The parade is heard before it’s seen. Six drummers banging in practiced unison. Then come the ribbon bearers, carrying sticks with long paper streamers tied to them. They rustle and hiss in mimicry of the sound of spiders, the silver streamers themselves like webs.

And then following behind are the spider dancers, four people in each of the many spiders, each of the four making the legs, the head, the thorax move and bounce with the beat of the drums. The music swells dramatically, and then, at a climactic moment -- POP! Hissssssss. Streamers burst forth from the "spiders" into the crowd. Locals and tourists alike shriek with surprise and glee, and children duck to scoop up candy tied to the ends of the streamers.

The parade will repeat this performance as it progresses down the street.