Mardi Gras 2016
Carnival is not celebrated in the U.S you say…?
Fat Tuesday would be the direct translation from French to English for this cultural holiday officially known as Mardi Gras, which refers to the carnival celebrations usually beginning after “Three King’s Day” and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday.
Mardi Gras is a feast of typically unhealthy foods and habits before the Lenten season begins. Although it is rarely practiced nowadays, people used to give up on certain foods during lent and used the last Tuesday beforehand as a chance to overeat and drink before enduring the long 7 weeks of self-discipline. Nowadays, some pass on Social Media, TV, music for lent “it makes you realize how good life can be without constantly checking Facebook or watching the favorite show…the normal things are more appreciated during this time: meeting friends, having dinner around the dinner table, taking the dog out for a walk on a sunny afternoon”, says U.S student Chris M., who strictly gave up on all forms of social media and TV for a few weeks.
One city in the U.S. has a worldwide reputation for its Mardi Gras celebrations attracting thousands of people from all around the world every year: New Orleans, Louisiana. Attending the festival will leave you flabbergasted that a city of the conservative southern state is even capable of hosting such an event and you will not be short of beads and feathers that people on the balconies above will generously provide you with.
If you are from the south of the Netherlands or Germany, you will probably know that Carnival traditionally begins the 12th night after Christmas, also known as Epiphany. Around 2 weeks before Mardi Gras, parades begin as a countdown to the final day, the best two weeks to see the wild side of New Orleans!
We hope that you had a good one!
