What festivals is your city known for? We have a tulip festival in Ottawa come May. We get

[applegrove]

thousands of tulip bulbs from the Netherlands every year as a thanks for being a safe harbour for the Dutch Royal Family during WWII. We also have a Canada Day celebration, Winterlude, bluesfest, a jazz festival and numerous ethnic parties.


http://www.google.ca/search?q=ottawa+tulip+festival&hl=en&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=IzeGT6zILYrk9ATo_63LCA&ved=0CG0QsAQ&biw=631&bih=302&sei=ajeGT8GQHqT00gHcyNnCBw

[nickinSTL]

1. We have the Italian Fest and the International Horseradish Festival

I guess there's a sizable Italian community here, not sure why else there would be an Italian Fest.

The International Horseradish Festival I get, as our city is apparently considered the world's horseradish capital.

[elleng]

2. Cherry Blossoms!

[applegrove]

3. I went to Washington with my family when I was a kid. Blossoms were awsome. Washington was

great.

[riderinthestorm]

4. Taste of Chicago, the Outdoor Film Fest, Chicago to Mackinac race

Lollapalooza (til recently, not sure if its still going to happen this year), The Air and Water show (ugh, I don't like this one), Celtic Fest, the outdoor Concert Series in Millenium/Grant Park....

Gah! Too many to list.... Chicago really comes alive in the summer

[Baitball Blogger]

5. We have an annual men in plaid skirts and no panties festival.

Also known as the Scottish Highlander games.

[femmocrat]

6. The only thing we have are firemen's carnivals and church festivals.

There are a few in the summer.

The one historic site has a tomato-tasting festival when the heirlooms are at peak.

Life is so exciting out in the country.

[bluedigger]

7. I think they stopped having those after the cannibalism incident out at Cowboy Wash.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowboy_Wash

These days people just come here for the fresh air.

[applegrove]

8. .

(too scared to press on the link).

[bluedigger]

11. LOL!

It happened about 800 years ago.

Before my time, even.

[Aristus]

9. The Puyallup Fair!

Once the fourth largest state fair in the country. I think we were recently downgraded, but that's okay. It's still fun to Do The Puyallup...

"Saw a duck and a chicken
Down by the farm,
Kickin' up the hay
And raisin' such a storm
That I asked the farmer
What they were up to
And he said: 'Puyallup!
That's what they do!'
You can do it at a trot
You can do it at a gallop
You can do it real slow
So your heart don't palpita-a-a-te
Just don't be late,
Do The Puyallup!"

[Odin2005]

10. The Fargo Street Fair and the Scandinavian Hjemkomst Festival.

The latter is one of the biggest annual Scandinavian heritage festivals in the country, if not the biggest. Iceland's president even showed up one year!

[fizzgig]

12. we have a lot of festivals, but i don't know that we're really known for any

we have a small greek festival, highland festival, day of the dead festival, foodfest, beerfest, the end of summer festival. all sorts of stuff. we're just not anywhere all that big or notable.

[nolabear]

13. New Orleans? Bwahahahahahahaha!!!

Y'all are amateurs.

[KT2000]

14. Lavender & Irrigation Festival

People in the community started lavender farms. Visitors to the festival tour the various farms where there are music groups and food to eat. Lots of other things to do.

Irrigation Festival celebrates bringing water to a dry area and turning it into farmland.

[HeiressofBickworth]

15. We have a small parade

leading to a street fair. There are various vendors selling handmade items, food booths and rides for the kids. It lasts for three days at the end of July each year. It's not a very historical event as it only started in 1993.

[tjwmason]

16. The mayor-making in the town I work in is famous

The Mayor is elected by the council for a term of one year, and has a ceremonial beginning to their time in office. They are weighed at the beginning and end of the year, and it is shouted out whether they have gained or lost weight - the origin being to see whether they're growing fat on the exploitation of the town.

http://mayorofwycombe.co.uk/mayor-making/

[eShirl]

17. We USED to have the Great Kennebec River Whatever Race, but now

now, since they discontinued the actual river race upon which the whole thing was built (because nobody wanted to be responsible for the liability insurance), it's been reduced to the unintelligible "Whatever Week."

Yeah. Whatever.

