Castillos

Castillos are marvelous inventions that are an integral part of every "fiesta patronal," a week long party that every town has, no matter how small. There are usually a few days of at least two castillos that are set off around midnight. Instead of fireworks that are shot off into the sky, away from animals, buildings, and people, castillos are full of moving parts and showers of sparks that are quite close to all aforementioned objects.

One particularly interesting "tier" of the castillo that is always included are the rapidly moving circles or star shaped bamboo discs that turn at very high speeds with sparklers attached, usually fast enough for a few of the fireworks themselves to go flying off into the crowd.

Sometimes they land on rooftops, sometimes they land in faces, but they are always quite entertaining to watch. AND for 300-400 dollars you too can purchase a castillo for a Peruvian town and then at the end your name lights up in fireworks and spins around. How fun is that?