The medieval holiday Masopust turned into a full-fledged carnival in the Czech Republic
As Rosbalt notes, in fact the Venetian, Brazilian, Cologne carnivals, as well as the Russian Maslenitsa, all come from one source. If we look at the Middle Ages, it is about the preparation of Christians for Lent. The Italian word "carnival" itself roughly means "farewell to meat," that is, "meat-fare" or, as in the Czech Republic, Masopust.
If we look even deeper, it is about one of the oldest traditions of mankind – the culture of laughter or carnival culture, the desire to turn the world upside down, to look at life through the eyes of a jester. To understand what this is, it is better to read the famous researcher of carnival culture Mikhail Bakhtin or look at the paintings of Hieronymus Bosch.
An advanced tourist who does not want to be called an art critic just needs to know that if he wants to see a real medieval holiday, and not just bright ostrich feathers, then he should go to the Czech Republic in the first half of February, during Masopust, that is, the local Maslenitsa carnival.
The first thing that will greet him there will be a pig. It could be a whole pig carcass on a spit, a pig's head on a stake, a ham, or, at the very least, a thick soup of pork offal. This is called "zabijačka" – but not because of drunken holiday fights, as many Russian-speaking tourists think. It's just that during Masopust you must definitely "slaughter a pig".
The Czechs have not forgotten that this holiday is not only masks, processions and cheerful music, but also a time to fill your stomach with food not allowed during Lent. And they try their best, despite the fact that Lent in this country (one of the most atheistic in the world) is practically not observed even by local Catholics.
Of course, with the pork at various open-air markets and carnival fairs, many varieties of local draft beer are offered. The best in the world, as the Czechs rightly claim. This tradition, by the way, was under threat. With the adoption of new legislation, there was a risk that from 2017 it would be impossible to sell "live" beer at mass events. The law set a strength limit for beverages sold at 4%, and barrel beer is usually slightly stronger than bottled beer. However, the situation was saved by Czech deputies, who amended the law; among them, as the local yellow press claims, there are those who are not averse to a drink themselves.
Of course, it's not just about food. Carnivals are held all over the country. And they are very different. In rural areas, these are most often round dances in masks. A separate item is children's costume parties. They are held in every school and even kindergarten, like morning parties on March 8. Only, unlike the film "Welcome, or No Trespassing", children are not forced to put on chlorine-treated costumes "for sanitary reasons". They can be ordered in advance from a store, atelier, or simply rented.
The clothing rental service is quite common in the Czech Republic, especially since the ball season begins after the carnivals. Adults take off masks and change into costumes, tailcoats, evening dresses and go dancing. Some go to pompous Viennese-style balls, others to dances with beer and sausages like the "Firemen's Ball" or even the "Canine Trainers' Ball".
But before the prim balls, everyone tries to have a good time. Masquerade processions go through the cities. In some places, like the famous monument city of Český Krumlov, a UNESCO World Heritage site, almost all residents dress up in costumes. Somewhere, following a medieval tradition, they "depose" the burgomaster and elect a jester government for these two weeks, or even a king. By the way, on these days you can easily become an uninvited guest at someone else's wedding by joining one of the processions, because many Czechs prefer to get married during Masopust.
Well, the carnival in the Czech Republic ends on the night of Ash Wednesday. Although, according to folk tradition, the next morning, revelers who had a good time the night before still had the right to drink a glass of moonshine and snack on a croissant with pork cracklings. Fortunately, the Czechs have long abandoned another tradition – throwing a dog from the windows of the royal castle on Wednesday morning and seeing if it survives.