鹽水蜂炮
Yanshui beehive fireworks festival (or firecrackers festival) 鹽水蜂炮 : The origins of this unique festival taking place in Yanshui, close to Tainan in the South of Taiwan, dates back to the late 1800s, when a cholera epidemic ravaged the town. The locals asked the Chinese god of war, Guan Gong, to ward off the disease. On the day of the Lantern Festival, firecrackers were set off along the road in the hopes of inviting Guan Gong to the village. Since then, the celebration evolved and grew; people now also ask favours from many minor deities, believed to be to thank for the safe arrival to Taiwan from China.
Huge "Beehives", hosting a few hundreds to 600.000 rockets are installed along the path of the Palanquins hosting the gods, and aim at both the gods ans the crowd. While fireworks are lit every few minutes all over the place.
The fire is believed to chase away bad things, that is why it's considered a good thing to be hit by a rocket; but of course everyone is well protected with helmets, jackets or self made protections using towels, carton boards...
Huge "Beehives", hosting a few hundreds to 600.000 rockets are installed along the path of the Palanquins hosting the gods, and aim at both the gods ans the crowd. While fireworks are lit every few minutes all over the place.
The fire is believed to chase away bad things, that is why it's considered a good thing to be hit by a rocket; but of course everyone is well protected with helmets, jackets or self made protections using towels, carton boards...
