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The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event which takes place in Notting Hill, West London, England – commencing on a Saturday and ending on the night of the August Bank Holiday Monday. In 2007, it takes place from 25th to 27th August.
The Notting Hill Carnival has attracted up to 1.5 million people in some years, placing it amongst the largest street festivals in the world and probably the largest in Europe.
The format for the Carnival takes the following pattern:
Saturday – the “Panorama” takes place, a competition between steel bands mainly from the London area, but increasingly from around the UK.
Sunday – Children’s Day, with a shortened Carnival route, but with similar themes and activities as the main event adapted for children and young people.
Monday – the Main Carnival which covers a route of about 3 miles along the Great Western Road, Chepstow Road, Westbourne Grove and Ladbroke Grove.
The parade consists of lorries, trucks and floats with steel bands (often called steel pan bands or pan bands in the US) or mobile sound systems, some with huge loudspeakers. They are accompanied by costumed masqueraders and dancers, some in very exotic attire.
Along the route there are approximately 40 static sound systems and stages playing a wide range of music at high volume. The traditional Calypso, Soca, Ska and Reggae can be found alongside more modern rhythms and other music styles.
Although there have been occasional problems over the years, more recently any trouble has been localised and little more than one could expect when up to 500,000 congregate in a small area for a whole day celebrating and (naturally at party time) drinking alcohol.
The Notting Hill Carnival is seen not only as a dynamic celebration of multi-culturalism in London, but also a socially inclusive gathering, albeit dominated by Afro–Caribbean influences.
Many of the floats and dancers take their inspiration from the Brazilian Carnivals, especially Rio de Janeiro.
In 2006 the Carnival organisers estimated that 500,000 people attended on both the Sunday and Monday. Of course, with so many people attending for much of the day and staying on into the evening, there are substantial catering requirements. For many it is their first introduction to foods from a variety of cultures, especially Caribbean cooking.
The popularity of the Notting Hill Carnival has led to criticism and controversy, with the authorities wanting to move it from the narrow streets of what is essentially a small residential area to Hyde Park, where safety would be improved, policing made easier and simpler management and control systems could be implemented.
The West Country Carnival has its origin in a bonfire at the Cornhill in Bridgwater. This was built from a large wooden boat, filled with about 100 tar barrels and whatever other flammable rubbish was available. It is said that this tradition ceased because of a lack of suitable old boats - and the revellers' determination to maintain the custom by turning to good boats as a source of fuel!
There is still a bonfire at the Cornhill each year - but using more sustainable fuel sources. Effigies of the conspirators were traditionally paraded through the streets before being cast onto
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If you’re planning on taking a trip to Mexico, there are literally thousands of things you can do there. One of the most interesting and fulfilling, however, is to go check out some of the numerous cultural sites that are open to the public.
One interesting and lesser known cultural site to check out is the caves in Baja that contain ancient cave paintings from indigenous peoples in the area. They’re a couple of hours drive from the U.S., so you can go there even if you aren’t planning a full-fledged trip. It’s a nice weekend trip for people from
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Following the end of World War II, the people of Norway wished to signify their friendship with Britain and their thanks for protecting King Haakon VII in exile. So, since 1946, they have donated one of their finest specimens of Norwegian Spruce to Britain to become the centrepiece of the Christmas celebrations in Trafalgar Square, London.
Usually on the first Thursday in December, the Lord Mayor of the City of Westminster and the Mayor of Oslo attend a "lighting up" ceremony of 500 or so pure white lights, the traditional way of illuminating a tree in Norway. The lights are
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As one of Europe's leading cultural cities Berlin offers many museums, historic sites and other places for a memorable visit. Many landmarks remind us of the long history of Berlin, the remains of the destruction during World War II and its history when it was divided between East and West.
Even though Berlin is a large metropolis, orientating yourself in Berlin isn't hard at all. There are three prominent landmarks: the Church of Remembrance (the Gedächtniskirche), located in the West on the Kurfürstendamm, the Brandenburger Tor in the city district of Mitte, and the Fernsehturm (TV-tower) at Alexanderplatz in the
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The New Year's parade in Hong Kong is an event not to be missed! The city is dressed up with bright decorations and colorful lights for its biggest celebration of the year, and thousands pour into Hong Kong to take part in the festivities.
Winding along Hong Kong's picturesque waterfront, the New Year's parade is filled with colorful, lavishly decorated floats. Representatives from Hong Kong and countries all over the world sing, dance and play music. The songs of marching bands fill the air along the parade's route as performers in bright costumes prance along the streets.
The forthcoming year
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