The Basel Carnival is defined as the largest popular festival in Switzerland, in which 15,000 to 20,000 masked people take part.

Carnival knows how to magically transform us into what we are not, and gives us the opportunity to be, for just one day, the fantastic character that we have always dreamed of.

If a elegant frame, made up of stately buildings, well-kept streets and scenic squares, the party becomes an unmissable social occasion.

This is what happens every year Basel, where the Basler Fasnacht constitutes the largest popular festival in all of Switzerland, and counts every year from 15 thousand to 20 thousand participants disguise yourself. The festivities start at 15.00 of the Monday following Ash Wednesday. It begins with the "Morgestraich”, a ritual that involves the march of strange characters in disguise, with many small lanterns lit on the head. The groups of participants called "clique” instead they carry larger lanterns, made of canvas and wood, which exceed three meters in height, lit from within and covered with writings that report an anecdote referring to the previous Carnival.

The "cliques" move through the streets of Basel in the afternoon, respecting fixed routes, with coordinated costumes and masks, depending on the theme chosen in the previous months. In the evening, however, the participants have the task of moving from place to place to perform jokes, nursery rhymes, verses and caricatures, commenting on the events of the past year: these small performances are called Schnitzelbanken, while I Guggemuusige are the masked musicians who put on the show Tuesday evening, attracting the audience's attention with a clumsy racket.

But the culmination of the carnival, considered by many to be the highlight of the entire event, is represented by the typical Gassle. It's about the large parade of single participants and masked groups along the most picturesque alleys of the centre, all intent on playing drums and fifes with a crowd of visitors in tow, up to 4.00 in the morning on Thursday following Ash Wednesday.

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First name: Basler Fasnacht

Where: downtown Basel, Switzerland

At your place: Monday 19 and Wednesday 21 February 2018 (ends at 4 am on Thursday 22 February).