The 123rd Annual Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Saint Paulinus of Nola is in full swing! The combination Italian street fair (akin to the San Gennaro festival) and traditional religious observance takes over a small pocket of Williamsburg by The Shrine Church Of Our Lady of Mount Carmel for 12 days every July. Sunday marked the first Giglio lift, during which 130 men carry the 80-foot tall, 3 ton Giglio, as well as a lifesize boat of St. Paulinus, through the streets. And to make sure the lift isn't too easy for these guys, they throw a marching band up there too. Watch: more ›

The 12-day, 121st annual Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and San Paolino is currently in full swing in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Every year the area around the church (at Havemeyer and North Eighth Street) is turned over to a traditional Italian-American street fair in the evening, with kiddie rides, amusuments and food. On Sunday there was the spectacular “Dance of the Giglio,” during which, according to Giglio USA, a five ton platform bearing a five story hand-sculptured tower and a 12-piece brass band is lifted by 125 brawny men who carry it on their shoulders through the neighborhood in tempo to Italian folk songs. more ›