During: Mesir Festival. Manisa (Turkey). The “power gum” (mesir macunu), said to restore youth, health and potency, is distributed to the public.

Through Sept.: Music and Light Shows. Brussels. Nightly spectacular on the Grand’Place.

1-July 1: Delacroix, the Last Years. Paris. Major retrospective exhibit celebrating the 200th anniversary of the artist’s birth. 4-13: Easter Festival. Salzburg (Austria). Includes a premiere of Boris Godunov, with Claudio Abbado conducting the Berlin Philharmonic orchestra.

10-May 18: Monte Carlo Spring of Arts Festival. (Throughout Monaco).

25-Oct. 4: Mirror of Our Century. Stockholm. Objects, photos, sounds and inventions reflect 100 years of the art of design.

Holy Week

Easter is April 12 in Catholic and Protestant areas; April 19 in Orthodox regions. Notable observances include:

Good Friday Procession. Rome. The pope leads the procession to Palatine Hill along a torchlit route. Scoppio del Carro (Explosion of the Cart). Florence. Fireworks in Cathedral Square are set off when a mechanical dove is driven from the altar at High Mass. In Hungary. Villagers at the open-air mass in Hollók wear traditional costumes with ornate headdresses. In Malta. Celebrations begin the week preceding Good Friday with processions and Last Supper Table displays. In Portugal. Colorful parades fill the streets, especially in Braga, Ovar and Póva de Varzim. In Spain. Processions in Seville, Jerez, Granada, Málaga, Murcia, Valladolid, Úbeda and Zamora. In Switzerland. Classical and spiritual concerts in Lucerne.

18-26: Monte Carlo International Tennis Championships. Played at the famous country club.

23: First Day of Summer. (Throughout Iceland). Parades and entertainments. 23-26: Valletta: History & Elegance. A festival of pageantry, music and dance honoring Malta’s capital.

23-26: Hat Festival. Bergen (Norway). Displays and entertainment focus on spring, girls and, of course, hats.

24-Sept. 13: Tivoli Gardens’ 155th Season. Copenhagen. Music, rides, fireworks and more in the world-famous amusement park. 26: London Marathon. Running for glory.

28-May 3: April Fair. Seville (Spain). Traditional dress, flamenco, horses and bullfights.

30: Queen’s Day. (Throughout Holland). Celebrating the birthday of HM Queen Beatrix with parades, fireworks, and markets with traditional crafts, food and drink.

May

During: International Yachting Festival. Marmaris (Turkey). World-class races.

Through July: Istanbul International Theater and Music Festival.

Through Sept.: Art Déco Exhibit. Prague.

Through Oct.: Art Exhibitions. Mykonos (Greece). Painting, sculpture and photography on display on a sunny island.

1-3l: International May Festival. Weisbaden (Germany). Music, dance and theater.

3-17: Octave. Luxembourg City. Since 1628, annual pilgrimage to Our Lady of Luxembourg.

3-June 20: 29th International Music Festival. Vienna. World-famous conductors and orchestras participate.

9: National Windmill Day. (Throughout Holland). A chance to look inside these national monuments, with demonstrations and other activities.

12-13: Annual Pilgrimage to Fátima. (Portugal). Commemorates the apparition of the Virgin to shepherd children in 1917. Also on Oct. 12-13.

12-June 4: Prague Spring Festival. Annual event featuring classical music.

Mid-end of June: International Festival of Classical Music. Echternach and Luxembourg City.

16-June 7: Reykjavík Arts Festival. Exhibits, concerts, theater, dance and opera.

16-June 28: Sculpture and Photo Exhibit. Reykjavík. Works from the National Gallery of Iceland’s collection.

19-22: Chelsea Flower Show. London. Gardeners’ paradise with acres of flora.

20-31: Bergen International Festival. (Norway). Music, dance and theater, plus “Nattjazz.”

21-23: Anastenaria. Serres (Greece). Traditional fire-walking ceremony held annually.

21-24: 56th Monaco Grand Prix. Monte Carlo. Spectacular Formula One race through the principality’s twisting streets.

22-Sept. 30: Expo ‘98. Lisbon. “The Oceans-A Heritage for the Future” is the theme of the last World’s Fair of the century, with 145 countries and organizations participating.

24-June 24: Sofia Music Weeks. (Bulgaria). International festival of symphony and chamber music, opera and ballet.

25: French Tennis Open. Paris. At Roland Garros stadium.

25-29: VINO/44th International Wine Fair. Ljubljana (Slovenia). With music, dancing, food, and plenty of wine to taste, it’s party time!

31-July 4: Mozart Festival. Würzburg (Germany). Orchestras and soloists perform in the baroque Residenz.

June

Through July: Warsaw Summer Jazz Days. Cool music for warm weather. Through July: Sintra Music Festival. (Portugal). Concerts and ballets performed in palaces and gardens.

Through July: Zagreb Summer Festival. (Croatia). Folklore, concerts and theater performances.

