Bem
vindo! Willkommen! Welcome!
Bienvenido!
Bienvenue! Benvenuto!
THE
CARNIVAL
OF
OLINDA,
Pernambuco, Brazil
is a Streetcarnival
- Hotel
Pousada Peter
- Art Gallery,
Olinda, Pernambuco, Brazil
Alre
ady some months before the actual
Carnival
of Olinda and Recife is taking place,
are
beginning in december the first carnival events of
Olinda and Recife with the "Pré-Carnival".
The city Olinda is already festively decorated. Carnivalgroups are moving around with their bands under the hot sounds of the
frentic rhythm of the frevomusic, the "Frevo". And the first fans
are coming to this carnivalevents. They are accompanying and following this
carnivalgroups, singing and dancing.
Olinda is already in the best
mood of carnival.
The
Carnival festivities begin in December, as locals begin
preparing for the official Carnival in Recife and Olinda, which starts the week
before Ash Wednesday. The pre-Carnival parties usually consist
of percussion groups practicing in local clubs, city streets and
squares, and even Carnival balls. There are a variety of rhythms
from native Indian and African Maracatu beats to Frevo and
samba. Carnival officially starts with the Galo da Madrugada, a
party in downtown Recife attracting as many as 20,000 costumed
partiers!
The ball Baille dos Artistas:
One of the
most famous Gay Carnival Balls of Brazil is the Baille dos Artistas, (The
Ball of the Artists), in Recife (8
kilometers from Hotel Pousada Peter), which
always takes place on friday, two weeks before the last weekend of the
real Carnival of Recife and Olinda. This Baille
dos Artistas is one of the most creative and funniest carnival
balls of Brazil. Meanwhile it is so trendy, that all of the straight
society of Recife and Pernambuco is participating, too. Every year some tv companies
are showing this Baile dos Artistas life
on tv. This ball Baille dos Artistas is
the begin of the last big carnival ball events of Recife. In addition,
there are a lot
of other carnival ball events in Recife, too.
The ball Baille Masque (Ball of the Masks):
The next big carnival ball after the Baille dos Artistas
is the ball Baille Masque, (Ball of the Masks),
taking place one day after the Baille dos
Artistas always on saturday, two weeks before the last weekend of the
real carnival of Recife and Olinda. Every year some tv companies
are showing this Baile Masque life
on tv.
The ball Baille Municipal:
The
Baille Municipal, (Ball of the City Recife), is
taking
place on the next saturday, which is the last weekend before of "Carnival".
The Baille Municipal is the biggest carnival ball of Recife.
Every year some tv companies
are showing this Baile Municipal life
on tv. In
addition many numerous other ballevents and carnival streetparties are taking
place in Recife and Olinda.
By the way, you will meet on all of this three big ballevents a fix
part of the same participants, who are enjoying this wonderfull
popular carnivalballs.
Last not least, this three carnival balls Baille
dos Artistas, Baille Masque and
the ball Baille Municipal are the
highlights of the Carnival Ball Season of Recife and
Pernambuco. They are popular events. This explains the participation
of the whole population, because the reasonable prices for the entrance makes
it possible.
Carnaval in Olinda
actually gets going the Sunday before the official start, when the
Virgens do Bairro Novo, a traditional bloco
several hundred strong, parades down the seafront road followed by
crowds that regularly top 200,000. By now the old city is covered with
decorations: ribbons, streamers and coloured lanterns are hung from
every nook and cranny, banners are strung across streets and coloured
lighting set up in all the squares. Olinda's
Carnaval is not only famous for its bonecos,
which are first paraded around on Friday night and then at intervals
during the days, but also for the decorated umbrellas that aficionados
use to dance the frevo. The tourist
office has lists of the hundreds of groups, together with routes and
approximate times, but there is something going on all the time in
most places in the old city. The mos
t
famous blocos, with mass followings, are
Pitombeira and Elefantes; also try catching the daytime performances
of travestis, transvestite groups, which have the most
imaginative costumes – ask the tourist office to mark them out on
the list for you.
