Loosen Your Belt; it's Fat Tuesday!
Mardi Gras also known as Fat Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday. It originated in France as a celebration leading up to the Lent. Lent is the Christian’s countdown to the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. During these forty days they fast and try to avoid eating meat to symbolize the fast that Jesus went on when he went into the desert to be tempted by the Devil. This is why on Fat Tuesday they indulge on the lavish of foods, drinks, and the luxuries of life.
Mardi Gras is a celebration that dates back to pagan celebrations of spring and fertility. When the religion of Christianity became more common in Romania they added them to the list of celebrations. Eventually over time they’ve combined to create the enormous celebration that we’ve come to know as Mardi Gras. New Orleans is famously known for having enormous festivals for the holiday.
Celebrators dress in costumes or the colors purple, gold, and green with beads as they attend parades and other festivities. In the 70s a group named Zulu had been throwing coconuts into the crowd. Though a hit at the time, no pun intended, it was dangerous. It was switched back to throwing the beads into the crowd for souvenirs. Traditional Mardi Gras beads are purple, green, and gold colors. The purple symbolizes justice; the green represents faith; and the gold signifies power.
Some other traditions to celebrate Mardi Gras:
King Cake: is baked with a small plastic baby hidden inside, the person who gets the slice with the baby in it has to host the next party. The baby I meant to symbolize the child Jesus. While the name ‘king’ is a nod to the three wise men that brought gifts to the child after Christmas.
Mardi Gras Indians: African Americans can be seen as well as Native Americans in full headdresses partying. This is paying homage to the fact that runaway slaves could find shelter within different tribes.
King of the Carnival: there are many royal family parodies inside the celebration of Mardi Gras; from jesters to the king himself. Rex sits on his throne in the Rex Organization's parade of eye-popping floats on Mardi Gras Day. Selected every year this man receives a key to the city and signifies the beginning of the festivities.
Flambeaux: this is a flaming torch that dipped in colored wax and carried to light the way got partiers. They were originally carried by slaves or colored men in hopes of receiving a tip. They first came about in 1857.
Masks: men would wear masks while partying to hide their identities.
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