La Tomatina is an annual festival held in Buñol, Spain, where participants engage in a massive tomato fight. It is believed to have started in the 1940s and has since become a popular event attracting tourists from around the world.
2. Baby Jumping Festival in Spain
During the Baby Jumping Festival in Castrillo de Murcia, Spain, babies born in the past year are laid on mattresses in the street while men dressed as the devil jump over them. This tradition is said to cleanse the babies of original sin and protect them from evil spirits.
3. Thaipusam Festival in Malaysia
Thaipusam is a Hindu festival celebrated by the Tamil community in Malaysia. Devotees pierce their bodies with hooks and skewers as a form of penance and to show their devotion to Lord Murugan. The festival is known for its vibrant processions and rituals.
4. Day of the Dead in Mexico
Day of the Dead, or Día de los Muertos, is a Mexican holiday where families honor and remember their deceased loved ones. They create elaborate altars, decorate graves, and hold vigils to celebrate the lives of the departed. The festival combines indigenous traditions with Catholic influences.
5. Antzar Eguna in Spain
Antzar Eguna, or Goose Day, is a traditional festival in Lekeitio, Spain, where a live goose is suspended over the harbor and participants try to grab it while being dunked in the water. The festival dates back to the 18th century and is a test of strength and agility.
6. Bullet Ant Gloves Ceremony in Brazil
Among the Satere-Mawe tribe in Brazil, young boys undergo a coming-of-age ritual where they wear gloves filled with bullet ants, whose sting is said to be extremely painful. The boys must endure the stings multiple times to prove their courage and strength.
7. Kanamara Matsuri in Japan
Kanamara Matsuri, also known as the Penis Festival, is held in Kawasaki, Japan, to celebrate fertility and protection against sexually transmitted diseases. The festival features phallic-shaped decorations, costumes, and a parade with a giant pink penis carried through the streets.
8. Famadihana in Madagascar
Famadihana, or the Turning of the Bones, is a funerary tradition in Madagascar where families exhume the remains of their ancestors, wrap them in fresh cloth, and dance with the bodies in a ritual to honor and remember the deceased. The ceremony is believed to strengthen family bonds and bring good fortune.
9. Holi Festival in India
Holi is a Hindu festival celebrated in India and Nepal, known as the Festival of Colors. Participants throw colored powders and water at each other in a joyous celebration of spring, love, and the triumph of good over evil. The festival also includes music, dancing, and traditional sweets.
10. The Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake in England
Every year in Gloucestershire, England, participants gather to chase a wheel of cheese down a steep hill in the Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake. The first person to reach the bottom and grab the cheese wins. The event is known for its chaotic and often dangerous nature, with participants tumbling down the hill in pursuit of the rolling cheese.
