Germany’s Carnival celebrations got off to a wet start on Thursday, with thousands of revellers dancing down the streets of Cologne, Dusseldorf and other cities despite heavy rain.
Carnival season is a yearly highlight in many parts of traditionally Catholic western Germany, Austria and Switzerland, featuring street parades, floats, fancy dress and public drinking.
The festivities take place ahead of the Christian fasting season of Lent, culminating in mass celebrations on Shrove Monday, known as Rose Monday to locals.
The party begins at 11:11 am (1011 GMT) on the Thursday before Ash Wednesday, known as Weiberfastnacht or Women’s Carnival.
Despite wet weather threatening to dampen proceedings, Cologne Carnival leader Prince Niklas I told dpa his recipe for enjoying the festivities. “Just have sunshine in your heart, then it works out even in the rain.”
In Dusseldorf, Weiberfastnacht includes the storming of the town hall by the “Möhnen,” a word in the local Rhineland dialect for older women.
Celebrations were also held in cities such as Aachen, Mainz and Bonn, with women set to take over town halls to symbolically take power.
Police in Cologne – the heartland of the Carnival season – said crowds were likely smaller than expected due to the bad weather, but 1,500 additional officers were deployed to ensure security.
In a speech at the start of the street parade on Thursday, Cologne Mayor Torsten Burmester thanked the thousands of volunteers helping to organize events during Carnival season.
“Cologne is a city of volunteers, not only during Carnival,” said Burmester. “Many of these people never stand on a stage, but without them the city would be quieter, colder and poorer.”
dpa
