Global traditions and commemorations for All Saints' Day and Day of the Dead

Various regions are preparing for the upcoming commemorations of All Saints' Day and Day of the Dead, highlighting diverse cultural, religious, and gastronomic traditions.

In Mexico, the Embassy in Paraguay will host a traditional celebration on November 1 featuring an altar of the dead, a gastronomic festival, and musical performances. In Veracruz, Mexico, the Catholic Church will hold special masses on November 1 and 2, though traditional cemetery visits by the bishop have been paused since the pandemic.

Ecuador offers several cultural destinations for the holiday, including Quito, Cuenca, Otavalo, Salasaca, and Santa Elena, where families gather to share traditional foods like colada morada and guaguas de pan. In Peru, Ayacucho hosts a bread fair featuring 'wawas'.

In Spain, traditions vary by region. In Ibiza, the Old Cemetery of ses Figueretes will offer theatrical tours to explore its 19th-century architecture and historical figures. Other Spanish regions emphasize the importance of oral history and community memory through family gatherings and traditional sweets, such as buñuelos or panellets, noting the cultural shift and tension between these ancestral customs and the growing influence of Halloween.