Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 109. Not illustrated. Chapters: Beauty Pageants in Mexico, Festivals in Mexico, Fiestas Patrias, Day of the Dead, Under the Volcano, Miss Universe 2007, Miss Universe 1993, Mexico at the Big Four Pageants, Nuestra Belleza Mexico, Miss Universe 1989, Miss Universe 1978, Senorita Mexico, Festival Internacional Cervantino, Miss Latin America 2007, Miss Latin America 2006, Miss Latin America 2004, Miss Latin America 1989, Puerto Vallarta Festival, Miss Earth Mexico, El Modelo Mexico, Kanikanaka Festival. Excerpt: Day of the Dead (Spanish: ), is a holiday celebrated in Latin America and by Latin Americans living in the United States and Canada. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. The celebration occurs on November 2 in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (November 1) and All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed, and visiting graves with these as gifts. Due to occurring shortly after Halloween, the Day of the Dead is sometimes thought to be a similar holiday, although the two actually have little in common. The Day of the Dead is a time of celebration, where partying is common. Scholars trace the origins of the modern holiday to indigenous observances dating back thousands of years, and to an Aztec festival dedicated to a goddess called Mictecacihuatl. In Brazil Dia de Finados is a public holiday, which many Brazilians celebrate by visiting cemeteries and churches. In Spain, there are festivals and parades, and at the end of the day, people gather at cemeteries and pray for their dead loved ones. Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe and in the Philippines, and...