Carnival
New Year's noisy parties are already behind us, chic dresses and fashionable suits are in wardrobes again. The Kluczbork’s Market Square and the streets have been thoroughly cleaned after firework celebrations, made –fortunately- with eco - paper. The end. Period. Now we have to wait all year for the next party. Hang on a minute… Do we really?
From January 6 – The Epiphany until Ash Wednesday there is still carnival! Excellent! Carnival is fun, dance, humour, beautiful masks and costumes. My good friends, from the city of Leon, in the sunny Iberian Peninsula, says that during the carnival, the streets of Spanish cities and towns are filled with bands and colourful dancers. There are lots of fireworks, noise and that means lots of fun.
Perhaps here, in Poland, I can choose to stroll around the city and be carried away by the atmosphere of carnival fiesta ? I search the Internet. After 15 minutes, I come to the conclusion that the carnival in Poland differs completely from the events organized abroad. There are few parades and no noisy bands playing in the streets. There are a lot of parties and ‘carnival’ discos. From time to time, you can see a large outdoor events mainly in big cities. There are some concerts at opera houses, concert halls and theatrical performances. What’s more, carnival in Poland seems to be an important part of childhood. Carnival parties held in kindergartens are always a bit mysterious because children do not want to reveal their dresses to their peers. There are many games and competitions during the balls. In primary and secondary schools, the parties are more interesting. Young people are enjoying carnival in a more modern way. They dress up according to the current fashion.
How about the olden days? I asked my grandmother, who told me the story told by her mother. There was no global warming then and generally in winter there was lots of snow. One of the most popular carnival activities were sleigh rides (kulig), where the whole family, along with musicians, would travel from house to house. Kulig had to be properly planned, each visited house prepared dishes and drinks. In addition, they had to offer accommodation for dozens of people and prepare rooms for dancing. Carnival Balls were fun, with cotillions and of course carnival masks. Kulig would usually arrive at dusk, dancing and eating would last until dawn, then guests would sleep until afternoon meal. Having eaten again, the whole party would get on the sledge and travel to the next house. Sometimes, after dark they would light torches to see the path. On occasions, drivers would become confused and loose the way in the forest. My great-grandma even recalled that once they were chased by pack of hungry wolves and had to throw pieces of meat taken from the table. I also heard that the party could even last a whole week !
And then a thought occurred to me. It’s not important how long the carnival last. It is not even important where you are partying or what you are wearing. The most important thing in carnival, is to be with people you like and, even for a short moment, forget about your daily routines.
Autor: Wiktoria Rzymkiewicz
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |