Mardi Gras is a great tradition in Louisiana. It is the last day of Carnival.
It is a Christian holiday, a five-day celebration that ends before Lent.
Lent is the time before Easter when Christians pray and fast*.
Mardi Gras is always 47 days before Easter Sunday.
Mardi Gras is celebrated all over the world, but the largest celebration is in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The first Mardi Gras parade was on February 24, 1857. Krewes are social clubs that organise parades and balls. They build, decorate and ride floats during the parade, wearing masks and costumes. Parades also include marching bands and jazz bands. People watch the parade, they eat rich food and they dance.
Traditional colours
People dress up in purple, green and gold costumes, the traditional symbolic colors of Mardi Gras. Purple stands for justice, green for faith and gold for power.
Throws
When the krewes ride on the parade floats, they throw out objects to parade watchers. The two most popular throws are purple, green and gold beads and Zulu coconuts
Zulu coconuts are considered the most special thing to catch during the parade. Zulu is one of the oldest African-American Krewes. The coconuts are painted in Mardi Gras colors and decorated with glitter. They are handed into the crowd.
Toy coins known as doubloons are also thrown from floats.
King Cakes are Mardi Gras’s most popular food.
These round cakes laced with cinnamon and iced with purple, green, and gold icing often include a bead or a tiny plastic, porcelain or gold baby doll inside, to remind people of Jesus. The person who finds it is declared "king" and must buy the next cake or host the next party.
Flambeaux
The blazing torches lighting the way for parade-goers during nighttime Mardi Gras festivities are called flambeaux, French for torch. The tradition is to toss coins to the flambeaux carriers, who twirl and dance with their torches.
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Mardi Gras, New Orleans ( recorded by
Graham1853
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London
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Corrected Textmore↓Mardi Gras is a great tradition in Louisiana. It is the last day of Carnival.
It is a Christian holiday, a five-day celebration that ends before Lent.
Lent is the time before Easter when Christians pray and fast*.
Mardi Gras is always 47 days before Easter Sunday.
Mardi Gras is celebrated all over the world, but the largest celebration is in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The first Mardi Gras parade was on February 24, 1857. Krewes are social clubs that organise parades and balls. They build, decorate and ride floats during the parade, wearing masks and costumes. Parades also include marching bands and jazz bands. People watch the parade, they eat rich food and they dance.
Traditional colours
People dress up in purple, green and gold costumes, the traditional symbolic colours of Mardi Gras. Purple stands for justice, green for faith and gold for power.
Throws
When the krewes ride on the parade floats, they throw out objects to parade watchers. The two most popular throws are purple, green and gold beads and Zulu coconuts
Zulu coconuts are considered the most special thing to catch during the parade. Zulu is one of the oldest African-American Krewes. The coconuts are painted in Mardi Gras colours and decorated with glitter. They are handed into the crowd.
Toy coins known as doubloons are also thrown from floats.
King Cakes are Mardi Gras’s most popular food.
These round cakes laced with cinnamon and iced with purple, green, and gold icing often include a bead or a tiny plastic, porcelain or gold baby doll inside, to remind people of Jesus. The person who finds it is declared "king" and must buy the next cake or host the next party.
Flambeaux
The blazing torches lighting the way for parade-goers during night-time Mardi Gras festivities are called flambeaux, French for torch. The tradition is to toss coins to the flambeaux carriers, who twirl and dance with their torches.
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Colour, colours, night-time.