The Mexican piñata party ritual

For the uninitiated, the piñata is a decorated clay pot or papier-mâché container filled with treats (more about those later) which is strung from a rope and flailed at in turns by party-goers who are blindfolded and armed with a stick.

A person at one end of the rope —or sometimes a person at each end— will be able to swing the piñata in an attempt to keep it away from its assailant, and make the game last as long as possible.

When the piñata breaks, the contents are scattered on the ground and a rush is made to collect as much loot as possible.

At most children’s birthday parties and Christmas posadas the order in which the participants get a shot is based on age, from youngest to eldest.  This is logical since the bigger the person, the more likely they are to break the piñata, and the idea is to keep it going for a good while—at least long enough to ensure that every child has a turn.

Stick flailed to the piñata song

The duration of a “turn” is as long as it takes to sing the piñata song, which goes like this:

Dale dale dale, no pierdas el tino,
Porque si lo pierdes, pierdes el camino.
Ya le diste uno,
Ya le diste dos,
Ya le diste tres y tu tiempo se acabó.

Which loosely translates as:

Hit-it hit-it hit-it, don’t lose your aim,
Because if you lose it, you will lose your way.
Now you’ve hit it once,
Now you’ve hit it twice,
Now you’ve hit it three times,
And your time is up.

Essential preparations for your piñata ritual

More thought and decision-making goes into a simple piñata ritual than you might expect:

First of all, what should go inside the piñata?

Christmas piñatas tend to be healthier than birthday piñatas.  They usually contain pieces of sugar cane, tangerines, or little oranges called naranjas piñateras, peanuts, a Mexican fruit called tejocote, limas (a sort of cross between an orange and a lime) and a variety of candy: boiled sweets, chocolate coins, and such.  Birthday piñatas tend to have more candy and less fruit.  Some piñatas may also contain small toys and other trinkets.

Next, where to stretch the rope on which the piñata will be strung?

This often involves at least one person, usually an adult, leaning precariously out of an upstairs window, on a rooftop terrace, or hanging-off the side of one of those spiral iron staircases common in Mexico as a way up onto the roof.

Finding the right stick to strike the piñata

A traditional wooden broom handle is the best, and if you visit your local ferreteria you should be able to buy one.

The new-style hollow plastic or thin hollow metal tube handles are too light to make any impression on the piñata, especially the more common papier-mâché ones which are quite resistant. A baseball bat is too heavy for the smaller swingers and gives an unfair advantage to the bigger children or adults.

Piñata shops actually sell sticks that are about the right size and weight, which is fine in today’s world of ready-made.  If the stick doesn’t break during the ritual, it can be stored ready for the next party.

Add a blindfold and the piñata ritual can begin

Once the piñata is all set up, and someone finds an adequate scarf or bandanna to use as a blindfold, the fun is ready to begin.  (The little children are not blindfolded, by the way.)

Unwritten rules and strategies

If the piñata is one of the spherical ones with paper cones stuck on it, a common strategy frequently used by players is to knock-off one or more of the cones without breaking the piñata.

There’s a sort of unwritten rule that if you break one of those off, that ends your turn, but you get to keep the cone, which is useful for filling with goodies once the piñata is broken.

If the piñata is thematic —Disney characters seem perennially popular— an arm or a leg or any other non-core piece of the piñata could be broken-off and kept for the same purpose.

Time outs, the break, and the final rush for the bounty

With clay-pot piñatas, one good crack can break them open and the contents would spill on the floor.  With the more common and most popular papier-mâché variety, often the piñata will split rather than break, and just a few things fall out, prompting some of the children to rush-in to grab them while the person with the stick may still be in full-swing: if blind-folded, they might not realize the piñata has been split.

This calls for a time-out while the stray pieces of fruit or candy are retrieved. If the split or tear in the piñata is big enough, the person in charge of the rope will usually shake it up and down so that more fall out.

Then one of the adults will take it upon him or herself to declare the piñata broken, step into the arena, grab the damaged artifact and shake it until all the contents are emptied onto the ground.

This signal is a cue for the scrum, as children rush-in armed with their cones and other piñata parts, or at least one of those ubiquitous plastic bags, to fill.

After the adrenaline fest, adults with brooms appear to sweep up the remains of tissue paper, papier-mâché, and the odd broken fruit no one claimed; and some redress is made in benefit of the less aggressive of the participants whose share of the loot doesn’t come anywhere near to what even the least social-minded might consider fair.

Christmas festivities in Mexico

Local Posadas —traditional Christmas parties— featuring candlelit processions and piñatas; festivals, special events, art and music, delicious seasonal food and drinks, Christmas carols —villancicos— dancing, and fireworks can be enjoyed this time of year across Mexico.

