Rio counts down to wild Carnival extravaganza

Rio kicks off its world-famous Carnival celebrations on Friday, heralding five days of wild samba dancing, parades of lavishly decorated floats and scores of scantily dressed women. The annual pre-Lent festival will bring this racially diverse country of 191 million people virtually to a stop, with all eyes on Rio, the "Marvelous City" that sets the standard for over-the top partying and sexy exhibitionism.

Late Monday, city officials breathed a collective sigh of relief when police and firefighters seeking higher pay ended a strike that had threatened to disrupt the event.

Billed as the "greatest show on earth", Carnival in Rio generates 250,000 jobs and revenues of 640 million dollars for hotels, bars and restaurants, according to state officials. More than five million people, including 850,000 tourists, are expected to attend, according to Rio's tourism secretary Antonio Pedro Figueira de Mello.

"Carnival allows people to masquerade as somebody else. Men as women, women as men, the poor as the rich," Alex de Sousa, a member of the Uniao da Ilha samba school, told AFP.


http://www.france24.com/en/20120217-rio-counts-down-wild-carnival-extravaganza

Maybe Santorum can go to Brazil and set them straight about Catholic morals.