Carnaval capers

[bixaorellana]

The city of Oaxaca does not celebrate the days before Lent in any kind of appropriate carnival / Mardi Gras fashion, but many of the small towns around here do. The past two years I reported on the wild devils of San Martín Tilcajete, known as the "diablos aceitados" for their tradition of painting themselves with motor oil, of all things. Well, this year the city got a taste of several towns' festivities in the Primera Muestra de Carnavales de los Valles Centrales, or First Sample of Carnivals of the Central Valleys. The towns represented were San Martín Tilcajete, Santa Ana Zegache, San Jacinto Chilateca, Santa María Coyotepec and el Barrio de San Pablo Zaachila. As it happened the only sample I didn't get to see were the Tilcajete devils, as they arrived after I decided I didn't want heat stroke and headed home. But if you're eager to see some grease-smeared wild men, check out these two threads: anyportinastorm.proboards.com/thread/7997/san-mart-tilcajete-carnival-2017 - and - anyportinastorm.proboards.com/thread/8290/san-mart-tilcajete-where-wild

Enough chit-chat. Let's visit Plaza Carbajal, just a couple of blocks away from my house.
I arrived early, as I love to see the participants of this sort of event as they ready themselves and mill around before the big procession takes off.

These lads from Santa María Coyotepec are furiously covering themselves with water-based paint. (I asked) ~



A touching father-son moment ~



That's right. Pick out the weirdest psycho-sexual costume combo & ask to have the child's picture taken with them ~







Scorpion Man was really into his role ~





A blushing bride ~







Everyone who looks at this picture and does not think "South Pacific" wins a prize ~

[bixaorellana]

She can't resist a wolfman in uniform ~



There were sporadic outbreaks of band music and wild dancing from the San Jacinto Chilateca contingent ~







No one is going to starve ~



Meanwhile, back at the Santa María Coyotepec dressing area, preparations proceed.
Note the cleverness of the masks, made from a straw hat & from a tenate -- the classic tortilla basket ~

[bixaorellana]

This group was distinguished by being ready on time and sticking together as it waited on other groups ~



As a veteran of many of these types of event, it's my observation that the bigger the camera, the more likely its owner feels entitled to impose on others.



Getting their marching orders ~

[bixaorellana]

The San Jacinto crew is very rah-rah ~





A stray from Zaachila, undoubtedly wondering where the heck the others are ~



"Come on, guys -- it's wild rumpus time!"



"Wait for me!"



And they cut loose ~

[bixaorellana]

There is action at the other end of the plaza as well ~







There are some pockets of calm ~





The group from Zaachila is getting into formation ~











A last shot as I leave. Did you ever see a devil with a sweeter smile?



~ Happy Carnaval, Carnival, Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day to you all ~

[bjd]

Makes me wonder whether local children get nightmares after scenes like this.

[onlyMark]

Stunning photos.

[breeze]

Even your still photos suggest motion. I love the running devil.

So much creativity on show here. Everybody has fun, though I felt a little sorry for the kid who joined the dancers with no horn helmet, just a straw hat. Did he lose his helmet on the way to the fiesta, or is he a procrastinator who thought he had plenty of time to get his costume together?

Those polka dot legs give me an idea. I need to find some body paint.

[casimira]

GREAT PICS!!!!! You really captured the spirit!!!!!


_{I wish it was that warm here! We are dealing with having to go out in upper 30F weather. Lots of layers!!!!}

[kerouac2]

Ah, the return of the oily demons, although I must admit that I am rather relieved that much less oil seems to be used now and much more inoffensive body paint. The variety of the costumes is amazing, with a touch of Muertos, but also so much other stuff. Nevertheless, the diablos are still the most interesting in my opinion. It is also very interesting that almost all of the costumes are related to the world of the dead (better that than Bozo the clown!), which seems to be something that distinguishes Mexico from the rest of the world.

I really like the serious pose of the final white demon at the end of reply #1, as though it were not a costume but his real persona. It would be fantastic to see some of these people "before" and "after."

[cheerypeabrain]

These are beautiful, vibrant images. The video is such fun !...like a Friday night at the youth club disco (well I was raised in a small Bedfordshire village...)

[mich64]

I find it wonderful that the community gives so much thought, energy, creativity and enthusiasm to celebrations held there. Continues to amaze and entertain me and your photos are terrific Bixa!

[kerouac2]

I think there is still time to sign up for the Oaxaca meet-up.

[mich64]

When is that happening Kerouac?

[fumobici]

That's one hell of a spectacle!

[whatagain]

These guys know how to celebrate.

