Carnival in Montevideo -

“Desfile de Llamadas” (The Calls Parade) and the Candombe.

If you plan to visit Montevideo between the end of January and the first two weeks of February, do not miss the “Desfile de llamadas” (The Calls Parade), one of the most important events in town during the carnival celebration.

Thousands attend to cheer the colourful “comparsas” that parade for several miles following the beat of more than 2.000 drums!

The parade takes place in the southern neighborhoods of Palermo and Barrio Sur, where most of the black community used to live for a long time. They are just a few blocks from the main 18 de Julio Ave. and you can either get tickets for seats (reserve in advance since they usually sell out soon) or join the crowd alongside the streets.

The origin of this festivity goes back to colonial times and the first gatherings  of black slaves to honour their ancestrals kings in Africa . Black slaves were allowed by the authorities to gather aoutside the walls of the city and perform ritual ceremonies “crowning” their King and Queen of the Congo . Music, dancing, shouting and singing went on for hours until sunset of the choosen day.

In the mid XIX century, after slavery was abolished, these joyful festivities started to change. Blacks now lived in many different places within the city, so when the day arrived, the first ones to go out started playing their drums to “call” all the others to join the “Candombe”.

Today, the “comparsas” incorporate up to 60 drum players that use three different types of drums,  dancers, and individual characters that represent the “witch doctor” (“gramillero”) the “old lady” of the tribe (“mama vieja”) and the group leader (“escobero”).  

You can have a preview of the whole parade at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5W-8eo...