The Arraial de São João (St. John’s Festival, aka Feast of Saint John) will take place at the weekend, with this year’s event again to be held at the Macau Tower Convention & Entertainment Centre-Outdoor Plaza and featuring a raft of vibrant activities.
Held in June every year, the festival, according to the Cultural Affairs Bureau’s (IC) Cultural Heritage website, had taken place at Bairro de São Lázaro (望德堂坊) since 2007. It commemorates Portugal’s victory against the Dutch in Macau on June 24, 1622, with the military triumph considered as a blessing from Saint John. It is one of the traditional festivals and celebrations of the local Portuguese and Macanese communities, according to the bureau’s Cultural Heritage website.
The two-day free admission event, a recent statement by the Associação dos Jovens Macaenses (AJM - the Macanese Youth Association) has pointed out that the festival is “a community effort to maintain the tradition of commemorating the historic date”, which was formerly known as Dia da Cidade de Macau (“Macau City Day”).
The festival has been included in the Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Macau since 2020, the statement noted.
This year’s event is scheduled to be held from 2:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. this coming Saturday and Sunday, and it will feature arts and crafts, food and drinks, games, music and performances by local bands and groups, according to the statement.
It is organised by the Associação dos Macaenses (ADM) in conjunction with AJM, Associação Promotora da Instrução dos Macaenses (APIM - the Macanese Education Promoting Association), Casa de Portugal em Macau (CPM - the House of Portugal in Macau) and the International Institute of Macau (IIM).
This poster recently provided by the Associação dos Jovens Macaenses promotes the Arraial de São João (Feast of Saint John), which is slated to take place this weekend at the Macau Tower Convention & Entertainment Centre – Outdoor Plaza.
