Ajijic Square has undergone a transformation over time thanks to the participation of its community of artists and the
intervention of the municipal government of Chapala.
The pier is a Emblematic symbol that identify the town. It has different recreational areas for the needs of all sectors of the community,
having a length of one thousand meters that can be covered by the lake.
The parade starts at 1 p.m. at Seís Esquinas in Ajijic and ends at the Tecoluta soccer field. At 9 p.m. there you can see atraditional torito, which is a bull-shaped fireworks display. People hold it over their heads and run around as it sends out sparks, which is a nighttime tradition during some fiestas in Mexico.The New Year’s Day parade is a relatively new addition to Ajijic’s many traditions that was started in 2000 as an initiative by the Seís Esquinas neighborhood.
Photo by danestrom.com
Petit Grill with French, Mexican and oriental influences.
Carr. Oriente #52, Ajijic. C.P. 45920 Each January 20, several families in the neighborhoodsponsor the fiesta, which includes a procession, music, a confetti egg fight, and the first appearance in the calendar year of Ajijic’s masked sayacas. The fiesta starts early in the morning in the neighborhood with las mañanitas and a procession starts at 4:30 p.m. at the intersection of Marcos Castellanos and Emiliano Zapata Streets. It goes to the plaza for a short church service before returning to where the procession started. Then people throw confetti-filled eggs at each other before the night settles into music and dancing outside. This tradition was started about 30 years ago.
Photo by danestrom.com
Ajijic’s biggest and most outrageous parade happens on Carnival, a.k.a. Mardi Gras.
Dozens of elaborate floats roll down the parade route and everyone throws flour at each other, thanks to the masked sayacas, who are central figures in Ajijic’s carnival celebrations. The real fun, however, begins three weeks earlier on Sunday, February 2, when the first of six preCarnival parades begin. The sayacas, who don masks and dress in clothes of the opposite sex, chase kids through the streets, tackling them and throwing flour at the crowds. Check out one of these pre-Carnival parades to see the masked sayacas of Ajijic at their finest. They tend to be overshadowed on Carnival day by all the other spectacles.
Main parade is Feb 25 at 11 a.m.
Photo by danestrom.com
The Regata de Globos is everyone’s favorite late-summer event to spend with friends, family and exploding hot air balloons.
Since the 1960s, families and local businesses have gathered every September for this annual paper hot air balloon festival. The dozens of teams take weeks to create elaborate balloons that can reach 30 feet tall or more. Crews with propane tanks spend the afternoon at the football field going from balloon to balloon as the teams set them up, pumping them with hot air that sends successful balloons kilometers away… …Or directly onto the crowd below. The fun is not knowing which is going to happen.
Photo by danestrom.com
But the real thing goes on full tilt in Ajijic and the surrounding towns at Lake Chapala every Day of the Dead. The main events take place on November 1 and 2 as families decorate the graveyards and set up altars to welcome back the dead. November 1, known as the Day of the Little Angels, welcomes the return of children who have died. The rest of the family, who don’t run back as eagerly and quickly as a child, return the night of November 2. Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos, just north of Chapala, does a spectacular festival each year that usually extends one or more days before and/or after.
Photo by danestrom.com
Revolution Day commemorates Mexico’s ten-year war against wealthy landowners and businessmen which ended with the democratization of Mexico in 1920. In Ajijic, the parade starts at 9 a.m. on November 20 near where the Wednesday market takes place. The main attraction is the kids who dress up as famous heroes of the revolution, such as Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa. Girls dress up as adelitas, who were women who fought in the war and took part in other ways as spies, cooks or nurses. In between all this, other secondary school groups do acrobatic routines, play out scenes related to Mexican history, or drum in marching bands. The parade ends at the plaza around 11:00.
Photo by danestrom.com
Each usually gets its own traditional nine-day novenario, which includes a daily procession with Aztec dancers, music, fireworks, and carnival rides. Chapala’s patron saint is Saint Francis, whose novenario starts on September 26 and lasts until October 4. Each day is sponsored by a different group of people in the town, such as gardeners, carpenters, bricklayers or garbage workers. The procession each evening usually starts at 6 or 6:30 near the 7-11 on Francisco Madero, and ending at Church San Francisco, but in 2019 the processions started at a different place each evening. Click “Learn More” for more information about the 2020 schedule when it becomes available at some point in October.
Photo by danestrom.com
Each day is sponsored by a different group such as domestic workers or ranchers, who are responsible for raising the money for the night’s entertainment, which includes live music and a fireworks castle. These castles are handmade wooden structures that are assembled each day and ignited after 10:00 p.m. each night on the Church San Andrés atrium. They have moving parts like wheels which spin around to create noise and sparks during the shows, which last about 15 minutes. Some of the castles reach four stories tall. Each night features a band in the plaza and dancing until 2:00 a.m. or later while terrazas line the plaza to sell drinks and food.
Photo by danestrom.com
The day starts at noon when the charros (basically cowboys, but more) and escaramuzas (basically cowgirls, but more) arrive at the atrium outside Church San Andrés. After a special Día del Charro-themed mass, a parade leaves for Seís Esquinas and ends, usually, at the charro ring near the Wednesday tianguis market. After the charros eat lunch (anyone is invited) you’ll usually get to see a demonstration of techniques the charros use to rope unbroken horses and steer; or a performance by a team of escaramuzas doing coordinated horse riding. El Día del Charro is officially September 14, but Ajijic always observes it on a nearby weekend, which in 2020 is likely Sunday.
Photo by danestrom.com
For three days artists sell their work, representing dozens of distinct forms of regional art from all areas of the country. This is your chance to meet well-known artists known by collectors around the world. You’ll find pottery, textiles, clothes, tin art, jewelry, silver, carpets, alebrijes, catrinas, Huichol/ Wixárika art and a lot more. Located at the Chapala Yacht Club, check out the conferences and demonstrations that happen a couple times a day to get a deeper understanding of some of Mexico’s important folk art traditions.
Photo by danestrom.com
Since its inception, Lalo Molina has directed and organized the play, which includes scenes of Jesus arriving in Nazareth (on Palm Sunday), the Last Supper, Jesus’ apprehension and Sanhedrin trial (both on Maundy Thursday), and the trial before Pilate followed by the Via Crucis (on Good Friday). One of the highlights is on Palm Sunday when families and businesses cover Hidalgo Street with fresh alfalfa for five blocks from the church to Seís Esquinas for the 6 p.m. procession. The dramatic Via Crucis through the streets of Ajijic is at 1 p.m. on Good Friday after the trial of Jesus, which takes place in the atrium of Church San Andrés at 11 a.m.
Photo by danestrom.com
Children’s Day is observed in many countries on various dates. In Mexico, it’s officially April 30, but Ajijic often celebrates it on a different day. Check The Lakeside Guide as this day nears for an update. In Ajijic, many families gather in the town’s lienzo charro at 5 p.m. for an evening of classic kids games like musical chairs, sack jumping – and bull riding. Kids also spend the day at school doing special celebrations, such as games on the malecón. The 2020 event in the lienzo charro will likely be on April 26 or May 2.
Photo by danestrom.com
