Coastberries: Winterruption or Vancouver Alaaf!

It's Carneval, Mardi Gras or, in Vancouver, Winterruption!

I don't exactly know why, but Karneval, those days of craziness before lent are always a bit emotional for me. I'm OK as long as I don't think about it, but invariably it will come up in one way or another. And every time it is like a postcard from a distant world, a distant time, but at the same time it activates the "Homesickness Centre" in my brain. This centre is activated in people born in Cologne when reminded of clowns and beer and fun during carneval. Now, truth be told, I never really celebrated carneval in its entirety regularly when living in Cologne. I could not connect to the crazy and mostly very drunk people most of the time. I never understood the ritual of young men peeing against the Cologne cathedral (a ritual that has actually threatened the limestone foundations of the church!).

But, I did grow up with carneval, I grew up listening to the classic songs, I still tear up when hearing the old song about a guy who when thinking of his hometown Cologne would like to just walk back home. Now I live in a town that does not know anything about this peculiar ritual of partying and getting drunk for five days before embarking on the sober and somber days of lent. No costumes, no candies thrown for children, no drinking in public... And that's fine, as long as nobody reminds me of what is happening a world away. Then I sneak onto the internet and look at the photo galleries of the parades, the happy people, and, yes, I tear up. It must be a genetic thing or a sort of vaccination you get right after you are born in a Cologne hospital.

But apparently this need to kick the winter out and welcome spring is not just restricted to those places with carneval, apparently everybody can feel the need to interrupt the winter and celebrate spring and life. And this takes the form of a "Winterruption" here in Vancouver. Not knowing what to expect, we went to Granville Island for this festival and needless to say, my Cologne carneval heart started beating a bit faster when I heard a carneval band and then saw the Rainforest Parade. And my mommy heart started to overflow when my little Liam was fascinated by this, could not take his eyes (well, eye...) off the dragonflies on stilts. Liam was dressed up as a pirate, not because of carneval , but because that's what he wanted, but it fit well with the day. So there we were, dressed up, watching a small and beautiful parade, listening to carneval music, on a beautiful warm and sunny early spring day - and yes, I teared up, because this was perfect. Who needs millions of people to celebrate the end of winter? I still celebrate the sentiment with my family here, just without the crowds and with a different flavour.

And for dessert tonight, we'll have donuts - the traditional carneval treat, and I'll explain how this is special to my little pirate and while he may never feel the same way about this weird tradition, he will hopefully know that it is very important to celebrate the end of winter! And how important it is to just have fun for the sake of having fun and how deliciously beautiful it is to break rules every once in a while... and all the other things that carneval can mean to people.