June Festival in Portugal
In Portugal, the June festivities are known as Festas dos Santos Populares and take place in several cities across the country, each with its own local traditions. In Porto and Braga, the highlight is the São João festival, which transforms the streets into large urban festivals, where residents and visitors gather to celebrate with music, dance and typical foods.
In Lisbon, the main festival is dedicated to Santo António, celebrated on June 13th. Traditional popular parades parade down Avenida da Liberdade, with hundreds of participants dressed in colorful costumes, representing various neighborhoods of the city. The festivals take place in historic neighborhoods such as Alfama, Graça, Bica, Mouraria and Madragoa, where it is common to taste typical dishes such as caldo verde and grilled sardines. Fado and other traditional music liven up the festivities until dawn.
Another highlight is the procession of Saint Anthony, which leaves from the church dedicated to the saint, located in Alfama, the place of his birth in the 12th century. The bonfires, often fueled with rosemary, and the symbolic weddings are customs that date back to the pagan and religious roots of the celebration, also shared by other European countries.
The Festas dos Santos Populares continue to be one of the most vibrant and beloved cultural expressions in the country, combining tradition, faith and popular joy.
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