by Joe Azar
Thanksgiving break is less than a week away, meaning many CMU students will go back home to celebrate the virtue of family while stuffing their faces with turkey, gravy and pie. Most people here in the U.S. partake in the usual Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, but around the world there are some very interesting holidays that people in America would look at and scratch their heads. Whether it’s trying to gain luck or celebrating a certain event, here are some holidays from around the world that are quite obscure.
Hadaka Matsuri: This is also known as “The Naked Man Festival” and takes place in one of the coldest nights of the year in Japan. Celebrated on the third Saturday of February, this holiday has men strip down into loincloths, or even less, to test their manhood. Their reward? Luck throughout the rest of the year.
La Tomatina: This holiday from Spain is often seen as the largest food fight on the planet. Thirty thousand people take to the main square to throw tomatoes at each other for 90 minutes. Tractors come bearing tomatoes as ammunition for both locals and tourists participating in the event. There is not an exact known reason as to why this holiday occurs, but some think it’s to honor the local’s town patron, Saint Louis Bertrand, or it could’ve been a form of religious protest.
National Weatherman’s Day: Nothing much to explain here; but yes, Feb. 5 is the day that we honor the people that tell us it’ll be 80 degrees and sunny on a newscast when it turns out to be a blizzard outside. Hey, their difficult job has to appreciated someway.
The Feast of Anastenaria: Southern Bulgaria and Northern Greece celebrate this event for eight days. People celebrate by dancing, stomping, live music and walking on fire. The thought is that as the live music increases in tempo, the people who walk on the fire are “touched by Saint Constantine” and claim not to feel the fire on their feet. This originated when the Church of Constantine was set ablaze back in the Middle Ages. Brave churchgoers went into the burning building to rescue Constantine and his mother, Saint Helena. This holiday also features a sacrifice of a bull, where afterwards families are given meat and sandals from the animal.
Up-Hell-Aa: A Scottish holiday, this is a variety of fire festivals. Originating as a viking celebration depicting the rebirth of the sun, it starts with people dressing up in themed costumes and a torch procession and ends with people throwing those torches into a viking replica ship.
Tinku Festival: Ever have the urge to beat the crap out of your neighbor? Well then, simply move to the Bolivian village of Tinku! This originates from the demands of earth Goddess Pachamama of blood for a good harvest. In following the tradition, people in that village engage in combat with people that they usually have had an ongoing beef with. After the holiday is over and many of the people have bruises on their faces, they all celebrate together on what is hopefully another successful harvest season.
