Mango Languages

Design Act 2010

All things industrial design are included in this festival held from August 31^st to September 5^th by the Moscow Centre for Contemporary Art (The Winzavod).  Being the 4^th annual Design Festival, this has been done in a similar fashion by major cities like Tokyo, London, New York, and Vienna.

This festival has transformed from a professionals-only event to a country-wide Festival, increasing the interest in industrial design among both young people and consumers.  While this may not be your typical “PARTY” Festival, it is still attended by people of all ages, classes, and professions.

Anything from bicycles, to decorations, to various multimedia and filmmaking exhibitions can be found during the course of the festival.

If you’re interested in design, this is definitely something you’ll want to check out!

Oktoberfest!

It’s that time of year again–don your lederhosen or your dirndl, and get ready to party with 6 million people who can drink you under any table in Munich.

Lasting 16 days and ending the first Sunday in October, this bash is 200 years old. What began as 40,000 people in Munich celebrating the marriage of King Ludwig I to Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen is now the largest annual festival in the world. This year’s festival will begin the 18^th of September and last until October 3^rd.

The local name for Oktoberfest in Germany is actually “Wies’n”.  This is derived from Theresienwiese, the name of the field on which the festival was originally held, and is actually where the festival still takes place.

Have you celebrated Oktoberfest? Tell us about it!

Reporting for Dudy!

Alright, so the joke was stupid – Dudy is just the Czech term for bagpipes.

For four days in late August on every second year, the Czech Bagpipe Festival, or Mezinarodni Dudacky Festivalu, takes place in the town of Strakonice.  Bagpipes are paraded from the town to the local 16^th century castle nearby.

Bagpipes from all over the world are on display, along with dancers in traditional costumes.   These aren’t just your stereotypical kilted Irishmen, though.   There are many different styles of bag piping, and some performers are accompanied by bands with singers and dancers.

The festival began as a celebration of the town’s 600^th birthday in 1967.   Most of the activity is held within the castle, which includes a museum with a Dudy exhibit, but there are plenty of bagpipe sellers and an abundance of readily-available cheap beer.

If you’re interested checking out some folks in active Dudy, find the video here. Have you ever seen a bagpipe performance?

Pourcailhade

Every year on the second Sunday of August, the town of Trie Sur Baise, France is as happy as a pig in mud.  Seriously. Put on by the Brotherhood of the Pig, Pourcailhade is the French festival celebrating the swine.

Trie Sur Baise, where the festival takes place, is one of the largest pig raising areas in France and actually has a dedicated market for everything pig.  During the week of the event, there are eating contests, a pig-outfit contest, general festivities around the whole town, and the biggest event–the national pig imitation competition, in which contestants must not just make pig sounds but be able to do so corresponding to different portions of the pig’s life, like feeding or reproduction.

On top of this, every business in the town must create its own personal character, image, or cartoon of a pig to participate.

So don your snout, your wiry tail, and your best oink, and make your way to France (or send one of your piggish in-laws) to roll around in this festival.

O-lay! er, Olai?

Looking for something exciting to do tonight?  The Faroe Islands of Denmark celebrate a festival called the Olai Festival every year on July 28-29^th.  This festival begins on the eve of Saint Olav’s Day, and continues on through St. Olav’s Day itself.   Work stops, and people  head to Torshavn (the island where this takes place) to celebrate.

The festival attracts about 50,000 people and is rung in with processions, sporting events, meetings, and concerts.  It then moves into the next day with a governmental procession, at which time the actual governmental year begins.  They close the ceremonies at midnight with community singing.  People come dressed in their best, and they dance throughout the streets and towns.

From the end of May all the way until the end of July, there are festivals like this throughout the islands.  These festivals all have religious roots, and it is the festive nature of the people that makes them truly fantastic events.

Have you been to any great festivals overseas?