Olinda's Carnaval
is generally considered to be one of the three greatest in Brazil,
along with Rio and Salvador. It overshadows the celebrations in
neighbouring Recife, and attracts thousands of revellers from all over
the Northeast. It's easy to see why Olinda developed into such a major
Carnaval: the setting is matchless, and local traditions of art and
music are very strong. Like the other two great Brazilian carnivals,
Olinda has a style and feel all of its own: not quite as large and
potentially intimidating as in either Rio or Salvador, the fact that
much of it takes place in the winding streets and small squares of the
old city makes it seem more manageable. The area of the historic
centre "Cidade Alta" of town is
one of the liveliest during Carnaval. The music, with the local
beats of frevo and maracatu
predominating, the costumes and the enormous bonecos,
papier-mâche figures of folk heroes or savage caricatures of local
and national personalities, make this Carnaval
unique.
The Carnival of Olinda is famous
because of its popularity and of the participation of the
entire population
of the State
Pernambuco and Brazil. It is told, that the Carnival
of Olinda is the
most authentic, the best, the most beautiful and
the most spontaneous Carnival within
of Brazil, too, because it is a popular Streetcarnival. This
Streetcarnival is not commercialized, which explains
and makes its polarity.
Hotel Pousada
Peter is located in one of the best-known streets of historic
Olinda, the elevated "Cidade Alta", in Rua do
Amparo 215,
the veritable art and cultural centre with many artis
t and a
bohemian individual atmosphere and life. Through the
street Rua do Amparo all the carnival groups move creating the most
authentic, most popular and most beautiful Streetcarnival of
Brazil, the
famous "Carnaval de Olinda" with its
giant puppets,
costumes and the typical Maracatus, Afoxés, Blocos,
Clubes and Troças. Even for
the brazilians it is the best Streetcarnival of Brazil, too.Therefore
the overnight accomodation prices
for carnival are in the historical center of
Olinda, the "Cidade Alta", highly like that as in Rio de
Janeiro and Salvador de Bahia.
In Olinda, the
people celebrate Carnival in the streets. Practically unknown to
foreign Carnival novices, Olinda has a very respected Carnival
tradition within the country of Brazil. So, if you want to
celebrate Carnival with a more native Brazilian feel, without
being totally surrounded by tourists from every other corner of
the world, as you'll find in Rio, Olinda is an excellent choice.
It's one of the longest Carnival celebrations, which lasts until
early March and believe me it is a very happening, big
party,
attracting lots of beautiful Brazilians looking for a good time.
Daily are celebrating and enjoying about one million persons the Carnival of
Olinda in the historical old part of the town and the new
part of the city of Olinda, the "Bairro
Novo". The genuine joy of life, the music of the Frevo, the tropical
vegetation, the various colors, the uniquely beautiful
topographic location of Olinda, as well, as the tropical light with its magic
atmosphere, produce a fascinating tendency on its participants,
which is not to be
explained.
That is the mysterious magic of the Carnival of
Olinda.
To experience and to know this magic
of the Carnival of
Olinda, it is a must
to follow and accompany the numerous Carnivalgroups, Clubes, Troças
and Blocos, singing and dancing the Frevo, walking through steep
lanes,
as well, as to see the unique over 3 meters high dancing giant
puppets. That is an indescribable, unforgettable magic moment.
Thus th
e Carnivalgroups, Clubes,Troças and Blocos are walking
crosswise trough the historic centre of Olinda with its bands, still above and
down, with the
greatest enthusiasm passing by the steep lanes. Always they are
accompanied by the numerous visitors and participants.
The narrow roads and steep lanes are full from Carnivalfans, the "Foliões",
which each group, the "Blocos" are following, singing and dancing, what
has made and justified the famous Streetcarnival of Olinda in its
uniqueness.
Each year come to enjoy the
special, unique