In all the years I've been living here, this is probably the festival I like the least. Carnaval is a difficult thing to describe. The best I can come up with is a mixture of a weird Halloween and a blah Mardi Gras. Why? because it usually takes place during the cold winter months. Watching people parade without the excitement of Brazilian Carnaval in the cold is not my idea of a good time.
To mark the end of Carnaval, on Ash Wednesday (today) there is a strange parade called Burial of the Sardine (Entierro de la Sardina). People dress in black as mourners and walk behind a huge paper mache fish wailing and crying. Then depending on the city, they throw it in the sea or burn it. There are several stories as to the origin of this parade, but in a nutshell it has to do with what goes on in Lent (fasting and abstinence) winning over the carnal desires.
What is hard to understand and Spaniards aren't able to justify is why schools are on vacation due to this festival, some up to a week. Things that make you go hmm...
No comments:
Post a Comment