Feb 11th, 2013 at 11:00AM:
For coffee lovers, Scandinavia is a bit of a mecca. In the heart of winter, there's nothing better than stepping into a warm cafe, brimming with people and their stacks of winter layers next to them, the windows steaming up as friends meet over coffee. In fact, in Sweden, coffee is such an important part of local culture, that there's even a specific word for coffee break: fika. A verb and a ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
MardiGras posts
Classic Scandinavia: Celebrate Fat Tuesday With Swedish Semlor
Feb 11th, 2013 at 11:00AM:
For coffee lovers, Scandinavia is a bit of a mecca. In the heart of winter, there's nothing better than stepping into a warm cafe, brimming with people and their stacks of winter layers next to them, the windows steaming up as friends meet over coffee. In fact, in Sweden, coffee is such an important part of local culture, that there's even a specific word for coffee break: fika. A verb and a ...New Orleans Prepares For 'Super Gras' 2013
Jan 31st, 2013 at 10:00AM: Visiting New Orleans during Mardi Gras has never been for the faint of heart. But with the city set to host the Super Bowl just nine days before Fat Tuesday, locals believe that this year's "Super Gras" celebration might be the city's biggest party ever. New Orleans has spent $1.3 billion on infrastructure improvements in the run up to the Super Bowl according to CNN, and USA Today estimates that ...Bizarre Carnival Celebrations You Haven't Heard Of
Jan 25th, 2013 at 10:00AM:
It's that time of year again, when thousands of dancers prepare to don feathers, beads, and sequins and parade down the streets to mark Carnival. And while big Carnival (or Mardi Gras, as it's also known) celebrations such as the one in Rio de Janiero get plenty of press, there are lots of other festivals that are just as colorful and creative ... and perhaps a little weird.
Wanna see men ...Video of the Day: Tilt-shift Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro
Feb 27th, 2012 at 6:00PM:
Carnaval (or, as we like to write it, Carnival) was last week, but we're just not done celebrating here at Gadling HQ. This video is from Carnaval 2011 in Rio de Janeiro, but we can't stop watching it. Of course, we love tilt-shift and this video uses the technique perfectly. Though, we'd like some explanation about why it opens with someone getting rescued from the ocean by a helicopter. ...
Rio Carnival 2012: The hottest drag queen costumes
Feb 24th, 2012 at 11:00AM:
At Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, it was common to come across fully made-up men who had traded their Havaianas for high heels. Though some were experienced cross dressers and drag queens, others saw the holiday as an opportunity to get in touch with their more feminine sides. Costumes ranged from the elaborate (Sambadrome-style feathers, stilettos, fake lashes) to the scrappy (tiny skirt, ...Rio Carnival 2012: Costume shopping and impromptu samba dancing
Feb 21st, 2012 at 11:00AM:
During Carnival, the streets of the Saara market in Old Downtown Rio de Janeiro are flooded with local cariocas shopping for wacky beer hats, neon-colored wigs, cheap plastic accessories, and the ubiquitous noise horns, which echo periodically (and loudly) in the air. If you're in the market for last-minute costumes for Carnival's parties and parades, Saara is undoubtedly the place to be. ...Rio Carnival 2012: 10 best bloco street parties
Feb 20th, 2012 at 3:30PM:
If you want to feel the real essence of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, look no further than the city streets. In the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday, lively street parties and parades, called blocos, wind throughout Rio's various neighborhoods, led by floats blaring live samba music. Crowds can swell to upwards of 200,000 people, many dressed in outrageous costumes and more than a little ...Video: Rio Carnival's biggest street party, Cordão do Bola Preta
Feb 20th, 2012 at 10:30AM:
Despite a nearly unbearable early morning start time, the Cordão do Bola Preta bloco on Saturday attracted more than 2.2 million people -- the most any of Rio de Janeiro's popular Carnival street parties has ever seen.
The party got started at 8:30 a.m. in Largo da Candelária and traveled down Avenida Rio Branco before finishing in a huge dance party in Cinelândia ...
Rio Carnival 2012: what's new this year
Feb 17th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
Rio Carnival 2012 is being looked upon as the Brazilian city's "coming of age". Not only are experts predicting a record number of revelers, but the world's eyes will also be trained on Rio de Janeiro to see how it manages the crowds and festivities, particularly as the city prepares to host both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games.
Organizers are pulling out all the stops ...Mardi Gras is coming, time to review and tweet
Feb 3rd, 2012 at 2:00PM: Mardi Gras rolls around about this time every year bringing Fat Tuesday and signaling celebrations held worldwide. In the United States, the focus is on New Orleans and this year the city is sponsoring some special events including a family-friendly focus and a special series of Twitter Chats leading up to the celebration.
