Colors of Coventry - traditions, festivals, mentality and lifestyle

Coventry can hardly be called a typical tourist city, even though quite a lot of historical attractions have been preserved on its territory. You will not find huge crowds of tourists, life flows smoothly here. Those who have long dreamed of visiting a typical British city and plunging into its atmosphere will love it for sure.

One of the interesting features of Coventry is its urban transport. The so-called mini-cars are very common and popular here. Driving this kind of car, it is much easier to move through the narrow city streets. They also prevent traffic jams, which is a common problem in many large cities.

Few people know that a factory producing "Cab" cars is based here in Coventry. Such cars are used by all local taxi services, they are widely spread across the UK. Even city buses are not regular but double-decker, so for many foreign guests it would be interesting to take a ride. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

Another interesting feature of the city that catches the eye is the absence of large and annoying advertising banners. All outdoor advertising here is very moderate and barely visible on building facades and city streets. Locals are proud of their architectural heritage, even though a large part of the historic buildings were destroyed during the Second World War. Those few ancient buildings that have survived fell under the responsibility of the city authorities and are carefully reconstructed. Here they are doing everything possible to ensure that the historical appearance of the city does not suffer under the influence of modern innovations.

The inhabitants of the city have their own special gastronomic traditions. India has been a British colony for many years, so today Indian cuisine is very popular in many towns across the UK. And Coventry is no exception. In local restaurants, one can taste traditional Indian curry, as well as a lot of other unusual Indian dishes. Many grocery stores offer customers spices and special delicacies for cooking Indian food, which can be very original souvenirs from Coventry.

Knowing their own history is a matter of honor for citizens; it is not by chance that Lady Godiva, a historical character immortalized in legends, is considered one of the main symbols of the city. Lady Godiva was the wife of one of the wealthy English earls. She became famous for her proud temper and non-indifference towards the fate of her people. When her husband issued a new decree on raising taxes for the townspeople, the noblewoman tried to persuade him to refuse the decision for several days.

When persuasions did not help, Godiva told her husband that in protest she would strip naked and ride a horse around the city. That evening, she kept her promise. Under such pressure, the Earl was forced to yield to his wife and refuse to raise taxes, and for the inhabitants of Coventry, Lady Godiva became a real national heroine. Even today, they hold a beautiful 3-day festival in her honor every year. Usually, it takes place in July, this holiday is considered one of the most spectacular and noisy.

The festival in honor of the national heroine was first organized in 1678, and since then it has been held annually. On the day of the holiday, in the city one can see people dressed in beautiful historical costumes. In memory of the outstanding event, they hold a solemn procession along the path that the noblewoman has ridden on horseback hundreds of years ago. The procession starts at the old cathedral ruins and ends in the main city park where the statue of Lady Godiva stands.

In recent years, the main festival of the city has gained an incredible scale, its program is very rich and lasts three days. Most of the activities take place in the main city park and in the squares, where they organize musical concerts and street performances. The holiday is never complete without gastronomic events and a real medieval fair. One of the most spectacular parts is historical reenactments, the participants of which wear very beautiful medieval clothes.

The city holds a Lady Godiva contest, in which the main beauties of Coventry take part. A prerequisite for participation in the beauty contest is long golden hair. On the last day of the festival, a grand firework show is arranged, the preparation for which lasts the whole year. Such good and symbolic holidays are an integral part of the culture of local people, as well as a great way to remind the world of their unique history.