The Carnival celebration in Rome (Carnevale Romano) for 2012 will take place from February 11 until 21.
This year the festival is dedicated to traveling and especially to the great explorations of the past.
Just as during the past years the art of horse riding is an important part of the Carnival festivities and the Via del Corso will be the background of the great parade on February 11, a kind of homage to the horse race that used to be held in this street in the Renaissance period.
The riders and the hundreds of extras will be dressed in costumes usually used in the Opera Theater.
Every afternoon between 3.30 and 6.30 PM street artists and various historical societies of the region of Lazio will hold performances in the main streets and squares of Rome, such as Piazza del Popolo, Piazza Navona, Piazza di Spagna, the Via del Corso and Castel Sant’Angelo.
The Piazza del Popolo will be the nucleus of the festival and will host a “carnival village”where several events for children will take place. On Saturday February 18 and Sunday February 19 mornings (9 AM until 1 PM) children can come and see the horses.
Every evening the Porta del Popolo will serve as the background for a spectacular light show.
The Carnival festivities will be concluded on February 21 with a fireworks show from the Pincio hill overlooking the Piazza del Popolo.
