JUNE - Worldare
June Festivals
South America Inti Raymi, PERU June 24th WHAT'S ABOUT?: Do you want to see how Peruvians in Cusco reenact ancient Inca rituals in honor of Inti Raymi (The Festival of the Sun)? Come to Peru on June 24th!

This festival is made to hail the transition between winter and spring (Peru is in the southern hemisphere) and honours Inti - the Incan sun god. During this event you would be watching re-enactments, cheering on dancers, getting insights into the coming year from reading sacred coca leaves, trying chicha (the Incan beer)and its up to you to try it before reading coca leaves or after, just saying…

Also can come to the Inca Temple of the Sun in Cusco or the Plaza de Armas to catch a glimpse of the action from Korikancha. Some may advise you to go to Incan ruins- Saqsayhuman but its not easy as many roads are usually closed for the festival.
Europe St. John's Festival, Porto, Portugal June 23rd to 24th WHAT'S ABOUT?: John the Baptist was born in the end of BCE , Judaea, Palestine, and died between 28–36 CE. He was a Jewish prophet who preached the imminence of God's Final Judgment.

One night festival begins in the afternoon of June 23rd till the early morning of June 24. Day full of concerts, jumps over flames, and grand fireworks spectacle to win you over.

Locals and tourist come together to celebrate it with the barbecue sardines, national food as caldo verde (green cabbage soup), big balloons, loud music, and much more…adding to it a special view at the sunrise along the river from Ribeira to Foz do Douro or the Matosinhos beach.

For about 700 years this festival is the part of the city’s identity (from 14th century). Would you know the distinctive feature of this festival is the "soft squeaky plastic hammers" that are used for hitting any passers-by on the head. So bring your hammer with you!..just the plastic one
Midsummer Eve, Sweden June 24th(2023) WHAT'S ABOUT?: Comes from Swedish pagan rituals that shows reverence to nature and its healing value during the summer solstice. During this festival witness cultural dances around maypoles, drinking traditional drinks (nubbe and akvavit) and food (pickled herring, potatoes, gravlax, crispy breads - Knäckebröd), see the bonfires that are used to fight any evil spirits, fashioned flower garlands and herbs that have been chosen for Midsummer’s Eve which happens on the longest day of the year.

On the list of the most important celebrations in Sweden, which is going on for a thousand years, and if you still wondering why - see it yourself - this festival would expand your expertise in diverse long-lasting national traditions of the strongest European countries.

San Vino Wine Fight Festival, Haro, Spain

27th and 30th of June

What's about?:

Centuries-old La Batalla del Vino de Haro (apparently from the 13th century) entails water-gun-armed locals and non-locals climbing a mountain to squirt each other with Rioja wine. The party then moves down to the town’s cobbled streets.

 

Another wine festival but without water-guns happening in France – another world’s wine-loving country.

 

Bordeaux Fête le Vin, Bordeaux, France

June 22 – 25th

What's about?:

Every summer from mid to late June French folks celebrating the culture and tradition of local winemakers in this region starting in 1998, so not so rooted as like in Spain.

 

The idea was to promote the wines of the region but suddenly in 1998 turned into a major tourist attraction for wine enthusiasts who wish to try wines from more than thousands winemakers from Bordeaux and the entire Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. Additionally with the wine testing visitors can enjoy a variety of events within the festival: visiting the beautiful tall ships, fireworks and music concerts, cooking demonstrations, food tasting – how dare if they would skip that…

Now to the real business – the event is free but in order to actually taste the wines you will need to get a Tasting Pass, which cost around €21 for 11 tastings. Keep in mind there will be discounts on the wines.