11. Carnaval & El Entierro de la Sardina

The Buzz -- Madrid's Carnaval isn't quite on the scale of Rio de Janeiro's or even Tenerife's, but it's still a major party with unbridled feasting, drinking and costuming. Events open in the Plaza Mayor with a line-up of decorated floats, marching bands and dance troupes, followed by a huge fancy dress parade all over the old city through cheering crowds. The carnaval officially ends on Ash Wednesday with the Entierro de la Sardina (burial of the sardine), a bizarre and ancient ceremony. A mock funeral cortege – complete with cross-dressing "mourners" in saucy black garters and veils – carry a funeral-suited and coffined sardine on a long bar crawl, before burying their scaly friend in the Casa del Campo. The week before Lent, usually in February or early March.