Gennes Day

Purpose

Gennes Day is an annual celebration held in Kureta City which celebrates the estimated date that the city came to be (20th Sectin). Although the celebrations are biggest in the capital, smaller celebrations are held across the country.

Events

Should an individual find themselves in the capital on Gennes Day, they can expect to enjoy a day of merriment and fun. Most shops and businesses are closed, and the marketplace is cleared to make way for festivities. These usually include circus performers, magic shows and other performances from bards and other folk from the entertainment industry. These performances usually begin mid-morning and last until late in the afternoon.
Throughout the city, street performers take the opportunity to show off their talents; often to a larger audience than they could usually muster, and often to a more merrier (or drunker) crowd - which results in a higher amount of coin being earnt.
Kureta Park is also transformed into a large seating area. The Water Dragon Tavern provides outdoor service, often hiring on extra staff for the day to cope with the larger crowd. Music is usually performed here too, providing a pleasant outdoor setting for day drinking.
It is customary for a cleric or priest of The Goddess to bestow blessings in the Church of the Goddess throughout the day. There is usually a large queue for these blessings, and those who feel they are in desperate need will often begin queuing the night before. As true clerics are not entirely common in the world, these blessings may have to be foregone if such a person cannot make it to the capital in time.

Food & Drink

During the day, many taverns and inns will be decorated in a celebratory manner, and will often put on promotions for food and drink.
Some establishments have been known to hold eating or drinking contests, with the winner often being awarded a free night's stay, their consumed products on the house, and the honour of holding the champion's title until next year.
The road from the city's south gate leading up to the palace will be lined with stalls selling all sorts of goods. These will be mostly locally sourced/produced foods and drink, with some trinkets and souvenirs being sold too.

The Palace

The gates to the palace are closed the night before Gennes Day, and do not open again until the afternoon. Once the gates are re-opened, everybody is invited to enjoy the palace gardens, where the best minstrels from the College of Exquisite Arts will perform on behalf of the queen.
Once the sun begins to set, the queen will make an appearance on one of the palace's many balconies. From there she will usually give a brief speech, reflecting on the year that has passed. The close of this speech is marked with a fireworks display, provided by the University of Magic.

Closing

The celebrations will continue late into the night. It is common for the Order of the Shield's cells to fill up overnight with drunkards, as inevitably some will get a little out of hand.
Taverns will usually stay open much later than usual, but the rest of the city will cease their celebrations close to midnight.

Media

Primary Related Location

Kureta City