The Guacherna is the parade a week before the big bad Full-Thottle Carnaval celebration. It is maybe the funnest one to participate in ("dance" is the term folks here use). Reasons for its coolness: It's at night. It's shorter than the others. It's a little chaotic.
One of the things that determines how enjoyable your Guacherna experiece will be is your choice of Comparsa, or the group you are in. Most costumes are very traditional. The group I was in, however, was the Disfrasate Como Quieres or literally, the "Wear whatever costume you want" comparsa, with this year's overall theme of Mythology. Do whatever you want, as long as Mythology is involved. Some of the getups I honestly did not understand, but to hell with it, I was never one to question my own lack of understanding. So a pack of five gringos found our place on 44th Ave, at 72nd, opened up the bottles of rum, and waited to dance to the Cathedral a couple hours away.
One thing most people don't consider when planning a night of drinking rum and dancing down a street for two hours in a black superhero star suit is the bathroom break reality, which suffice to say, ain't pretty. But no one was injured and no animals were harmed in the filming, so I consider it a raging success. Plus I have a cool new black suit with silver stars tearing off it to wear to job interviews and funerals.
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