Día de los Muertos, Day of the Dead

Wonderfully spiritual and artistic love.

unforgettable night… walking down the street in the procession with hundreds of other fellow san franciscans made me feel like i was part of a real, human community. It was a special night. Bring a candle, and when you are done go to Putt Putt mini golf and drink to your homies that have passed on to the higher realms. Peace.

When is it? Newspaper says Saturday 11/​1, but an online calendar says Sunday ¹¹⁄₂. The Unilocal site is neutral, saying nothing about 2014’s day.

This was my first time attending (despite being raised in the bay area)…
Most of what I saw were drunken hipsters roaming the streets, people wearing face paint and quite a bit of disrespectful behavior to boot. I say if people need an excuse to exhibit disorderly conduct in the mission… create your own ‘holiday’!

Yes, I am a fan of the altars, the ceremonies, the beautiful spirit and emotion.
Not a fan of hipsters gentrifying the fuck out of the Mission or this celebration, of stupid people thinking this is just an excuse to get dressed up and drink beer in the park (sorry, this isn’t Dolores Park, hipsters).
Usually I am a fan of you hipster types, but this was too much – when I heard someone say this was their last costume til next year’s Burning Man, I almost lost it. I want to see more brown people and less half drunk college types.
The altar to Dio was awesome and the picture of Michael Jackson on the line created for leaving notes to loved ones past was bad ass.

You make think of Dia De Los Muertos as a morbid holiday, but it’s actually quite the opposite. It’s a holiday based on giving respect to those who have passed. The holiday focuses on the gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died
Although it is particularly celebrated in Mexico, the Mission is the spot to see the sea of painted skull faces, costumes, the parade and the idols dedicated to the passing of loved ones.
This year I painted my face and dressed up to meet friends. We brought some new people, so it was fun sharing the celebration and getting them into it to.
The parade was great, the costumes, the vibe, the people and dancing. Another reason to love living in such a culturally vibrant city. If you haven’t gone before, save the date for next year. You will not regret it.

Any excuse to prance through Mission Street with a face all made up is a great time for me. The drums were incredible and the costumes were amazing. Loved it! Why isn’t this happening every week?

This was my first time going to this event. I decided that I wanted to experience it from the beginning, therefore I started at the start of the procession on Bryant and 22^nd. There were a lot of people there including many families and pets. The procession started at 7:00pm with someone addressing the whole crowd by explaining the importance of the event. There were many musicians along the way and random people playing instruments. Many Day of the Dead faces and costumes.
I walked from Bryant to 24^th and Folsom and then left the parade to walk to Garfield Park to check out the altars. There were some very creative altars, including one for Steve Jobs. I really enjoyed seeing all the detail and dedication that some people put towards their altar/​loved ones.
In all, I highly recommend this experience, especially if you’re a SF resident. It is not a «wild» party, and you don’t see people with alcohol, but there are A LOT of people and everyone seems to be on a natural high and festive mood.

Once was not enough.
Hell, even twice wasn’t enough for the girlfriend.
After getting fully made up & dressed up in head to toe Dia de los Muertos splendor for Unilocal’s Day of the Dead @ Sol Collective last Friday up in Sacramento & then doing it again for a friend’s Halloween house party on Saturday, the girlfriend decided that the 3^rd time was the charm.
So on the night Dia de los Muertos is traditionally celebrated (November 2), the girlfriend & I headed out to the closest thing San Francisco has to offer for a traditional Day of the Dead celebration. We went to the Mission.
The streets were packed. Thousands turned out to see & be part of the spectacle. We checked out the procession 1^st, which was slowly creeping up 24^th Street when we caught it. It was basically a death & Aztec themed parade with a lively energy where parade groups & spectators commingled. Many of costumes & «floats» we saw were exceptionally crafted.
After watching the procession for a bit, we walked over to the Public Altars in Garfield Park. There were many shrines, big & small, dedicated to lost loved ones. Death is a universal component of the Human condition & an individual experience. In something we each face alone, we are not alone.
Walking amongst these Altars provides the opportunity to surface the whole wide range of responses to death we are all capable of. Macabre voyeurism, sorrow, sympathy, love, perseverance, elation, all of it & more is possible in this place.
San Francisco’s Day of the Dead in the Mission is a grand ceremony devoted to the dead &, by extension, to the living. It’s also a reminder that how we face death says as much about us as how we face life.

mixed feelings here, but i’ll give it 4 stars for the beautiful altars in the park and the fact that for most years i’ve gone with m’love and had a great time.

There’s something unsettling about seeing this many white people on a Mexican holiday. In fact, there were more burners than brown people both at the alter installation and in the parade. Such is San Francisco, I guess.
Some of the alters were very thoughtful and moving. The parade was not very organized. There was no separation between participants and spectators. But it wasn’t crowded enough to be frustrating. In all there wasn’t enough mourning /​celebrating life and a bit too many people trying to party while wearing that skull hoodie they bought off Karmaloop for my taste.

