Carnival back to the streets of Loulé
Joy took to the streets, on this Fat Sunday, marked by the return of Corsicans worldwide. Loulé, which boasts the title of “the oldest Carnival in the country”, said present and more than 25 thousand revelers were on Avenida José da Costa Mealha to celebrate a moment awaited since 2020, when the last parade took place, on the eve that the pandemic forced confinement in Portugal.
Under the theme “Oh Zé… Have you seen the Algarvensis?”, an allusion to the joint candidacy of Loulé, Silves, and Albufeira to be a UNESCO Geopark, the first day of the parade had a whole house and a multicolored stain painting the main artery of the city. Huge queues formed, the likes of which had not been seen for a long time, to enter the city and the enclosure, while at the ticket offices, there were no hands to measure.
At the “Louléan sambódromo” good spirits reigned and there was a lot of laughter as the parade passed by, as this Carnival was also well known for its satire. The 14 floats and the interpretation of more than 600 extras brought this humorous aspect, representing subjects – sometimes very serious – but which are parodied here. This is the case of the conflict in Ukraine, with the “Cereal Killer” car manned by Associação Tradições de Loulé, or the environmental problems, with the “Bote Ação Climática”, driven by Associação Satori.
Samba and popular Brazilian music set the tone for the afternoon. But despite this influence from the other side of the Atlantic, Loulé also has its own tradition, this being a festivity that is quite rooted in the community, which is why local associations have active participation in this parade, interpreting the presented theme in the best possible way, through choreography and of the costumes created by you. This year, 10 institutions joined the parade, but today, the highlight was Associação Existir, a social institution that supports people with disabilities, which took part in the parade for the first time, reinforcing Loulé Carnival as an event that focuses on inclusion. Users danced and offered smiles to the audience.
Salamanders, dinosaurs, and paleontologists were also protagonists in an afternoon in which the king of the party was Metoposaurus algarvensis, an extinct amphibian similar to a giant salamander that lived 227 million years ago and which served as the basis for this application for Geopark.
The Corso returns to the Avenida tomorrow, from 3 pm onwards, with the parade expected to culminate in a Shrovetide Tuesday at the level of the best that Loulé has ever seen. Also tomorrow, the 20th, the Grandiose Carnival Gala will take place, with the theme “227 million years ago…”.
Always confirm with the concert hall or promoter the conditions of access, confirmation of the date or time, tickets place of sale, price, and availability.
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