Food fights and town takeovers as Fat Thursday gets Carnival going

t's carnival time! Before the solemnity and fasting of Lent, comes the fun, the debauchery, and the sheer gluttony of 'carnestoltes', as the carnival celebrations in Catalonia are also known. 

While some get the party started earlier, Fat Thursday (Dijous Gras in Catalan) is when things really shift up a gear. 

Festivities across Catalonia vary from place to place but the first day of carnival, this year February 16, usually means two things: food (sometimes eaten, sometimes thrown), and the arrival of the king or queen of the carnival and their entourage to take over cities, towns and villages for a week. 

As the name suggests, fatty foods are the order of the day on Fat Thursday, with people actively encouraged to indulge in the likes of botifarra d'ou (egg sausage), truita (omelette), and coca de llardons (pork crackling cake). 

Food fight 

Food doesn't always end up in people's mouths though, with food fights common throughout carnival, including Vilanova i la Geltrú's La Merengada on Fat Thursday. 

In the coastal town south of Barcelona, a massive meringue food war takes place, with Blanch bakery providing the ammunition to kids (big and small) for the annual sticky dessert hurling ritual. 

Royal arrival 

The other must-see event on the first day of carnival is the arribo parade, the arrival of the king or queen of Carnestoltes. One of the most famous and most raucous happens in Sitges, just north of Vilanova i la Geltrú on the Garraf coast. 

Beyond Thursday, the fun doesn't stop, with partying, dressing up and general fooling around until the ever-so-serious burial of the sardine on Ash Wednesday heralds the end of the carnival craic. 

For more, see the Catalan News 2023 guide to Carnival in Catalonia.