many thanks for the photos from my hometown - i haven't seen Karneval in, let me think, at least 10 years. To make up for it, this year for the first time I heard of Mardi Gras, and felt utterly stupid for this severe (?) lack of knowledge. No idea how it bypassed me but it did. It good to know though that Mardi Gras is a bit like Karneval, so there's every chance I'll know for good now!
 

Sure thing. Funny how not everyone seems to realize that Mardi Gras = Karneval (= Carnaval). All the celebrations are Catholic blowouts before Lent. Karneval stresses the Monday before Ash Wednesday (Rosenmontag); Mardi Gras stresses the Tuesday ("Fat Tuesday"). But all versions of the word "carnival" come from the Latin carnelevare, meaning (roughly) "removal of meat."

Some people think the original meant "goodbye to meat" -- carne vale -- but that's unfortunately not true.
 

"Carne" has always been one of my favorite Latin words, because it shows up in such interesting English words--"carnation" and "carnal" being the obvious ones.

Y'know, I would be perfectly content sitting and learning etymologies for a couple of weeks solid. Does that sound like a fun vacation to anyone else? Maybe I should call my travel agent. Surely there's some sort of package deal.