Carnival worldwide: Here the most spectacular festivals are celebrated

Oranges instead of candy, samba rhythms instead of pop music, mud fights instead of costume parties - Carnival is celebrated all over the world. However, the customs of the "fifth season" in other countries differ significantly from the carnival traditions in Germany. We present you the most spectacular folk festivals around the globe.

Brazil is known for its spectacular carnival in Rio de Janeiro, which is one of the largest in the world. The festival is therefore also called "The Greatest Show on Earth". According to "Sambódromo", around two million people come to Rio every day during the carnival season to take part in the festivities.

For the Cariocas, the inhabitants of Rio, the carnival is a “combination of competition and camaraderie in which organizations called samba schools compete for the title of champion of the samba parade of the Rio Carnival,” summarizes “ Sambadrome ”.

The Rio Carnival is famous for its samba parade.

Source: imago images/Keren Su / DanitaDe

During the event, colorful parades with elaborate costumes, samba dances, music and carnival floats take place in the city districts. One of the highlights is the parade of the best samba schools. This takes place on a 700-meter-long and 13-meter-wide route in a stadium. Tickets for the best seats in the stands are hotly contested.

According to the Kvarner Region Tourist Board, the carnival parade in the Croatian port city of Rijeka is one of the largest and most spectacular in Europe . Thousands of people in costumes parade through the streets of the city on Shrove Sunday. Tens of thousands of people come every year to watch the spectacular parade.

Before the big parade, numerous large and small parades as well as balls, concerts and exhibitions take place in the port city. The masked ball on Shrove Saturday in the palace of the Maritime and History Museum at the Croatian port is considered one of the highlights.

During the Rijeka Carnival, the city fills with crowds.

Source: Bard.o.

There are also big celebrations in the south of Belgium. The town of Binche in the province of Hainaut is considered the stronghold of the Walloon carnival. The traditional folklore festival is even considered the oldest carnival in the world. In 2008, UNESCO added the carnival to the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The celebrations attract thousands of visitors every year. During the carnival, which begins three days before Lent, fireworks are set off and numerous costumed revelers parade through the streets of the town of 34,000 people. Among them are so-called Mam'selles, men in extravagant women's clothing.

When the carnival reaches its climax on Shrove Tuesday, around 1,000 "Gilles" take part in the big parade. These are colourful, costumed people who stand out with their eye-catching hats with ostrich feathers and who throw oranges at the spectators. You can find the exact schedule on the website of the tourism authority Visit Wallonia .

Oranges are thrown during the carnival parade in Binche.

Source: imago images/VWPics

Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a type of carnival in the USA . The people of New Orleans proudly call it the "Greatest Free Show on Earth". This is because the parades are entirely funded by their members and are free to attend, according to the event website . Mardi Gras is also considered the largest masked festival in North America. It is even required by law that the float drivers must wear masks.

Elaborate floats are designed for the parades, and there are also parade-wide celebrations such as masked balls. The colorful masks and costumes with long pearls and feathers, usually in purple, green and gold, are particularly impressive. Purple stands for justice. Green stands for faith. Gold stands for power.

Participants in the Indian Parade wear elaborate costumes during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Mardi Gras.

Source: imago images/NurPhoto

On the north side of the Peloponnese lies the third largest city in Greece, Patras. The port city hosts the country's largest carnival event during the "fifth season".

Around 40,000 carnivalists take part in the Patras Carnival, according to the Greek newspaper Patras Events . Up to a million spectators attend the festival, which includes dances, parades, street theater, exhibitions, performances and more. There is also a treasure hunt in which 90 teams take part. According to Patras Events, the highlight of the last carnival weekend is a night parade on Saturday, followed by the spectacular grand parade of floats on Sunday.

Up to a million spectators come to the Patras Carnival.

Source: imago images/ANE Edition

The Goa Carnival is one of the few carnival celebrations in Asia. The lively and colorful festival takes place annually in Goa in the weeks before Lent. The Indian state was a Portuguese colony for over 450 years. The festival is therefore characterized by a mixture of Portuguese and local traditions. It includes parades, musical performances, dance competitions, food festivals and beach parties.

According to Goa Tourism, it has become one of the most popular and well-known cultural events in India and attracts visitors from all over the world.

The highlight is the parades that wind through the streets of Goa's major cities. They feature numerous floats, dancers and musicians, all dressed in elaborate costumes. The procession is led by "King Momo", a mythical figure who is considered the king of the carnival and is usually portrayed by a local in costume.

“King Momo” gives the starting signal for the Goa Carnival and leads the parade.

Source: imago stock&people

The Carnevale di Venezia is famous for its masked balls and costumed processions. The city is filled with people in historical costumes during the carnival season. There are many cultural events and Venice is transformed into a huge open-air theater through the carnival shows.

