Notable September Events

A Thai Long Boat

September 6-7: Florence glows with hundreds of beautiful paper lanterns during the Festa della Rificolona. Various organic producers of Italy host a huge food fair both days of the festival, which culminates the evening of the 7th with a lantern procession from the Piazza Santa Croce to the Piazza Santissima Annunziata. The street party goes on well into the evening.

September 12: New York’s Times Square becomes a giant musical stage between 43rd and 47th streets for Broadway on Broadway, a giant outdoor concert featuring performers from most of the current Broadway shows. Be sure to arrive early, because this free event draws tens of thousands of spectators.

September 12: Enjoy a progressive wine and appetizer party in Napa Valley’s St. Helena starting at 3 p.m. Limited to 20 people, this Tables in the Vineyards event begins in the unique hilltop home of Joan Crowley and moves on to the Steffens estate, 2,000 feet above the valley floor. Finish the day in the home of Chris and Betsy Peacock, set in a picturesque Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard. $110 per person. September 18-19: Though one hardly needs an excuse to visit Burgundy in glorious September, the Fête de la Pressée (Festival of the Wine Press) in Chenôve provides yet another excellent reason to go. Observe wine presses dating to 1238 in action, watch (or join in) traditional dancing, sample top-notch Burgundies and feast on local specialties such as gougères, escargots, grilled andouillette sausage and roast suckling pig.

September 18-20: During the International Swan Boat Races and Long Boat Race Championship, teams of rowers paddle ornate, 22-person swan boats and 55-person longboats on Thailand’s Chao Phraya River. This colorful annual race takes place near the dramatic ruins of Ayutthaya, just north of Bangkok.

September 23-26: Barcelona celebrates its patron saint during the Festival of La Mercè (the Virgin of Mercy) with concerts, dancing, markets and street performances. Perhaps most memorable are the Castellers, who build frighteningly tall human towers, and the Correfoc, a wild procession of firecracker-wielding groups dressed as devils, giant sparkler-breathing dragons and various other costumed revelers and pyrotechnic displays. September 29-October 1: Sample wines from 45 local producers at the Chilean Wine Fair, held in Santiago’s Hotel Plaza San Francisco. Enjoy the best of the country’s wines accompanied by gourmet canapés.