When we were walking back to J's car after our long day at Chapultepec Park, we heard the eerie fluting of the Papantla Flyers and came to sit down as they were setting up to fly. 5 men climb to the top and spin the platform, wrapping their ropes around the pole 13 times. 4 of the men "fly" down while one man stands at the top playing the flute. This pre-Hispanic ritual was thought to be a call for rain; the men representing the 5 elements, the four flyers' 13 turns representing the 52 weeks of the year. Their costumes are said to make them look like birds to get the gods' attention.
The pinwheel dealer wasn't part of the show, but I found him entertaining.
Nevara took some video, but so far, I haven't been able to get it to open correctly. If I get it fixed, I'll load it here. The whole performance was cool and peaceful, but not nearly as thrilling as say sword swallowing or snake charming.
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