Category Archives: Odd Events
Characters Made of Flowers at Debrecen’s Carnival, Hungary
Photo by Laszlo Reszegi
The Flower Carnival is a “fresh” event that happens in Debrecen, Hungary. It lasts for a week, usually in the second half of August, but the preparations for the carnival, including the decoration of the cars with fresh or dry flowers, begin 2-3 weeks before. Being a celebration of flowers, with many perfumes and colors, the Flower Carnival attracts thousands of tourists every year. The approximately 150-250 thousands of flowers are used to “impersonate” animals, historical scenes, fairy tales or other weird characters. The Hungarian Holy Crown is always positioned in front of the parade. The carnival stars early in the morning in Petőfi Square and goes through the city’s streets for a distance of 5 kilometers until the Nagyerdei Stadium. Once they arrive in the stadium, the cars and the performers go around showing their creations to the audience and a jury awards the best cars and groups.
More information here.
Photo by RTz13
Photo by Rausch
Photo by Dust Puppy
Photo by Dust Puppy
Photo by Dust Puppy
Photo by Dust Puppy
Photo by Dust Puppy
Photo by Dust Puppy
Photo by S.Rossa
Photo by RTz13
Photo by RTz13
Pictures via 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
Battle of the Oranges, an Event “Full of Vitamin C”
The Battle of the Oranges takes place during the Historical Carnival held in Ivrea, a town located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. Every year citizens celebrate their freedom with the Battle of the Oranges, a celebration that involves thousands of people usually divided into nine combat teams called “Aranceri” (orange handlers), who throw tons of oranges against Aranceri riding in carts, representing the enemy allies . It is said that the Battle of the Oranges commemorates the city’s defiance against the city’s tyrant in the 12th or 13th century. The battle takes place in February, during the traditional carnival days of Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and ends on the night of “Fat Tuesday”.
More details regarding the Historical Carnival and Battle of the Oranges from Ivrea here.
Pictures via Historical Carnival of Ivrea
The Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling, a Crazy and Unusual Event
The Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling is a crazy annual event held at Cooper’s Hill, near Gloucester in the Cotswolds region of England. The event consists in a dangerous race with an absolute price, the cheese. It all starts when a round of Double Gloucester cheese is rolled from the top of Cooper’s Hill, and competitors race down after it. The champion of the race is the first person who reaches the finish line at the bottom of the hill. With a tradition of at least 200 years, the Cheese-Rolling event is becoming more and more popular around the world, and hundreds of tourists gather every year on the top of the hill to compete and to have fun. However, the race in 2010 was canceled due to the lack of safety measures, but many unofficial races occurred. This kind of event has its bad parts, because the hill presents a high risk of continuous fall and many competitors suffered serious injuries during time.
You can get more information from the official website.
Photo by Vivien
Photo by Matt Cardy
Photo by Matt Cardy
Photo by Nicoz
Garma Festival, a Vibrant Celebration of YoIngu Aboriginal People
Garma Festival is an annual festival organized by Yothu Yindi Foundation held in Gulkula, at north-east of Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. Before starting the festival, the ancient sound of the didgeridoo (a wind instrument) spreads around the region, calling all people to come together in unity and peace. The wild symphony of the local “musicians” announces the Garma Festival, an event that resisted over time, being the most vibrant celebration of YoIngu Aboriginal people of northeastern Arnhem Land. As the most important Indigenous cultural celebration, the festival is the perfect cultural exchange for clan groups from Arnhem Land and also for clan groups throughout the land and Australia.
Garma Festival, with its spectacular traditions and practices which include dance, song, music and art, has a spiritual significance for YoIngu, as a practice and as a place. It happens when people leave their anger and selfishness, when different values and ideas emerge and negotiate knowledge in a respectful learning environment. Garma Festival can be seen as a colorful gate between two worlds: the inheritance of YoIngu culture, one of the oldest living cultures on Earth (stretching back over 40,000 years) and the modern culture represented by Ngapaki or Non-Indigenous Australians.
