Photos: Day of the Dead meets Halloween

Dilan Bautista, 4, joins the festivities during Mexico City’s first Day of the Dead parade. More than 250,000 people attended.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

Oct. 30, 2016 8:07 PM PT

In Mexico, customs originating in Europe and the indigenous world often meld in a surprisingly seamless fashion. So it is with Halloween, a tradition born in Europe and transported to Mexico from the United States, and Day of the Dead, a Mexican remembrance of the deceased with pre-Hispanic origins.

The Linares Flores family produces papier-mache figures, including a giant Catrina, in a workshop close to the Sonora Market.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

Sugar skulls are traditional for Day of the Dead, while fancy pumpkins represent the Halloween tradition at the Celaya sweet shop, one of the oldest in Mexico City.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

Sonora Market in Mexico City offers both Day of the Dead items and Halloween costumes and trinkets.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

Couples in costume dance on Paseo de La Reforma, a main drag in Mexico City.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

A dancer from Guerrero state wears a hat made from marigolds during the parade, which was inspired by a scene in the James Bond film “Spectre.”

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

A vendor at Sonora Market shows off a witch decoration. The seller also has Day of the Dead trinkets for use in ofrendas, or altars, for the dead.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

The entrance to Mexico City’s Sonora Market, where people shop for both Halloween and Day of the Dead accoutrements. In the background, a scarecrow hangs from the viaduct.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)

Children watch Mexico City’s first Day of the Dead parade in Mexico City’s central plaza, or zocalo.

(Liliana Nieto del Rio / For The Times)