The translation for monigote is a ridiculous doll or figure or a poorly made statue. Every year a few weeks before Carnival, figures are made from paper mache, wire rods, paint and other materials and placed along the malecon. Over the years these monigotes have evolved and cannot be considered trashy. Each year the monigotes are designed and made according to that year’s Carnaval theme. This year, the 126th Carnaval, the theme is Eclipse Barroco. It’s a combination of celebrating the eclipse on April 8th and in honor of the baroque era. There will be 22 stages for bands and the music will be mostly classical. In fact, a band is practicing some wonderful music in the stadium behind us for the first coronation tonight. There will be another coronation tomorrow and another the next night in the stadium. The music we have heard so far is just beautiful.
It took us 4 or 5 outings to get a picture of all the monigote statues. We walked to as many as we could, got one picture from a taxi, then took a bus to get farther down the malecon and walked to 4 more. Yesterday Steve drove and I took most of the rest as drive-by shots.
We drove through Olas Altas yesterday and this is where a lot of the music and fireworks will be. I would give anything to see the naval battle depiction with fireworks but not crammed into the streets with 80,000 people jostling everyone. There have been warnings not to carry a wallet or purse. Plus, the fireworks don’t begin until 11 pm. The parade on the malecon Sunday evening includes 32 floats this year. Last year we stayed on our balcony to watch the parade but were too high up to get full enjoyment so our plan this year is to try and get a seat down by the pool.
Wanderlets 