Does anybody here celebrate Carnival? My city is one of the 3 centers of Carnival in Germany and almost everybody is involved. Carnival or Fastnacht as we call it (shrovetide) is the 5th season here:) Yesterday we had 500 000 people dancing in the street and today is the last day. In the Catholic church year tomorrow (Ash Wednesday)is the first day of the Lenten fast which lasts till Good Friday. However, Fastnacht is a very old feast dating back to Pre Christian times and was originally a feast to drive out the winter.
These days Fastnacht is mainly a big huge party with unbelievable masses of alcohol involved. People wear costumes and are organized in numerous Carnival Clubs. The climax is the weekend before ash wednesday when the big parades go through the streets and half of the population plus hundred thousands of tourists get hopelessly drunk in one neverending party :)
well, kind've....here, they have some bakeries open so you can get whatever.....but we don't really celebrate it unless your family does for tradition.
I live in Maastricht and I think in the Netherlands this city it's the capital of Carnaval celebrating... (the people from Maastricht like to believe that and i think they are right) There is no escaping (or you actually have to leave the city for 3 days)
Loads of people are celebrating it overhere. Everyone's dressed up and drunk and very noisy. ALL shops are closed. There is total anarchy for 3 days. The city streets smell like piss, puke and beer. Shop owners are putting protection in front of their windows to prevent damaging/ robberies...
I don't like it. I really don't like it at all. It's so hypocrite...Normally Maastricht is quite conservative (compared to other cities in The Netherlands: Eindhoven, Rotterdam, Den Haag, Amsterdam etc) BUT during carnaval... anything goes. All boundaries are gone. Old men dressed up and being very drunk at 2 o clock in the evening. Girls from 13 years old dressed very slutty. Disgusting.
I mean, don't get me wrong: I do believe once Carnaval was a really nice Christian party to celebrate certain things (like YV told) but in Maastricht it's none of this anymore. For most people it's just an excuse to get drunk, get laid (with really ugly people) and do all things THEY normally forbid people to do (when it's no Carnaval) for three days long. So fuckin' hypocrite...
Today is the final day.
Luckily.
I did celebrated carnival at Venezuela a lot when I was young. Lately it was just an excuse to be at home and have a nice rest. Here in Gran Canarias people celebrates carnival different. I went yesterday to a party called "Los Indianos" where people dresses all in white clothes and throws baby powder to celebrate the moment that Cubans came to these islands in the 40's. It was very cool, I partied till 5am and then I came back home, got a shower, changed of clothes and went to work. It was a very nice expierence :D.