Goat meat in starring role at French festival

29.10.2008
A festival in the middle of France aims to embrace people with goat meat this November, hoping to bring another brother into the fold in this year"s celebrations.

Bellegarde-en-Marche in the Creuse department is home to the Brotherhood of Goat Meat-Eaters Festival, where festivities include a goat-based banquet and a parade.

Many believe that the tradition started in the Middle Ages when France was at war with the English, as French soldiers carried sharp goat"s horns as weapons.

The Brotherhood inducts members into the fraternity who wish to enjoy the meaty meal, with the party taking members through the streets of the commune.

Ferry users may want to use the festival as a halfway point to Lyon, which Lonely Planet noted as having art museums and other cultural assets, giving the visitor no shortage of things to do.

It added that Lyon was the "commercial, industrial and banking powerhouse" of France for the past 500 years.

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