Top 5 Strangest Food Festivals

There are a lot of food festivals around the world, but some focus less on enjoying a good meal and more on playing with their food! Here are our top 5 strangest food festivals around the world:

Night of the Radishes (Noche de Rábanos) - There's a large radish found in Mexico that can grow up to 6.6 pounds (3kg) and 20 inches (50cm) long. The people of Oaxaca do something interesting with these radishes each December, carving them into people, animals, and anything else they can think of. The carvings are judged, and the winner gets their picture in the paper.

Sea Worm Festival (Bau Nyale) - Each year the people of Indonesia rush into the ocean to collect as many sea worms as possible, and then they cook them and eat them. Although there's nothing pretty about sea worms, there's a romantic legend associated with this festival. Long ago, a beautiful princess had so many determined suitors that she threw herself into the ocean to prevent their going to war over her. When she died, her hair turned into sea worms, now the symbol of the Sasak people.

La Tomatina - One of the world's biggest food fights, La Tomatina takes place in Spain each August. The festival starts with participants trying to knock a ham off the top of a greased pole. Once that happens, people throw tomatoes at each other until the streets of Valencia run red. No one knows quite how it got started, but people like it so it continues to happen each year.

Gloucester Cheese Roll and Wake - A tradition in Gloucester for hundreds of years, this popular event in the Cotswolds involves competitors rolling a large, round Double Gloucester Cheese down a steep hill and attempting to catch it. The first person over the finish line wins the cheese. Unfortunately, this event was cancelled in 2010 and it is uncertain if it will return.

Lopburi Monkey Buffet - This annual feast in Thailand is unusual, simply because no one who attends gets to eat anything. Well, no people get to eat anything. The guests of honour are the local Macaque monkeys, who chow down on fruits and vegetables, and even get to enjoy a soft drink or two. The monkeys live in the ruins of local temples, and are huge tourist attractions. The Buffet is the village's way of thanking them!

Top 5 Cities for Chocolate

There are many reasons people choose to visit certain cities, but I can't think of a better one than chocolate! Here are some of the top cities for chocolate tourism:

Zurich, Switzerland - Zurich chocolate factories read like a who’s who of chocolatiers: Toblerone, Truescher,Cailler-Nestle, Lindt and Sprungli all call it home. With such amazing choices at their doorsteps, it’s no wonder the Swiss consume more chocolate per person than any other country in the world! There are of course chocolate shops wherever you look (like Truffe, Schrober and Merkur), but bargain-hunters can find discounts at the Lindt factory shop.

San Francisco, California - Just as you'll find gold at the end of the rainbow, there is surely chocolate at the end of the trolley car line in San Francisco. Ghirardelli Square has been feeding people joy since 1852, and their cafe is always packed with both locals and tourists from around the world. Across the bay, the Scherffen Berger factory no longer gives tours, but don't miss Joseph Schmidt's amazing boutique.

Hershey, Pennsylvania - With a name that's synonymous with chocolate, it's no wonder that Hershey made this list: "Chocolate Town, USA" is home to both the Hershey factory and the HB Reese Candy Company, and even boasts Hershey Park, a chocolate-themed amusement park!

Oaxaca, Mexico - Oaxaca is the heart of chocolate production in Mexico, and some say where the treat was invented centuries ago by the ancient Mesoamericans. You'll be spoiled for choice with restaurants, cafes and factories all offering mouth-watering options, but the town's specialty is it's hot cocoa, which most locals start every day with. Or you can take a chocolate-making class and brew your own!

Brussels, Belgium - With 12 chocolate factories, 16 chocolate museums, and over 2,000 chocolate shops, Brussels is undoubtedly the chocolate capital of the world! The city has a long tradition of lovingly handcrafted delicacies, including their specialty, the chocolate praline, and is home to Godiva, Neuhaus, and Leonidas.