More information about Garma Festival here.
Photo by Cameron Herweynen
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Photo by Wayne Quilliam
Photo by Wayne Quilliam
Photo by Cameron Herweynen
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Photo by Cameron Herweynen
Photo by Cameron Herweynen
Photo by Nicole Skeltys
Photo by Wayne Quilliam
Photo by Wayne Quilliam
Burning Man, a Nonconformist Cultural Event in the Nevada Desert
Photo by Frank-o Fotos
Location. The Burning Man Event is held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, United States.
Unusual. At the first impression, the following pictures might seem like they were taken in an unworldly place, with absurd characters and surreal structures. Well, this event really exists and already has more than 20 years of history. Burning Man (its name cames from the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy) is a week-long annual event which starts on the Monday before, and ends on the day of the American Labor Day holiday. This event is considered an experiment in community which challenges all the participants to express themselves and to learn how to rely on themselves. The result of this experiment is the ephemeral Black Rock City, home to the Burning Man event.
Only last year, more than 50,000 people came to Burning Man to escape from the urban boundaries. In the Black Rock City, creation is everywhere and includes innovative sculpture, installations, performance, theme camps, art cars and even costumes. Beside this incredible art manifestation, the “city” offers many parties, interactive games, rides with some weird vehicles or other crazy activities.
More information about Burning Man here.
Photo by Michael Christian
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Photo by Toby Keller
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Photo by Herby Fr
Photo by Herby Fr
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Pictures via 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
Mind-blowing Opera Stage in Bregenz, Austria
The Bregenzer Festspiele (Bregenz Festival) is famous and acclaimed for staging some of the most mind-blowing spectacles. According to the The Telegraph, Verdi’ s opera “A Masked Ball” in 1999 featured a giant book stage being opened by a skeleton. The uncommon staging and show took place on Lake Constance in Bregenz, Austria.( Photograph by AP )
Nuit Blanche in Paris, When Artists Bring Light on the Streets
Nuit Blanche or White Night is an annual all-night arts festival. Although this kind of event is spread all over the world, we have chosen to show you how things work in Paris. With its first edition in 2002, Paris Nuit Blanche has become an important annual celebration of culture, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. During this night, museums, private and public art galleries, city halls and many other cultural institutions open free of charge.
The center of the city is being transformed into an art gallery, with art installations or performances (music, film, dance, performance art), themed social gatherings and many other cultural activities. The main attractions are the elaborate light installations, edgy performances, concerts and unclassifiable happenings of all sorts. Since it became an annual celebration, Nuit Blanche has been hosted by many famous and beautiful monuments, palaces, institutional buildings such as the Cité Internationale des Arts, Victor Hugo’s house, Pierre et Marie Curie University, Parc des Buttes Chaumont, Versailles, Jardin des Halles, Centre Pompidou, Champs-Elysées, Montparnasse and even the Gare du Nord.
You will find more information about the artists who performed along the years as well as the exact date for the next event (in 2010 Nuit Blanche took place on the 2nd of October) here.
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A Dynamic Village Whose Beauty Grows With Every Season: Filzmoos, Austria
Filzmoos is an alpine village located within the district of St. Johann im Pongau in the state of Salzburg, Austria, perfect for a mountain getaway. The views it offers seem taken from childhood postcards and brought to life with the help of the fascinated groups visiting this place all year round. Aside from its delightful picturesque landscape, Filzmoos is a lively and youthful place, an unusually- dynamic location and a must-see for every traveler.
During summer, hiking, swimming, mountain biking, archery, horse-riding and fishing are just a few of the activities that take place in the village. If you are a hiker looking for unforgettable sceneries, you should know that Filzmoos is the starting point for mountain tracks and that the paths are well-signposted and categorized as follows: “blue” paths are easy walks, “red“ are medium-difficulty walks and “black” walks should only be undertaken with a mountain guide. The mountains that can be seen from the village valley are Dachstein and Bischofsmütze.
