nubbsgalore:on the last tuesday of january, towns in shetland mark the end of the yule season with t
nubbsgalore:on the last tuesday of january, towns in shetland mark the end of the yule season with the up helly aa fire festival. thousands of men dress up as vikings, marching through towns while carrying torches. the procession culminates in the burning of a replica viking longship, a ritual carried out when a chief viking died and was being shipped off to odin in valhalla.after the burning, townspeople retire to local public halls for a night of dancing and performances. the wednesday after is taken as a day of recovery before “hop night” when the festivities continue until morning. (consider that wednesday comes from ‘odin’s day’). for many shetlanders, up helly aa is bigger than christmas and new year put together.the festival celebrates the influence of the scandinavian vikings in the shetland islands, which, if you think about it, is a polite way of saying the festival commemorates the ethnic cleansing and cultural genocide of the picts who were inhabiting the orkney and shetland islands prior to the ninth century viking invasion. but any who, apparently the festival is a really great time.(photos x, x) -- source link
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