By Caitlyn Morral
Contributing Writer
The traditional festival, Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday was celebrated on Feb. 17. The religious ritual is celebrated from country to country with customs that have been practiced for hundreds of years. Fat Tuesday signifies the last day of indulgence before the weeks leading up to Easter, or the 40 days of Lent
New Orleans is the most well-known American city for the festivities that take place on Mardi Gras.
The first Mardi Gras celebration in America was in 1703, when French settlers came to establish territory in Louisiana. In New Orleans today, thousands of people gather together to celebrate. The celebration is complete with parades, strings of colorful beads, and special foods.
Traditionally, there are a variety of foods that are eaten on this day, including “king cake.” This dessert tends to be decorated with purple, green, and yellow sugar sprinkles, symbolizing justice, faith and power. A figure of baby Jesus is often included, with tradition stating that the person who receives a slice of the cake with the baby is supposed to throw the Mardi Gras celebration next year.
St. Bonaventure students showed spirit for Mardi Gras in many ways. Students were seen walking around campus with flashy beads decorating their necks. In addition to this, the Hickey had cupcakes topped with green, purple and yellow frosting, similar to that of a king cake.
“Personally, I think that Mardi Gras is an interesting and fun holiday,” TaQuan Brown, a freshman theater major, said. “I feel like the school should have put more of an effort into celebrating the roots of this day.”
With these limited gestures, some students felt that more should have been done around campus, even if it were simply adding more decorations.
“Mardi Gras is a traditional and nationally-known celebration,” freshman math major Catherine Boyd said. “It is a good chance to truly let loose after the rest of the year builds up on stress, as well as to be happy with family and friends for a great occasion.”
Each year, Mardi Gras brings people together to rejoice in an exciting time before the Lenten season begins.
Although students at St. Bonaventure may wish that the school would have done more to participate in the enthusiasm, it did not stop many of them from enjoying it together.
