Carnaval

Completely unexpectedly, we found ourselves in the middle of a Mardi Gras parade last night. We drove to La Paz to retrieve my errant suitcase and thought we’d stop by the Carnaval for awhile to see what it was like. Grammar lesson: Carne means meat, val means end, so it’s the end of meat before Lent, hence Mardi Gras is Fat Tuesday.

The atmosphere buzzed with excitement, color, and laughter. So many happy families buying treats for the kids. Delicious breads and candies for sale. I saw maybe six Americans in the crowd of thousands. This is the real thing.

So next thing we know, everyone lines up on the sides of the road and a parade starts up, complete with beautiful floats, marching bands, clowns, and dancing troupes. Someone would say, “Sky Alert” and I’d run over and click off a few shots of the sunset and then run back to the parade to see a wild float. They both kept getting better and better.