas Eve Mass is celebrated, and the end of the Mass is also the start of the famous arrulladas.
The largest arrullada takes place in the church of Tlayecac.
The arrulladas, as the name suggests, are a symbolic lullaby with plaster figures of the Christ child accompanied by songs, made by couples, usually members of the same block. When the arrullada ends, the owners of the Christ children give aguinaldos with sweets and cookies.
And after a night of much activity comes a more family-oriented day, a calmer day when friends and relatives are invited to chat and eat.
