At first glance, all of the skulls and bright fucshias may seem like a morbid and colourful Halloween, but really Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) isn’t a day to be spooked, but rather a festive day to commemorate and celebrate defunct loved ones.
Hence, the festivities, which often include an altar to the dead relative, skulls as reminder of death, flowers, food and drink!
Although Día de los Muertos is strongly associated with Mexico, in fact, Guatemala, Perú, Venezuela, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Colombia and Honduras have their own traditions on their own Day of the Dead.
Cervantes, the Spanish culture institute, will host the following programme in cooperation with the Mexican embassy and the Helwan University Faculty of Fine Arts:
Programme:
Monday, 1 November
4:00pm – 6:30pm
Skull-making workshop
Dr Hanan El Sheikh of the Helwan University Fine Arts Faculty will teach how to make skulls out of clay.
7:00pm
Inauguration of Altar of the Dead
Lead by Mexico’s ambassador to Egypt, María Carmen Oñate Muñoz and the Cervantes Spanish language institute’s Cairo and Alexandria director, Miguel Spottomo Robles
7:30pm
Screening of the family Mexican movie La leyenda de la Nahuala (The legend of the Nahuala, 82min, 2008).
Tuesday, 2 November
4:00pm – 6:30pm
Skull-making workshop
Screening of documentary, Oaxaca, fiesta de muertos (Oaxaca, the festival of the dead, 45min, 2005)
All events are held at:
Instituto Cervantes (Spanish culture institute)
20 Bolous Hanna
(after the KFC, close to Pfizer building)
Short link: