International festivals

My name‿ is Maria,│ an(d) my city^ci-dy holds‿ an‿ international festival‿ every October. It has taken place│ since 1934,│ an(d) today there‿ are musicians from twenty^twen-dy countries,│ three parades,│ and‿ a food market‿ in the main square.

The festival began‿ as‿ a local tradition. My grandmother remembers│ when‿ only the neighbours celebrated‿ it with‿ a small procession‿ an(d) homemade cakes. Now eighty^eigh-dy thousan(d) people come,│ an(d) hotels‿ are full for‿ a week. Some‿ older people complain│ that‿ it has become‿ a business,│ an(d) they have‿ a point:│ a hotel room costs four times more during the festival.

Every year,│ my family takes part‿ in the same way. We decorate‿ our balcony with paper flowers,│ we cook for the neighbours,│ and‿ on the last‿ evening we watch the fireworks from the roof. My children wear traditional costumes‿ in the parade,│ although they prefer their sneakers‿ underneath. If‿ a tradition stays the same for‿ a hundred years,│ it dies. It‿ is the changes that keep‿ it‿ alive.