AUSTRIA
"Styrian Autumn", September 29 - November 30, Graz. In the Austrian city of Graz, whose center is recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage site, an avant-garde art festival is held every year. "Styrian Autumn" opens with a forum and master classes (dance, music, theater, painting, literature, architecture) for young participants, as well as a demonstration of their experimental works. This year's festival theme is "City", and therefore exhibitions, films, performances and literary readings will be devoted to the peculiarities of the worldview of the "city dweller", the simplicity and complexity of his consciousness. //www.steirischerbst.at
Days of Culture, October 15-28, Salzburg. The Days of Culture, or the Salzburg Autumn Festival, have long had a serious reputation in the world of classical music lovers. This year the festival will open with Giuseppe Verdi's opera "La Traviata" (October 15 and 16), on October 17 and 18 the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra will perform music by Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich, and on October 27 and 28 audiences will see the ballet "Anna Karenina" performed by the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre. Tickets for all performances and concerts held within the Days of Culture cost from €16 to €60, which is much more affordable than last year. //www.salzburg.com
GREAT BRITAIN
Goose Fair, October 5-9; Robin Hood Festival, October 22-23, Nottingham. Everyone knows that Robin Hood appeared at the Goose Fair to lure the treacherous Sir Guy into the forest and take away his stolen gold. Back then the fair was located in the city center, and residents could buy supplies for the winter there. Now the fair operates both in the city and in the legendary Sherwood Forest. Therefore, after completing all your business at International Business Corporation, you can head straight to the fun and buy there not only food supplies, but also jewelry, paintings, ceramics, and also have a great time: 150 rides and 450 competitions await guests of this ancient fair. //www.nottinghamgoosefair.co.uk
And on October 22 and 23, Nottingham Palace will host a staged show reviving the events of the "eternal" confrontation between Robin Hood's brave warriors and the evil sheriff of Nottingham. Medieval attributes (costumes, musicians, fairs), the opportunity to be not only a spectator but also a direct participant in legendary tricks, chases and contests of strength and dexterity attract audiences of all ages to this festival. //www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk
International Festival, October 8-22, Canterbury. This festival is unique, and at the same time all the most important national events reflecting English life in October take place here: "apple days" will be held throughout England in the first half of the month - and at the Canterbury Festival too. Celebrations in honor of the Battle of Trafalgar will take place in different cities - and at the Canterbury Festival too! Especially since the festival's theme this year is "War and Peace". The festival will open on October 8 with the program "Chants in the City" and a laser show, after which for two weeks you can choose classical music concerts, theatrical performances, films, jazz concerts, folk and blues festivals, and concerts for children. On October 10, there will be a solo concert by the great Michael Nyman (known to most for his music for Peter Greenaway's films), on October 11 a concert by the legendary Ray Davies, and on October 14 and 15 the no less legendary Irish musician Van Morrison. //www.canterburyfestival.co.uk
Dinners with ghosts and other Halloween horrors, October 22-30, London, Liverpool, Warwick. On October 22 and 23, the annual Halloween festival will be held at Queen Mary College in London, featuring performances by folk and rock bands, sessions of witchcraft and black magic, lectures on paganism and pagan rituals, carnival costume contests, and even a Morris dance competition, which has been known since the 15th century. //www.paganfestivals.fsnet.co.uk
And in Liverpool's Croxteth Hall from October 24 to 28, numerous ghosts and ghouls will scare everyone in Country Park. You can also have dinner with real ghosts, communicate with magicians and sorcerers, travel through dark labyrinths and caves, hear soul-chilling otherworldly moans and see ghouls jumping out of the darkness. Approximately the same program of heartbreaking horrors is planned at Warwick Castle from October 22 to 30. //www.croxteth.co.uk, //www.liverpool.gov.uk, //www.warwick-castle.co.uk
BELGIUM
Flower Festival, October 1-9, Brussels. About a hundred professional florists will turn the ordinary lawns around the National Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Brussels into tropical flower plantations irrigated by small fountains, and all together will form a single ornamental composition glorifying the Lord. The best thing is to go up under the basilica's dome: then you can see the flower picture from a bird's-eye view. //www.brucity.be
Audi Jazz Festival, October 1 - December 6, various cities in Belgium. About 100 concerts in 16 cities of Belgium will be held as part of the annual Audi Jazz festival. In October, concerts will take place in Brussels by Paco De Lucia (October 8), Michel Portal Quartet, Nils Petter Molvaer Group, Manu Hermia trio, Will Calhoun's 'Aza' and other wonderful musicians. In Ghent on October 17, a concert by David Krakauer 'Klazer Madness with DJ "So Called"' is planned, and on October 26 in Antwerp Erwin Vann Quartet will perform. The full concert program is on the festival's official website. //www.audijazz.be
GERMANY