About a million people will take to the streets of New Orleans for the ...The ultimate guide to Carnival in Rio: parties and parades
Feb 3rd, 2012 at 9:00AM:
What's Carnival in Rio de Janeiro without its lively parties and parades? Now that planning, packing, and logistics are taken care of, it's time to think about the important stuff: your social calendar. In this second installment of the ultimate guide to Carnival in Rio, we'll walk you through some of the main events. ...The ultimate guide to Carnival in Rio: planning, packing and logistics
Jan 31st, 2012 at 1:00PM:
Attending Carnival in Rio de Janeiro tops many a bucket list, and for good reason. Not only is Rio Carnaval one of the world's sexiest festivals, it's also an important cultural event for the people of Brazil. Last year, more than 4.9 million people participated in the week-long festival of parades, parties, and carousing in the streets, and the number is expected to increase yet again this ...Fat Tuesday - top 5 places to party for Carnival
Mar 8th, 2011 at 3:30PM:
Fat Tuesday is the culmination of Mardi Gras, Carnival, Carnevale, and like minded celebrations that take place across the world today. From Guatemala to Greece, Fat Tuesday represents the last bastion of excess in Christian culture before the Lent fasting season begins. The streets pulse with energy and revelers don costumes, throw beads, shout sheenisms, and generally have a booze-fueled ...Mardi Gras in New Orleans 2011, let the good times roll!
Mar 8th, 2011 at 2:30PM:
Today ends Carnival season in New Orleans, a two-week festival of parades and partying in leading up to the Christian Lenten period of sacrifice, and culminating in Shrove (or Fat) Tuesday and known to New Orleans residents as Mardi Gras. There are other Fat Tuesday celebrations throughout the world such as Rio's Carnival, it's most famous in America as Mardi Gras in New Orleans, where around 1 ...Mardi Gras King Cake rich in taste and tradition
Mar 8th, 2011 at 12:30PM:
It's been called Portuguese Christmas Cake, Bolo Rei and a bunch of other names but Mardi Gras King Cake is the colorful bakery creation, rich in taste and tradition, that serves as a symbol of the pre-Lenten season of Mardi Gras.
The tradition predates Christianity and was taken from the Roman celebration called Lupercalia. Mardi Gras celebrates the period between the end of the ...Carnival Celebrations to draw 750,000 (insanely crazy) visitors
Mar 5th, 2011 at 1:30PM:
The ultimate escape, Rio's Carnival is open with celebrations expected to draw over 750,000 visitors, both foreign and Brazilian spending over $500 million.
"As the king of the party, I declare the Carnival of Rio de Janeiro is officially open," this year's king Milton Rodrigues said. "Long live Rio, and long live Carnival!"
It's a spectacle unlike any other where the normal world is ...5 tips for actually enjoying Mardi Gras
Jan 30th, 2011 at 6:00PM:
While New Orleans seems to celebrate Mardi Gras all year round, it is at this time of the year--the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday (in French: Mardi Gras) and the beginning of Lent--that the city earns its hard partying reputation.
It happens ...New Orleans Band Better Than Ezra Welcomes us to Mardi Gras
Jan 28th, 2011 at 12:00PM: Ever thought about going to Mardi Gras, only to quickly reconsider? Daunted by the idea of drunken crowds and inadvertently turning up on an episode of Cops? Well New Orleans-based rock band Better Than Ezra is inviting newbies and veterans alike to a Mardi Gras experience that promises much more than the balcony-hanging, bead-throwing debauchery one might expect.
The event is called Krewe of ...Universal Orlando announces Mardi Gras concert lineup
Jan 17th, 2011 at 8:30AM:
Thirty Seconds to Mars, Ne-Yo and Blake Shelton are among the headliners just announced for Universal Orlando's Mardi Gras this spring.
The 2011 Mardi Gras celebration happens on weekend nights Feb. 12 through April 23 at the Universal Studios Florida theme park in Orlando, Florida.
Here's the concert lineup:
Feb. 12: Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
Feb. 19: The ...Photo of the day (9.2.10)
Sep 2nd, 2010 at 5:00PM:
Each year around American Labor Day, the elaborate costumes and street partying associated with pre-Lenten Mardi Gras or Carnival celebrations are taken outside in several cities too cold to parade in February. Brooklyn's West Indian Day Parade is one of the largest in the world, drawing several million spectators, with a population of local West Indian residents to rival that of the Caribbean. ...
