Nice is filled with carnival in February. Carnival De Nice — is one of the largest and oldest in the world.
The birth of the carnival is attributed to 1294, when the Duke of Anjou came here to spend some pleasant days. Various balls, fireworks, mimes and other obscenities began, all this, like a fire, engulfed the entire city, artisans danced, fishermen frightened with masks. The carnival dates back to 1873 and has been held regularly since then, with the exception of the periods of the First and Second World Wars.
These days, the carnival lasts two weeks. On the first day of the celebration, participants and spectators greet His Majesty the Carnival, and in the evening they choose the queen of the holiday.
By evening Massena lights up. On peaceful days it is just a beautiful square with a fountain and garden. During the days of carnival battles, an entire prefabricated stadium is erected on it; houses are dressed in 120 thousand square meters of plywood, which is painted by 120 artists. They paint it cheerfully, with giggles and jokes.
Then all this is decorated with 150 thousand light bulbs that wink and blaze in the night sky. Some fire wheels are spinning, ominous hellish smoke is creeping, people are briskly buying up cans and spraying each other in the face. Long colored pasta rushes from cans into the wild, hardens on the fly and covers everything they meet — mouths, noses, carnival horned hats and eyes.
Carnival — is a beautiful flower battle. Flower processions — real parades of approximately 20 platforms decorated with fresh flowers. It takes 4000-5000 stems to cover these platforms, 7 meters long, 2 meters wide and 6 meters high. Their design and preparation — long and painstaking work with each flower individually placed in a magnificent fragrant mosaic. For each event, florists perform feats of imagination, taste, dexterity and speed.
Charming live models, men and women, in luxurious costumes and extravagant headdresses created for the occasion, gracefully throw thousands of flowers into the crowd while walking along the Promenade des Anglais. Each year, a new title is chosen for His Majesty Carnival, reflecting the theme of the holiday and the source of inspiration for the compositions.
Every day, colorfully decorated carts with giant papier-mâché dolls drive through the city streets. These dolls, the protagonists of the Carnival, weigh up to 2 tons and rise 8-12 meters above the carts. The motorcades, decorated with thousands of fresh bouquets, participate in the elegant show — «Battle of Flowers». And in the evenings, concerts and fireworks continue the fun holiday.