Festival of Lights, October 1-16, Brühl. In the first half of October, the famous Phantasialand park in Brühl (between Bonn and Cologne) will hold its annual festival of lights. On these dark evenings, the park will be not only surprisingly interesting, but also mysteriously magnificent, for the entire park area - a good 28 hectares - will be decorated with illumination of millions of lights. The park is divided into thematic zones, and each will feature colorful events: in the "Old Berlin" zone with its famous steam carousel, in the "Mexico" zone with underground mines and cacti, in "Chinatown", and in the "Wild West". It will be interesting to see how the "Journey through the Milky Way" will be illuminated. //www.phantasialand.de
Onion Festival, October 7-9, Weimar. It is hard to imagine that Herder, Goethe, and Schiller did not visit, or at least did not know about, the autumn Zwiebelmarkt, which has existed since 1653. Of course, nowadays it is not just an onion market but a real festival. The great poets and philosophers could not have imagined that the onion festival is not only giant market stalls, but also carnival entertainment, a marathon run, strong dark March beer, and the election of the Onion Queen. //www.weimar.de
SPAINFiesta of Saint Pillar, October 8-16, Zaragoza. This is one of the most vibrant fiestas in northern Spain. The celebration takes place throughout the city, but the main venue, of course, will be Plaza del Pilar with the Basilica of the Holy Virgin of Pilar. Every evening there will be musical shows featuring artists from all over Spain. During the festival, you can also see costume parades, water competitions on the river Ebro, folklore festivals and, of course, bullfights at Plaza de Toros. And, quite unexpectedly, these days in Zaragoza there will be its own mini-Oktoberfest with tastings of various beers and local cuisine. //turismo.ayto-zaragoza.es/
Seafood Festival, September 30 - October 12, El Grove. The seafood festival in El Grove (Pontevedra) has turned into a real sea paradise, a name day for true gourmets and ordinary seafood lovers. Previously it was just a local holiday dedicated to the catch of turbot and mussels. But every year the number of fans of "seafood" grows, who come to this festival to taste dishes made from halibut, sea mollusks, lobsters, crabs, langoustines and other sea delights. Sculpture exhibitions, a folklore festival, sports competitions and other spectacles will add fun and diversify the endless tastings. //www.galinor.es
ITALYInternational Festival of Contemporary Music, September 29 - October 9, Venice. As part of the Venice Biennale, the international festival of contemporary music will take place. New (serious!) music will be performed mainly at Teatro La Fenice, Teatro Malibran and Piccolo Teatro Arsenale. You can view the program and order tickets on the official Biennale website. //www.teatrolafenice.it, //www.labiennale.org
Chocolate Festival, October 15-23, Perugia. You can buy a chocolate mobile phone, a chocolate wallet, a chocolate watch, chocolate spaghetti, a chocolate wrench, test chocolate cosmetics; watch sculptors carve away all the excess from a ton-weight chocolate block on the central city square, or sculpt a chocolate sculpture or two of your own - all this can be done at the Eurochocolate festival, which is being held in Perugia for the twelfth time. It is there that the dream-metaphor "everything in chocolate" comes true. The theme of this year's festival is "Chocolate Revolution". //www.eurochocolate.com
NETHERLANDSChinese Festival, October 1-17; Big Boat Trip, October 9, Amsterdam. The Chinese Festival in Amsterdam will feature a broad cultural program. Visitors will be able to get acquainted with traditional Chinese arts - music, dance, painting, and the famous Chinese opera. By the way, a big surprise at the festival will be a Chinese interpretation of "Hamlet". Another event that attracts fans of beautiful shows to Amsterdam in October is the boat procession.
On Saturday, October 9, when it gets completely dark, 500 kayaks and canoes will set off on a big journey through the city's inner canals. It all looks impressive and mysterious, because each boat is illuminated in its own way. //www.visitamsterdam.nl
FRANCEJazz Festival, October 8-22, Nancy. The full richness and diversity of jazz styles and directions is reflected at the "eclectic" festival in Nancy. Traditional blues, swing, Dixieland, ska, and avant-garde jazz all coexist peacefully in Nancy, though at different festival venues. This year, the festival will feature Miss Ki, Morcheeba, Nicolas Repac, Petra Magoni & Ferruccio Spinetti, Soldout, The Spangles, FrogNstein, Zuco 103 and others. The festival program includes a lot of electro-jazz. //www.nancyjazzpulsations.com
Apple Festival, October 29-30, Massiac. In October, France will host many delicious events that will take place as part of the so-called "Week of Taste" in almost all cities (October 10-16). But apart from this special week, one should also note the shrimp festival in Honfleur (October 8-9), the wine festival in Besançon (October 21-23), and apple festivals. After all, the apple harvest ends at the end of October.
The city of Massiac, for example, will celebrate this event on a grand scale. Picturesquely arranged apples, which can and should be tasted, are not the only delicious product at the festival: there will also be sweets with apple filling, meat in apple sauce, cider, calvados, and, of course, music and dancing. //www.legout.com, //www.crt-auvergne.fr
Wind Festival, October 29 - November 3, Calvi. Wind festivals are very popular in France. Just recently, for example, such a festival took place in Marseille. And at the end of October on Corsica another wind festival will be held, which is positioned as a festival combining sport, art, and new technologies. In addition to competitions in all genres of aeronautics (from hang gliding to kiting), the festival program is rich in musical concerts, theatrical performances, master classes, and special entertainment for children. //www.lefestivalduvent.com