New Orleans has been living out one of its greatest traditions, which will end Tuesday.
Mardi Gras is live and well in the Crescent City, culminating the end of a glorious celebration to a city who is revitalizing its deep culture after the turmoil of Hurricane Katrina.
Fat Tuesday is the apex of the partying, drinking and celebration that is experienced during Carnival. The Catholic celebration will end tonight as Lent begins tomorrow with Ash Wednesday.
Contrary to popular belief, the events leading up to Fat Tuesday are called Carnival, not Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras actually means "fat Tuesday" in French and is designated only for the day before Ash Wednesday.
Carnival begins 12 days after Christmas, or Twelfth Night, on January 6 and ends on Mardi Gras, which always falls exactly 47 days before Easter. The cities most famous for their Mardi Gras celebrations include New Orleans, Louisiana; Venice, Italy; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
While New Orleans is best known in America for its Mardi Gras celebration, Mobile, AL is the originator of the celebration in the United States. The first Mardi Gras celebration held in Mobile was in 1703 when French settlers began the festivities at the Old Mobile Site. Mobile's first Carnival society was organized in 1704.
The starting date for Mardi Gras in New Orleans is unknown, but being that Mobile started in 1703 and the capital of French Louisiana was moved to New Orleans in 1723, the Mardi Gras tradition likely hit Louisiana after then.
New Orleans has just three more days before they gear up for yet another American landmark event: the NBA All-Star Game. The festivities will start on Friday and end Sunday with the game.
