When the cake is served, the person who receives the slice containing the figure may receive a small prize. Before it is baked, a small-usually plastic-figure of a baby is inserted into the dough and baked in. A King Cake is a braided ring or oval of rich, buttery Danish pastry dough, decorated in the Mardi Gras colors. Festive meals include King Cake, honoring the Three Kings who visited the infant Jesus on Twelfth Night (the feast of the Epiphany). And many more.Īpart from the scheduled events, everyone wears fancy costumes or at least a mask, and dresses in the Mardi Gras colors of purple (symbolizes justice), green (symbolizes faith), and gold (symbolizes power). And the Krewes have colorful names, many of which are drawn from Greek mythology. Participants dress in themed costumes, and each Krewe has a King and a Queen, whose identities are kept secret until the parade begins. New Orleans natives refer to them as the Greatest Free Show on Earth.Įach Krewe sponsors its own parade, with music, floats, often celebrity guests, and trinkets such as doubloons and bead necklaces thrown to the crowds. The parades, however, are a spectacle for everyone. The balls are usually formal affairs and attendance is by invitation only debutantes are presented at Mardi Gras balls. The season is marked by parades and balls put on by "Krewes" or social clubs. So the carnival season can be as short as 3 weeks or as long as 8 weeks. The date of Mardi Gras varies from year to year along with the date of Easter. In modern times Mardi Gras in New Orleans is celebrated over several weeks, starting on Twelfth Night, January 6th, and culminating on Fat Tuesday. So the tradition arose of using up all of the butter, milk, meat, and eggs in the house before Lent began, by making a rich meal (the last rich meal they will have until Easter) the night before-Fat Tuesday. In keeping with the penitential season, meals during Lent are simpler and use less fat and meat products than normal in some parts of the world, Lenten meals are strictly vegetarian. Catholics observe lent by fasting one day each week, making a confession, and special prayers in preparation for Easter. Strictly speaking, Mardi Gras is the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the first day of the solemn season of Lent. Mardi Gras (French for "Fat Tuesday") comes from the catholic traditions of the earliest French settlers in Louisiana. But there's so much more to it than that! Ask any New Orleans native.
When most of us think of Mardi Gras we picture rowdy, drunken tourists crowding the narrow streets of the French Quarter in New Orleans.
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