Six Fascinating Festivals from Around the World

Amid the historical Carnival of Ivrea, Italy, there is an unusual element that time and time again turns heads: oranges. The Battle of the Oranges is exactly what it sounds like; it consists of three days of orange-inflicted violence. The entire festival, which is celebrated before Lent and culminates on Shrove Tuesday, is rooted in the rich history of Ivrea, centering on uprisings of the townspeople against past tyrants. The Battle of the Oranges and the events surrounding it are very symbolic. The affair begins with a free breakfast of beans, a tradition that dates back to medieval times, when, it’s said, religious or charitable groups distributed beans to the poor. Thousands of townspeople are divided into nine historical teams, and they dress accordingly. Ten children, fully dressed in Renaissance clothing, are meant to represent the five parishes of Ivrea. Each holds a sword on which an orange is impaled, representing the severed head of a tyrant. A married woman is elected to be the Mugnaia, or “miller’s daughter,” a heroine who symbolizes the unification and triumph of Ivrea upon the death of a tyrant. The main event, the Battle of the Oranges, commences on the Sunday before Lent, and it uses over a million pounds of oranges.

But why oranges? Well, with the invasion of Italy by Napoleon’s French troops in 1796–97 and 1800 came foods then considered exotic in Ivrea, including oranges. A few of the townspeople began to throw oranges playfully at one another during the Carnival parade, and, by the mid-1800s, the game had become competitive. Thus the Battle of the Oranges was born. Over the years, the festival has gotten far more complex, only growing in historical symbolism.

Though a bit less symbolic than the Battle of the Oranges, Frozen Dead Guy Days is just as fascinating. In 1989 a Norwegian man named Bredo Morstoel died of a heart condition. His daughter, Aud, and her son put Bredo on dry ice and sent him to California in the hopes of putting him in a cryonics facility. Bredo’s body was then placed in liquid nitrogen, keeping him preserved for four years. Aud then decided to move Bredo to Nederland, Colorado. The Morstoels planned to start a cryonics facility for Bredo upon their arrival. In 1994 the secret got out: the Morstoels were housing a frozen dead guy. Aud and her son later returned to Norway without their frozen kin, but the town of Nederland continues to care for dead Grandpa Morstoel—a feat that requires 1,600 pounds of dry ice a month. Every year for three days in March, festivities meant to celebrate this strange situation engulf the town. Coffin racing, frozen T-shirt contests, parades of hearses, and a grandpa costume contest are just a few of the eccentric events that have become known as Frozen Dead Guy Days.

Cryonics might seem like an unusual basis for a festival, but not quite as unusual as this. On a wet Sunday afternoon in 1983, Dave Kelland relieved himself in a field. Kelland was perplexed after realizing that this action caused numerous worms to surface, and he decided to create a competition around his newfound “wormcharming” abilities. Thus the Blackawton International Festival of Wormcharming was born. The first competition was held in 1984 at the Normandy Arms, a pub in the village of Blackawton frequented by Kelland. The main event takes place outside. Teams composed of three people (a Charmerer, a Pickerer, and a Counterer) are each given a plot measuring one square meter. They are then given 5 minutes for “worming up,” which entails getting the ground and any worms in it ready for charming, all without digging or using harmful liquids. After worming up, the teams are given 15 minutes to charm as many worms to the surface as possible. As of this writing, the world record is held by a team named the Dartmouth Round Table, which in 1986 charmed 149 worms. All worms are safely returned to their homes after counting.

While the worms are important, the Blackawton International Festival of Wormcharming also prides itself on supporting local causes. It raises money to meet various needs of the community.

Imagine a beautiful Scottish field filled to the brim with golden retrievers: that’s what this adorable festival consists of. In 1868 Dudley Coutts Marjoribanks (later called Lord Tweedmouth) bred a Tweedmouth water spaniel with a wavy-coated retriever. The result was a litter of three beautiful golden retriever puppies. Lord Tweedmouth bred his dogs in the Guisachan Mansion, the location for the festival of golden retrievers. During the event hundreds of goldens from across the world return to their roots. The festival consists of a breed championship as well as numerous events centered on the rich history of Guisachan and the golden retriever.

AfrikaBurn is a cousin festival to the Burning Man festival in the U.S. It strives to encapsulate the human experience in a week of art, culture, and fire. During this week a temporary city of art is created in the desert, and people from around the world gather to celebrate art installations. The festival sells nothing but ice, so participants are responsible for supplying all their own food and water. No motorized vehicles are allowed unless they have been deemed “mutant vehicles,” meaning that they themselves must be art projects. Many people ride bikes instead. During the event some of the installations on display are burned. The festival prides itself on leaving no trace when it ends: everything taken into the desert is taken out.

In this festival a crying baby means you’ve won. Two sumo wrestlers enter a ring, each holding a baby with the goal of causing his opponent’s baby to cry. This 400-year-old event is rooted in the idea that a long cry will ensure good health for the babies. That idea is expressed in an old Japanese saying, “Naku-ko wa sodatsu,” which translates to “The crying child grows up.” In some regions of Japan it is also believed that the crying of an innocent will scare malevolent spirits away. Because the festival tends to have a light atmosphere, many of the babies will not cry readily. In that case, the sumo wrestlers will don scary masks to ensure that the babies do cry. If both babies start to cry at the same time, the loudest is named the victor.