Blowing Up the Old Man to Ring in the New Year...

New Year's Eve in Honduras is a great celebration.  Like Christmas Eve, it involves a lot of food, family, friends and fireworks.  But it adds something else: the old man.

El viejto or El pichingo is a great tradition.  Basically, the old man is a bit like a scare crow.  Kind of.  Except that he's stuffed full of firecrackers, lots and lots of firecrackers.  Lots!!  You don't even bother to open the individual packages of firecrackers.  Just stuff whole packages into the old man.  When you don't think there's room for any more, stuff in some more.

The old man then goes out on the street somewhere, hopefully a safe distance away from the house, overhead wires, and any nearby grass or vegetation that may catch fire.

Here's what our old man looked like this year while the guys were trying to get him situated for "the big moment"...

 Yes, that's a University of Florida sweatshirt being used.  I'm actually soliciting for a K-State one for next year!  Bwahahaha!

Then it's time for his shower:  Gasoline shower. All over him, head to toe.  Add match and step back!

At midnight, fireworks, firecrackers, gun shot and old men are lighting up the sky all over town.  Heck, all over the country!  It's a lot of fun as long as you stay a safe distance from the old man; he shoots out quite a bit of debris.

Our old man burned for over 15 minutes before there was nothing left but cinders, soot, and a few unexploded firecrackers.  I taped most of it, but will only subject you to a little less than two minutes.

I know at times it sounds more like corn popping than firecrackers, but that's because of the microphone on the video camera.

By 12:30am, the sky over the whole city is nothing but a smoke-filled haze.  At least it keeps the mosquitoes at bay!

Happy New Year!