First of all for all the people who have asked me the last weeks: Yes, they do celebrate carnival over here! Of course a little bit different than in Holland, but they definitely do celebrate carnival.
This weekend Roberto, our Italian friend, was visiting us. He choose a nice weekend to do so, as stated above. He finished his exams on Friday, had a party at night and went directly over to Lleida. So when he arrived on Saturday afternoon, we first offered him a hot shower.
After arranging his stuff, we hurried back to the city center to see the carnival parade. I guess it was at that moment that Jong Nederland received the yearly prize of honour (and with yearly I mean that JN is receiving it every year) for their wagon. Here the parade starts when the sun sets, and I have to admit that the wagons look really good with al these lights. There were about 30 wagons, mostly crowded with children. Popular themes were indians, the north pole, and vikings.
After the tour (at was already 21:00 hours) we took Roberto to an Italian restaurant. I know that it is quite a guess to serve pasta to an Italian, but this restaurant is really good. Nine is a little bit early to eat, but on these kind of days you have to be early, or you’ll end up waiting a long time outside the restaurant.
After the meal, we went to River café, which is close to the place where the party in the evening would take place. The main party started at eleven thirty, but at midnight the hall wasn’t even half full. The band was playing really good, but Metallica and AC/DC are not the kind of music I expect on a carnival party. Around one thirty more people started entering the place, waiting eagerly for the main act: Dr. Calypso. Dr. Calypso is Catalunya’s most famous ska band, and guarantees a lot of pleasure.
The next day we didn’t do a lot, as usual on Sundays. We helped Roberto pack his stuff, as he was moving on to the mountains of Vall d’Aran for his first skiing experience.
