A couple weeks ago, I was in Oviedo, which is a city in the north of Spain. I was there for a conference but also got a lot of time to tour around the city and sightsee. While I was in the city, the people were celebrating carnaval, which is a big celebration at the start of Lent. Lent is a religious holiday that is celebrated 40 days before Easter. To celebrate this holiday, people in Spain have huge parties the week before Lent starts that include parades, dancing, eating as well as lots of socializing with friends and family. I got to celebrate carnaval in Avilés, Spain, as well as in Oviedo.
Carnaval is a week long celebration to start the Lenten season. It reminds me a lot of Mardi Gras traditions in New Orleans with lots of parades, music, and activities for all ages. I got to celebrate carnaval in the city of Avilés which is in the north of Spain. The island of Tenerife, which is one of the Canary Islands (belonging to Spain) has some of the biggest carnaval celebrations in the world. There are huge parades with many dancers and costumes. People in the parades or "celebrations" dress in costumes covered with diamonds and sparkles. Carnaval artists wear masks and play instruments while parading down the city streets as a form of entertainment for people to watch and even join in with.
