A float with a sardine in the Carnaval parade... the burial of the sardine symbolizes the end of Carnaval and the beginning of Lent |
The second holiday of the week isn't technically a holiday but it definitely should be. My Dad turned 54. I obviously couldn't be there to celebrate with him, but I sent him delicious truffles from Belgium. I was also able to Skype him after he did P90X. That's right. My Dad woke up on his 54th birthday and did P90X. If that's not impressive, then I don't know what is.
Holiday number three of the week was Carnaval. I previewed what Carnaval is like a little bit in my post last week, but had the true experience of it this past weekend. Carnaval is definitely a worthwhile experience. There are little carnival rides for kids, plenty of parties for adults, and a parade for everyone. The adults are rowdy and the children are cuter than cute in their costumes. The parade floats were pretty awesome; however, the five float parade seemed a tad short in comparison to the U.S. parades that I am accustomed too. There were also no politicians in the parade, which was mind boggling but a really nice change of pace. For some unknown reason, there was a woman decked out in an American flag patterned outfit in the parade. No other country was represented in the parade and the U.S. isn't exactly loved here. It was rather peculiar in my opinion, but exciting nonetheless.
The costumes for Carnaval rival the Halloween costumes of the U.S. Coordinating costumes is really popular here. Families all follow a theme or groups of friends will all dress as the same thing. Groups of friends that all dressed as Snow White or some other character looked rather goofy to me. Instead of diversifying and dressing as different Disney princesses, they all had to be the exact some princess. For these groups, I obviously judged which person wore it best in my head. American magazines have trained me well.
My long "summer vacation" as my friend Tony calls my time abroad has been great thus far and I already know that it will be hard to leave both Bilbao and the amazing new friends that I've made here. I do miss everyone at home though and absolutely love hearing from people. I hope all is well for everyone! Until next time... ¡Adios!
My long "summer vacation" as my friend Tony calls my time abroad has been great thus far and I already know that it will be hard to leave both Bilbao and the amazing new friends that I've made here. I do miss everyone at home though and absolutely love hearing from people. I hope all is well for everyone! Until next time... ¡Adios!
Another interesting read... thank you for sharing Brooke. Sounds like fun was had by all!
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