Through Aug.: Light Nights. Reykjavík. Live theater and audio visual presentation of Icelandic sagas, folklore and music.

Through Aug.: Amsterdam Arts Adventure. Theater, dance and music festivals in- and outdoors, on land and on the water.

Through Oct.: Historical Clocks. Prague. Exhibit from the Museum of Applied Arts’ collection.

Through Oct.: Athens Festival. Music, dance and drama in the anciennt amphitheater of Herod Atticus.

1-Sept. 1: Sound and Light. Veliko T rnovo (Bulgaria). Nightly spectaculars in the Old Town and Tzarevets Fortress.

5-9: Festival of the Roses. Kazanl k (Bulgaria). Colorful folklore rituals in the 75-mile Valley of the Roses, a perfume center.

5-10: Kataklysmos (Flood Festival). (Seaside towns in Cyprus). Games, folk songs and dances, and boat races.

6-17: Naantali Music Festival. (Finland). Chamber music in an idyllic old seaside town.

7-14: The French in Malta. A historical re-enactment commemorates the 200th anniversary of the French presence here.

8-14: Piano and Voice Masters. Monte Carlo. International talent performs at the Salle Garnier.

10-July 12: World Soccer Cup. Ten cities in France. A total of 64 matches:

• 6/10-26, 48 first-round matches;
• 6/27-30, round of 16;
• 7/3 & 4, quarter-finals;
• 7/7 & 8, semi-finals;
• 7/11, third place;
• 7/12, final.

• From 6/27, matches are scheduled as follows:
• Bordeaux (Parc Lescure), 6/30
• Lens (Stade Félix Bollaert), 6/28
• Lyon (Stade Gerland), 7/4
• Marseille (Stade Vélodrome), 6/27, 7/4 & 7
• Montpellier (Stade de la Mosson), 6/29
• Nantes (Stade de la Beaujoire), 7/3
• St. Etienne (Stade Geoffroy Guichard), 6/30
• Toulouse (Le Stadium), 6/29
• Paris (Le Parc des Princes), 6/27, 7/11
• St. Denis (Stade de France), 6/28, 7/3, 8 & 12.

11-Aug. 30: Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival. (Germany). Works ranging from classic to modern presented in castles, churches and other venues throughout the area.

13: Trooping the Colour. London. A parade, music and colorful pageantry to celebrate the Queen’s official birthday.

13-21: Alesund: 150 Years. (Norway). Anniversary celebration with concerts, exhibitions, opening of the Fishery Museum and an aquarium, dragon boat festival and a royal visit.

14-Aug.7: Summer Music Festival. Varna (Bulgaria). Symphony and chamber concerts, opera, ballet, jazz and folk music and dance on the Black Sea Riviera.

15-July 31: Mozart Festival. Warsaw. Much more than a little night music.

Mid- Sept.: Patra Festival. (Greece). Performances of opera, jazz, theater and dance.

16-19: Royal Ascot. (England). High fashion, strawberries and cream and-oh yes-some steeplechasing horses.

18-20: Shakespearean Nights. Lemesos (Cyprus). Othello performed in the ancient Kourion theater.

19-21: Dressage World Cup. Lipica (Slovenia). International competition and daily performances at the original home of the Lipizzaner horses.

20-July 6. International Music and Dance Festival. Granada (Spain). Performances in the Alhambra palaces and Generalife gardens.

22-July 5: Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships. London.

23-24: Festival of St. John. Porto (Portugal). Bonfires, fireworks, and all-night merrymaking.

23-July 5: Viking Play. Lindholm Høje (Denmark). An outdoor dramatization near a huge Viking burial ground.

25-28: Avanti! Summer Sounds. Porvoo (Finland). Music ranging from Baroque to modern.

26-28: 39th International Jazz Festival. Ljubljana (Slovenia). Top artists and groups are featured.

27-July 7: 14th International Summer Festival. Maribor (Slovenia). Music, dance, visual arts and traditional foods along the banks of the river Drava.

26-July 19: Antique Theater Festival. Trier (Germany). Performances in the Roman ruins of Germany’s oldest theater city.

26-Aug. 13: Flaneries Musicales d’Eté. Reims (France). More than 120 concerts, most free of charge, in courtyards, gardens and such notable monuments as the Cathédrale Notre Dame and the Palais de Tau.

27-July 10: 18th Jazz á Vienne. (France). Modern sounds in the city’s Roman amphitheater.

28-July 5: 8th Festival of Jewish Culture. Kraków (Poland). Concerts, lectures, art, cooking and crafts workshops, and street performances in the ancient Kazimierz section.

28-Oct. 11: Manifesta 2. Luxembourg City. Biennial exhibit of contemporary art.

30 & July 2: Ommegang Pageant. Brussels. Medieval festival re-creates a 1549 Grand’Place feast for Emperor Charles V.

30-July 31: Opera Festival. Munich (Germany). Selections from both classic and contemporary repertoires.

End-July: Maltafest. Open-air concerts, theater, ballet, films and art exhibits throughout the country.