Carnevale.

We took to the streets of Aci Reale this weekend to experience Carnevale for ourselves!  Elise had learned about the festival in her Host Nation class at school and was VERY excited to join in the fun.  I have been wanting to go since we arrived in Sicily, but to be quite honest...the traffic, crowds, and confusion were an insurmountable obstacle in the past.  I'm glad we mustered up the courage to get ourselves layered up and out the door on an unusually frosty Saturday because it sure was fun! 

The first recorded Carnevale celebration occurred in 1268.  For centuries, revelers in Italy have donned masks and costumes and joined in parades in the days preceding Lent.   Aci Reale is the site of Sicily's most famous carnival celebration.  (though Venice probably takes the prize for Italy as a whole!)  If we knew more about Italian news and culture we probably would have understood more about the political and social statements that were being made by the massive and elaborate floats in the parade...oh well...we enjoyed the colors, music, dancing, costumes, food, and flashing lights just the same! (I think...)

Festival Food - yum!

In the main piazza each of the floats had the chance to "perform."  Elise and Caleb stared with their mouths wide open, loving every minute...while Lucas smiled but clung desperately to us while saying "Musc (music) very loud. Me really scary."