Everyone knows about Carnaval but what the heck is “Boi Bumba?” Celebrated in the town of Parintins (population 100,000) located on the Amazon River in the state of Pará, it is fast becoming one of Brazil’s most popular local celebrations complete with elaborate costumes and fantasy floats.

Boi Bumba means,“Charge the bull,” and originated as a rural festival. It is held the last weekend in June. The story goes that a wealthy rancher gave his trusted farm hand a prized bull for his care. The farmhand’s pregnant wife became overwhelmed with cravings for (of all things) a taste of the bull’s tongue. So the obedient husband killed the bull and waited for the impeding punishment of the rancher. However, before telling his boss, the farmhand employs the help of a local shaman who manages to resurrect the bull and they all live happily ever after.

But wait - there’s more! The story is played out in town by two competing teams that are represented by a red bull (Garantido) and a blue bull (Caprichoso). During the weeklong festival, the teams compete in the Bumbadromo Stadium. The bigger and better presentation wins the title of reigning team.

As Boi Bumba becomes more popular not just within Brazil but also worldwide, the pageantry is becoming more spectacular. New characters and choreographed dances have been added. With domestic jet service into Parintins from Manaus, the town is full and hotels rooms are booked a year in advance. For more information on Boi Bumba contact www.boibumba.com.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 2nd, 2007 at 6:11 pm and is filed under General, Exotic cruises, Adventure cruising, Fun, Cruise News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.