Cheung Chau Bun Festival

Each year around Buddha's Birthday, the Hong Kong outlying island of Cheung Chau goes vegetarian and hangs ritual flags from every home. By day, children dressed as gods, celebrities and figures from the news are lifted high on hidden iron supports and "float" through narrow streets; at midnight, a dozen or so competitors have three minutes to scale a tower covered in lucky buns and grab the highest ones. It is Hong Kong's strangest and most heartwarming traditional festival.