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We are planning another trip and last time we were there we had just missed Carnaval. Can someone confirm the dates? this will be our th anniversary and we want to spend it laughing and dancing.

Lots of us stay for Carnaval and love it. Please don't be put off island dreamer. You can read one of our previous blogs about one of our favourite times in San Pedro here Politics but No Political Correctness It's normally held in the week leading up to Ash Wednesday I believe.

Thanks Colly...you have it all right!

"Carnival" (Spanish "Carnaval") is held on Shrove Tuesday, known to the Spanish as Mardi Gras (literally Fat Tuesday), which is the Tuesday immediately before Ash Wednesday, 40 days before Easter Sunday. It represents the last available day of feasting before the abstinence of Lent (whose first day is Ash Wednesday). "Carne" means meat, so it is a day for gorging on meat, before then giving it up for 40 days. All stems from Christian (mainly Catholic) dogma, though Shrove Tuesday (to Anglicans) aka Mardi Gras (to Catholics) are most certainly not religious festivals themselves. The next day, Ash Wednesday, is. I don't know what the Spanish call Ash Wednesday, but they most certainly "celebrate" it as it is one of the fundamental days in Christianity. Here (San Pedro) it seems of remarkably little significance.

thank you so much, we are wanting to be there for it and it looks like we are good to go on the vacation schedule. We hope to celebrate along and also scuba and go back to the caves.

we have finaly been able to nail down our vacation and reservations. We will be back in San Pedro for carnaval. We just finished getting our SCUBA certification as well so we can go to the blue hole. I am now giddy and ready to start planning the rest of the trip. See you all soon.