There are three different words in German for “Carnival” or “Mardi Gras”: Karneval, Fasching and Fastnacht. Although all three refer to the same pre-Lenten observance, each has a different tradition and reflects somewhat different customs in different regions of the German-speaking world.

In our region we celebrate Karneval. Karneval is called the fifth season. It starts on 11th November at 11.11 am and ends on the night before Ash Wednesday – 40 days before Easter.

The main week ist he last week before Ash Wednesday starting with

• Donnerstag (Thursday): Weiberfastnacht (Women’s Fasching)
• Samstag (Tuesday): Nelkensamstag (Carnation Saturday),
• Sonntag (Sunday): Tulpensonntag (Tulip Sunday)
• Montag (Monday): Rosenmontag (Rose Monday) Dienstag (Tuesday):
• Veilchendienstag (Violet Tuesday).

Mostly the big day for for Karneval is the Rose Monday parade for example in Cologne. But in our town the Carnival parade takes place on Nelkensamstag.

In our school we celebrate Carnival as well. On Friday everybody comes costumed to school and we celebrate together. This year a clown visited us and we all had lots of fun. After he left, we went on celebrating in our classes.

We created some clowns in our art lesson: