Revelers across Brazil on Friday began carnival celebrations, taking to the streets to dance, drink beer and spirits, and blow off steam at a time of economic angst and fury with politicians over a sprawling corruption scandal.
The world’s most famous carnival bash in Rio de Janeiro opened in a strange way. After a day in silence, the city’s evangelical Mayor Marcelo Crivella delayed the traditionally opulent starting ceremony until 8:30pm only to skip it with the excuse that his wife was sick.
Eventually, Rio city hall put out an e-mail saying that carnival was “officially open.”
Photo: AP
However, several so-called block parties in Rio were under way by the afternoon. Thousands of revelers danced amid 32°C heat with high humidity.
At the “Carmelitas” block party in Rio’s bohemian Santa Teresa neighborhood, revelers dressed up as nuns, with many carrying signs insulting politicians who oppose marijuana legalization.
“The lord says: you will try all the herbs that came from the seeds,” read one banner.
“Carnival is a very nice and democratic party,” partygoer Nilse Azevedo said. “Whoever wants to pray, prays. Whoever wants to have fun in the street has fun.”
However, it was the odd opening to the iconic festival, which brings in more than US$1 billion to Rio each year, that was the talk of the day.
At the sambadrome, where top league samba schools begin competing today, revelers on Friday waited for the traditional handing over of the city’s key to Rei Momo, or the king of carnal delights.
This was always done with great fanfare by former Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes.
However, Crivella decided to send the head of Rio’s tourism agency to represent him at the opening ceremony. Even stranger was the quick removal of Rei Momo, who did not give interviews as usual and was escorted out of the sambadrome by security guards.
It is not clear whether Crivella, a retired Pentecostal bishop who took office on Jan. 1, will attend any of the five days of parades at the sambadrome.
Rio’s city council has already authorized him to travel abroad on the next few days.
Earlier on Friday, when it was still unclear whether the mayor would come for the opening ceremony, Maria Cristina held the symbolic key to the city, appearing like somebody who had been stood up.
“I would also like to know what is going on,” said Cristina, the guardian of the key, when asked by a reporter about what she would do with it.
Cristina said the mayor’s office had told her and the symbolic key-holding group to come, but had not said more about the plans.
The mayor “should separate religion from politics at our carnival,” said Marisol Portela, a homemaker who had come to the sambadrome. “He will not be missed. We will throw our party anyway.”
Latin America’s largest nation is recovering from a brutal impeachment fight last year that led to the removal of former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff for illegal mismanagement of the budget. The man who replaced her, Brazilian President Michel Temer, is deeply unpopular.
Temer and several others in both chambers of the Brazilian Congress have been caught up, either through formal charges or in plea bargains, in a massive corruption probe that has jailed dozens of politicians and businesspeople in the last few years.
Temer denies wrongdoing.
One of Rio’s big block parties is dedicated to the Brazilian president. Its theme: “Out with Temer!”
In Sao Paulo, where samba school competitions started on Friday night, there was heavy rain and thunder. Some streets in the eastern part of the city were flooding.
Footage on Globo TV showed cars fully submerged and floating.
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