The Nottinhg Hill Carnival is an annual event which takes place in Notting Hill, London, in August, over three days ( a weekend and a bank holiday ). It is led by the members of the Caribbean population, many of whom have lived in the area since the 1950s. The carnival attracts millions of people each year and is among the largest street festivals in Europe.
Carnival kicks off on Sunday with Children's Day, with a shorter Carnival route for children and young people. The main parade takes place on Monday.
Six disciplines go to make up the carnival as we know it today. Mas' ( masquerade), Steelband, Calypso ( political, social and satirical commentary, set to music ), Soca ( the traditional music of Carnival, a fusion of Soul and Calypso ), Static Sound Systems, and Samba all play their part in this carnival.
The Notting Hill Carnival is now generally viewed as a dynamic celebration of London's multicultural diversity, though dominated by the Caribbean culture in the best traditions of Rio.
Interesting Internet links:
¶ 1:33 PM 0 comments
Mardi Gras, which in French translates to Fat Tuesday, is officially the day before Ash Wednesday, and is also called Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day. It can occur anytime between February 3rd and March 9th, depending on when Easter is held that particular year. In 2007 Mardi Gras Day is on February 20th.
New Orleans Mardi Gras, in the US state of Louisiana, is particularly well-known, often called " the greatest free show on earth". The celebrations draw hundreds of thousands of tourists to the city, in addition to the celebrating locals for the parties and parades. Most tourists can be found within the French Quarter, especially in a street called Bourbon Street.
Mardi Gras came to New Orleans with the earliest French settlers. New Orleans developed new traditions, including Carnival organizations called Krewes, and the famous Rex Parade, in addition to Mardi Gras Indians and king cake parties.
Officially, the Mardi Gras season begins on the 12th day after Christmas. Most parades, balls and other festivities occur on weeknights and weekends in the 2-week period before Mardi Gras Day. Though each parade is different, there are certain common ingredients:
1) there is a king of each Krewe, picked from among the Krewe membership;
2) gaily colored floats, ridden by masked and costumed Krewe members, who throw various items,
including beads ( necklaces ), metal coins called doubloons and other fun items;
3) marching bands from local high schools and universities, and often other invited guest bands.
Check out the following websites for more detailed information on this topic:
¶ 12:27 PM 0 comments
America has traditionally been referred to as a melting pot, welcoming people from many different countries, races, and religions, all hoping to find freedom, new opportunities, and a better way of life. The melting pot methapor is used to refer to "model" immigrant groups of the past. Past generations of immigrants in America, some people argue, became successful by working to shed their historical identities and adopt the ways of their new country. The process of shedding one's native culture and becoming absorbed into the ways of the "host" society is known as cultural assimilation.
Today, however, the trend is toward multiculturalism, not assimilation. The
This is a picture of the Portuguese smart home ( Casa do Futuro Inclusiva ) on display in The Museum of Communications in Lisbon.
Visit the webpage http://www.fpc.pt/FPCWeb/museu/displayconteudo.do2?numero=18848 to collect more information on our intelligent house!
¶ 7:35 AM 0 comments