[Kenny G]

32. The people are supposed to control the government.

I vacationed here in Maine for 28 years and I've lived here for 22 more. The whatever race was a big part of our vacation experience. The rules were simple, self powered, no pollution. It became the world's largest water fight. There were no injuries, no fights, it was fun for all, a family oriented tradition, a tourist attraction, and a boon for local businesses. If insurance is the obstacle, and I wonder why that is after having so many years without that obstacle coming up, participants need only sign a waiver to overcome this. I believe we should start a petition to restart the races. If anybody knows how to get an online petition started, please take the reins. I believe the majority of residents would be in favor of this. We also had the duck races at the end to help raise money for worthwhile endeavors, and somebody got 50% of that pot. All of it was a win win situation, and I've got years of video, except for the year I entered. Let's get this ball rolling in time for next year.

[hrmjustin]

33. Welcome to DU and I hope you enjoy the site.

[kaitcat]

18. Rose Festival

http://www.rosefestival.org/

It's a really big deal. It usually stops raining in Portland just after the Rose Festival is over.

[kcass1954]

19. Founder's Day is the last Saturday in April - small-town living at its finest.

Pancake breakfast at the American Legion, 1k family walk/run, parade down 90th Avenue, children's activities at the rec center and main sports complex, all-star baseball games, carnival, arts & crafts fair, concert in the part, and fireworks.

[ceile]

20. SXSW and ACL

They suck the life out of you.

[geardaddy]

21. Minneapolis Aquatennial

http://www.aquatennial.com/

St. Paul Winter Carnival

http://www.winter-carnival.com/

Minnesota State Fair

http://www.mnstatefair.org/

[BTennyson]

22. I hate it.......

The Musikfest. A chance for my town to gouge tourists and crap all over the residents.

[KamaAina]

23. Down at the end of the bus line, the Gilroy Garlic Festival

people from throughout the Bay Area descend on the small (by Bay Area standards) town of Gilroy to partake of various garlicky delicacies, up to and including garlic ice cream.

No word on whether CHP has ever been able to successfully establish sobriety Breathalyzer checkpoints on northbound 101 that week.

Closer to home, many towns (Mountain View) and even San Jose neighborhoods (Berryessa) have Art & Wine Festivals.

[nolabear]

24. Did anyone hear Anderson Cooper's apology to some little town over giggling maniacally

about their festival? He went off into what he later referred to as an embarrassing, eight year old girl giggle fest about some festival in which people run around whipping one another with pussywillows. Fortunately detante was reached when he spoke to the mayor and was invited to come down next year and be crowned the town's first Pussywillow Prince. Damn near undid him all over again.

Ah, the Rites of Spring.

[BarbaRosa]

25. We have a blues festival

SC Blues Festival

I'm not sure this is a 'festival, but we also have the Tour of the Gila bike race.

[avebury]

26. Red Earth Indian Festival and Paseo Arts Festival for OKC

[charlie and algernon]

27. Musikfest - Largest festival in the Country.

100,000 people a day for 10 days for a cool million attendees each year.

Hundreds of free concerts during the day with major headliners each night. TONS of excellent ethnic food from all over the world.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musikfest

[Ineeda]

28. Shark's Tooth Festival

As a matter of fact, this weekend.
http://www.sharkstoothfest.com/

[MissV]

29. Athens Old Fiddlers Contest and Reunion Festival

Fall Festival & Black Eyed Pea Cook-off in Athens and the July Fest and Concert in the Park in Gun Barrel City.

[crunch60]

30. Get Ready! The 38th Brown Trout Festival .. in Alpena, Michigan 6/12-6/22 Ya hoo!

BEER, FISH AND POLKA! True small town America.

[Wait Wut]

31. World's Oldest Fucking Rodeo.

No, not a literal fucking rodeo. That would be entertaining. This is just a week of big ass trucks pulling big ass trailers carrying big ass horses through our little shit streets to entertain a state full of wannabe cowboys and cowchicks and their out-of-state wannabe cowboy friends. For even more entertainment, we usually get a bunch of these wannabe cowboys drinkin' like cowboys and startin' fights like cowboys. Yeefuckinhaw. Oh, and just to make things more funner, heh...we allow guns in bars here!!! YIPPEE!!!

If you ever pass through Prescott (preskitt), Arizona...avoid that weekend.