The Posadas begin on December 16th with the main event and special Christmas meal traditionally taken by most families on Christmas Eve, not Christmas Day. The 25th of December in Mexico is a day for relaxation —‘the ultimate Sunday’— as well as being a public holiday.

Many of the events leading-up to Christmas are aligned with certain religious festivals and church services that make them even more meaningful to those who behold Christmas as more than just an indulgent holiday.

A fusion of styles and cultures

As with so many things in Mexico, Christmas festivities here celebrate a fusion of cultures and traditional celebrations that nonetheless retain a strong Mexican style and flair.  Amidst the festivities, the underlying feeling of peace and tranquility, and a time for being with those you care about most is the same in Mexico as everywhere else that Christmas is celebrated.

In places where it never snows, the backdrop will never meet the ‘snow drops and sleigh bells’ imagery that’s so often shared on Christmas cards, but that doesn’t prevent Mexican families from enjoying decorations that include snow scenes on their window panes and snowmen dolls smiling in their sun-drenched patios and gardens.

Shopping for Christmas in Mexico

Frenzied festive shopping trends are now common in Mexico’s big towns and cities at Christmas, so if you plan to ‘whisk across town’ in the capital, be aware that Mexico City’s streets, especially those near and around retail centers, can become virtually grid-locked on the run-up to Christmas Eve as people play-out the infamous ‘last minute rush.’  Christmas in Mexico tends to become more traditional and intimate the further away you are from its urban centers, but it’s wise to plan your shopping needs in advance and avoid shops and markets altogether on the 23rd and 24th, if you can.

Traditional meals and beverages

Christmas in Mexico features its own dishes, some homegrown and some adopted, to make sure no one goes hungry at the festive gatherings.

The main Christmas meal is traditionally taken as a supper on the evening of December 24th, with family and friends arriving for the famous left-overs —recalentados— on the afternoon of the 25th. Some foreign residents keep to their home country traditions and host their main Christmas meal on the afternoon of the 25th, taking a light supper on the 24th, instead.

Turkey and ham are often served; although the most sought-after dishes this time of year are bacalao and romeritos.  For liquid refreshment, sidra (apple cider), and rompope (eggnog) are the traditional beverages served with Christmas meals, although wine and an assortment of spirits may also be offered by hosts.

Gift exchange traditions

In modern-day Mexico, gifts are often exchanged on the night of the 24th of December, although traditionally presents in Mexico are exchanged on Kings’ Day—January 6th.  This is also the day when the delicious “Rosca de Reyes” (Kings’ Loaf) is served: a doughnut-shaped cake into which several small plastic doll figurines are baked; whoever is served a slice containing a doll does, by tradition, host a party and serves tamales at their home on February 2nd, Dia de la Candelaria, Candlemas.  Each rosca contains several dolls baked in with the dough, usually at least three, and the larger the size of the loaf, the more chances you have to be ‘nominated’ as a party host in February.

A special time for visitors and residents in Mexico

People who visit Mexico this time of year enjoy getting away from their usual surroundings and absorbing an alternative Christmas experience: many people who have visited Mexico at Christmas at least once before are drawn back time and again to the special magic that Mexico offers this time of year, and to enjoy the unusual in celebrations that nonetheless feel quite familiar.

For those who live in Mexico, Christmas remains a very special time of year when friends, family, festivals, and local traditions fuse together to create an enjoyable atmosphere that is uniquely Mexican in its approach and style.  Some foreign residents travel to spend Christmas and New Year with their families abroad; and some years their families come to visit them in Mexico, and experience the wonders of a Christmas holiday in ways that only Mexico can offer.

After the Christmas meals and leftovers have been enjoyed and gifts unwrapped, people take a breather and begin to prepare for their New Year celebrations.

Wherever you are this holiday season, we wish you a tranquil Christmas holiday filled with joy—and a New Year filled with good tidings and abundance!

Learn more about Christmas traditions in Mexico

Mexperience helps you to discover Christmas traditions in Mexico and enjoy all the country offers during this important festive period:

• Learn about preparing for Christmas and New Year in Mexico
• Dia de Guadalupe heralds the start of the end-of-year festivities in Mexico.
• Posadas Navideñas are an integral and essential part of Christmas traditions in Mexico.
• Enjoying Mexican party foods at Christmastime
• Colorful piñatas are an essential component of every Christmas party in Mexico.
• How the New Year is traditionally welcomed in Mexico.
• Kings’ Day gifts, delicious loaf, and the baby doll that determines who hosts the tamales party in February.
• Learn all about Christmas in Mexico on our feature section.