Zacatecas

The day we got here we walked out to the tramway station and looked
over the town, then walked down a block, then another and soon we found
ourselves in a crowd of people, many in costume, dressed as Turks or
crusaders, marching bands and wild Huichal Indian troupes
all milling around in the street, every once in a while an organized
group would come thru, tramping up the cobbled streets with a roar or
drums and bugles then it all stopped but none of the onlookers left so
we hung around waiting in the drizzle for the unknown... We could here
drums in the distance and sense from the crowd that the best was yet to
come... Around the bend came group after group, a band of "Turks"
drumming and carrying rifles, then some Huichal dancers then a float
drawn by a tractor with a statue of the virgin Mary. Many of the
"statues" were actually children dressed in costume, kinda spooky...
All this went on late into the night, food vendors selling potato chips
with lime and salsa, tall poles with huge bags of cotton candy in scary
bright colors, baskets with gum and soda and cigarettes... It all ended
well after midnight with the passing of the statue of the local virgin
on her way to the main cathedral. It was for "Founders" day, a citywide
celebration that happens once a year, part of a two week event. We are
going to the fair next Saturday with some teachers from the college we
met at the parade. Now that should be an adventure!