Art Sindlinger: Visiting Panteón del Cristo during Día de Muertos preparations (Pátzcuaro, Michoacán)

This year was our 12th consecutive visit to Pátzcuaro & Capula during Day of the Dead season. For our first few visits we made sure to come out during the busiest dates, which tend to be 10/31 - 11/2, as the primary reason for the visit was to experience the holiday traditions. Over time our visits evolved, and the primary purpose of the trip was to pick up pottery orders in Capula, so we might come out on the 25th or 26th and see the very beginning of the town's preparations to receive the thousands of visitors it hosts each year. This year our visit spanned 10/28 - 10/31, which was pretty perfect. The first couple of days we were able to get all of our partner visits done and then enjoy the night of 10/30 in the center of Pátzcuaro as the energy was ascending into the coming weekend.

During our first few visits we made sure to visit some of the local cemeteries in the evening. It's a special atmosphere to experience. I'm struggling to find some pictures from those earlier years. I remember that the Panteón Tzintzuntzan in particular was pretty incredible the first time you walk through it at night. That was part of an organized tour we arranged through the hotel we stayed at, which was Casa Encantada. The following year we decided to venture out and DIY it ourselves. I forget how I learned about the Panteón Arocutín, but I was glad we went to experience that as it was my favorite by far. This pic below if from that visit.

In recent years we have focused mostly on the pottery / shopping, with shorter, goal-oriented trips. This year we had a little more time during our 3-night stay. So when Adriana from Tacos el Cuñadito Juve suggested we check out Panteón del Cristo we decided 'why not?'.

Normally we spend ~90% of our time in Pátzcuaro withing one block of Plaza Vasco de Quiroga, which is very much the center of town. We definitely spend 99% of our time within 2-3 blocks of the center, with occasional passes by the area up via the northeast salida from the center, toward Basilica de Nuestra Señora de la Salud. You can find a smedium-sized tianguis of sorts out there most days, so we sometimes drift through there in case we see something new and exciting. During Día de Muertos this area becomes Cempasuchil Central, as various stands set up along a few hundred meter stretch on both sides of the street with heaps of the vivid orange flowers. Piled up on the ground, on Costco-style folding tables, in the bed of their pickups, wherever and everywhere. It's a sight we always enjoy. Below you can see what I mean.

So ordinarily we will pass through here and then loop back to the center, never venturing further. Now, every 4th or 5th trip Waze might send us home via this 'back' way on Gral Benigno Serrato toward route 14 / 14D for Morelia. And when we've done that we have unwittingly passed by Panteón del Cristo, which you can see indicated by the red pin on the map screenshot below. It also clicked in my little brain that the Cempasuchil set up was conveniently located on the route toward the cemetery. How about that?

On Adriana's recommendation, we made the 20-minute walk from the center to check it out. For some reason Google Maps sent us up around the back of the cemetery first, not to the main entrance. Kind of inconvenient, but resulted in a couple pics from that POV that I would not otherwise have taken, like this one.

We doubled back around the front and did a lap. This was 10/29, so stil a couple days before the holiday. It's always a bit poignant to see the spectrum of graves, from those where relatives have clearly put in a lot of time and effort decorating for their loved ones, to those that have received less attention.