Celebrate The Day of the Dead and the Treasures of the Sierra Madre
in Michoacán, Mexico

October 29 to
November 4, 2006

Located in the Central Plateau of the Sierra Madre Mountains, the state of Michoacán is one of the most beautiful areas of Mexico, blessed with an abundance of forests, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, gorges, fertile valleys, and even a volcano. The Tarascan Indians who have inhabited the area since before the arrival of the Spanish have maintained their culture and traditions and are noted for their sense of color and vivid imaginations. They are master craftsmen and artists, specializing in lacquer ware, hand-woven textiles, wood carvings, pottery, copperware and folk art
Our extended stay in Morelia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the “Aristocrat of Mexico’s Colonial Cities,” makes a marvelous base for visits to the indigenous villages noted for their distinctive handicrafts and the celebrations honoring their ancestors during The Day of the Dead, El Día de los Muertos, one of Mexico’s most unique and long-lived traditions

Trip Highlights include visits to:

• Morelia, the capital city of Michoacán, is a major crafts and folk art center for the region and features some of Mexico’s finest art and history museums, centuries-old architecture, an 18th-century masonry aqueduct, and the second-oldest university in the Americas.
• Pátzcuaro, a picturesque 16th-century town of white-washed, red-tiles homes built along the shore of Lake Pátzcuaro.
• The islands of Janitzio and Pacunda, located in Lake Pátzcuaro, are noted for their religious festivals and the “butterfly nets” that, until recently, were used to catch small whitefish that inhabit the lake.
• Tzintzuntzan, an indigenous village located on the shores of Lake Pátzcuaro, is the ancient capital of the Tarascan empire and the site of five yácatas, round stepped-stone ceremonial pyramids that date back to 900 A.D.
• Quiroga, Santa Clara del Cobre, Capula, and Tupataro, typical artisan towns that produce many of the handicrafts produced in the area: ceramics, copper work, wood, and leather crafts.
• Area museums, including the Museum of Popular Arts in Pátzcuaro; and the Regional
• Museum of Michoacán, the Museum of the State, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Museum of Natural History, the Museum of Colonial Art, and the Casa de Cultura in Morelia.

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