Saint John's Festival celebrates culture and tradition in the city of Porto
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The feast of São João in Porto, the patron of the city, is celebrated on 24th June, but the longest festive evening in the city of Porto happens on 23rd June with music and dancing as partygoers enjoy the numerous events all over town.
The party, however, begins on 22nd June with the Rusgas of Saint John's Festival.
At nightfall, on 22nd June, people go out to the streets to revel, forming "rusgas", a spontaneous march of people in groups, singing and dancing, towards a festival or fair.
At present, the "rusgas" are a contest, which takes place in Avenida dos Aliados, every year, and each civil parish of Porto competes with its own "rusga" or march, filling the streets with colour and scents, joy and high spirits. This year the competition starts at 9.30 pm.
On the 23rd, the eve of St. John's Festival, thousands of partygoers gather in the city centre to honour the city's patron saint. Concerts are part of the agenda, prepared by the City Hall.
This festival is a landmark in the city's culture and tradition and is experienced by residents, tourists and visitors alike. Porto is transformed into a vibrant festive square featuring Popular Portuguese music concerts in the evening.
The first concert takes place at 10 pm. At midnight, partyers make a short break to look at the sky at Saint John's firework spectacle. The second concert "takes the stage" at Aliados at half past midnight.
All concerts are open-access to the public.
On 24th June, the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra goes on stage for the traditional St John Concert, starting at 5 pm and with the special guests, the Clarinet Quartet of Lisbon, at 5 pm at Avenida dos Aliados.
Popular tradition and community engagement make this one of the most popular concerts all over Europe, featured in magazines such as National Geographic.
The "Festa de São João" is rooted in pagan courtship rituals, where basil plants, carnations, lemon verbena, "leeks" and plastic hammers are used to dole out friendly whacks on the head to passers-by and to fill the streets of Porto with joy and excitement.