Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) is a two-day holiday that reconnects the dead and the living. It is celebrated mainly in Mexico on November 1 and 2nd. It is sometimes confused with Halloween because of its symbolic skull, but it is unrelated.  

The spirits of the dead are believed to return home and spend time with their relatives on these two days. To welcome them, families build altars (any structure where sacrifices are made for religious purposes). These altars feature a variety of items that vary from one culture to another, including yellow marigolds, candles, photos of the dead, and food and beverage offerings for the dead.

Some people, depending on where you are in the world, go to the cemetery to build their altars. Due to migration, we’re sometimes not in the same place as our loved ones’ graves, so we make altars in our homes. The Day of the Dead is a tradition-filled day during which families remember the departed and share memories of loved ones.