Blogs

by José Balido

Just a little more than eight weeks to go till pre-Lenten Carnaval time, and if you’re thinking of a warm getaway to the biggest par-tay in the Latin world, Rio de Janeiro’s is always a rip-roaring crowd-pleaser — but it’s also massively mobbed, pretty pricey, and these days, to say the least, just a wee bit overcommercialized. For a taste of this annual revelry that’s both more affordable and closer to its folkloric roots (so much so that it’s on UNESCO’s World Heritage list), c

Dust off “dem golden slippers” and strut off to Philadelphia for a splendiferous New Year celebration. Philly’s Winter Mummerland is a multi-day family event that culminates in the Mummer’s Parade, America’s oldest folk parade, on New Year’s Day, where the weather may be cold, but the hospitality is red-hot. The costumes and fun evoke Mardi Gras, the floats compare with those in the Tournament of Roses Parade, but best of all it is fun for the whole family.

The Mummers Parade grew out of Europea