Of all Spanish festivals and celebrations, Carnival is probably the liveliest and craziest. Carnival in Spain and throughout the rest of the world can best be compared to the Mardi Gras celebrations that we have in the states, except that it is celebrated throughout the entire country.
Carnival originated from a Roman Catholic celebration in which people ate, drank and danced obsessively in preparation for Lent, in which moral and food restrictions were imposed on followers of that religion. Before bidding farewell to these things that people had to give up for lent, the people held parties in which they ate and drank without control. Carnival Tuesday is considered the last day that people can eat meat until the end of lent and it is when the majority of the wild partying takes place.
On Ash Wednesday (Miércoles de Ceniza), in some places in Spain, like Madrid, something called the Burial of the Sardine (El Entierro de la Sardina) takes place. It’s a satirical ceremony where people get together to observe the burying of a dead fish. The death and burial of the fish represents the end of the “carnival” period and the beginning of the religious fast.
During carnival in Spain, people dress up in costumes and attend parades throughout the streets of the cities. People of all ages and walks of life participate in this; they dress up, take to the streets and dance and party all day and night. The costumes range from being well thought out and very extravagant to being homemade. Some people just wear masks. The celebrations go on for days.
During this time different organizations also hosts contests and pageants. For example they might hold a “Queen of Carnival” pageant, in which they search for the most beautiful woman with the most elaborate costume. There are also several pageants for children.
Although I did not go to school on Friday, I was told that they hosted a small carnival contest. In the afternoon, the children showed up wearing their carnival costumes. Prizes were given to the children with the most creative costumes in each grade level.
The most well-known carnival celebrations in Spain take place in Tenerlife and Cadiz. The carnival in Tenerlife is said to be the biggest in all of Europe and has a strong emphasis on pageants and contests while the Carnival of Cadiz is said to have much more of an emphasis on its music.
I did not participate in the carnival celebrations this year, mostly because there were no big celebrations where I live, but I would love to experience the madness of Carnival sometime in the future.
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