Bloco schedule for the last weekend

Carnaval is supposed to end on Ash Wednesday, but several years ago Monobloco began doing a big beach parade on the following Sunday. About the same time, the Parade of Champions started happening on the Saturday of that weekend, so, basically, the whole weekend has turned into a whole nother party, extending Carnaval by a week. And now apparently a bunch of other blocos have started to think: "Hey, we could do a parade that weekend too!" For those still in Rio, here's the schedule:

Saturday -
Bailinho (little dance party) of the famous drag-queen favorite, Banda de Ipanema. Starting at 4pm in the Praça General Osório (that's the little plaza near Posto 9, where the street fair is on Sundays).

Pela Saco - 3pm in Botafogo, by way of the streets of Matriz, Voluntários da Pátria and Real Grandeza.

Berço da Samba - 5pm, downtown in front of the Praça 11 subway station.

Bafafá - 5pm, Ipanema on the Avenida Vieira Souto

Mulheres de Chico - HEY! Mulheres de Chico! This is the hot new all-girl's bloco of Zona Sul and they are GOOD. (Actually I haven't been lucky enough to see them myself, but I play with a lot of the same girls in Bangalafumenga and they're great players, and I've heard good reports of their parades and shows this year). BTW the name Mulheres de Chico has an intentional double meaning of "fans of Chico Buarque" - they really adore Chico - and "women on the rag [menstruating]" - which is why their t-shirts are red. 5pm in Leblon at the Praça Antero de Quental, don't miss it!

And, of course, the Parade of Champions at the Sambodromo on Saturday night. Based on my experience last year, it should be a cool vibe compared to last weekend's parades - the crowd tonight will be more Brazilians (since it's a bit cheaper) and fewer tourists, and the paraders will be more drunk and happy, and with more hats falling off, and not in the LEAST worried about staying in their lines or avoiding parade gaps. In other words ... more like the old-time street Carnaval of the past.

SUNDAY
MONOBLOCO! This should draw close to 100,000 people. 9am on Copacabana beach starting at Posto 6 and heading toward Leme. You can't miss it since traffic will be shut down through all of Zona Sul. Get there early to have a prayer of getting close to the band. I highly recommend arriving four months ago and earning a spot in the caixa section, because it's much less crowded if you can parade inside the ropes, as a player.

Bloco Raizes - 1pm in Laranjeiras along Rua Alice.

Boka de Espuma - Botafogo, 3pm, Rua Marques de Olinda and travelling clear to the Botafogo beach.

Baranga - 4pm at Posto 9.

Galinha do Meio-Dia - the Chicken-of-Noon closes Carnaval! From 3pm to 7pm in Ipanema, from the Avenida Delfim Moreira up to Vinicius de Moraes. Your last chance to party with ten thousand bouncing Brazilians all wearing funny hats, until 2009.