There are carnival celebrations in virtually every corner of Brazil, the best-known ones taking place in Recife together with the neighboring Olinda (in the North of Brazil) and Salvador. But the biggest and most famous carnival is undoubtedly the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.

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Brazilian celebrities and slum dwellers danced alongside each other as some samba schools put on brave faces amid the world financial crisis and replaced cash with creativity and enthusiasm.

“Carnival is our Thanksgiving,” said Renato Teixeira, a 25-year-old construction worker attending the parades. “As long as we have a good showing in general, Rio’s samba schools have accomplished a lot.”

The first night of parades lasted from Sunday into early Monday morning.

At least four schools paraded with little special attention: It seemed most judges and television commentators were awaiting the appearance of the reigning champion Beija-Flor school, the winner of five of the last six titles, not due to parade until just before dawn.

Countless news media reports have reported on financially strapped samba schools scaling back their productions, incorporating plastic bottle and other recyclables into floats.

“They say this is the year of the Carnival in crisis, but the party that lives inside us all has no price,” said Miqueas Cherry, 30, a seamstress who helped create costumes for the Grande Rio samba school.

The $US2.5 million ($NZ4.95 million) samba-school parades are the centerpiece of the world’s largest Carnival bash – and schools compete fiercely to dominate the show.

Taking place over two nights, the parades feature the top 12 samba schools competing in front of 80,000 spectators at the Sambadrome stadium. The winning school earns bragging rights and massive attention from the local news media.

Hundreds of informal, around-the-clock street parties – celebrations that many describe as the soul of Brazil’s Carnival – hummed along outside the stadium Sunday, with the largest gathering attracting more than a half-million people.

Samba schools also staged early parades Sunday in Sao Paulo, a business-oriented city that some Brazilians say is too straight-laced to throw a proper party.

But Swiss tourist Christoph Fischer, 42, seemed to appreciate the milder version of events, noting that in contrast to the anything-goes chaos of Rio’s pre-Lent bash, “Carnival in Sao Paulo is very organized.”

Fernando Angelo Reis, 35, a nurse from Sao Paulo, acknowledged that the city’s celebrations lacked the exuberance of those in Rio, or even those in the cities of Salvador and Recife.

But “even though Carnival might be a little better in Rio, I wouldn’t trade it for Carnival in Sao Paulo because of security issues,” Reis said.

In Rio last week, armed men with guns and grenades invaded youth hostels, tying up scores of foreign tourists and robbing them.

Police have since reinforced patrols in tourist areas.

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The samba remains a popular dance not only in carnival but in the ghetto villages outside of the main cities. These villages keep alive the historical aspect of the dance without the influence of the western cultures. Other dances include the lundu, the polka, and the maxixe.

The carnival parade is filled with people and floats from various samba schools. A samba school can either be an actual school or just a collaboration of local neighbors that want to attend carnival. Samba schools include: Imperio Serrano, Academicos do Salgueiro, Unidos da Tijuca, and Beija-Flor de Nilopolis.

Besides the magnificent carnival parade, there are wonderful balls. Balls of every kind can be found in Rio including gala balls, balls for singles, and gay balls. The gala balls are the only luxury balls that are still around that can be enjoyed at the Copacabana Palace. Many different people attend the gala balls such as local socialites, soccer players, models, and international stars. The gala balls are a luxury event which requires black tie or fancy costumes. Besides the fancy gala balls are more casual and specific balls including the balls for singles and gays. Balls for singles are found at Copacabana Beach and a club called Scala. Gay balls are found at the Gala Gay at Scala and are open to everyone, especially for gays with alternative lifestyles.

Once a pagan celebration in ancient Rome, Carnival in Rio de Janeiro is now considered one of the greatest shows on Earth.  Rio de Janeiro is known as the cultural capital of Brazil and was the administrative capital from 1822 to 1960, when Federal Government moved to the new capital, Brasilia. The first festivals of Rio date back to 1723.

The most famous ones are:

• Cordão do Bola Preta: Parades in the centre of the city. It is one of the most traditional carnavals. In 2008, 500,000 people attended in one day.
• Suvaco do Cristo: Band that parades in the Botanic Garden, directly below the Redeemer statue’s arm. The name, in English, translates as ‘Christ’s armpit’, and was chosen for that reason.

• Carmelitas: Band that was supposedly created by nuns, but in fact it is just a theme chosen by the band. It parades in the hills of Santa Teresa, which have very nice views.
• Simpatia é Quase Amor: One of the most popular parades in Ipanema. Translates as ‘Friendliness is almost love’.
• Banda de Ipanema: The most traditional in Ipanema. It attracts a wide range of revellers, including families and a wide spectrum of the gay population (notably spectacular drag queens).

The Brazilian carnival (Carnaval, in Portuguese) is an annual celebration held 40 days before Easter and marking the beginning of Lent. Rio de Janeiro has many Carnival choices, including the famous Samba school (Escolas de Samba) parades in the sambadrome exhibition centre and the popular blocos de carnaval, which parade in almost every corner of the city