Today we woke up to loud explosions - firecrackers we are told, rather than the cannons we all thought were going off from time to time during the day - and the worst brass band I had ever heard. Later in the day there were two brass bands competing with one another, and the resulting sound was even worse.
It is currently after midnight, and there is dancing in the streets and loud speakers with speeches! I understand that the same thing will happen tomorrow.
Firstly, it is Flag day - the Ecuadorian national day. Then there are the celebrations for the day of the dead. I'm not sure whether there is another celebration happening as well, because there appear to be two types of parades happening. The first is a funeral procession - a band followed by people carrying roses and pictures of people, almost certainly associated with the day of the dead. Then there is another procession - a band followed by men carrying a mother and child depiction in a litter, followed by a number of people. As it travels, the litter is constantly strewn with rose petals. The litter is labeled for the name of the local cathedral - the virgin of the holy waters, which is holding two hourly services this weekend, so this procession may be bringing the faithful to mass, and it may be what woke us up.
I am told we will also be in the next town for its festival.
Today we decided to zip line, which was a lot of fun. Then we went to the swing at the end of the world. The swing was featured in National Geographic, and so has become a "must do" tourist thing.
No comments:
Post a Comment