Something interesting is constantly happening in the world; you have heard about many holidays and festivals and, perhaps, even thought that it would be nice to go there. To make it easier for you to figure out your vacation dates, we have compiled a schedule for 2018 with the most exciting events of each month.
January
Up-Helly Aa, January 30, Scotland
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The Up-Helly Aa festival has been held since 1880 and has only been canceled three times in more than two centuries. On this day, all the men of the Scottish peninsula of St. Ninian dress up as Vikings, light torches and march through the city with war cries and songs, and at the end of the day they set fire to a replica of an ancient Viking warship.
February
Battle of the Oranges, February 10-13, Italy
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Every year in February, residents and visitors of the city of Ivrea in northern Italy are divided into two teams and take part in the reconstruction of the uprising of 1194, however, with one pleasant substitution – oranges are used instead of stone shells. Over the three days of the festival, participants transfer 500 tons of citrus fruits, and at the end the most accurate and bravest ones receive special prizes from the organizers.
March
Holi color, March 2, India
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The Holi festival is a celebration of the victory of good over evil, celebrated throughout India after the full moon in March. On this day, you need to go out only in clothes that you don’t mind, because at every step you will be sprinkled with bright powder of all the colors of the rainbow. In large cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, the holiday is celebrated on a special scale: everyone pours water on each other all day long, dances and sings.
April
Cherry blossom festival, April 1 – May 4, Japan
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In mid-spring, all of Japan gradually turns pink – the well-kept parks and endless sakura gardens that exist in every city begin to bloom. The cherry blossoms don’t last long, so to catch them you need to stay in one city for at least a week. You can observe the awakening of trees for almost a month, the main thing is to know in which region and when the flowers bloom on the trees.
May
Cooperschild cheese race, May 28, England
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At the end of May, Cooper’s Hill, near Gloucester in the Cotswolds, hosts a spring festival with its unusual two-hundred-year-old tradition of the wheel of cheese race. The race participants gather at the top of the hill, at a signal, a head of cheese is released from there and rolls down, and the participants rush after it. The first one to cross the finish line at the foot and grab the cheese takes it for himself. The weight of the prize reaches 18 kilograms, so the struggle on the slope is serious.
June
Sardine Festival, June 12-14, Portugal
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On St. Anthony’s Day (June 13),
patron of the city, a “feast for the whole world” is organized in Lisbon, although the menu does not differ in variety – these days everyone eats sardines. Fish is fried in every restaurant and cafe, at home and on the streets, so the thick aroma permeates every nook and corner of the city, and a festive mood is in the air, because you can’t be sad during a sardine-eating competition. Hold on tight to your fish, the seagulls are unceremoniously snatching them right out of your hands these days.
July
Bull car racing, July 15, 29, Bali, Indonesia
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In mid-July, a series of bull sled races begins in Bali, which consists of ten stages. Races are held once every two weeks. The races take place at dawn in the north of the island, away from the tourist areas. The sleek, powerful animals are dressed in traditional jewelry, harnessed to small chariots, and then, urged on by a whip, they are forced to race along sandy roads and water-logged fields. The spectators are no less interesting to watch; Gambling Indonesians bet fortunes and do not hold back their emotions during and after the race.
August
La Tomatina, August 29, Spain
Photo: Iakov Filimonov/Shutterstock.com
The world famous tomato fight takes place annually in the city of Buñol. During this festival, you can feel like pasta in Bolognese sauce – on the day of the fight, the city is completely covered in thick tomato paste. The festival lasts several days and, in addition to the tomato bacchanalia, includes entertaining water battles and copious wine tasting.
September
Historical Regatta, September 3, Italy
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At the beginning of September, the main canal in Venice becomes a time machine that takes you six centuries back, to 1489. Then the wife of the King of Cyprus, Catherine Cornaro, renounced the throne, for which a rowing regatta was held in her honor. Nowadays, instead of the race, there is a festive parade of antique-decorated gondolas.
October
Balloon Festival, October 6-14, USA
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The world’s largest hot air balloon festival takes place in the US state of New Mexico. Over the course of 8 days, half a million balloons rise into the air, races and competitions are held, prizes are awarded to the owners of the most beautiful and unusual aeronautics, and the most spectacular performance takes place at night, when brightly illuminated balloons soar into the sky.
November
Day of the Dead, October 31 – November 2, Mexico
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In Mexico, the memory of the dead is honored cheerfully and on a grand scale by organizing a festive carnival. People paint their faces, prepare sugar skulls and candy in the form of fancy skeletons, take to the streets, dance and sing. Since 2003, the holiday has been included by UNESCO in the List of Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
December
Chocolate Festival, December 11, Switzerland
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The l’Escalade festival is held in memory of the only armed attack on Geneva in history, treacherously carried out by the Catholic Duke Emmanuel of Savoy on the night of December 11-12, 1602. Thanks to the vigilance of the women, the assault on the city failed; legend has it that they doused the attackers with hot soup. The modern holiday consists of parades and military reenactments, flavored with a good dose of fun, music, performances and the obligatory gastronomic extravaganza, the main place in which, of course, is the famous Swiss chocolate.
Preview photo: Johnny Adolphson/Shutterstock.com
