The guide to Semana Santa
By Charlotte Bell March 7, 2008 San Miguel de Allende

Lecture
The Guide to Semana Santa
Thu, Mar 13, 5–7pm
Posada de San Francisco
Canal 2
50 pesos

Holy week is “the” event on the Mexican calendar. San Miguel hosts some of the most spectacular processions and happenings in all of Mexico during this time. Mexicans from around the world come here to experience Easter.

However for the tourist, even the Mexican tourist, it can be overwhelming. Some days there are as many as three processions in a single day!! For the major processions, thousands of people line the streets early so they can get a good view. Many streets are hot and sunny. The churches list some of the events but usually only those within that particular church and many of the events are not church related. Some things you just “have to know about” as the locals do. Dealing with these details can become exhausting and frustrating for those new to town. 

Charlotte Bell, a photographer and resident of San Miguel created a photographic and historical book on Easter in San Miguel in 2004, Tears from the Crown of Thorns. During the many Easters spent preparing for her book, she spent countless hours photographing processions and snooping around in obscure locations. She walked all night with the pilgrims to Atotonilco and climbed onto the roofs of churches to get unusual vistas. She also interviewed many of the people who are the organizers and participants of the events. These experiences gave her special knowledge of the “in’s” and “out’s” of Semana Santa. Friends would call her during Holy Week to ask when some event would start or which procession she thought was the most beautiful. She new these questions were in the minds of many others who came to San Miguel to experience Easter.

In 2007 she designed a lecture to help people navigate Holy Week. This lecture includes a slide show of images and a booklet with maps and timetables of the various events. Finally people can make informed decisions about what they would like to see. They can also learn about events they were not even aware of. Included in the maps are suggestions about when to arrive and where to sit or stand. So many people found this lecture helpful in 2007 that she decided to make it an annual presentation.

Ancient Cultures of Mexico
By Professor Guillermo Méndez

Lecture Series
Ancient Cultures of Mexico: Part II
Wed, Mar 12, 3pm
Teatro Santa Ana
Biblioteca Pública
Insurgentes 25
50 pesos

There are several ancient cultures of Mexico whose names are fairly well-known: Maya, Zapotec, Mixtec, Aztec, Olmec and Toltec. Less known, perhaps, is the Classic Veracruz culture which flourished from about AD100 to 900. The Classic Veracruz had a unique art style which revealed itself in yokes, palmas and hachas, stone-carved ritual objects associated with the Mesoamerican ball game, a ball game that frequently ended with the sacrifice of the players. Not all the players, of course, but—what would you guess—the winners or the losers? The Classic Veracruz culture’s interest in the ball game was extraordinary. Most architectural sites of the ancient cultures had one to three ball courts. El Tajín, the major site of the Classic Veracruz civilization, had eleven!

The Classic Veracruz culture along with the Maya, Zapotec and Mixtec are the focus of a lecture entitled Ancient Cultures of Mexico, Part II. The lecture’s purpose is to aid those interested in distinguishing between the various cultures.

Each culture has a defining characteristic or phenomenon associated with it that sets it apart from the others. There are also images of art and architecture that differentiate and distinguish each of the cultures. The lecture will be illustrated with over 200 digital images that reveal the uniqueness and beauty of the ancient cultures of Mexico. The lecturer is Guillermo Méndez, retired Professor of Humanities and San Miguel resident.