Flower battles and giant fish women on February Traincation
- By Global Cool
- 6th Feb 2012
So you made it through January - well done! It's time to shed those winter blues and get excited about your first full pay check after the holidays. Why not treat yourself to a little holiday while you've got a bit of extra cash with these great Traincations...
Take an anti-Valentine’s Day adventure
Single? Or just hate Valentine’s Day? If you’d rather escape all the mushy nonsense, then spend the weekend in Switzerland instead. Head over to St Moritz on February 11 for some International Bob Run Skating. Teams of three participants will don their ice hockey gear and zoom down the St Moritz’s Olympia Bob Run on ice skates as fast as they can. Although you can’t join in unless you have a licence from an ice hockey club to prove your skating skills, it’s a fascinating spectacle to behold and well worth a visit. Check out the run for yourself…
Nearest train station | St. Moritz
The flower battle and parade of lights at the Nice-est carnival around
On February 18-19, take a weekend away for the Nice Carnival. It’s the highlight of the Côte d’Azur in winter, and is one of the biggest and most popular carnivals in the world. The stunning parades are highlighted by the enormous space and beautiful architecture of the Place Massena square. The theme for this year’s parade is the story of ‘The King of Sport’ to honour the 2012 Olympic Games. Thousands of musicians and dancers, aboard tanks up to 20m high will participate in the display.
At the Promenade des Anglais let the ‘Battle of the Flowers’ commence! Elegant floats of exquisite flower arrangements glide through the parade. Ornately costumed people launch thousands of flowers into the air and crowds. In the evening, make your way to the Albert I Gardens for the ‘Parade of Lights’. Nice hosts a spectacular show of visual animations projected on enormous screens in the square. All the floats are also illuminated and the parade continues with a truly magical display.
Giant fish women and men in suspenders at Dunkerque
Fancy being someone else for the weekend? Head over to France for their annual Mardi Gras Dunkerque Carnival from February 21-23 and don your disguise. The carnival is hundreds of years old and began as a tradition amongst fisherman, gradually evolving into the mayhem of the modern day. The key component of this celebration is the “troupe”, the weekend parades, which you can either join or just enjoy from the sidelines. Put on your “clet’che” (costume) and follow the music. Anything goes here so expect to see thousands of people in all manner of outfits, from women dressed as giant fish to men in suspenders.
Watch your head! It’s a carnival tradition for the mayor to throw smoked herrings from the top of the city hall. The air is filled with the scent of rollmops and potjevleesch (potted meat) from street food stalls, and the sound of traditional French music. See for yourself in this video…
From St. Pancras, Dunkirk is a mere 2hrs away with a change to high-speed TGV at Lille.
Emily Rycroft is Editorial Assistant at Global Cool and is collaborating with Loco2 on a series of Traincation themed posts for Loco2. So be sure to come back next month, and in the meantime, follow the conversation on Twitter:
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