A Virgen de Guadalupe admirer all the way from Switzerland! La Placita Olvera

Oops! Forgot to include these…

Virgen de Guadalupe Feast Day

The word on the streets is the flower market has sold out of all their red roses and if you’re Mexican, you know why. Today is the day Mexicans and Catholics all over the world venerate the one religious figure that can outshine Jesus: La Virgen de Guadalupe. December 12th has always held special memories for me because it is my great-grandmother’s birthday, a woman who long after her death is still remembered to this day at a local Eastside church. She was the founder of the parish Guadalupanas club and celebration feria. As a child,  I was always dazzled by the mountains of buñuelos she made in her tiny Eastside kitchen for the yearly carnival/feria. They were so numerous, the piles seemed to reach the ceiling.

While many churches have their individual ceremonies, the biggest celebrations in Los Angeles take place at La Placita Olvera Virgen de Guadalupe shrine. A throng of worshipers crowd the streets around La Virgen’s tiled mural and the flowers and offerings spread out from the altar into the streets. I’m not sure what time the ceremonies start or perhaps they’ve already passed. I’ve spent a few hours looking for details on this important Los Angeles tradition. There’s nothing I could find in the Los Angeles Times but I did find this article from the San Fernando Valley Sun: Celebrating la Virgen de Guadalupe.

Lincoln Heights Christmas Parade

This Sunday, December 14 on North Broadway 11am-1pm. Check it out! (thanks, Julio!)

From the Lincoln Heights Neighborhood Council:

Residents of Lincoln Heights take pride in their annual Christmas Parade, which will be held this year on December 14, from 11am to 1pm. Participants will line up at the Department of Motor Vehicles, proceed North on Lincoln Park Avenue, turn West on North Broadway to Avenue 24. At the end, there will be a celebration for the whole community in the parking lot behind the Bank of America with Santa, snow, Christmas gifts, music and food for all. Thousands of spectators are expected to crowd along the Parade route. For over two hours they will be treated to a seemingly endless line of colorful drill teams, dance groups, bands, classic cars, dignitaries and large and small floats. The Miss Taiwan entry will grace an antique fire truck from Fire Station #1.

Please read the comments below for more holiday activities on the Eastside–>>

Somedays, I’ll go out for a walk and make unexpected discoveries of pathos, irony and disfunction……

My sympathies go out to this victim. May punishment come swiftly to those responsible.

Now, It’s bad enough when someone disses you or crosses you out, but when it’s set permanently in a cement sidewalk, that’s sad. Pobre TVR……

Then, Pa’ Cabárla,… this afternoon I’m walking along and I see this……….