Walking in Beauty: Carnival

Posted By Glenn B. Jenks on Mar 9, 2015

By Glenn B. Jenks

The celebration of Mardi Gras, in some French-speaking parts of the world, and Carnival, in Spanish-speaking areas is one of the most colorful and beautiful experiences of the year. In 2008, I was in Ecuador and Peru during the celebration of Carnival. In Quito, the capital city of Ecuador, street dancers dressed in clown costumes would appear seemingly from nowhere. They put on a show for free that lifted the spirits of all who were fortunate enough to witness antics. Below are just a few of the street dancers who appeared one afternoon in the central plaza of the city, called Plaza Grande.

Later I was in a village high in the mountains of Peru called Chivay. Carnival is there by celebrated by music and dancing also. But such remote villages don’t have the resources of the big cities. People there have to improvise to produce the music and to decorate themselves for the dancing. The ladies, and little girls dress themselves in whatever they have, literally that includes “the kitchen sink”. When the dancing begins they dance to music provided by the men and boys. The music is made from only two instruments, big drums and flutes made from PVC pipe. Welcome to Carnival Chivay-style.