With the Covid-19 pandemic raging worse than ever, Chapala Mayor Moisés Anaya has officially called off all local Mardi Gras festivities, known here as Carnaval.
In normal circumstances, a host of activities that would have been scheduled between February 11 and 16.
The Carnaval calendar encompasses a series of special events that invariably attract large crowds. Kicking off with the Entierro del Mal Humor, a mock funeral ceremony in which a coffin symbolizing ill humor gets torched in funeral pyre, the program also includes the coronation of the merry-making Rey Feo (Ugly King) and his royal court of young female beauties, dance parties revolving around live music concerts, equestrian and bull-riding events, preceded by public receptions. These would certainly be Covid super-spreader events.
Last year’s Carnaval, held in late February, was the last major festival that took place before the pandemic struck.