True fact: Carnival started out as a something as a “final party” before the no-fun dreariness of Lent kicks in. Catholics basically get their freak on in one big blast and hope the inertia carries them until the pall lifts with the coming of Easter. Now, it’s not like the boys needed an excuse to party the night away, but here are a few where we really outdo ourselves.
Sitges, Spain
Sitges, a little southwest of Barcelona, is already a MAJOR party capital, so when it hosts what is regularly called the “wildest party in Spain,” you know it’s going to be good. Called “Carnestoltes” by the natives, Carnival sends the entire city into a paroxysm of partying, but the big ones are the Rua de la Disbauxa (“Debauchery Parade”) on Sunday night and the Rua de l’Extermini, (“Extermination Parade”) on Tuesday night. That last one sounds a little eerie.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Like I could get away with not mentioning this one. Rio’s population spikes by a million, so many people attend this sucker. The must-do is the Sunday parade in the Sambadrome, but a little known fact is that the oldest Carnival street celebration in the city is the Banda Ipamena, which winds through the Rua Farme de Amoedo and ends in a massive street flesh-fest.
Salvador, Brazil
Forget what they say: Size matters. And Rio, for all its pizzazz, is blown out of the water by the FOUR MILLION people partying over 16 MILES of Salvadorian real estate. The center of the country’s Afro-Brazilian culture, Salvador’s Carnival dances to the drums of Africa. This party is so big, there are three separate “circuits”: Campo Grande, Barra-Ondina, and Pelourinho. Pick one; you won’t lose with any of them.
Köln, Germany
If Salvador has a competitor, it’s not Rio, but this unlikely contender in northern Germany. Köln, or Cologne, For spectacle, nothing beats the Rosenmontag Parade (on Monday) and it sloshes the city center like a party-colored tsunami, but gay boys head to Rudolphplatz and Schaafenstrasse, where it is literally a grab-bag of bars, clubs, events (disco, fetish, both) and very friendly Germans. Just like beer. And the kinkiest sex scene in Europe.
New Orleans, USA
Yes, Mardi Gras and Carnival are the exact same holiday. And the Gay Mardi Gras, starting Feb. 28 in the French Quarter is lauded as the best pre-Lenten party in the Big Easy. The Gay Carnival organizations, Krewe of Amon Ra, Krewe of Armeinius, Krewe of Mwindo, Krewe of Petronius, Krewe of Queenateenas, Lords of Leather and Mystic Krewe of Satyricon, all throw their own pre-parade parties, so hit the Web with this one.
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