Perhaps it's the shorter days and colder weather, but the winter doldrums are real. It's a proven fact that, for some people, this time of year can bring on feelings of depression, lethargy, and boredom. Still, communities around the globe have found ways - both wily and weird - to brighten the winter blues.
Here are some festivals and traditions that are bound to make you smile:
A hot spring business in Canada's Yukon Territory started the International Hair Freezing Contest, which encourages contestants to soak their hair in icy water and sculpt it into creative frozen shapes. Each year, the winners of different categories, including best male, female, and facial hair, take home $2,000.
Every February, a temple near Okayama, Japan hosts the Hadaka Matsuri, in which thousands of men wear only loincloths in the dead of winter while trying to make their way to a shrine that removes bad luck and symbolizes the purification of the soul.
The Frozen Dead Guy Days is celebrated over St. Patrick's weekend every March in Estes Park, Colorado, as homage to a frozen corpse that was allegedly stored in a shed nearby in the late 1980s. The event features live music, coffin races, and a polar plunge.
On Christmas day, communities in Peru celebrate with the Takanakuy festival, which, roughly translated, means "to hit each other" - allowing locals to settle grievances through physical combat to promote community reconciliation.
Every February, the town of Ivrea in northwestern Italy hosts the three-day Carnevale di Ivrea, or the "Battle of Oranges." In this massive food fight, approximately 900 tons of oranges are used as projectiles during a re-enactment of the town's liberation from tyranny during Medieval times.
Each February, the Reykjavik Winter Lights Festival in Iceland celebrates the play of light and darkness with stunning light installations, fireworks, and cultural events that take place in all six municipalities of the capital region.
Every January, the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, aka the Harbin Ice Lantern Festival, takes place in China and is renowned for its gigantic ice sculptures and structures that transform the city into a magical, frozen wonderland. It also includes ice and snow sculpture competitions, winter fishing, winter sports, a parade, and five theme parks.
The World Championship of Shovel Racing took place every February at Angel Fire Ski Resort in New Mexico, up until 2020, featuring participants racing downhill on modified snow shovels, reaching surprising speeds on the icy slopes, which likely resulted in the end of a 40-plus-year tradition.
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