Rome:
Hundreds of thousands of people walked through the streets of Rome on Saturday taking part in the Euro Gay Pride Day, an annual event in support of gay rights.
The parade was joined by gays, lesbians, bi-sexuals and transgenders and supporters of gay rights from all over Europe, with dancers in colourful costumes, music and dozens of floats.
The colourful parade made its way through the streets of Rome past the Colosseum and other ancient monuments, with participants dancing to the beat of pop music.
One woman held a sign reading "Love is a human right", one man wore a T-shirt, which read: "I want to marry my companion, but in Italy you cannot do it."
"In my life, the people who attacked me the most were Catholic and I am a believer, I believe in God and religion... I don't believe it using as an instrument of discrimination," said Marta Tapo, a lesbian attending the parade.
In the past, the Vatican has criticised Gay Pride festivals, but this year there has been no official comment from the Catholic Church about the event.
The highlight of the day was to be an evening performance by US pop-star Lady Gaga who is flying into Rome to play her latest hit "Born This Way."
Organisers say she will also deliver a speech.
In a coup for the organisers, pop singer and entertainment star Lady Gaga accepted the invitation to perform at the gay pride parade in Rome.
The dance pop provocateur will join the last leg of the parade, from Piazza dei Cinquecento outside Termini rail station to the Circus Maximus, before mounting a stage to perform one of her hit songs.
"It is important. If you listen the song 'Born this way', it is a hymn to freedom and to be oneself, to be what you are," says Vincenzo Dialeo.
Different European capitals host the gay pride each year, recently the event was held in Stockholm, Zurich and Warsaw.
The event usually attracts millions of people from all over Europe.