The village offers a wide range of skiing and snowboarding areas for children, beginners and advanced. Here are some delightful panoramic views of the slopes, for a general impression. Other winter activities in Filzmoos include horse-drawn sleigh rides, snowshoeing and winter (guided) walks.
In case you are wondering what these balloons are all about, know that this beautiful Austrian village is also known as the “Mecca” für balloonists“ or as “Balloon Village”. Why? Because each year in January an International contest is being held that reunites 40 balloon teams from all over the world. The 32nd Internation BP-Gas Balloon Trophy will take place from 16 to 22 January 2011 and it is said to be spectacular.
Here is more information from the official site of the village: “On Sunday, 16. January 2011 from 6.00 pm the glowing balloons dominate Filzmoos. The Choreographed to music the colours and figures of the colourful balls glow in tune to the music in the evening sky above the picturesque village. A mixture of winter wonderland, starry skies and glowing, colourful balloons enchant the spectators. On the Hammer launch field the atmosphere hots up with mulled wine, jagatee, tasty snacks and cool music. A grand firework display at 8.00 pm rounds off the spectacular evening.”
During this period, booking a balloon ride is possible here. For more information about this enchanting and bewitching place, you can go online on Filzmoos Tourist Office.
Boryeong Mud Festival in South Korea, the Fun Way to Get Dirty
Boryeong is a city in South Korea that has it all: mountains, beaches and not to mention wild and crazy inhabitants. Boryeong Mud Festival takes place every year in July on Daecheon swimming beach and is said to gather over 32 000 tourists, both foreign and local.
This is no common mud, but rather the type of medicinal material you probably have seen being sold on beaches. So this is not just a “dirty” way to burn up some energy, but it has a therapeutic effect as well. And whenever you get tired of having it on you, simply take a refreshing bath and then start over.
Boryeong Mud Festival in South Korea features a great variety of events, such as mud wrestling, photography competitions, mud fireworks fantasy and mud sliding. The atmosphere there these days can get very intense so be sure to prepare yourself for entertainment and complete relaxation.
In case you are planning to attend this festival next year, here is a bit more information on its origins and history and a place to start searching for accommodation.
Pictures via 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13
Boryeong Mud Festival, South Korea
Monarch Butterfly Migration in Mexico, a Journey Above All Natural Laws
Considered one of the world’s most intriguing natural mysteries, the Monarch Butterfly Migration from Canada to Mexico is an annual event that unites billions of butterflies. So if this happens to be your unexplored passion, here is a journey that is above any natural law and a place to enjoy butterflies every step of the way.
Every autumn in November, just as soon as the Noth-American summer is over, thousands of millions of monarch butterflies gather in Canada and head South, starting a journey of over 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers), towards the picturesque mountains of Michoacan, Mexico.
It is said that these mountains are the only ones in which one can rest alongside the freedom that these playful creatures inspire and that trees bend under the heaviness of the thousands of butterflies.
Until recently, no one even knew what the fuss was all about or where the butterflies were going. Scientists still don’t know how this unusual journey is possible, being given that during a year, almost five generations separate those that actually flap their wings over half of the globe. This means that the ones that depart have never went to those particular locations in Mexico before and that it is the instinct that guides them all the way over there and then back to Canada again.
A very interesting event occurred in Michoacan in January 2002, when there was a huge unexpected frost in these areas and almost 80 percent of the butterflies were killed. Everyone was surprised the next year, when billions of butterflies returned to these lands.
Being a part of this amazing event is possible if you decide to visit Michoacan mountains.
Getting there: You can arrive in Zitacuaro (a city of almost 100 000 inhabitants), by taking a car or a bus from Mexixo City (it is a 4 hour ride). Then drive on to Angangueo, located 34 kilometers away from Zitacuaro and 2,627 meters above sea level. The three butterfly bio reserves are located in El Rosario, just 6 kilometers away from Aguangueo (taxing a taxi is also an option).
When to visit: Late November to April
We consider the video below to be quite relevant for what this type of experience could involve. Relax and enjoy!
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