Bolivia: Carnival of Oruro

One of the most authentic carnivals in South America is ‘La Diablada Carnival’, which takes place in the city of Oruro, in central Bolivia. The carnival is being celebrated in honour of the Saint patroness of the miners - Virgin de Socavon (the tunnel's virgin).

The carnival is celebrated in a parade of over 50 dance groups that dance, play and sing over a 5 km long course. The groups dress up as demons, Satans, Incas and Spanish conquerors. The parade is celebrated every day from morning until late night (18 hours a day).

The only disadvantage of the carnival of Oruro is the love of the locals for water fights. It is an impossible mission to stay dry during the carnival.
The great advantage of the carnival is that after the first day the viewers can choose to join one of the groups and dance with it along the way of the parade.


See more pictures from Carnival in Bolivia: Click here

Carnival of Uruguay

This Carnival is famous because of the length and their 2 traditional celebrations - one celebration that just lasts for some hours and the other one that lasts more than 40 days.

Carnival Week is considered the annual national festival of the nation. While the Carnival extends to all the country with important events in several cities, the main activities are made in the capital of Montevideo.


Although this ‘fiesta’ is officially only given two days of public holiday for the Carnival Monday and Tuesday preceding as Wednesday, most shops and businesses close for the entire week. Homes and streets are grandly decorated, humorous shows are staged at open-air theaters, "tablados" or popular scenes (fixed and movable) are erected in the commercial districts. There are many competitions for ‘murgas’, ‘black societies’ and ‘lubolos’, humorists, parodists and magazines.

A great highlight of the Montevideo Carnival is the Parade of the Calls in the old districts Sur and Palermo. The Calls evoke the encounter of the "enslaved black" of the colonial days and in the freedom of the Candombe, which has made a fundamental contribution to Uruguayan culture.

See more pictures from Carnival in Uruguay: Click here and here

Colombia: Carnival of Barranquilla

Quien lo vive, es quien lo goza

Barranquilla's Carnival is a traditional feast that dates back to the 19th century. During this feast the city seems to completely stop with their normal activities as the streets are filled with dancers, music and various parades. The Carnival of Barranquilla is a unique festivity, which takes place every year during February or March on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. Every year during the four days before Shrovetide, the Carnival de Barranquilla offers a repertory of dances and musical expressions originating from different Colombian sub-cultures.

The blending of various local traditions permeates numerous aspects of the carnival, particularly dances (as exemplified by the ‘mico y micas’ from the Americas, the ‘African congo’ and the ‘paloteo’ of Spanish origin), musical genres (the predominant cumbia and variants such as the puya and porro) and folk instruments (tambora and allegre drums, maraca, claves, etc). These kinds of rhythms hit for five days nearly all-central streets of Barranquilla.

What makes this carnival special is the use of profuse material culture of handcrafted objects including floats, costumes, head ornaments and animal masks. You will find groups of masqueraded dancers, actors, singers and instrumentalists that delight crowds with theatrical and musical performances based on historical as well as current events. In November 2003 UNESCO proclaimed the Carnival of Barranquilla as one of the Masterpieces of ‘the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity’.

See more pictures from Carnival in Colombia: Click here

Mexico: Carnival of Mazatlán

Carnival in Mexico is said to be the third largest carnival celebration in the world and one of the oldest, attracting between 300.000-400.000 people every year from all around Mexico and across the world. It is traditionally held in February the week before Shrovetide.

The carnival of Mazatlan goes back more than 100 years with no changes, other than the themes of each year. The carnival is celebrating the joy of life and at the same time the love and passion for the arts: music, dance, literature, poetry and painting.

The celebration offers the coronation of the Queen of Carnival, the "Carnavaldome" which takes place on Avenida del Mar on Playa Norte, in the northern part of town, which is the primary focus of the street action. The temporary assortment of stages and booths feature continuous music-tropical, mariachi, rock, and north-food vendors, outrageous costume-wearing and all-night dancing throughout the festival.

They arrange events such as coronation of the flower queen, prestigious Clemencia Isaura Poetry Award, a 68-year old tradition, that honours the best-unpublished work from anywhere in Mexico. Performances by major Latin artists and followed by "Burning of Bad Humor," in which an effigy – usually modelled after an unpopular politician of the day – is hanged and burned.

See more pictures from Carnival in Mexico: Click here

Brazil: Rio Carnival experience it all yourself!

The carnival in Rio de Janeiro is not only one of the world’s best-known carnivals, but it is also one of the biggest gathering and the most famous holiday in Brazil. Hundreds of thousands of people visit the beautiful country of Brazil every year for this glorious celebration. The carnival in Rio is of such importance that the country grinds to a halt for an entire week, while intense celebrations go on day and night in the streets of Rio.

The dates of the carnival change each year, but it is mostly held during the month of February and always 40 days before Easter.

One of the things that characterize this carnival is the many samba schools that compete in order to be known as the best samba school in Brazil, and the fact that it is very much influenced by African-Brazilian culture.

You will find a huge variation of samba rhythms, as well as the famous "marchinhas" played by the "bandas" in the streets. The official Carnival parades in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo take place in the Sambodromo near the city centre.

However, there is more to this carnival than the parades, as you will encounter loads of festivities throughout the city and you are more than welcome to either participate or simply watch.

See more pictures from Carnival in Rio: Click here and here

Carnival Tenerife 2009

Carnival de Santa Cruz de Tenerife is one of the biggest carnivals in the world, and thereby one of the most important festivals in Spain.
The carnival takes place every year in February with a lot of activities day and night, among others the crowing of the carnivalqueen as well as dancegroups who are competing in brightly coloured costumes. The biggest carnival takes place in Santa Cruz, but the whole island is filled with celebrations. The carnival on Tenerife is certaintly a visit worth!  


See more pictures from Carnival de Santa Cruz de Tenerife: Click here

Nice Carnival 2005

Carnival in Nice last in over 15 days in February and March month. The whole town hums to the rhytm of this genuine fairytale event.
The carnival processions, comprising 20 floats which is filled with the most wonderful decorations. These giant, colorful parades take place both day and night, with entainment provided by over 1,000 musicians and dancers across the world.
As audience in Nice you are sure to be entartained and impressed.

Se slideshow from Carnival in Nice:  Click here

Read more about the Carnival in Nice on this following website:
http://www.nicecarnaval.com/en/index.php

STAMP PARADE 2010

In september 2010 Aalborg Carnival went to Hamborg to experience STAMP Parade. The weekend featured both a day and a night parade. Aalborg Carnival was joined by the groups Dunkelfolket, Vimorez, Poco Loco and Alkoholdet. This was the first time that Alkoholdet participated in a foreign parade.

STAMP Festival is a town fair in Hamborg. Through the weekend you were able to experience different performances in the streets. Saturday evening there was a night parade and sunday a day parade. The whole town was filled with different booths, so there was a lot to watch. You can read more about STAMP Festival on their website:

http://www.stamp-festival.de/english/index.php

See slideshow from STAMP Festival: Click here