On Sunday, Nov 3rd, it just so happened to be the Day of the Dead Celebration in Tucson. Tucsonans citywide celebrate “Dia de Los Muertos”, a Mexican holiday that pays tribute to ancestors and late loved ones. We met up with Wayne and Susan at Lazydays and drove into Tucson together, where we met friends of theirs and of course we had to start out with beer and food at the Thunder Canyon Brewery, while we waited for it to get dark. The paintings and costumes were excellent and we could have waited in line to get our faces painted but decided to go and watch the parade. The All Souls Procession is one of Tucson’s most magical, important and original events. It started in 1990 by a local artist, Susan Johnson, honoring her late father. As the years went by the number of participants has grown to a staggering number.
We stood on the side of the street while we watched costumes, masks, floats, burning cauldrons, marching drum circles walk by us forever. At the end of the procession there is a mind-bending pyrotechnic blowout of the urn. Check out the YouTube video of the “All Souls Procession 2012 The Urn“.