Carnival in Brazil originated from Greek and Roman festivals and was brought to Brazil by the Portuguese in the 17th century. It evolved into a street celebration with music and dancing. Samba is an intricate Afro-Brazilian music and dance genre that was incorporated into Carnival performances in the 1920s. President Vargas began funding samba schools in 1935 to promote them as a Brazilian cultural attraction. Samba schools involve organized dance performances by women in elaborate costumes to intense samba music accompanied by men doing capoeira and floats. Rio de Janeiro is synonymous with Carnival as international tourists arrived in the 1960s, promoting parades, street parties, and dancing during the holiday season.

1. !!!Carnival in Brazil!!! What the People Listen to, and what the people move to.

2. The History of Carnival Carnival came from Greek Dionysian festivals and Roman Saturnalias. The festival made its way over to Brazil from Portugal in the 17 th century in the form of the “ entrudo,” a street that involved celebrants pelting one another with food. Eventually, this event evolved into a sort of street dance, with music and its own special songs.

3. So, what’s samba? Samba is a very intricate, and rhythmic genre of dance and music that is of afro-Brazilian origin. It was repressed in the late 19 th century, but was brought back to life in the early 20 th century. In the year 1935 President Getulio Vargas began funding samba schools, supporting a uniquely Brazilian tourist attraction.

4. Samba+School=samba schools Even before President Getulio Vargas began funding samba schools in 1935, they had already been incorporated in Carnival in the late 1920’s. A samba school is an organized, samba dance performance performed by women all over Brazil. The women practice all year long for this event, and when it finally arrives they get dressed in beautiful, eye-catching costumes, and dance to the sounds of intense, samba music. Accompanying them are usually men doing capoiera, and huge decorated floats.

5. !!Parades!! The parades are main attractions during Carnival! In the parades there are colorful floats, a rhythm section, dancers, acrobats, and confetti. At the parades there are thousands of people including tourists, celebrities, and of course, the natives.

6. Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro (a.k.a. Rio) is the capital city of Brazil. Rio is now synonymous with Carnival, because international tourists began to arrive for the festival in Rio in the early 1960’s. It is because of this that the city began to invest and promote the holiday Carnival. In Rio there are 3 different costumes associated with Carnival: those of the samba schools, those of the ballroom dances, and those of the street bands.

7. How to Celebrate…? There are a number of ways you can celebrate carnival while in Rio. In Rio there are usually all night long clubs, plays, parades, street parties, and ballroom dancing. While there I can guarantee that you will never experience a holiday quite like Carnival, and most likely you will want to come back!

8. That’s all folks! And if you ever get the chance, go down to Rio and experience Carnival for yourselves.

9. Sources Pictures 1 st picture : “ It’s carnival in Brazil, It’s show time” by =xAv= on flickr, used in accordance with creative commons license. 2 nd Picture: “ Vila_Isabel, Samba and Platform sandals ” by sfmission.com on flickr, used in accordance with Creative commons license. 3 rd picture: “ samba School” by Urbindimo on flickr, used in accordance with creative commons license. 4 th picture: “ Luiza Brunet: Reina Imperatriz 2008 ” by sfmission.com on flickr, in accordance with creative commons license. 5 th picture: “ Carnival_Brazilian Band” by dou_ble you on Flickr, in accordance with creative commons license. 6 th picture: “ Mangueira (cidade do Rio de Janeiro) ” by Rodrigo Soldon on flickr, used in accordance with Creative commons license. 7 th picture: “ Carnival in the theatre ” by Luiza on flickr, used in accordance with creative commons license. 8 th picture: “ Carnaval 2009 ” by rds_sp on flickr, used in accordance with creative commons license.

10. Sources text Edwards, T.L. (2008). Brazil: A global studies handbook . Santa Barbara, CA: ABC- Clio, Inc. Rix, A.C. (2009). A close-up of Carnival season in Brazil [Electronic version]. Ohmy News International.