The saying goes: "Lisbon plays, Braga prays and Porto works". Yet nowhere in Portugal is the Festa da São João celebrated with more gusto than in Porto, where the streets are overtaken with dancing and flying vegetables.
During the month of June, various popular saint's days are celebrated - the devotions of the population of Porto are divided between S António, S João and S Pedro, but S João definitely has the advantage in numbers here and in the way they celebrate.
The party begins days before this saint's day (24 June) with every neighbourhood group and community creating cascatas, models depicting villages or religious scenes - there is a prize for the best one. The streets are decorated with streamers and ribbons hanging between the buildings, stalls are set up and stages are erected.
By the evening of 23 June every part of Porto is celebrating - drinking, eating grilled sardines, hurling greens at each other, leaping over bonfires whilst making a wish, waving garlic under each other's noses and banging plastic hammers on tables along to the music. The origin of these strange customs has been forgotten but the tradition still persists.
There are stalls and stages throughout the centre of the city but the best place to go is the historic centre and particularly the Ribeira, down on the banks of the river Douro, packed with bars, restaurants and stalls, also the best place to see the spectacular fireworks later in the evening. After this, if you're still in the party mood head down to Foz for a beach party that starts in the early hours and continues right through to the morning.
Of course the saint's day itself is a well-needed holiday for those with sore heads, and for others it's time to go to church. The afternoon sees a regatta along the Douro, with the rabelos, the traditional wooden boats used to transport the port wine, racing each other along the river.
The party begins days before this saint's day (24 June) with every neighbourhood group and community creating cascatas, models depicting villages or religious scenes - there is a prize for the best one. The streets are decorated with streamers and ribbons hanging between the buildings, stalls are set up and stages are erected.
By the evening of 23 June every part of Porto is celebrating - drinking, eating grilled sardines, hurling greens at each other, leaping over bonfires whilst making a wish, waving garlic under each other's noses and banging plastic hammers on tables along to the music. The origin of these strange customs has been forgotten but the tradition still persists.
There are stalls and stages throughout the centre of the city but the best place to go is the historic centre and particularly the Ribeira, down on the banks of the river Douro, packed with bars, restaurants and stalls, also the best place to see the spectacular fireworks later in the evening. After this, if you're still in the party mood head down to Foz for a beach party that starts in the early hours and continues right through to the morning.
Of course the saint's day itself is a well-needed holiday for those with sore heads, and for others it's time to go to church. The afternoon sees a regatta along the Douro, with the rabelos, the traditional wooden boats used to transport the port wine, racing each other along the river.