Carnival in Rio

The Sambadrome began Monday in the second and final day of the big parade of samba schools of Rio for Carnival, which paid tribute to former star Zico, legend of ‘ Selecao’, and the 100 day countdown to the World Cup in Brazil .

Six schools paraded on Sunday night , spreading samba and fantasy in a perfect summer night carioca , and six did this morning , including Leopoldinense , celebrating the successes of Zico .

The shows were televised for the entire planet and considered the greatest open roof show in the world.

More than 70,000 spectators vibrated at the start of the parade with the Mocidade Independente de Padre Miguel school, the first to go on Monday night 720 meters from the Sambadrome. The ‘ tangle’ or theme carnival parade honored its former director, Fernando Pinto, who died at age 43 in a car accident , and his home state of Pernambuco.

All Pernambuco, from rhythms to their dances, folkloric characters and carnivals, were represented in costumes and allegories, but with a modern touch: there was even a gay kiss between farmers (represented by huge papier-mache puppets), which were imitated by several members of the school in a collective gay kiss in full drag.

The top 12 samba schools compete for the title of «Carnival Champion 2014» which will be announced on Wednesday by the 40 judges who judge several areas: Parade theme, drums, harmony, costumes, etc.