It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a ... bee?

Carnival (Carnaval, Καρναβάλι (Carnavali), Carnevale, Carnestoltes, Carnaval, Karneval, Carnaval and Karnawał in Portuguese, Greek, Italian, Catalan, French, Dutch, German, Spanish and Polish languages) is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February.

Carnival typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, masque and public street party. People often dress up during the celebrations, which mark an overturning of daily life.

The origin of the name "carnival" is disputed. Variants in Italian dialects suggest that the name comes from the Italian carne levare or similar, meaning "to remove meat" since meat is prohibited during Lent.

A different explanation states that the word comes from the late Latin expression carne vale, which means "farewell to meat", signifying that those were the last days when one could eat meat before the fasting of Lent. Yet another translation depicts carne vale as "a farewell to the flesh", a phrase embraced by certain carnival celebrations that encourage letting go of your former (or everyday) self and embracing the carefree nature of the festival.

Thank you, Wikipedia.

And now, what you've all been waiting for, the letting go of our everyday selves ...