I BARTed into the city a little late into the event to catch about half of it. As I walked out of 16^th St. station I walked smack dab into the Aztec dancers. I was able to jostle my way to a place in the crowd where I could watch the most adorable little girl in full tribal headress etc do the dance. Let’s get this straight, I abhor children, and I thought she was the cutest thing ever. She just kinda bopped around, looking at others for guidance about what she should be doing, clearly clueless in her approx 5 yr old wonder. but moving on.
The crowd seemed to kinda move along with the dancers and the procession. I loved all of the people in face paint and costume, which made it feel like a 2^nd halloween with a more serious purpose.
One of my favorite things was a puffy looking white dude, naked spare a pair of white long underwear, painted white, in an angel costume, on stilts, DANCING. He was working it HARD and was exactly what casper the friendly ghost would have looked like had he actually appeared in rocky horror picture show instead of his own film. or so i think.
The best part/​most moving is the altars set up at Garfield park. Groups of people move along, their faces lit by the candles scattered about the brightly decorated structures. It becomes much more of a celebration of the lives of those who have departed than about mourning death itself, which I think is beautiful.
I started to get stifled by the crowds and felt a bout of claustraphobia setting in so I peaced out earlier than I would have liked, but I definitely recommend the event. Just make sure your camera has battery still left (mine is possessed by the devil and sporadically turns on and off, hence wasting valuable battery power and killing itself quickly)

me, too.
It was lovely to see people acknowledge that death happens, and grieve publicly. I was surprised to see so many– thousands– of people out. Quite moving.
The altars were really moving, and I connected deeply with a few people. It was spooky and comforting.
I could have done without the tribal fedora’d crowd and the gratuitous spectacle, but they’re ubiquitous in the Bay.

One of San Francisco’s best events.
Dia De Los Muertos offers an opportunity for communities to blend together in the sharing of this wonderfully rich tradition.
Remembering and celebrating the lives of loved ones past and honoring our ancestors, this is what this event is about.
There seems to be a lot of confusion and misconception around this day and I encourage everyone to do a little research to better understand the true meaning.
Here in San Francisco, it’s an opportunity to mesh together a kind of representative art, in the form of shrine building
while using a rich spiritual heritage as the medium.
The shrines are elaborate and colorful, each piece represents with love and respect an individual offering for the ancestors.
Many of these touching pieces are also interactive, meaning we can participate by adding the names of our own past loved ones or pictures to the existing shrine.
The shrines are lit with many candles and colored with flowers to keep with the tradition of celebrating.
Many are personalized with the addition of items the particular persons loved or musical instruments or sweets, anything that brings us closer to the ancestor.
This was my third attendance to Dia De Los Muertos in S.F. Last nights event drew a couple thousand people for a procession around Garfield Park and shrine viewing.
The dark/​festive atmosphere is both intriguing and attractive to anyone seeking a true San Francisco experience.

I agree with some of the people who felt the East Bay one was better. I didn’t hang out too much at Garfield park as I was a bit confused on the details of the event schedule.
I did think the Aztec dancers were good, and the people on stilts were amazing.
I did think the SF event sort of is less about dia de las muertos and more about people going a bit wild, which seems to be an SF thing (not necessarily in a bad way, but for an event like this… seems like it went a little left field).
Still, it is worth taking in, and especially if you can view the altars.
You can see the SF ones first, followed by the Fruitvale ones

This event is amazing. I have gone the last 2 years and plan my vacation time from to attend this awesome night.
The parade is very fun and the crowds have always been polite and respectful. The alters in Garfield Park and truly touching.
This is a night to honor those who have already passed on, and this event is a proper way of doing so.
If you have never been to this event plan on it this year for sure.
Check out some of the photos I took at last years celebration.

A great day to live on Bryant St!!! What a beautiful celebration of the living honoring the dead. With the exception of the political weirdos who were blatantly disrespectful and used this as a last chance to try and promote themselves and their irrelevant causes IT WAS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. Making me assume it will be even better next year when it is not a political year. I happen to live en route right about where it started so we walked around and passed out our huge bowl of remaining Halloween candy. This is my first year in San Francisco so I didn’t quite know what to expect and to say the least I was very pleasantly surprised. Next year I plan on participating in more than just a walk with my dogs and boyfriend in the crowd through our neighborhood streets. Thank you to all who were there for making it a peaceful night together, can’t wait to do it again next year.

Went to the Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in SF. We went to the Garfield Park to take pictures by 6pm and some altars were already up. I like the altars, very personal.
The precession starts at 7pm w/​some guy talking a lot. Couldn’t hear him so tuned him out. Took more pictures of people in skeleton costumes and such.
When it finally started it was kinda fun walking w/​the huge group. I love the Aztec dancers and people dressed up and people dancing & playing on the drums.
Overall, I think it’s worth checking out if you’re in SF, but for me it was a one time thing. I like the Fruitvale one better.

Best local holiday ever. It’s rich and beautiful — not a drunken party like so many other SF traditions. It’s based on a happy celebration of those people in your life that have passed on — a way to allow their spirits to come back to enjoy some food and remembrance with their loved ones.
Very sweet, very spiritual, very rich. Most people are very respectful as well, which is a lovely gift.

This is the annual Dia De Los Muertos Procession that happens in SF every November 2^nd. (The Marigold Project)
I went last year for the first time and was totally taken by the event.
The procession happens in the best part of the mission, the area I like to call the REAL heart of the Mission District, 24^th and Bryant. None of that 16^th and Valencia «marina safe zone» stuff.
Hundreds of people, many dressed to the nines in their finest DOD make-​up and dress. DRUMS! Dancers in full traditional dress. Families honoring their lost loved ones. Alters lining the street, being carried through the procession and displayed in Garfield Park. Candles. Marigolds. It’s authentic and raw, spirited and lively.
It’s just the kind of thing that makes San Francisco unique. And that makes this native love The City even more.
I’m surprised there isn’t a Unilocal!review of this yet, unless you’re all trying to keep it a quiet secret? Sorry, but it’s an event worth Unilocaling about.