A special tradition is the Volo dell' Angelo (Flight of the Angel). This ritual marks the beginning of the festivities in Venice. Thousands of people flock to St. Mark's Square to see a disguised person being lowered from the bell tower of San Marco. In the meantime, a wooden dove has replaced the angel, which is why the tradition is also known as the Volo della Colombina (Flight of the Dove).

The Venetian carnival begins with the "Flight of the Angel".

Source: imago/Andrea Merola

You can also find a carnival stronghold on the French Mediterranean coast: The Nice Carnival attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. The city on the Côte d'Azur is one of the warmest places in France. So you can usually celebrate Carnival here in spring-like weather.

The “Corso de la bataille de fleurs” is one of the highlights of the Nice Carnival.

Source: imago images/PanoramiC

Incidentally, the Nice Carnival is the first international carnival in France, writes “ Nice Carnaval ”. Carnival parades, called Corsi, take place day and night. The highlights include the so-called flower parades. Numerous decorated floats as well as street art and music groups from all over the world parade through the city during the event.

It is also tradition to burn the figure of the Carnival King after the last parade on the Promenade des Anglais, followed by a fireworks display.

The figure “Majeste Roi des Tresors du Monde” is burned, marking the end of the carnival

Source: imago images/PanoramiC

The Monihei Carnival, also known as the "Chinese Dark Carnival", is a modern festival celebrated there, especially in some cities in Yunnan Province. It is very different from the traditional Western carnival celebrations. Usually, the carnival takes place in May.

Then the participants smear themselves with black paint to drive away evil spirits and to wish for good luck and health. The mud is based on rice flour from the Wa mountain. It is also made from "magical clay" and various herbs such as the "Niang Buluo" plant, which is considered an immortality herb. The mud is said to have sun protection, beauty and skin care effects, and it also contains chocolate.

Members of the Wa ethnic group and tourists take part in the Monihei Carnival in Lincang, Yunnan Province, China, on April 30, 2023.

Source: imago images/VCG

One of the biggest attractions in Andalusia in spring is the "Carnaval de Cádiz". The city on the Costa de la Luz then attracts thousands of visitors. There are competitions for carnival groups, which are held in the Gran Teatro Falla de Cádiz. In addition to the groups, there are also choirs, quartets and so-called chirigotas, a kind of fool's choir made up of around twelve people who perform folk songs.

Then the street festival starts. On the last Sunday, the parade, known as “Cabalgata del Humor”, is one of the highlights. It leads through the historic center and is accompanied by a spectacular costume show.

Carnival is also celebrated in Hungary. The biggest festival in the country is the Busójárás in Mohács. The city is located in the south of the country near the Serbian and Croatian borders. Carnival is Hungary's longest-standing traditional event. In 2009, it was added to the UNESCO list of spiritual cultural heritage. The six-day carnival usually takes place at the end of February at the end of winter.

The festival is named after the Busó. These are scary-looking costumed people, traditionally men, with wooden masks and large woolen coats. They row along the Danube in rowing boats and parade through the city in carts to drive away the winter. One of the traditions is to burn a coffin, which symbolizes winter, on a bonfire in the central square. According to UNESCO, the custom originally came from the Croatian minority in Mohács. Today, the Busó is the city's landmark.

The carnival festivities include parades, South Slavic dances, performances, handicraft exhibitions and workshops on the Busó tradition.

The carnival on the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Tobago, on the other hand, is known for its lively, dazzling parades, calypso music and the spectacular performances of the so-called steel pan bands. The steel drum is considered the national instrument of Trinidad.

During the carnival season, which begins on the Friday before Ash Wednesday, the bands hold steel pan competitions. The final of the International Soca Monarch music competition also takes place during the carnival season. Stick fights are also part of the program, along with numerous other festivities.

The colorful parades of the Carnival of Trinidad and Tobago take place on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday in Trinidad.

If you want to experience the Caribbean feeling at a carnival, you don't have to leave Europe : the Notting Hill Carnival has been taking place in London since the 1960s. It has its origins in the Caribbean carnival and was founded in the 1960s by the immigrant community from Trinidad and Tobago. It is now considered one of the largest street festivals in Europe.

The parade usually has around 50,000 performers, and over a weekend more than a million people attend, and they all want to be fed. There are 300 stalls set up offering food and drink from all over the world, including Jamaican jerk chicken, Trinidadian roti and Guyanese pepper pot. The party atmosphere is usually created by the more than 30 permanently installed music systems, which play everything from samba to hip hop, informs Visit London .

In London you can celebrate Carnival in the summer.

Source: imago images/Zuma Wire

And there is another special feature: the carnival does not take place in winter, but in the last week of August. The parade then moves through the west of the city on Shrove Monday. In Emslie Horniman's Pleasance Park, the top bands compete against each other in the largest steel pan competition in Great Britain.

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