¡Carnaval!

Sorry I haven't updated in so long! I actually had work to do last week...huh? Anyway, what follows is a long overdue recap of my weekend in Cádiz celebrating Carnaval. For two weeks leading up to Lent, Cádiz holds some of the biggest Carnaval festivities in the world, complete with parades, comedic performances, crazy costumes, and botellónes (a cool word to justify the act of drinking in public). Pretty much a Spanish equivalent of Mardi Gras. So, two weekends ago, a bunch of friends and I packed our bags and our tutus and flew to Jeréz, right outside of Cádiz. Side note: first successful plane ride in Europe! Didn't miss my flight! Nice. So we landed at the Jérez airport early Friday morning, breathed in some of that fresh Andaluz air, and found our way to a bus that would take us the half hour journey to Puerto de Santa María. The bus dropped us off and after a brief (long) period of wandering, we found our hotel. The first thing we had to do was buy ferry tickets to Cádiz from Puerto de Santa María, the port of which was conveniently located right next to our hotel. Both Friday and Saturday we took this 25 min ferry ride to and from Cádiz, which was part of the whole Carnaval experience. We really must have looked like a boat full of crazies in our costumes. After purchasing the tickets and getting some lunch, we donned our masks and boas and began the festivities on the rooftop pool of our hotel. The weather was amazing - high 60s and sunny all day, and we were right next to the beach! 

Rooftop ready!

Space friends

After the short ferry ride, we reached land in Cádiz and followed the crowds into the main plaza which was filled with hundreds of people - a mix of tourists and locals, little kids and older peeps - wandering the streets. I met a few mimes, chatted up some adult babies, and made friends with at least 6 different versions of the pope.

Elf friends

Both Friday and Saturday were filled with street-wandering, friend-making, and fun-having by everyone. When it got chilly at night as we started to make our way back to the ferry, we warmed up in the best way we knew how: con un bocadillo caliente y más vino. It really was a great weekend, and though I didn't get the full tourist experience due to the whole Carnaval thing happening, Cádiz seems like a wonderful little city. This trip also got me super excited for the travel plans I have coming up this semester. Next stop...Dublin for St Patrick's day! 

Check out all the gente!