Day 3: Samba Parade- Festival

      On the third day, we all decided to attend one of the most extravagant events of Carnival, the Samba Parade. We all decided to take the train there, which cost about $0.85, and lasted about 60 minutes. We waited impatiently for us to reach, but there seemed to be a stop every second! The landscape seemed to be one out of a movie, rolling hills with an array of trees surrounding the country side, around ancient buildings that slowly crept above the horizon. Pillows were brought by us and we all promptly took a nap before waking up to exit into the city of Central do Brasil.            

Stands on the sides of the streets

     The city was lively with stands surrounding the sides of the streets, containing masks, costumes, and exotic foods that gave the air a spicy aroma. People were coming from every direction filling the streets with a crowd that made it nearly impossible to go through. The food was irresistible and soon we all got some Brazilian Nuts and Acai Berry Sorbet, which only cost about $2.

Carnival Museum

We all then decided to go to the museum by the Sambadrome, where we learned the story of Carnival and Samba. Carnival started in the 1830s, and was originally a Greek festival in honor of the God Dionysus (God of Wine). The Romans adopted this festival turning it into a feast and later expanded it into a festival right before lent. This is a celebration of last indulgence before then. The mayor then crowns the Fat King/King Momo on Friday, starting the first day of lent. Carnival fever spreads through the towns setting every corner on 'fire' with festivities to celebrate this huge festival. Just knowing what was coming in store made excitement radiate through our bodies and we all couldn't help the happy screams that escaped our bodies, making many people stare at us. The Samba Parade was about to begin.

Samba Parade Float

    We picked up some background information from the museum. The Samba Parade is one of the many events that occur for Carnival. Visitors, like us, come from around the world for a fun, lively week of dancing and partying. At the Samba Parade, schools from the 'Special Group', the best of the best, compete to be the Year's Champion. This all takes place at the magnificent Sambadrome Stadium or the Passarela do Samba Darcy Ribeiro.
    Built in a record 110 days, it is divided into sectors with different seating arrangements. Each sector consists of restrooms, a food court, bars, restaurants, and ice-cream stands.

Sambadrome

    The Arquibancadas is the grandest sector and of course the most expensive, hence it having the best view. We couldn't pay that much though and got decent seats($115) in Sector 12, using the pillows that we brought as seat cushions on the hard allocated chairs we had to sit on.

Vanguard Commission

     A group of 12 people, called the Vanguard Commission, led the way for their float and soon loud cheers erupted from around us and the parade began. Each float was decorated with special effects, probably made to catch the attention of the judges, while some were motorized or manually pulled around.

Eagle Samba Float

    All the dancers were mesmerizing with their intricate costumes that made it seem like they were floating about to entertain us. The most beautiful float was one of a magnificent eagle that flapped down the Parade Route. The Golden Beauty stared at us with its hollow spheres with a lit up crown that just seemed to accentuate its beauty. Not only was the float magnificent, but the girl dancers wearing beautiful white dresses,while the guys wore white tux's. They danced around as if they were born for only this purpose.

Sambadrome Stadium emptying out after the parade

    As the float flew by us, we all began to feel our energy running low and the floats went by us in a haze, while we all stared at the bright lights that continued to shine down on us. The parade seemed to have ended in the blink of an eye and like the snap of someone's finger we were all seeing the stands emptying themselves, filling all of us with a feeling of sadness. The walk back to the train lasted hours as we looked back upon the bright Sambadrome Stadium, that was just then filled with the cheers of millions of people.
    We loaded the train and headed off towards our hotel, with the illuminated city flying by us.This was a Joy and Passion filled day, with never ending fun that we will remember for the rest of our lives.