We extended our stay in Cruiseport Marina, Ensenada, by 4 weeks to attend carnival. This was our first ever carnival. It was tamer than what we’ve seen on YouTube and in movies. But it was fun.
Carnival had not been held here since 2020 (one just before COVID). The internet said Ensenda’s is one of the better ones. I’m not sure what the criteria are for “better” but to be one of the better ones, they must look at number of mechanical games and level of bands who play each night.
Thursday, Feb 16 was day one, opening ceremonies and the “burning of bad humor.” Apparently, the burning can be a political figure and for 2023 was COVID-19! We skipped this day as we had to finish a project to feel like we could take the weekend off. I downloaded this photo from the local newspaper.
📷credit: El Vigia newspaper
Friday, Feb 17 was a day of what we’d call a carnival–the traveling kind–in the USA. It was mechanical games (think the spiny, twisty rides), vendors selling lots of pizza slices and hot dogs, and the skill games where you win a giant stuffed animal. Growing up, I’d call this the second story of Circus Circus. Mark and I wander around. Didn’t play any games. Watched the kings and queens be crowned. Ate al pastor and carne asada at the only place serving Mexican food in the fairgrounds (term used loosely, downtown streets were closed off for the event). Bought a yummy pan (bread) filled with queso de Philadelphia and blackberries. Ate some sope-like pastry filled with dulce de leche. I took no photos and just enjoyed the evening.
Parades/Los Defiles
Saturday, Feb 18 was parade #1! They start about noon. We lined up along Av. Adolfo Lopez Mateos in Zona Central. About 1pm, the parade arrived to our area! We both brought the good cameras and took loads of photos! Floats are presented by some interesting businesses! The farmicias were well represented with their mascots. Then there was the sanitation company that provides port-a-potties and included the giant pump out truck in the parade!
Some photos from Mark
We returned to zona central on Sunday, Feb 19 for parade #2. We wondered how it would be different–it wasn’t. The sanitation company left the port-a-potty and pump out truck at home but still represented in the parade with a float. There were more people, more horses, and MORE ENERGY! And this with a fairly gloomy day of sprinkling rain. We stood at a different spot on Adolfo and captured the big carnival energy!
Before the parade began for us, this young man entertained the crowd with juggling and acrobatics. I made a short video from a series of burst images. He passed a collection hat at the end and collected quiet a few coins! This kid has hustle!
One thing that was very odd to us was the number of tour busses that missed the memo on the roads being barricaded. They would pull up, someone would hop off and pled their case with the police, then the crowd would part just enough for the bus to pass. Someone in that section of the crowd would appoint himself to take down and put back up the caution tape. This would never happen in the USA. Here’s a video if you’re curious.
Photos from Christiana
That’s about it. Monday was a day off for parades. We ran errands to prepare for departure. Between Friday and end of day Monday, Mark and I walked about 15 miles! Tuesday was Fat Tuesday and we skipped the parade, which was the same again.