Last year I went to the Rio de Janeiro Carnival (狂欢节), and it blew my mind. It had been my dream to join in the famous carnival for many years, so I was excited. However, as soon as I arrived, I was a little bit nervous because there were so many people on the streets. They say that five or six million people come to Rio during carnival time and about two million of them are on the streets on a single day. Luckily, I had a local (当地的) guide, my sister's friend Ronnie. He said he would take care of me and show me around at the carnival. He did not let me down.
Well, the carnival is all about the samba (桑巴舞). It's a style of music and dance which comes from Africa. Samba music is usually fast and exciting with a lot of drums and harmonic vocals (和声). It is the kind of music that you couldn't help dancing to. And I was learning that as I followed Ronnie through the crowd.
Ronnie had got us tickets for the samba Parade (游行) inside the Sambadrome (桑巴大道)where the top samba schools take part in the competition. But we still had a long way to go through the street parties. He said most people enjoy the carnival by making their own parties in the street.
So, you must be wondering how the samba Parade was in Sambadrome ▲. In fact, Ronnie and I never made into Sambadrome. We just spent the day moving from one street party to another. There were more snacks, more drinks and lots of dancing. Do I regret(后悔) missing the main parade? Not at all. I experienced the carnival like the locals in a special way, and it was truly amazing.
