What is Fat Tuesday?

Fat Tuesday, which is the English words for Mardi Gras, is a legal Holiday in New Orleans. It's 47 days before Easter.

It's celebrated by wearing decorative masks and costumes, having parades and dancing in the Mardi Gras colors of purple, green and gold.

Mardi Gras has season-long celebrations in Europe and Latin America, including Nice, France; Cologne, Germany; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It begins on the Feast of the Epiphany Jan 6.

It is also known in Catholic cultures as Carnival, or the "last hurrah" before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. Carnival comes from the Latin words carne vale, meaning "farewell to the flesh."

Carnival dates back to Second Century Rome when Religious leaders incorporated the popular local traditions into the new faith. Later in France the day before Ash Wednesday became known as Mardi Gras.

So, Fat Tuesday is literally Mardi Gras, a historical tradition, with roots in religion, a party celebrated by many countries that dates back thousands of years. Here’s to Fat Tuesday a day where it's tradition to indulge in the bulge!