The magical music, the fierce dance, the vibrancy, the color and the enthusiasm! Who doesn't like festive seasons? Being at festivals is like standing inside the mind of a culture as it dreams. So here are the 10 most unique festivals celebrated around the world.
Day of the Dead, Mexico
Day of the Dead, as creepy as it sounds, is commonly known as 'Dia de Muertos' in Spanish and is traditionally celebrated on 1st and 2nd of November in Mexico. This festival celebrates the lives of loved ones who have died while also reminding people about their own mortality. Skull is used as a symbol of the holiday. People go to cemeteries to be with the souls of the departed and build private altars containing foods and beverages, as well as photos of the dead. This is done to encourage visits by the soul.
Mardi Gras, USA
Mardi Gras, a French term which means Fat Tuesday referring to the practice of the last night of eating fatty foods before the ritual fasting which begins on Ash Wednesday. This day can occur anytime between February 3rd and March 9th, depending on when Easter is held that year. In 1857, a group called Mystik Krewe of Comus staged the first modern style Mardi Gras parade. The torchlit evening procession of floats illustrated themes from mythology and literature. The parades are headed by 'Kings' and 'Queens' who throw trinkets at the crowd. There's no general theme for Mardi Gras but each individual depicts a specific subject such as legends, children's stories, geography etc.
Burning Man, Nevada
Burning Man is a week long annual art, music and everything-else festival held in the middle of Black Rock desert,Nevada. It usually takes place between August 27 and September 3. But what exactly is Burning Man? It's hard to say. The founder reckons it's a City of Art; the motto is 'No Spectators' and everybody has to contribute something to that year's theme. This very special event which started with 8 people on a San Francisco beach in 1986 has grown to a huge art festival where hundreds of artists come and build art installations, sculptures, art cars and make performances.
The Fringe Festival, Edinburgh
The Edinburgh Fringe Festival is the world's largest art festival where visitors, artists, music and theatre mix together in a beautiful experience. This makes Edinburgh one of the most beloved places in UK. From 3 to 27 August, spanning 25 days, this year's festival will involve over 25,000 artists with over 40,000 performances!
Night of the Radishes, Mexico
One of the most colorful and unique festivals of Mexico, commonly referred to as 'Noche de Rabanos', is celebrated on December 23rd. As crazy as it sounds, the Radish Night festival lasts only a few hours due to limited lifespan of vegetables as folk art. Farmers carve the radishes into imaginative shapes in order to lure the people into buying the produce at the market.
Saint Patrick's Festival, Dublin
Saint Patrick's Day, also known as Feast of Saint Patrick is celebrated every year on March,17th in the memory of Saint Patrick. It is a festival for all the true Irishmen and those who feel Irish from their heart. History states that March,17 marks the death of Saint Patrick. Saint Patrick baptised people and cast out paganism. Hence the Irish believe that thanks to him there are no snakes on their island.
Night of the Witches, Mexico
If witches and wizards have a spiritual home, it may well be the Mexican town of Catemaco. In 1970, a local shaman was struck with an idea to host a witchcraft convention and now every year hundreds of shamans, witches and healers from all over Mexico travel to Catemaco to perform a mass cleansing ceremony designed to rid them of previous year's negative energies. It is more of "Bewitched" than "The Blair Witch Project" with the event attracting tourists from all over the world.
Dragon Boat Festival, China
The Dragon Boat festival, also known as the Dwanwu Festival has been celebrated in China for more than 25,000 years! The Fifth day of the Fifth lunar month marks the beginning of the various events held and also boosts up the tourism industry. Legend says that a Chinese patriot, Qu Yuan threw himself into the Mi Lo river to protest against the corrupt government in the period of 475-221 BC. In order to save him and prevent the fish from eating him, the locals threw rice patties into the river. Ever since then rice dumplings or zongzi are prepared and eaten during this festival season. Other activities include drinking realgar wine and dragon boat racing.
Carnival of Venice, Italy
The tradition of carnival dates back over 900 years. It was the one time during the year when there were no bounds. Everybody was free to do things desired all year without any guilt thanks to the masks. In Italy, it is celebrated in different ways varying from city to city. The most popular is the Carnival of Venice which is famous for masks.
Las Fallas, Spain
Las Fallas, one of Spain's most odd and crazy fiestas held every year in Valencia. Las Fallas means "the fires" in Valencian. The origin of Las Fallas dates back to the 16th century when the onset of spring season was celebrated as a pagan ritual. The focus of this festival is to create and destroy ninots(puppets or dolls), which are statues made out of cardboard,wood,paper-mache and plaster. These ninots are lifelike and usually demonstrate satirical scenes or poke fun at corrupt politicians and Spanish celebrities. Many ninots are several feet tall. The ninots remain intact until March 19th, after which men stuff them with fireworks.
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