Rio Carnival

Getting back to my blog nearly 2 weeks after carnival!

Carinval! CARNAVAL!! A-MA-ZING!

Our final week in work loomed, prior to Carnival weekend! It was a good week, where the staff were a lot more relaxed, given at this point, most of the costumes who have had to be shipped out to those dressing up for carnival!

We enjoyed our last few days with our colleagues... plenty of photo opportunites and humour! Even getting to grab some spare feathers and sequins and creating our own little pieces of costume! (See my pink hat with green feathers!)

Friday 12th - Carnical officially commenced kicking off with the Children`s Parade at the Sambadrome

Free entry and we went to support our school and see the costumes we had prepared. Our kind colleagues gave each one of us a T-shirt... the Children`s Samba School t-shirt, which we wore that night, along with Mangueira school coloured parafanelia!

The parade was a joy to watch... made the hairs on your back stand up, especially when Mangueira came out! The hard slog of working in a very hot factory, stood up for most of the day, gluing feather after feather... a mundane and repetitve job was now completely worth the painstaking effort of every dab of glue and every snip of sequins! The kids were having a wonderful time... dancing and waving to the crowds... it was just amazing... the band that supported them were just mindblowing too and was particularly fascinated by the ´directors`that took charge of each section within each school. At least 3 conductor type person in the band area, edging them on, conducting and blowing whistles to stop/go whatever.... !

This was our first night at the Samabadrome, the first of three and it was AWESOME!!

Before I move on to Saturday... I should mention that the Metro to get us to the Sambadrome was absolutely jam packed! The group was split, as there was not enough room in the Metro, whilst when we did get on... it was like a tin of sardines... actually worse than that.

Imagine stuffing your suitcae to the brim and you literally squash the last item into it before you manage to zip it up...and its by now bulging! Thats how you got on the train.... so then, when you next open the zip.... your clothes will pop out... well that was the same, once the doors opened, you kind of went through the doorway! (I dont mean we were popping out of our clothes... though I am sure some were, as it was so packed in there!!) It was mental and somewhat dangerous!

Saturday 13th February - Our Parade

On this day, the volunteers got to parade with one of the first division schools! I only picked up my costume in the afternoon, whilst others had picked them up on Friday and they were to be seen piled up in the hallway in the hostel!

HUGE costumes.... where we doned a boat!!! I`d seen in a photo we may have had a horse, but it seems we got the boat and the horses were actually parading behind us... similar outfits!

Now... as mentioned above... the Metro was just crazy on the Friday night, so we thought we`d try an alternative mode of transport to head to the Sambadrome on Sat night! Given by this time, we would need double the space - due to the boat... plus we did not want to damage the costume before the parade!

However... our coordinators instructed us that we were to go by Metro, like other parading Cariocas... who would also take the journey in a ´sardine tin´type carriage!

MADNESS now follows.... and a near miss of parading at the Carnival!

Some of the volunteers had headed off a little earlier than the rest and to one Metro stop behind the one we took. When the carriages arrived.... they were full.... but somehow, after hearing someone shout... I got on... onto a dark carriage, where there seemed to be other volunteers... case of being dragged and pushed... but I was now on the carriage! Then I hear someone saying I was squashing their feathers..... I couldnt tell where I was ... but I was squashed up against another´s costume (thankfully it was ok)... Then the realisation we were in a fairly quiet carriage... plenty of room!! But it was dark!! We then find out, that the carriage was not working properly and we should not have got onto it!

Kris, who enticed us on, due to the space etc.... got chucked off for doing so! 5 parading boats were now on this virtually empty and dark carriage! We were due to get off at Centro metro (I had taken a photo of the instructions and had them to hand).... but unfortuantely for us... the doors to the left of the carriage did not open and only one door would open on the right.... and yes... the Centro stop was a LEFT door stop! The air was a little blue at this point.... but no matter we thought, we`d get off at the next stop as we also knew that would take us to the Sambadrome.... HOWEVER.... little did we know how that then COMPLETLY CONFUSED matters!! We should have caught the train back and got off at Centro.... hindsight is a wonderful thing! But we headed towards the Sambadrome... only to realise each school was lined up either to the left of right of the Sambadrome.... and only the ones due on next were allowed in the gated area! We did not know where to go... we found other volunteers lost like us, but at least the majority of us were now together... though LOST!

Anyhow... after a lot of walking.... we got into the right gate and got to our position, which was within feet of the Sambadrome entry....a VERY CLOSE SHAVE! Hot sweaty and the air was ´VERY BLUE´by this point!! Especially when some volunteers didnt make it until the ´11th hour´... as they ended up taking the Metro in the opposite direction - to the end point, to get on an emptry Metro in the right direction... due to it being so full!

But... as soon as we were on the Sambadrome parade... the effort and palava of getting there blew away in just a moment... it was an amazing experience! About 50minutes or so, parading, somehow dancing and somehow trying to sing (mime) to the samba school song, waving to the crowds! Pure Genius!!

My head was hurting somewhat (as did other heads) due to the size of the Hat! Bit too tight... so when we got to the end, the outfits quickly came off!! Sweaty Betties all around!!! Our costumes requied us to wear what seemed like black pyjamas - covering full legs and arms, along with white shoes, plus then the boat piece and shoulder piece on top... so it got very hot!

A remarkable experience and whilst I had intended to keep mine and take home... (post home), the size of the thing was enoromous and would be far too expensive... so I tore some parts off it and that should now be on its way back to the farm!

Sunday 14th Feb - the Premier Samba schools parade.... 6 tonight, followed by 6 on Monday night. We decided to go on Monday.... as that´s when Mangueira were parading.... the last school to parade at 2.20am in the morning. By the way.... we never saw the Black Cat costumes in the Childrens parade, so were guessing they must be for the adults!

Monday 15th Feb - The last 6 Premier Schools Parade - inc Mangueira (the school we worked for!)

We arrived at the Sambadrome at midnight! Had a wander through some of the paraders getting ready to parade and saw some sights! From girls wearing hardly anything, apart from very feathery head pieces, to those covered from head to toe!

The sambadrome was busy.... we were in with the locals at section 6.... and a worthwhile experience as they knew the songs and would sing and dance throughout the parades! At midnight, the 2nd school of 6 had just finished... and they seemed to be running late! So, we got to see the remainding 4.... and yes... they ran very late! Mangueira was the very last school and they finished parading at 5.45am!! They spent 1hour 20mins going through the sambadrome. A stopclock exists along the parade avenue, as schools also score points for timekeeping etc....

It was an A-MA-ZING experience and I eventually got to be at 745am that morning! Though listening to the same song repeating for an hour and 20mins could drive you crazy!! But Mangueria had a fab song and they seemed to alter the style, so that was even better!

Wonderful costumes, floats and it was amazing to see at last the Mangueria floats... now finished.... and they looked so much better with the people adorning them.... in their sequins and feathers... PLUS... we got to see the BLACK CATS!! A very exciting moment!!!! I have seen and worked with probably every piece of green feather that laiden their shoulder pieces.... and there were lots!!!

We noticed Mangueira seemed to have thousands of feathers... and I am sure that between all samba schools during Carnival... they must go through Millions!!! I wonder what happens to the Ostriches.... they need so many of their feathers??!!

Anyhow... a wonderful weekend of Carnival in Rio..... a few days left before I depart the city and head for Argentina.....

Ciao for now

Helen xx