DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

   The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is an English folk dance involving reindeer antlers and a hobby horse that takes place each year in Abbots Bromley , a small village in Staffordshire , England. Origins    There are no recorded references to the horn dance prior to Robert Plot 's Natural History of Staffordshire , written in 1686. However, there is a record of the hobby horse being used in Abbots Bromley as early as 1532, and it is possible that the horn dance component of the custom was also present at that time but not commented upon by the writer.    A carbon analysis discovered that the antlers used in the dance date to the 11th century - though these may well have replaced an even older set. According to some, the use of antlers suggests an Anglo-Saxon origin along with other native Anglo-Saxon traditions that have survived into modern times in various forms.   It has been speculated, for example, that the dance originated in the...

  Tuscany draws you with an irresistible air to Arezzo transforming a land into a theater filled with a lifestyle of tradition, culture and cuisine. Arezzo which is about 80 kilometers from Florence hosts the Giostra del Saracino or the joust held at the Piazza Grande. This medieval festival displays facets of its old world charm, its famous history, tradition and its tasteful cuisine.    Held on the first Sunday in September, the procession of La Giostra del Saracino winds its way right down to the Piazza Grande. Originating from the ancient Crusades, this Saracen joust began in the Middle Ages. The Christian Crusaders battled with the Islamic tribes or the Moors of the North African Arabs in an attempt to drive them out of Europe. This Baroque joust started between the 15th and the 16th centuries and gained popularity. But during the 18th century, the royal air that surrounded it declined and lost its notoriety. A brief spell of fame enve...

  Since 1986, every third weekend of September, the city of Le Puy-en-Velay (Haute-Loire) found its Renaissance colors. Through a festival of a high culture, the city takes the guise of an old and true archery contest to get it  back into the glorious past.     For four days in September, priority is given to street performances and the reconstruction of what  daily life in the sixteenth century in the Velay would have been like.  Tented camps, struggles with the sound of cannon fire, folk artisans, daily cooking and meal time, and  pilgrims on their way to Saint Jacques de Compostela  to set up their tents and compounds for so they can rough it just like their ancestors.    Each year, several days after the school year has been out, the entire city and its people gather to live and work in the Bird King Renaissance Festival  offering  all who  who attend the festival, t...

   Burning Man is a week-long annual event held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada , in the United States . The event starts on the Monday before, and ends on the day of, the American Labor Day holiday (August 29 to September 4, 2011). It takes its name from the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy on Saturday evening. The event is described by many participants as an experiment in community , radical self-expression , and radical self-reliance .    Burning Man is organized by Black Rock City, LLC . In 2010, 51,515 people attended Burning Man.  2011 attendance was capped at 50,000 participants and the event sold out on July 24th. A smaller event known as the Smoke Creek Gathering has been opened to the public nearby to give the thousands of lucky people a place to participate. HISTORY   1986 to 1989    The annual event now known as Burning Man began as a bonfire ritual on the summer solstice in 1986 when Larry H...

   Moon Festival, Mooncake Festival , or the August Moon Festival - they are the different names of the same festival, which is popularly also known as the Mid Autumn Festival . It is a celebration of abundance and togetherness.   The Chinese believe in praying to the moon god for protection, family unity, and good fortune. It falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, a date that parallels the Autumn Equinox of the solar calendar.On this day the moon is unusually bright, clear and round. Historical accounts are silent about the exact origin of this festival, but as far as the assumption of the scholars are concerned , it is related to the two customs in China.    The first customs concern the Chinese farmers. China is an agricultural country and farming in China is intricately associated with the seasons. In the ancient times, the farmers used to worship Earth God and prayed for a good harvest when they sowed the seeds during sp...