La Purisima

So, a couple of nights ago was La Purisima. A catholic holiday celebrated here in Leon, and all throughout Nicaragua. The people of Nicaragua pretty much celebrate the entire month of December. Now, I think the United States should take this idea into consideration. They set off fireworks every night here this time of year. Anyways, back to La Purisima. What an experience, let me tell you! It was crazy and I was not prepared for all the excitement. We had a blast. The people decorated altars to honor Mary. They were beautiful. Sandra explained to me that people also make dummies to fill with all the sins of their past. Then at midnight they set them on fire. Of course, I believe that Mary was a great woman of God, and nothing more. Jesus is the reason we should be celebrating this time of year, or everyday for that matter. We decided to go and enjoy the festivities anyway. The whole night reminded me a bit of the version of Romeo and Juliet with Leonardo Dicaprio and Claire Danes. Probably because of the fireworks and the fact that it's set in Brazil. There is also a very Catholic theme to that movie. Anyway, It was a fun night that I will never forget. 

The boys trying to capture the fireworks on their cellphones.

I think the pictures above and below need a little bit of explanation. This display of dangerousness was called: "The Bull". Two men paraded around pretending to be bulls while fireworks shot off of the boxes they had on their heads and bottle rockets went flying into the crowd. I'll say one thing about Nicaraguans, they aren't worried about lawsuits. It was shocking and one of the coolest ways to shoot fireworks off that I've ever seen.

I had to hand it to this photographer, he wasn't worried about getting hit. He was gonna 'Get that shot!' Anyway, another fun night in Nicaragua. :)