Party, dance and melodies welcome tourists at the Riobamba carnival

The carnival of Riobamba, in the center of the Andes of Ecuador, united this Saturday the art and the religion in a sample of cultural syncretism of this region dominated by the majestic snow-capped Chimborazo, considered the closest place to the sun from the center of the planet.

Indigenous groups, students and residents of the province of Chimborazo gathered in the center of Riobamba to celebrate the carnival also from the Andean cosmovision, which places the date as the beginning of the Pawkar Raimy or festival of flowering on the vernal equinox (March 21).

Comparsas and allegorical cars paraded through the streets of Riobamba to the rhythm of Andean melodies performed to the sound of guitars, harmonicas and drums.

Carnival agenda in Guayaquil for this Sunday, February 27

A trail of flowers scattered on the road, like a carpet, supported the light step and moved from popular dancessometimes interrupted by the presence of carnival foam or water, the main element of the festivity.

And it is that in Ecuador, the carnival is celebrated with the traditional game with water, by which some people wet others for no apparent reason, although, according to historians, in an act of cleansing and purification.

But in Riobamba, the game with water is intended only for the interior of homes, because in this locality there is an attempt to change the habit of soaking widespread that, for its part, refuses to die in other cities and communities.

For the director of Culture of the provincial prefecture of Chimborazo, Xavier Falconí, This Saturday’s celebration is the first to be held in its jurisdiction since the pandemic emerged in the country of covid-19, at the end of February 2020.

Carnival troupe filled the streets of Cuenca with color

For this reason, according to Falconí, the celebration, which has tried to comply with the biosafety regulations applied by the authorities, also seeks the economic reactivation of the province, after two years of restrictions.

The prefect of Chimborazo, Juan Pablo Cruz, has opted to convert the carnival party in an attraction for national and foreign touristswith an offer that invites you to enjoy and combines it with the Andean cultural tradition.

For this reason, according to Falconí, the phrase “The closest carnivals to the sun” was coined, since it refers to the fact that, according to recent scientific measurements, The summit of Chimborazo is the place on the earth’s surface farthest from the center of the earth.

This festival includes the main festival and a set of activities that will run until next Tuesdaywhen the festive bridge decreed in the country concludes.

Other similar festivities take place in cities like neighboring Ambato, with a bullfighting fair included that crowns the so-called “Festival of Flowers and Fruits”one of the most powerful tourist attractions in Ecuador.

Agenda of activities in Quito for this Sunday February 27 for the carnival holiday

Despite the fact that play with water has been restricted in almost the entire country, many of its population maintains that carnivalesque custom.

In the neighborhoods, families coordinate to “play the carnival”, with containers, water balloons and everything that can get wet.

Then, in the afternoon and evening and after a change of clothes, the neighboring families get together to drink hot drinks, dance, sing and tell stories.