Religion

Major religious holidays include St. Anthony's Day (17 Jan.), when children take their pets to church to be blessed; //Semana Santa// (Palm Sunday–Easter Sunday); Corpus Christi (May or June); assumtion (15 Aug.). During the period known as //Día de los Muertos//, or Day of the Dead (1–2 Nov.), families gather to celebrate life while they honor the dead, sweep graves, build special altars to honor the newly dead, and place items on the graves to spirit on their journey to heaven. Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe (12 Dec.) and //Noche Buena// (Christmas Eve) are so popular that most offices and businesses honor them as public holidays. Christmas celebrations begin on 16 December with night parties (//posadas//) and end on Day of the Kings (6 Jan.), when most children in central and southern Mexico get their presents.