Belgium rocked by carnival fever

23 February 2004

BRUSSELS – Two weeks of revelling and hedonism got underway in Belgium this weekend with one of the country’s most famous carnivals in the town of Binche, in Wallonia.

Organisers expect that the Binche carnival will have welcomed over half a million visitors by the time it closes on Tuesday.

The event, which is over 450 years old, features hundreds of marchers known as Gilles, dressed up in exotic traditional costumes. The carnival is so famous that last year it was included on Unesco’s list of world oral heritage events.

In Flanders, one of the most colourful festivals was held in the town of Aalst, where and estimated 600,000 revellers took to the streets.

In Neerpelt meanwhile, things did not quite go according to plan. One of the carnival floats caught fire, injuring two people and damaging three houses.

Other carnivals are being held all over Belgium until the end of the February.

Subject: Belgian news