Carnaval — the whopping citywide party that most of Mazatlán looks forward to all year every year — is drawing closer. As previously announced, the official public events take place during the days preceding Ash Wednesday, this year Feb. 18-24. As you wander around town, you may encounter a knot of excited young people, family and friends backing one or another candidate for Queen, King of Joy or Child Queen. They all hold rallies in public places to whip up enthusiasm and to sell raffle tickets, which count as votes. The tickets are for a car which will be raffled off some time in March. Multiply the din at one of those street rallies by 9, for that´s the number of young women who will be vying for the title of Queen of Carnaval in the Angela Peralta Theater on Feb. 7. If ticket sales get them that far. The real trial by fire is when the candidates parade before a panel of judges in a competition of beauty, poise and personality. Each girl has a cheering section and they´ll be filling the theater with deafening cries as their favorite candidate steps forward to be presented to the panel. Carnaval, while representing a rollicking good time, has its cultural aspects, too. On Feb. 9 and 10, another group of judges, art experts, will be winnowing through the entries in the annual Antonio Lopez Saenz painting competition for Sinaloa artists. Both judging and presentation of prizes takes place at the Mazatlán Art Museum on Feb. 18. Prizes and recognition in the various fields of the arts is a long-standing Carnaval Mazatlán tradition. Other judges are working hard to come up with their choices as winners of the Clemencia Isaura Prize for Poetry and the Mazatlán Prize for Literature. These will be given out Friday, Feb. 20, during one of the major pageants, the Juegos Florales or Flower Games, an event marking its 75th year as a Carnaval fixture. Once again this popular salute to the arts returns to the Teodoro Mariscal baseball stadium after several years in the capacity-limited Angela Peralta Theater. A show with a performance by a nationally known attraction always follows the crowning of the Queen of the Flower Games and the presenting of the literary prizes. This year the stars of the evening will be Diez Pianos (ten pianos), a unique musical group whose title explains the concept. The audience can expect to hear 880 keys playing everything from Rachmaninoff to John Lennon, as well as some outstanding Mexican composers such as Augustin Lara. The King of Joy will get his crown on Thursday, Feb. 19 in Olas Altas, at a free show, and the top pageant of Carnaval, the crowning of the Queen, will take place in the ball park on Saturday, Feb. 21. Star of this show, always a nationally known headliner, will be Joan Sebastian who, despite his first name, is a male singer widely known on both sides of the border for his renditions of norteño and ranchero songs. Later that same night a ship-to-shore naval battle fought in fireworks will light up the night sky over the dancers at the Olas Altas street party. Lavish parades along the Malecón, with floats reflecting the Grecian theme of The Glory and the Splendor, take place on Sunday, Feb. 22 and Tuesday, Feb. 24. And in between, Monday Feb. 23 is set aside for children´s activities. These include a kiddie parade with minifloats and marching units from the Aguamarina Hotel to Valentino´s starting at 10 a.m. and a family-oriented pageant to crown the Child Queen in the baseball stadium. This year the children´s pageant stars Belinda, the 14-year-old recording star who also appears in Mexican soap operas. The kids´ parade will tag onto the main parade when it marches for a second time along the Malecón on Feb. 24. One more thing: It

was thought that the popular gastronomic fair that local restaurant association members produce each year was in danger of extinction because it has outgrown the Plazuela Machado. Finally, it was decided that stands for the tasting of specialties of other restaurants´ menus can be placed in front of Plazuela buildings where no restaurant now exists, and that the overflow can be set up along Calle Sixto Osuna (the street that runs from the plazuela to the Panama Bakery). New this year is a so-called Carnaval of Hope to take place in the Plazuela Machado on the pre-Carnaval weekend (Feb. 14-15). Spearheaded by the city´s three Rotary Clubs, stands will be set up around the plazuela where such groups as the Red Cross and the Downs Syndrome Foundation can raise funds by selling their handiworks. As for Carnaval itself, the calendar below can help you circle the dates for events you want to attend.