Peru’s annual La Candeleria festival, third biggest festival in South America, after Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Carnaval de Oruro, Bolivia is in full swing.
Held in Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca, the festival celebrates Puno’s patron saint, the Virgin of Candlemas and celebrates Puno’s Quechua and Aymara legacies in a vibrant celebration of dances and rituals.
The festival started on 2 February and runs until 28 February.
La Candeleria is considered the most important cultural event in Peru and reflective of the cultural wealth and depth of Peru as it incorporates elements of the different ethnic groups from Peru’s past and present.
The festival was recently added to UNESCO’s ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage List’ and this year will feature 100,000 dancers and 40,000 musicians from more than 190 folk groups.
Photo credit: PROMPERU
The celebrations began on Tuesday 2 February and will continue for the next fortnight, the city streets abuzz with vibrant colours, traditional dancing, incredibly detailed costumes and an amazing array of food and drink.
On the Sunday 7 February, the Virgin is led through the streets in a colourful procession of native dances which culminates in a dance contest with groups from across the region competing for the title.
Photo credit: PROMPERU Renzo Giraldo
Various dances can be seen during the festival but the most famous is the ‘Diablada’ or dance of the demons.
It was allegedly dreamed up by a group of miners trapped down a mine who, in their desperation, resigned their souls to the Virgen de la Candelaria. Participants wear spectacular costumes and (often terrifying) devil masks as they dance through the streets.
The festival attracts over 300,000 domestic and international tourists, a figure that increases each year.
Many tourists stay on to visit nearby Lake Titicaca, the largest in South America and the highest navigable lake in the world. Lake Titicaca is home to more than 90 artificial floating islands made of aquatic reeds, and each inhabited by aurochs-Aymara families who maintain their ancestral customs such as hunting and fishing.
La Candelaria festival by numbers:
- 100,000 dancers
- 190 folk groups
- 40,000 musicians
- 3,827 meters above sea level
- 300,000+ tourists attend each year
- 10 kilos: how heavy the masks can be
