Carnaval de Barranquilla

February arrives and everyone gets ready for four days of carnival in Barranquilla and other cities. This carnival season is the pre-Lent way to let off steam, sometimes exceeding the normal boundaries of social correctness. The street food is of great importance during these four carnival days, as no one is supposed to work, even in the kitchen. Sancocho (soup) is the basic food, maintaining everyone’s energy ready for long nights of partying and dancing. The two basic types are trifasico sancocho, which includes beef, chicken and pork, and guandu (pigeon pea) sancocho, which is made of beans and salted meat. Snack foods for the daytime include butifarra con bollo (a kind of sausage sandwich), empanadas (little pastries), chuzo (meat skewers), arepa con huevo (egg rolls), carimañolas (meat pies) and more.