The carnival atmosphere around the world these past few days will culminate today for Mardi Gras.
Mardi Gras in New Orleans
Some like the way things are done in New Orleans with garish outfits and young girls (No, I’m not talking about the two guys in the photo!) drinking too much booze, running around the French Quarter flashing their boobs to anyone who asks in exchange for a few strands of kitschy plastic beads!
Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro
Others prefer the bands and the floats where it seems as though all of Brazil: men, women, and children are gyrating to the sounds of drums with tons of feathers on their heads and little else on their bodies along the parade route in Rio de Janeiro.
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Carnevale di Venezia
Personally I prefer the oldest carnival in the world which dates back to the year 1268; the Carnevale di Venezia! Yes it’s a more subdued ambiance, but one cloaked in beauty and mystique. The backdrop of the Gran Canal and the gondolas at the Piazza de San Marco, the frigid air, the silence, and the costumes. Ah, yes the costumes! They are a feast for the eyes like none other!
The elaborate costume balls in palazzos where a tall masked man approaches you and all you see are his piercing eyes as he speaks to you in that charming Italian accent. You’re intriqued and seduced by his allure, his stance; the elegance in the way he carries himself, and the movement of his hands as he speaks as though he’s performing a private dance for you, but do you really know what this man looks like underneath all that fabric and jewels? It doesn’t matter. This is the Carnevale of strangers, incognito, meeting for a fleeting moment in time, where anything is possible….
Maya Muses: Opps! Sorry, I was caught up in my mind back to a time in Venice, well….
Enjoy the photos!
Photo Credits: Flickr
4 responses so far ↓
1 patrick // Feb 24, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Thank you Lynn for the beautiful pictures. As you know, I lived many years in N.O. and after a couple of Mardi Gras we choose to leave the city during this craziness. Well I like the idea of going to Rio for the Carnaval. May be next year, Humm!!! :<]
2 Lynn // Feb 24, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Now why am I not surprised that you would prefer to go to Rio for Carnaval, rather than (like me) go to Venice for Carnevale???!!! Hmm!
3 Harriet // Feb 25, 2009 at 5:54 am
Love the costumes from the Carnevale di Venezia!
4 Lynn // Feb 25, 2009 at 11:58 pm
I know….they truly are beautiful and a feast for the eyes!
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