Travel Report: Carnival Parades of Germany and Italy.

First let me say as a general rule (with very few exceptions) I HATE
PARADES.
I have participated in various ones in various ways and make seen more
then a few and I find them boring. However I am willing to try and
see new things.

This report is based on trips in 2003 (Germany) and 2004 (Italy).
Times vary depending on the start of Lent so if you are interest in
going next year check the various cities web sites.

Italy: Milan, Verona.

The carnival parades for Verona and Milan are the same thing you would
see in your average US parade; bands, cheerleaders, a few floats, and
people riding in cars or horses or walking and waving to people. The
only real difference is a lot of participants were wearing period
clothing for the time of the Italian renaissance. Overall a bore stay
at home.
Also in both of theses cities they various street sellers were selling
silly string and "fun foam" think shaving cream with a dispenser head
that breaks it into bubbles. Because of immature adults (either doing
it themselves or not stopping their kids) if you were not at the start
of the parade by the time the people or floats reached you they were
covered in the stuff.

Do fee sorry for the cheerleaders. Almost all were dressed in
mini-skirts and stocking and the temperature was just above freezing.


Italy: Venice.

There are various parades and activities, so check the web,
http://www.carnivalofvenice.com, in a few months for next year or you
can go their now and see this year's schedule.
The city of Venice hired a lot of people to dress up in costumes of
various types; they are around the major tourism sites and pose for
pictures for free. Come here to see the various renaissance period
pieces.
As for parades there are various ones. I saw part of a gondola parade
which was kind of neat, not as impressive as the pictures of all the
gondolas you see fully decked out (those are from the regalia in
September) but neat. I was not there for the very end of carnival so
I missed the big parade.

Overall the carnival events in Venice are kind of neat, a nice break
if you have been to Venice before. If this is your first time for
Venice it is not the best time to see the sites but it is the best
time to see the people.

Germany: Schramberg.

Germans call it Fashing, and most parades all over Germany are on
Rosenmontag (Rose Monday), but it can vary depending on the city.
Mainz has the biggest and most famous parade, but from pictures and
descriptions of people who have seen it it is your standard bands,
cheerleaders, floats, people waving type of thing.

Schamberg is in the black forest, and is locally famous with mainly
locals from nearby villages. They have 2 parades on Rose Monday.

The first parade is a river parade, local participates in home made
floats attempt to make it down the river running through the city and
down the small waterfall while staying out of the ice lined water.
Most do not make it; too the cheers, claps and laughter of the
watchers. After this parade is over the participation's walk through
the city while whatever remains of their former ride.

The second parade starts in the afternoon. This parade is a blast,
large amounts of floats with Hansel and Gretal or other pagan themes.
Few bands outside of brass bands, all the other music is from huge
bells that various marchers carry.
Most of the costumes are wood and fur based costumes which from what I
was told can cost $5,000+ US and are handed down in the family. They
are of cats, wolves, bears, witches and other such and are really,
really neat looking.
They generally do not just walk down the street they mix it up with
the audience and try to sneak up on kids and scare them, then they
give them candy or fruit. In addition they pass out bread pretzels,
breads, and some even give out small cups of schapes or heated wine to
the adults.
Now the trick of getting the various food items is to be in a large
group or be sing loadly or shout the various crowd songs. The basic
one translates to "Hungry, Hungry, hungry is the cat"


Schamberg is not to be missed, I will be going to this every year I
can.

William Dieterich schrieb:

First let me say as a general rule (with very few exceptions) I HATE
PARADES.
I have participated in various ones in various ways and make seen more
then a few and I find them boring. However I am willing to try and
see new things.

This report is based on trips in 2003 (Germany) and 2004 (Italy).
Times vary depending on the start of Lent so if you are interest in
going next year check the various cities web sites.

The biggest carnival celebrations in Germany are in Cologne, Düsseldorf
and Mainz. Something like 2 million visitors, most of whom dress up in
fancy costumes themselves. Carnival starts on the Thursday before when
by tradition women in fancy dress take over the town hall and cut men's
ties off, and goes on until Rose Monday, when the big parades take
place..
T.


Italy: Milan, Verona.

