The Festival of the Sun (Inti Raymi) Cusco, Peru, June 24. It is the most important Andean festival and the second biggest festival in South America. The festival re-creates a religious celebration of the ancient Incan, who honored Inti - the Sun God. The Inca religion focused on the essential aspect of life, which is sun. It provided light and warmth, which was needed for the growth of crop. Therefore, they prayed to the Sun God for good crops and fertile lands. Today the festival is celebrated not only by locals, but also tourist. It starts a week before June 24 and ends with a big celebration on June 24, which marks the beginning of the Sun’s New Year (in Inca calendar). During the week, the festival offers expositions, day time activities, street fairs, music and evening live concerts. The festival ends with a reenactment of the winter solstice ceremony. The ceremony is full of colorful costumes, traditional dances and parade.
