What is Fat Tuesday and what does it have to do with Mardi Gras?
Well, Fat Tuesday actually is Mardi Gras. Mardi is the French word for fat while Gras is the French word for Tuesday.
Fat Tuesday is celebrated on the day before Lent and is always the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.
In New Orleans, Mardi Gras is a legal holiday and always occurs 47 days before Easter, which means it is a fluctuating date like Easter and occurs on a Tuesday between February and March beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday. In New Orleans, Fat Tuesday is traditionally celebrated with parades organized by Carnival krewes. The float riders toss colorful beads, doubloons (aluminum or wooden dollar-sized coins), throw cups and small toys.
Fat Tuesday is celebrated by indulging in gluttonous amounts of rich fatty food which is typically creole food,drinking, and sometimes participating in sinful behaviors before fasting. Other customs associated with Fat Tuesday include wearing decorative masks and costumes, parades and dancing. Those celebrating Fat Tuesday wear the official colors for Mardi Gras: purple, green and gold. The official colors were chosen in 1872 by the King of Carnival, Rex. The color purple represents justice, the color green stands for faith, and the color gold stands for power.
