Sept 18- La Castellers Practice

In the Catalonia region of Spain, which is where Barcelona is located, people create human towers called Castellers in the street by climbing on top of one another. Castellers perform during many holidays and festivals in large, crowded streets where many people can see them. There are about 4-9 people on the bottom for the base depending on how high the tower will be. Towers can be anywhere from 3-9 people tall. On the very top of the tower is a child who is usually about 5 years old. Castellers are very popular in Barcelona. This weekend there is a festival called La Merce which the Castellers will be performing at. The festival first began as a Roman Catholic celebration to honor "Our Lady Mercy" and has transformed into a 4 day festival filled with fireworks, dancing, a circus, concerts, and street performers. Last night we went to the Castellers gym to watch them practice before their big performance this weekend. The Castellers usually practice about 5 hours a week and train in strength, balance, and flexibility. In the gym they practice int hey had nets to catch them in case they fel, but out in the streets they have nothing. It was so crazy to watch these little kids climb up 5 layers of people without showing any fear at all! When the tower is complete the little kid at the top will raise his or her hand to signal that they are finished and then they slide down everyone just like they are sliding down a pole. We got to go in and help spot them for a couple rounds. Even though we didn't get very close, it was scary knowing that we had to be responsible to catch these people if they fell!