No matter what country you live in, festivals are inevitable. As long as people live together in communities, we seem to have an urge to celebrate together as a group. Celebrating festivals happens in all cultures, all over the world, and for many different reasons. Religion, music, food-all these and more have inspired new and old festivals.
Religious Festivals.
Many of the world’s major festivals are based on religion. Festivals, which are special occasions for feasting and celebration, have long been used by religious followers to honor the gods. Some of the most famous religious festivals include Christmas, Hanukkah, Diwali, Pesach, Passover, Holi, and Eid al-Adha, which serve to mark the year.
Carnivals
This type of festival may have its roots in religion, but today it’s less about celebrating religious figures and more about having fun parties. Traditionally, carnival season is celebrated around the world just before Lent, with the main events usually taking place in February. Lent is a period when religious followers must fast or give up luxuries for 40 days, so carnival is the last chance to enjoy the food, drink and parties they are about to give up.
Carnival celebrations take place in the streets, with parades full of people, usually with lots of colorful floats carried through the streets of the city. There are costumes, masks, confetti, balloons and, above all, music.
Art Festivals.
In addition to religious festivals, you’ll also find major cultural festivals around the world. Every aspect of the arts now has its own important festival. Film has the Cannes Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival. For comedy, there is the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in Australia and the Just for Laughs International Comedy Festival in Montreal, Canada. If you love music, you are spoiled for choice: the famous Glastonbury in the UK, Burning Man in the Nevada desert and Primavera in beautiful Barcelona.
And if you want a taste of the best movies, comedy, music, theater, dance and more, you can’t miss the most famous arts festival on the planet, the Edinburgh International Festival in Scotland, which has been drawing visitors. from around the world for nearly 70 years.
Changing Seasons.
It is no coincidence that some of the oldest festivals on earth coincide with certain seasons. There are many festivals around the world that come to life in the winter, and who can blame our ancestors for wanting to celebrate them on the coldest and darkest days of the year. We all need something to cheer ourselves up and get through the cold winter days.
Winter – Saturnalia.
The ancient Romans celebrated the Saturnalia in honor of the deity Saturn – and they knew how to have fun: the festivities began on December 17 and lasted until December 23. The celebration began with a sacrifice at Saturn’s temple – fortunately, festivals these days try to avoid anything so gruesome. Then there was a delicious public banquet and then a pogrom. A real carnival atmosphere ensued, gifts were handed out, and strict Roman social norms were subverted. This meant that gambling was allowed, and masters served their slaves at the table. In fact, the poet Catullus called it “the best of days.
Food and farming.
A party is really not so much a party without food and drink, and for centuries people have celebrated with good food. Closely tied to the seasons, many gastronomic festivals are traditionally held during harvest time, when farmers are harvesting and there is plenty of food to share. Here are some famous food and drink festivals you can try:
Oktoberfest, Germany’s most famous festival – and one that is now exported around the world – is a celebration of one of mankind’s most beloved beverages, beer. Every September for 16 days, you’ll find the streets of Munich filled with beer tents and tables serving endless glasses of beer and traditional German dishes like sausages, potato pancakes and roast pork. You may have to wait in line for beer, however, as about 6 million people attend this festival every year.
La Tomatina of Bunol – If you like tomatoes, this festival is for you. A celebration with a difference, La Tomatina is the world’s biggest food fight. Every year since 1944, people have gathered in the streets of Bunol in Valencia, Spain, to throw ripe tomatoes at each other – just don’t wear white!