A Mardi Gras Photo Retrospective
All around the world this week, people celebrated the final days before Lent, a 40-day fast that is typically associated with Catholicism. National Geographic News featured these photos on their website today and I would like to share them with all of you. Compare these photos with the ones featured on the guest blog about Mardi Gras celebrations here in the United States. Enjoy!
February 23, 2009–Above, a dancer fearlessly performs atop an intimidating float during Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Monday.
–Photograph by Natacha Pisarenko/AP
February 22, 2009–Clouds of fire emanate from the mouth of a performer in Barranquilla, Colombia, on Sunday.
The city’s version of Carnival was declared a “Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO in 2003, which means the international organization urges protection of the event as a cultural treasure.
–Photograph by Fernando Vergara/AP
