Farsang: How Hungarian say goodbye to winter and greet spring (PHOTOS)

Farsang is a Hungarian national holiday, the celebration of the end of winter and the beginning of spring, the MyHungary.Net informs. 

The carnival lasts from January 6 to March 6, the eve of the Lent, forty days before Easter. There is no specific date for celebrating this day in the calendar. In general, the duration of the carnival varies depending on when the Easter Sunday comes.

The carnival includes traditional parades in masks and costumes of horses, storks, bears. Entertainment, folk music and dancing take place both in big cities and small villages. Many events take place in Budapest during this period – from balls to festive concerts. The main actors of carnivals in many regions of the country are young boys wearing terrifying leather masks. They make noise, scare passers-by, young girls. The days of the carnival are considered "the wedding season".

The culinary symbol of the holiday is farsangi fánk – donuts with different fillings.

Various types of meat products are served as the main dishes. According to the custom, the last days of the carnival period are called "carnival tail" – Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. On these three days, grand carnivals are held.