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As wierd as it sounds, there IS actually a Chimney Sweep Festival!! Sweeps from all around the world gather to parade through the streets to celebrate the chance meeting of 13 chimney sweeps in Santa Maria Maggiore, a mountain town in Piedmont, in September 1981. Today, more than 700 "sweeps" from 12 nations in Europe and North America gather in this northern Italian town during the first week of September for an international festival that recognizes one of the world's most dangerous jobs.The International Festival of Chimneysweeps (Spazzacamino Festival) is hosted by one of the seven hamlets in the region by turn. Separated by language but united by their work, the sweeps hold a parade and then dine and dance until the early morning hours. Special masses, musical presentations and other ceremonies are also held in their honor.
Take a look at the photos below.