[bixaorellana]

Wow! Thank you all so much for the generous comments and for your attention to this report! *beams with pleasure*

Mar 5, 2019 12:36:59 GMT breeze said:

I felt a little sorry for the kid who joined the dancers with no horn helmet, just a straw hat. Did he lose his helmet on the way to the fiesta, or is he a procrastinator who thought he had plenty of time to get his costume together?
Those polka dot legs give me an idea. I need to find some body paint.

Poor kid ~ he never did get it together, did he?
Your many fans & well-wishers eagerly await a formal portrait of you with polka dot legs. " style="max-width:100%;"]

Mar 5, 2019 15:37:33 GMT kerouac2 said:

Ah, the return of the oily demons, although I must admit that I am rather relieved that much less oil seems to be used now and much more inoffensive body paint. ... Nevertheless, the diablos are still the most interesting in my opinion. It is also very interesting that almost all of the costumes are related to the world of the dead (better that than Bozo the clown!), which seems to be something that distinguishes Mexico from the rest of the world.I really like the serious pose of the final white demon at the end of reply #1, as though it were not a costume but his real persona. It would be fantastic to see some of these people "before" and "after."

Kerouac, the demons in this thread are not the ones who use the oil, but a group from a different town. See the OP for info on those grease devils.
What I find interesting about the crew in this thread, with their horns and long manes, is that there are places in the Basque country of Spain, in Germany, & I think in remote parts of France where festivals traditionally feature people dressed as animals and even carrying cowbells like the Tilcate group. It makes me think that maybe all the animal/demon costumes go way way back into pre-historic consciousness. But yeah, the death theme is ubiquitous in Mexico.
I sometimes accidentally get befores & afters, when checking out photos after the fact. But usually the participants disappear effectively into their costumed personae.

Mar 5, 2019 16:23:07 GMT cheerypeabrain said:

The video is such fun !...like a Friday night at the youth club disco (well I was raised in a small Bedfordshire village...)

Ha ha, Cheery ~ you have the germ of a great tv series there, one that could easily rival Derry Girls! As far as the dancing, in the video it becomes obvious that most of those guys had their vision severely obstructed by the straw masks. They don't appear to be body slamming so much as blundering into each other. I got hit on the side of the head by a masker as he was tying on his horns. When he went to apologize, he had to turn his whole body in order to locate me.

Mar 5, 2019 19:43:22 GMT mich64 said:

When is [the Oaxaca meet-up] happening Kerouac?

Okay, Mich and EVERYONE ~ the meet-up subject keeps floating to the top and then sinking again without a trace. I posted somewhere recently about possible lodgings (shared house in the Centro) and Kerouac talks up the idea whenever appropriate. My suggestion: Someone needs to throw out a solid suggestion on a possible time by either making a thread or (probably better) a group PM. The conversation needs to start somewhere. My input for the time being is that I would prefer to be in Oaxaca when the meet-up happens, but of course that is up to the rest of you.

[lagatta]

Bixa, is Lent still observed seriously in the Oaxaca region?

[casimira]

Yesterday, (Mardi Gras) morning I viewed these photos but, having to get my act together to costume before hitting the streets here I really didn't in my viewing to give it it's "just due".

This morning however, I went through and really carefully studied it.

There are so many classic photos in here. And what fun pics too!!! (accompanied by your lively commentary).
I just love the photo captioned "Wait for me"! 

One can really see the attention to detail that the revelers put into their costumes. (as opposed to some I saw yesterday here in NOLA which were obviously just last minute thrown together "outfits" instead of being real genuine costumes.)

I am curious as to why Carnaval isn't celebrated in such a fashion in Oaxaca. It baffles me because the citizens there seem to go "all out" for so many other feast days. 

Years back we were in Merida, Yucatan and there was a fairly elaborate celebration there.Nothing in comparison to this report but, lots of reveling.

In any event, thank you for sharing this with us Bixa!!! The photos are really beautiful.

[bixaorellana]

LaGatta, the pious of course observe Lent. Here is my Lent report from a few years ago. If I happen to see anything particularly striking to photograph, I'll add it to that thread: anyportinastorm.proboards.com/thread/6476/cuaresma

Casimira, thank you so much for your close attention to the report and for your very kind comments.
As far as committed costume preparation goes, you can see those guys from Sta. María Coyotepec in the same costumes in the day of the dead report from 2017, reply #7, so they must be ready to don them whenever an occasion presents itself. But yes, costumers in general give it their all and appear to be willing to endure any amount of discomfort in the service of their presentations.
I don't know why carnival celebration took hold in some areas and not others. Wikipedia says: Carnival in Mexico is celebrated by about 225 communities in various ways. (long article here) Note that the event shown in this report is somewhat artificial, in that it was put together by the tourist commission to bring in and showcase those towns surrounding the city of Oaxaca which do celebrate Carnaval, even though the city itself does not.