Carnaval and Cádiz is its Capital!
Carnaval is an (almost) world famous festival held in Cádiz,
every year to have one last splurge before Lent. It can
be thought of as Fat Tuesday, Spanish style, meets Halloween.
This ancient city on the southwest coast of Spain
springs to life as people leave their surfboards and come
out to celebrate. Hostels are booked months in advance of
this week-long celebration. People come from all over Europe
to take on a new identity and hit the streets and fill the
plazas until dawn. Improvised music, mostly drums, can be
heard over the crowd. We arrived in Cádiz around two in
the afternoon-- too early! After a slow afternoon checking
into our rooms and taking a nap, we hit the streets around
10:30
that night. Though Carnaval did not technically begin until
later, we were ready to show off our costumes. I went dressed
as Elmo: I used a red bandana and my señora
decorated socks that she sewed on to my hat for eyes. But
no one knew what I was supposed to be! When I explained
that Elmo was a Sesame
Street character, everyone nodded
knowingly, saying “Ahhhhh, you’re Cookie Monster!” This
general confusion only added to the fun: when you can be
anyone for Carnaval in Cádiz, you really may as well be...
anyone! Carnaval should be experienced by anybody who thinks
that they have seen a big party, because this is a once
in a lifetime experience.
--Cameron Smith, ‘07
