Apokreis, Apokreas, Apokrias. Carnival in Crete and Greece.

Carnival in Greece .... celebration ... a chance to escape everyday monotony
and enter into a world of party, fantasy, jinks and 'kefi' (high spirits) ... a
feast of dance, wine and meat before the sacrifices and fasting of Lent.

The Tradition of Apokries / Karnavali
(Apokries may also be spelt Apokreas, Apokrias)

In Greece the Carnival started in Ancient times, believed to be as a worship
to Dionysos, the God of Wine and Feast. In the Orthodox tradition Apokries
is the preparation period before Lent. Apokries means literally saying
goodbye to meat ...Apoxh apo kreas - apo-kreas. In Latin the roots of the
word Carnival has the same meaning- 'carne'' =meat and 'vale' - goodbye.

Apokries runs for 3 weeks immediately preceding Lent.

In 2008 Apokries runs from February 17th to March 9th 2008.
Clean Monday ('Kathara Deftera' or 'Kathari Deftera') falls on March 10th
2008..

First Week
Apokries starts with the opening of the book of the Triodion, the 3 holy
sacraments.

Second Week- Meat week
Officially the last week of eating meat until after Lent.
Tsiknopempti - Thursday of meat week.
Tsikna is the smell of burning meat. It was the custom on Tsikonpempti for
everyone (including the poor) to charcoal grill meat and to melt fat over it so
the smell of 'burning' meat permeated whole villages.
It is still the tradition to eat meat on Tsiknopempti, although nowadays it is
usual to go to a taverna for the meat feast. You'll find that tavernas
everywhere are packed and many have live music too. Another glendi!

Third Week - Cheese Week
This week was also called 'White Week' as people ate mostly dairy
products and eggs. Meat was forbidden from Monday of cheese week until
after Lent. Many people still adhere to this.
Women never washed their hair during this week as it was said it would
turn white if they did.

Tyrofagis Sunday
The final day of Apokries, and it's also the last day until after Easter that
weddings are allowed to take place. The Orthodox Church still follows the
tradition that no weddings or celebrations can take place during the 40 days
of Lent.
The old tradition says don't get married on this day; if you do it will be an
unhappy marriage!
Carnival parades are held on this, the last day of Apokrias.

Clean Monday
The day after Tyrofagis Sunday is 'Kathara Deftera' , also called 'Kathari
Deftera', or Clean Monday, which falls on the 10th March in 2008.
Clean Monday marks the end of Apokries and is the first day of Lent
(Sarakosti).
Fasting starts today and traditionally no meat, fish, eggs, dairy products or
oil are allowed to be eaten for the 40 days leading up to Easter.
Clean Monday is a Bank Holiday in Greece and also seen as the start of
springtime; it is celebrated by an excursion to the mountains or the beach to
enjoy a Lenten picnic or taverna meal, and fly a kite!
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Masqueraders
(Pronounced 'mask - e - ra - des' in Greek)

During the three weeks of Apokries children, teenagers and adults alike
dress up in (often outrageous!) disguises and masks and visit the houses of
friends and neighbours who try to guess the identities of the masqueraders.
The town and village cafés, tavernas and bars are also visited by
masqueraders, usually armed with cans of foam, streamers and confetti.

Weekends and particularly the final carnival weekend in particular are the
most popular periods for dressing-up and many masked balls, dances and
children's parties are held at various venues throughout the three week
carnival period.

Apokries culminates with the Grand Carnival Parades, a number of which are
held throughout Crete and Greece on the last day of Apokries - Sunday
March 9th in 2008.

Carnival Parade

Carnival Parades are held all over Crete and Greece, and in 2008 the
majority will take place on Sunday 9th March 2008.

Groups of friends get together to form teams and make their floats and
costumes. They can take months to make and are usually used only once,
with originals produced each year.
Prizes are sometimes awarded for the best floats and costumes and there
can be great ( friendly!) rivalry between teams.

The most famous Greek carnival is held in the town of Patras in the
Peleponnese.

In Crete many towns and villages hold carnivals; the largest of which takes
place in Rethymnon see www.rethymnon.com

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