Mardi Gras

Que c'est temps de mardi gras!

Que c'est temps de mardi gras!

Mardi Gras, which means "fat Tuesday" in French, is celebrated in many francophone regions. Mardi Gras masks are a traditional part of this annual celebration, and making them is a fun and very creative project.

Common Areas that Celebrate Mardi Gras:

In the Belgian city of Binche the Mardi Gras festival is one of the most important days of the year and the summit of the Carnival of Binche.

Belgium

Germany

Brazil

Italy

Netherlands

United States, New Orleans

Sweden

While not observed nationally throughout the United States, a number of traditionally ethnic French cities and regions in the country have notable celebrations.

Carnival is the most famous Brazilian holiday. During this time period Brazil attracts 70% of its tourists.

The celebration of Mardi Gras in Germany is called Karneval, Fastnacht, or Fasching, depending on the region.

In Italy Mardi Gras is called Martedí Grasso (Fat Tuesday). It's the main day of Carnival along with the Thursday before, called Giovedí Grasso (Fat Thursday), which ratifies the start of the celebrations.

The Netherlands also has a festival similar to Mardi Gras. It's called Carnaval and is similar to the Venice Carnival. The origin of the word Carnaval is 'Carne Vale' which means "Goodbye to the meat" in Latin.

In Sweden the celebration is called Fastan, when you eat fastlagsbulle, also called Fettisdagsbulle . That name comes from the words "fett" (fat) and "tisdag" (Tuesday). Originally, this was the only day one should eat faslagsbullar.

The traditional food for Mardi gras is pancakes.