Fasnacht

I will take you with me to the Fasnacht celebration. We will visit together Luzern, Zurich, and New Orleans.

Table of Contents

Fasnacht in Switzerland

Fasnacht has its roots in Christianity and the coming season of Lent. Traditionally Carnival in Switzerland begins on Dirty Thursday (Fat Thursday) and last till Ash Wednesday.

Several cities (Basel or Zurich) break this tradition and celebrate it after Ash Wednesday. They are saying that catholic cantons celebrate Fasnacht before Ash Wednesday but protestants after it.

Luzern

Carnaval in Luzern started on Fat Thursday with a big bang early morning at 5am .

The biggest parades take place between Thursday and Monday, attracting tens of thousands of people.

People are wearing bizarre costumes and you can hear Guggenmusik all over the city.

They’re saying “it is a crime to come without a costume to Luzern during Fasnacht”. And actually, you will see only tourists not dressed up.

The Altstadt is extremely packed but the vibe is very positive. You can feel the festive atmosphere everywhere.

Zurich

It was my first Carnival Parade in Zurich and all my friends and colleagues said it would be a completely different atmosphere than Fasnacht in Luzern.

It’s true, Züri Carneval was different, more casual I would say. The parade started at 14.31 on Sunday (Swiss precision) and took around 2h starting and passing through central Zurich.

Be prepared for a lot of confetti, glitter, loud music, and fun.

The parade is special as it’s also international and you can admire costumes and dance to music from Bolivia, Ecuador or Peru.

Zurich parade was not so traditional but nevertheless worth to see.

Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Louisiana

Mardi Gras originated from French, and it means “Fat Tuesday”. Mardis Gras is not just Fat Tuesday. The celebration starts on the weekend before Ash Wednesday and last till Fat Tuesday. I took part in Mardi Gras in 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. I was a little bit afraid of going there, but in the end, it was a great experience and I felt safe all the time.

It’s the most famous celebration of Mardi gras in the United States. People from all over the States come to NOLA to celebrate together the end of the Carnival.

All houses are decorated in traditional colors: purple, green, and gold, the Christian symbolism of justice, faith, and power.

The Fat Tuesday is a whole day big parade. Famous Rex got the key to the city, and people are excited to welcome him during the parade. The Krewe of Rex has been founded in 1872 and is one of the oldest participating groups in Mardi Gras. Every year, one member of the Krewe is selected to be Rex, the monarch for the year.

Mardi Gras throws are strings of beads, doubloons, cups, Stuffed animals, or other things. Doubloons are the coins thrown by the Krewes during the parades. The Krewe of Rex started the tradition of throwing doubloons in 1959 and it’s alive to these days.

The old gentleman told us that he’s collecting doubloons for 25 years, as each year is a different one. I was lucky to get one as well.