Happy MARDI GRAS!
Posted on 21. Feb, 2012 by Hichem in Art, Culture, Geography, Music, People, Vocabulary
Oui! Today is that day!
It is the French holiday of Mardi Gras!
Mardi Gras literally means « Fat Tuesday. »
But pas de panique (no worries), one doesn’t have to be morbidly obese to celebrate it—or eat “Supersize me-style”!
Celebrate Mardi Gras “Cajun-style” in la Louisiane, USA!
In fact, Mardi Gras is the last day of Carnival celebrations before le mercredi des Cendres (Ash Wednesday), and the beginning of the Catholic fasting season of carême (Lent.)
It is celebrated in many countries with lavish parades, music, dancing, costumes, parties, craziness and more.
The French-speaking countries that celebrate it include Belgium where the Carnival of Binche has been proclaimed one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.
In France, the Nice Carnival and Mardi Gras are particularly impressive with balls, masquerades, bonfires, jugglers, mimes, flower-covered floats and night-time light displays.
Mardi Gras is also celebrated in Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyane.
Boulevard des Capucines by Claude Monet
And the Carnival of Paris has inspired music, operas, theater productions, books, films and works of art including boulevard des Capucines by Claude Monet.
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