It's almost Carnival Time

[wanderer]

I'd love to hear your thoughts/stories about Mardi Gras/Carnival. Who has experienced the early-year revelry for these celebrations? Of course the biggest and most famous event is Carnival in Brazil , but other places celebrate the holiday. I'd love to hear about your experiences!

[awsomee]

I read that Mardi Gras and Carnival were both initiated by French medieval customs, though I don't see the connection to France since the french are very conservative....I mean, if you look at carnival and Mardi Gras what are they really portraying? to be honest, it seems more like an excuse to get people semi-naked (mostly women) flashing the "you know what". Am i the only one thing like this?

[wanderer]

:) I think the naked partying came later. Mardi Gras did start out in Europe as kind of the last-ditch partying before Lent, the very solemn Christian observance. The medieval people gave up a lot during Lent, so they would do their indulgent things the day before. That's why it's big in places heavily influenced by the French, Spanish and Portuguese settlers like New Orleans and Brazil.

[somanyskp]

Mardi Gras/Carnival isn;t just big in the States and Brazil....there is a Carnival tradition in all of Spain, some places are more famous for the parades than others. The most popular carnival destinations are Tenerife and Cadiz.

[awsomee]

Oh ok, thanks for the explanation wanderer:) in that case I guess it does make sense..you have to let lose eventually;)

Originally Posted by wanderer

:) I think the naked partying came later. Mardi Gras did start out in Europe as kind of the last-ditch partying before Lent, the very solemn Christian observance. The medieval people gave up a lot during Lent, so they would do their indulgent things the day before. That's why it's big in places heavily influenced by the French, Spanish and Portuguese settlers like New Orleans and Brazil.