Witches of the world will be hot-footing it to the Noche de Brujas in Cerro Mono Blanco, Catemaco, Mexico today. Mexico has a long magical tradition comprising of indigenous practises, voodoo and medieval Spanish lore, but the origin of the festival only dates back to the 1970’s when a business savvy shaman had the idea of a convention for witches.
The idea became popular, and now healers, shamans and witches visit Catemaco to cleanse themselves of the previous year’s build-up of negative energies. The whole thing has become quite commercial and visitors can enjoy entertainment, good food (including, of course, liquid refreshment), mooching around the stalls and the odd magical consultation. It is believed that the ideal time for seeking magical solace or simply some sound advice is just after the cleansing ceremony, as this is when the assorted psychics are at their most powerful.
Not that everyone one is delighted by the popularity of the proceedings, some local witchy types feel that their festival has been overtaken by fake fortune-tellers. If you do drop by and decide you want to have a chat with a wise one, the best advice seems to be to look for notices on the local houses, then again, you could always follow your intuition.
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