Diwali is a big deal in India, maybe the biggest. It’s called the Festival of Lights and it’s really nice. It starts the holiday times for the country. There’s a cool thing you might not know. Lots of places all over the world have their own light festivals. They do it in their own special way.
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Check out These Other Light Festivals, Just like Diwali.
Festival of Lights in Lyon
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The city of Lyon in France celebrates an enchanting light festival. This event spans over four days, beginning near December 8. As part of the rituals, each house in Lyon places lit candles outside, marking the festivity. Concurrently, the magnificent Basilica of Fourvière brightens up colorfully.
Thailand’s Loi Krathong
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Loi Krathing, a beautiful light festival, is celebrated all over Thailand. Mark your calendar for November 28 this year. Picture crowds gathering by watersides – lakes, rivers, canals – clutching enchanting lanterns. Imagine hundreds of these light orbs soaring into the night sky!
Winter Illuminations Around Japan
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Japan is home to the Winter Illuminations Festival. Here, dazzling lights, and vivid hues take over. Many parts of Japan engage in this light festival, starting in October and peaking around Christmas time. Places like Tokyo Midtown, Marunouchi, Sagamiko, Ashikaga, and Nagoya stand out for their displays. The festival reaches even more places too.
China’s Lantern Festival
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China also hosts a bright celebration known as the Lantern Festival. This festival occurs on the fifteenth day of the first month in the lunisolar Chinese calendar, under the glow of a full moon. As the final day of Chinese New Year revelries, it’s alternatively called the Shangyuan Festival.
Also Read: Budapest Festivals and Cultural Events
Berlin’s Festival of Lights
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Head to Berlin and witness their unique light festival. It makes their Diwali festival moving and visually appealing, beyond its profound spiritual significance. Every October, Berlin’s famous landmarks, plazas, roads, and symbols are lit up with beautiful lights and immersive multimedia shows. This display is certainly a sight to see.
Japan’s Aomori Nebuta Matsuri
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Every August, a popular event happens in Aomori, Japan. People everywhere love to join this famed, annual summer happening. The event runs for four days. It’s packed with drum groups, enthusiastic dancers, packed full of bands, and a parade full of giant, floating lanterns. Planning for these enormous lanterns, also known as floats, happens yearly and it’s a spectacle you can’t miss.
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