Juan Gabriel’s ashes arrive in Mexico City

Fans of Juan Gabriel lined the streets of Mexico City to pay their last respects to the singer as a motorcade carried his ashes to a farewell ceremony Monday at the capital’s Palace of Fine Arts.

The ashes arrived from Ciudad Juarez, the border city where Juan Gabriel grew up and where a memorial ceremony was held over the weekend.

The singer died August 28 in Santa Monica at age 66 after a 45-year career that marked an era in Mexican popular music. The Palace of Fine Arts hosted Juan Gabriel back in 1990, making him the first mainstream artist to perform in the palace.

His family plans to convert his house in Ciudad Juarez into a museum.

Elizabeth Aguilar of Chile was among those who turned out in Mexico City. “I have followed him ever since I can remember, and I have always liked his music,” she said.