The carnival parades for Verona and Milan are the same thing you would
see in your average US parade; bands, cheerleaders, a few floats, and
people riding in cars or horses or walking and waving to people. The
only real difference is a lot of participants were wearing period
clothing for the time of the Italian renaissance. Overall a bore stay
at home.
Also in both of theses cities they various street sellers were selling
silly string and "fun foam" think shaving cream with a dispenser head
that breaks it into bubbles. Because of immature adults (either doing
it themselves or not stopping their kids) if you were not at the start
of the parade by the time the people or floats reached you they were
covered in the stuff.

Do fee sorry for the cheerleaders. Almost all were dressed in
mini-skirts and stocking and the temperature was just above freezing.

Italy: Venice.

There are various parades and activities, so check the web,
http://www.carnivalofvenice.com, in a few months for next year or you
can go their now and see this year's schedule.
The city of Venice hired a lot of people to dress up in costumes of
various types; they are around the major tourism sites and pose for
pictures for free. Come here to see the various renaissance period
pieces.
As for parades there are various ones. I saw part of a gondola parade
which was kind of neat, not as impressive as the pictures of all the
gondolas you see fully decked out (those are from the regalia in
September) but neat. I was not there for the very end of carnival so
I missed the big parade.

Overall the carnival events in Venice are kind of neat, a nice break
if you have been to Venice before. If this is your first time for
Venice it is not the best time to see the sites but it is the best
time to see the people.

Germany: Schramberg.

Germans call it Fashing, and most parades all over Germany are on
Rosenmontag (Rose Monday), but it can vary depending on the city.
Mainz has the biggest and most famous parade, but from pictures and
descriptions of people who have seen it it is your standard bands,
cheerleaders, floats, people waving type of thing.

Schamberg is in the black forest, and is locally famous with mainly
locals from nearby villages. They have 2 parades on Rose Monday.

The first parade is a river parade, local participates in home made
floats attempt to make it down the river running through the city and
down the small waterfall while staying out of the ice lined water.
Most do not make it; too the cheers, claps and laughter of the
watchers. After this parade is over the participation's walk through
the city while whatever remains of their former ride.

The second parade starts in the afternoon. This parade is a blast,
large amounts of floats with Hansel and Gretal or other pagan themes.
Few bands outside of brass bands, all the other music is from huge
bells that various marchers carry.
Most of the costumes are wood and fur based costumes which from what I
was told can cost $5,000+ US and are handed down in the family. They
are of cats, wolves, bears, witches and other such and are really,
really neat looking.
They generally do not just walk down the street they mix it up with
the audience and try to sneak up on kids and scare them, then they
give them candy or fruit. In addition they pass out bread pretzels,
breads, and some even give out small cups of schapes or heated wine to
the adults.
Now the trick of getting the various food items is to be in a large
group or be sing loadly or shout the various crowd songs. The basic
one translates to "Hungry, Hungry, hungry is the cat"

Schamberg is not to be missed, I will be going to this every year I
can.

You should try the carnival in Basel or Basle Switzerland.

I think its normally in February.

On 7 Mar 2004 07:15:17 -0800, William Dieterich wrote:

floats with Hansel and Gretal or other pagan themes

I doubt that Hänsel and Gretel are a pagan theme. Unless you count the
absence of any religious theme of any sort in the story to be pagan.

--
Tim.

If the human brain were simple enough that we could understand it, we would
be so simple that we couldn't.

"Miss L. Toe" wrote in message ...
You should try the carnival in Basel or Basle Switzerland.

I think its normally in February.

Starts always with the "Morgestraich" on Monday, 4 a.m. (yes,
early morning) a week after the carnival in [traditionally
or officially] catholic regions. For count-down to the next
one see
http://www.unibas.ch/photochemie/MoStraich.html :-)

Some websites on Basle Fasnacht (in German):
http://www.baz.ch/fasnacht/ or
http://home.balcab.ch/r.l.sperandio/fasnacht.html

Have fun!

J.E.(Hans)Rotzetter

"Miss L. Toe" schrieb:

You should try the carnival in Basel or Basle Switzerland.

I think its normally in February.

Carnival is always six weeks before Easter.

On Mon, 08 Mar 2004 15:10:24 GMT, Tim Challenger
"timothy(dot)challenger(at)apk(dot)at" wrote:

On 7 Mar 2004 07:15:17 -0800, William Dieterich wrote:

floats with Hansel and Gretal or other pagan themes

I doubt that Hänsel and Gretel are a pagan theme. Unless you count the
absence of any religious theme of any sort in the story to be pagan.

I don't know; there's certainly a Wicca element in the story!


-----------
Barbara Vaughan
My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it
I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup