| Cadiz Carnival, Andalucia, Spain |
| A guide to the best carnivals in Spain. |
| Tourist and holiday information for Spain including concerts, gigs & shows. Cádiz Carnival. Cádiz, Andalucia, Spain http://www.carnavaldecadiz.com/ http://www.cadizturismo.com Cádiz Carnival. Feb 16 to 26th, 2012 Cádiz, Andalucia, Spain Tel. 956693001 The Carnival centres around Shrove Tuesday February 21st 2012, February 12th 2013, March 4th 2014. Cádiz celebrates the carnival with processions from the weekend before, to the weekend after Cadiz Carnaval de Cardez, with all the parts of the typical carnival but bigger, brasher and louder and more colourful... you get the picture. bands, fancy-dress processions and float parade. Look for the parodies of politicians, celebrities and the church. You'll see a lot of choirs, or agrupaciones, which are groups of between three and forty singers. The Falla's Contest is a Music festival held in the Gran Teatro Falla before Carnival. The chirigotas, choirs normally of ten unison or close-harmony singers, accompanied by bombo, caja (drum, box - used as a percussion instrument) and guitar. Their songs are the most satirical of the different types of groups and the literary quality of the songs can be very high (they may be written by local authors). Only a few musical forms such as the tango or pasodoble are used, so that everyone knows the tune and can concentrate on the words. Cadiz takes its carnival seriously and it is planned all year. They love you to join if you have an outfit and are up for a good time. Known throughout The Cadiz carnival as a huge street party. 11 days of non-stop fun, originality and, more than anything else, mass participation. The whole city is transformed, the streets filling with people who come out to laugh and make others laugh, to sing, and to have a good time. A month before the official start of carnival, the groups that compete in the Falla Theatre competition begin their rehearsals, which start warming up the atmosphere. Different carnival groups organise open-air gastronomic fiestas where they play their repertoire of humorous songs in public and where you can also sample typical Cadiz produce. The songs are usually humorous, providing an ingenious critique of events that have made the news over the course of the year. The Falla Theatre competition sees more than 100 groups taking part, with the popular chirigotas standing out especially. It is a great spectacle, packed with humour, music and colour. The Grand Final is one of the main attractions of the fiesta: it is held on the first Friday of Carnival an lasts until the following morning. It is then that the great explosion of carnival joy moves onto the city streets. The groups that have taken part roam the streets of the old town, packed with people, singing their compositions and, on Sunday and Monday, they get up on platforms to perform the Carrusel de Coros. Fancy dress is obligatory at the Cadiz Carnival. Whether you do it alone, as a couple or in a group, it is vital to wear fancy dress, at least on the first Saturday and during the parades. There are two parades where the public become an active part of the multi-colour cavalcade. The Gran Cabalgata (Great Parade) is on the first Sunday. It runs down the avenue at the entrance to the city and brings tens of thousands of people together. The second is the Cabalgata del Humor (Comedy Parade), which runs through the old town on the last weekend. The “charangas ilegales” are another characteristic element of the Cadiz Carnival: they usually come together in Plaza de las Flores. They are families, groups of friends, or workmates whose repertoire of songs compete for humour and laughs with the “official” groups. Open-air parties, fireworks, fancy dress dances and endless additional activities all go to ensure that the fun does not stop for a moment throughout the celebrations.
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Tourist offices in SpainPrado del Rey Oficina Municipal de Turismo de Prado del ReyLocation Calle Duque de Osuna, 22 11660 Prado del Rey (Cadiz) Contact details Tel.: +34 956724610 http://www.pradodelrey.org
Tourist offices in SpainCádiz Centro de Visitantes de CádizLocation Paseo De Canalejas, s/n 11006 Cádiz (Cadiz) Contact details Tel.: +34 956241001 Fax.: +34 956241005 info.turismo@cadiz.es http://www.cadiz.es
Tourist offices in SpainCádiz Oficina de Turismo de la Junta de Andalucía de CádizLocation Avenida Ramón de Carranza s/n 11005 Cádiz (Cadiz) Contact details Tel.: +34 956203191/ +34 956203195 Fax.: +34 956203192 otcadiz@andalucia.org http://www.andalucia.org
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