Before going abroad, everyone told me that I had to go to Karneval...
this fun-filled celebration definitely lived up to all of its hype!
On top of our trip to Switzerland,
we had the time of our lives celebrating Karneval over the long weekend!
It's a festive season that occurs immediately before Lent
& the main events are held prior to Ash Wednesday.
The name can be translated to "farewell to meat,"
a phrase embraced by Karneval celebrants
who encourage letting go of your everyday self
& embracing the carefree nature of the festival.
Karneval is celebrated around the world and typically involves a parade,
combining some elements of a circus and public street party.
People often dress up or masquerade, which marks an overturning of daily life.
Thursday is referred to as Weiberfastnacht or Women's Day
& is the beginning to the fun festivities!
A group of us girls slept over at a friend's host house the night before.
It was fun to get ready all together!
In the morning, we met at the new AIB with all of the study abroad programs
before crossing the bridge to Beuel for a local parade.
Everyone was decked out in fun and creative costumes!
Bright colors filled the streets and candy wrappers were scattered all along the ground.
As the parade participants passed through, they threw kamelle (candy)
& other fun things at the crowd.
I was lucky and got a bottle of champagne!
After a few hours in Beuel, we went to Köln Sud for more festivities!
People filled the streets dancing, singing Karneval songs,
giving lots of butzjes (kisses) and having a great time!
Rosenmontag (Rose Monday) is the highlight of the Karneval period.
Nearly two million people fill the streets of Köln (Cologne)
to watch the parade & join in the festivities!
We returned to Köln Sud on Monday
& watched the parade for as long as we could bare in the freezing cold!
After a few hours, we warmed up in some clubs ;)
and then headed back to Bonn.
We met up with the rest of our group
& this was my favorite part of the entire day!
We danced the night away in the streets of Altstadt with the locals
and sang along to the traditional Karneval songs.
I couldn't have asked for a better weekend in Switzerland and celebrating Karneval!
Oh my gosh this looks so fun! What a party!! :)
ReplyDelete