They stop by various homes asking for posada (shelter) in a ritual song, but are refused by those within who also answer in song. The group is finally received at a home previously agreed upon, where the padrinos ( God-parents ) of the particular posada will receive the pilgrims with song and prayer. Then, coffee and tamales are served for the adults and a piñata filled with fruits and nuts for the children. Beginning with the ‘calenda’ on the 6th of December, the party continues with another calenda on the 10th, announcing the upcoming celebrations of the Virgin of Guadalupe. On the 12th, a festive breakfast is served to all in front of the Guadalupe church.

On the 16th, the nine days of ‘posadas’ begin, as well as the calenda of Oaxaca's patron saint la Virgin de Soledád (Virgin of Solitude) around the zócalo. This calenda is filled with cultural and religious expressions of the indigenous people from the seven regions of Oaxaca. There is a solemn procession and then the famous and colorful Danza de la Pluma is performed outside the basilica of Soledad.

From the 16th through the 31st, you can enjoy the royal experience of the ‘breaking of the plates’; eating buñuelos (a classic Christmas dessert) and drinking hot chocolate and then smashing the ceramic plates to the ground. Beside the Cathedral, restaurant stands serve chocolate and “bunuelos” out of bowls which are then thrown against the sidewalk and smashed. It is said that this has something to do with the ancient Indian custom of destroying all of one's belongings every 52 years, at the end of a cycle proscribed by the Gods. It is also suggested that this comes from Moctezuma’s habit of never eating from the same plate twice. Don't worry, these unglazed dishes are made expressly to be broken tonight!

In the markets and stores, Christmas decorations and religious images are sold in large quantities, from the moss and orchids called “San Miguelitos” the country people bring down from the mountains for the manger scenes, to the commercial tinsel, plastic tree ornaments and plaster figures for adornment of homes and altars. It is a time of great joy in Oaxaca, as in all of Mexico. A very lively and colorful, huge open market in Oaxaca's Zócalo and Alameda Park (lasting six weeks) has food stands, handicrafts, games, and carnival rides.

On the 17th, there are fireworks in front of the Soledad Basilica. On the 18th, in the morning, join everyone again for breakfast in the patio of the basilica and listen to music from around the state and enjoy the festive fairground atmosphere.

A uniquely Oaxacan expression of the Christmas season is the Noche de Rabanos (Night of the radishes) on the evening of December 23rd, an evening in which the zocalo becomes the scene of a huge exhibition of figures sculpted from radishes. [Photo at right: "Soldier during the Revolution years"]

The fourth and grandest posada is on December 24th, when groups from all over Oaxaca meet in the zócalo to celebrate the arrival of Christmas night with exuberant joy. Prior to arriving at the zócalo, each posada will proceed to the home of the madrina (god-mother) who will provide a statue of the child Jesus for the local parish’s nativity scene. After a joyfully festive parade around the zócalo and through Oaxaca, the community returns to its parish church and prepares to celebrate the ‘Misa de Gallo’ (mass of the rooster), the first worship celebration of the Christmas feast.

The fiesta in Oaxaca, of course, is not limited to the days leading up to the 25th. The twelfth day of Christmas (Jan. 6th) is still celebrated here as the ‘feast of the three kings’. Small gifts (hand-made toys or sweets) are given to children on this day. Families, sharing a meal on this day with compadres, are served a special ring-shaped loaf of bread called a ‘rosca’. Inside the loaf are hidden a few tiny images of the child Jesus. A person who receives this in his slice of rosca is obliged to host yet another fiesta for the final celebration of the Christmas season on February 2nd. On this day, families bring an image of the child Jesus from their home altar along with candles to be blessed at church. This feast has come to be known as calendaria.

The Night of the Petition, “Noche del Pedimento”, is celebrated on Dec. 31st. On a hill near Mitla, this ceremony is acted out at a tiny chapel where a cave represented the entrance to the other world, symbolized by the mouth of the jaguar god. Country people, and many of their city cousins, come with small models to petition favors from the god(s): cattle, houses, sometimes whole farms, automobiles, wives, good health, and just plain cash.

Although one is not likely to see Santa Claus roaming around the zócalo, the religious and community traditions provide more than enough occasion to celebrate Christmas like nowhere else on earth.