Carnaval

Summary: Carnaval is what Las Palmas does in February. For all of February.


You've undoubtedly heard of it. Most likely, you're thinking about Carnaval in Brazil; costumes, drum beats, all night parties. I haven't been fortunate enough to experience that one as my trip to Brazil was in November and too late for Carnaval. After participating in Carnaval Las Palmas style though, I've got enough to report on. And plenty I can't report on without making this waaay NC-17.

I arrived in Las Palmas on the 5th of February not knowing what to expect beyond a beach, a bed and a few beers. After about two hours, I was briefed by my roommate Steve and his ex Alicia about what I'd already missed and what was upcoming. You see, here in Las Palmas, the entire month of February is dedicated to Carnaval. Carnaval goes for 4 full weekends and without any apparent reason. I asked about every motive I could think of from religious to excess alcohol production, but all I could ascertain is that the people here think February is for SERIOUS partying.

This plays on many levels. There are at least 4 major pageant shows; Queen, Drag Queen, Elderly Queen, and Kiddly Queen. There is a huge parade where anyone and everyone is expected to join. There are concerts on the main stage each night as well as a DJ in a VIP area playing until well into the morning. There is an amusement park erected with a ferris wheel and a rollercoaster. There are people from 12 to 80 out at the same time all over a major park near our place. But these aren't just regular people.

No, these are hybridized fantasy characters who come up with lavish, bizarre, sexual, outrageous costumes. Some have been planned for months with many including wire frames and lots of neon colors and feathers. I saw women dressed as birds, men dressed as women, and a few men who actually became women. There was a 6'5", perfectly shaved chap dressed in a leather bustier, fishnets, and a gimp mask who was dolling out lashes with his 8 ft whip. This is no normal street party.

Add to that kind of madness alcohol and food and you've got something really special. But don't just have a few beer stands, oh no...if you're gonna do this, might as well do it right. There are over 30 bars on the grounds, each serving up anything you want to almost anyone. It literally felt like a Hunter S. Thompson escapade and plenty of people were giving booze to these goddamn animals.

From 10pm on, they crawl out from the concrete jungle; some in pairs, others in groups of 5 or more. They meander around, seeking a good spot to post up and let loose the fury of Carnaval. As the DJs rock on and the 'ron con colas' flow, people become groups and groups become masses and the masses form one swollen, swirling collective full of half naked people high on life, hash, alcohol and pheromones. 2AM comes and goes meaning absolutely nothing to this beast. 3AM arrives; everyone is your brother and digital cameras aiming to record the madness can grasp only fragments.

Mere mortals like myself in need of sustenance needed only to walk to the plethora of churro stands and mini restaurants serving up all sorts of guilty pleasures in order to juice up. Fries, bocadillos (sandwiches) with pork, chicken and sauteéd onions, churros filled with chocolate cream, hamburgers, candy, kebaps, jamon serrano - a smorgasbord of party fuel.

And fuel it was. I never left the grounds until 5AM. I was annihilated, but the collective had just begun to lose its first scales.

Any attempt to fully detail this event is doomed to fail and as such I shall finish here. For some pictures to enrich the story, head here where I've thrown together a gallery. (Loads in new window/tab)