Carnival in Rio: starting shot for the world’s biggest party

Hot rhythms, thousands of costumed and loud samba sounds: in Rio de Janeiro, the world-famous removals have started in Sambodrom.

Several sambar schools, which apply for the ascent to the elite class of the spectacle, pulled through the street lined with astonishy wagons and confetti under a starry night sky.

That started The “Botafogo Samba Clube” school: It told the history of the club’s origins, which was founded in 1894 as a rowing club in the Botafogo district of the same name. Previously, Mayor Eduardo Paes had officially heralded the colorful hustle and bustle of the Sugar Hut with the handover of the city key to “König Momo”, the symbolic figure of the carnival.

The twelve top schools will appear for three days for the first time this year – namely on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. This enables not only more viewers to see the spectacle. The schools that are evaluated by a jury as in the figure skating also occur longer.

Tens of thousands on the grandstand as well as millions in front of the televisions in Brazil and all over the world usually follow the moves on the oversized catwalk that the famous Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer designed in 1984.

The Rio Carnival is the largest party in the world, the city administration expects a total of eight million people in the city.

It is estimated that the carnival generates an economic sales of 5.7 billion reais (around 936 million euros).

Hundreds of “Blocos” – these are samba and other music groups – are to move through the streets of Rios in the coming days.