Brazilian Carnival in Rio

Isabel, a dancer from the Brazilian Carnival in Rio, Brazil
Photo by: sfmission.com, Creative Commons

The Brazilian Carnival in Rio, Brazil is an annual festival that takes place four days before Ash Wednesday, which is described as the beginning of the 40 days fast, called lent. During the days of fasting, some Roman Catholics and Christians do not consume meat. The reason of the carnival is to bid farewell to some pleasures of the flesh and it is dedicated to Christ’s death.

The carnival in Brazil is a little different from its counterparts in Europe because it has a mixture of the Europe and African fundamentals. So much so that even the music, rhythm, and costume, changes a bit from one region of Brazil to the other. A fine example to quote the differences is seen in the southeast part of the cities, where the parade of the carnival is usually led by the Samba schools and only Samba school affiliates’ participate in it whereas in smaller towns, there is no public to view the carnival and hence, the carnival is organized in clubs. In the North east section of Brazil, even the common public is allowed to dance and take part in the parade and enjoy it to the fullest as they are made to feel a part of the big show. The Carnival is all about having fun, dancing to the catchy rhythm and wearing colorful clothes.

The modern carnival originated in the year 1641, it was actually a mimicry of the European style of having fun. However, over the years, it refrained itself and took inputs from different cultures like Europe, North America and Africa.