Need a gig? Apply for Houston Livestock Show and Rodeoโs seasonal positions
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, along with RCS (carnival), Allied Universal, Andy Frain Services, ASM Global and Aramark are hosting a job fair for seasonal positions during the 2024 rodeo. Part-time positions include concessions cashiers, bartenders, waitstaff, event staff, carnival ride and game attendants, and security.
Germany ekes some fun out of a quiet Carnival
A reveller stands in front of a political carnival float depicting Russia's President Vladimir Putin fighting with opposition leader Alexei Navalny in the streets of Duesseldorf, Germany, Monday, Feb. 15, 2021. Because of the coronavirus pandemic the traditional 'Rosenmontag' carnival parade are canceled but eight floats are pulled through the empty streets in Duesseldorf, where normally hundreds of thousands of people would celebrate the street carnival. But organizers in Duesseldorf, one of the German Rhineland's main Carnival strongholds, didn't want to let Rose Monday in 2021 go completely without the traditional caricatures of current events. โIt's a small signal that we're alive,โ float builder Jacques Tilly told the German news agency dpa. Another depicted the brain flying out of the head of an activist against coronavirus restrictions.
Brazil Carnival goes online with street parties banned
A woman dressed as a superhero and wearing a mask to curb the spread of the new coronavirus performs in the "Desliga da Justica" street band in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021. Their performance was broadcast live on social media for those who were unable to participate in the carnival due to COVID restrictions after the city's government officially suspended Carnival and banned street parades or clandestine parties. โWhen everyone is immunized, we are going to have the biggest Carnival that Brazil has ever seen. One of the biggest street party associations, Blocos da Sebastiana, this year organized workshops on Carnival makeup and instruments and offered playlists of their music. โWe would like to be partying on the street but we canโt.โ said Rita Fernandes, president of Blocos da Sebastian.
A subdued year for Germany's Carnival, thanks to the virus
A carnival reveler is watched by public order guards at the "Alter Markt" where normally tens of thousands of revelers dressed in carnival costumes would celebrate the start of the street carnival in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021. This year all carnival celebrations are banned due to the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)BERLIN โ Germanyโs renowned Carnival celebrations got underway Thursday but without any of their usual raucous revelry. One of Germanyโs first superspreader events stemmed from a Carnival celebration in a town west of Cologne last February where many people came in contact with an infected man. Cologne festival committee President Christoph Kuckelkorn told Germanyโs dpa news agency that Carnival could emerge from this year purified, returning closer to its roots from the increasingly commercial, excessive celebration it had become.
With Carnival scrapped, Rioโs Sambadrome hosts vaccinations
In a normal year, Rios Sambadrome would be preparing for its great moment of the year: the worlds most famous Carnival parade. But a week before what should be the start of Carnival, the pandemic has replaced pageantry. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)RIO DE JANEIRO โ In a normal year, Rio de Janeiroโs Sambadrome would be preparing for its great moment of the year: the worldโs most famous Carnival parade. Rioโs hotel occupancy rate normally reaches about 80% in the hot summer months and 100% during Carnival. It's now at roughly 50-60%, according to Alfredo Lopes, the president of Rioโs Hospitality Workers Union.
Carnival cancels cruises through April -- or later -- due to COVID-19
HOUSTON โ Carnival has canceled all cruises from U.S. ports through April 30, 2021, the cruise line said. The cruise line said travelers should look for an email or check with their travel agent for more details. โAs we confer with industry partners and regulators on the protocols and procedures that will guide our operations when we resume sailing, we will continue to make information available (here),โ the post reads. โThank you for your continued understanding and support.โCarnival has repeatedly pushed back sail dates locally and across the U.S. as the COVID-19 pandemic has continued. MORE ON CARNIVAL CRUISES AND THE PANDEMIC.
Pandemic-era Mardi Gras: No big crowds, but plenty of cake
FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020, file photo, Mondo Kayo parades down Chartres Street during Mardi Gras, in New Orleans. The Mardi Gras season always starts on Jan. 6 and ends on Fat Tuesday, which this year falls on Feb. 16. The Krewe de Jeanne dโArc is a club that annually pays homage to the fallen French hero with a parade through the French Quarter on the official start of the Carnival season. In Mobile, Alabama, dozens of parades, balls and other events also have been canceled. The city on the Gulf of Mexico calls itself the birthplace of Mardi Gras since celebrations began there a few years earlier than in New Orleans.
S&P 500 ends at another record high as tumultuous 2020 ends
The benchmark S&P 500 index finished with a gain of 16.3% for the year, or a total return of about 18.4%, including dividends. And the S&P 500 rose or fell by at least 1% on twice as many days in 2020 than it did, on average, since 1950. The electric car maker jumped 743.4% in 2020 for the biggest gain in the S&P 500. All told, the S&P 500 set 33 record highs in 2020. The S&P 500 rose 24.03 points, or 0.6%, to 3,756.07, an all-time high.
Carnival Cruise Line cancels all cruises set to sail out of Galveston for 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns
GALVESTON โ If you were looking to catch a Carnival cruise out of Galveston soon, youโll have to wait. On Thursday, Carnival Cruise Line stated that some of its cruises from all U.S. homeports, except Miami and Port Canaveral, are canceled for November and December due to COVID-19 concerns. The cancellation applies to all cruises that were planned to sail out of the Port of Galveston. โLosing a cruise line is big for the Galveston industry,โ Newman said. And while we are not making any presumptions, once cruising is allowed, we will center our initial start-up from the homeports of Miami and Port Canaveral,โ said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line.
Virus delays Rio's Carnival for first time in a century
A "quadra" or court, which this time of year is usually filled with Carnival performers practicing their dance moves, sits empty in the Unidos de Padre Miguel samba school, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Sept. 21, 2020. Rio de Janeiro on Thursday, Sept. 24, said it has delayed its annual Carnival parade, saying the global spectacle cannot go ahead in February because of Brazils continued vulnerability to the new coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
Virus delays Rio's Carnival for first time in a century
The samba schools are community institutions, and the parades are just one detail of all that,โ Luiz Antonio Simas, a historian who specializes in Rioโs Carnival, said in an interview. As the number of infections grew, the samba schools that participate in the glitzy annual parade halted preparations for the 2021 event. Nearly all of Rioโs samba schools are closely linked to working class communities. โCarnival is our life.โThe last year Rioโs Carnival was suspended was 1912, following the death of the foreign relations minister. A statement from the agency Thursday provided no further clarity on the fate of the Carnival street parties.
Carnival, Disney, Royal Caribbean, more extend cancelation of North American cruises through Oct. 31
HOUSTON โ Unless the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. can be contained sooner, Americans wonโt be cruising out of the country until after Halloween. Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Disney Cruise Lines are among dozens that have extended the cancelation of sailings from North America through October 31. A late 2019 Economic Impact study from CLIA revealed that cruise activity supports nearly half a million jobs in the US and generates about $53 billion annually in economic activity throughout the country. โEach day of the suspension of U.S. cruise operations results in a loss of up to $110 million in economic activity and 800 direct and indirect American jobs,โ CLIA wrote on its website Wednesday. โThe impact of the suspension is particularly profound in states that depend heavily on cruise tourism, including Florida, Texas, Alaska, Washington, New York and California.โ
Carnival inundated with bookings after announcing August departures; these are cruises slated to set sail from Galveston
HOUSTON โ Bookings for Carnival Cruise Line shot up 600 percent after announcing cruises would begin on August 1, according to Cruise Planners, a cruise booking company. A check of Carnivalโs website shows a Western Caribbean cruise aboard the Carnival Dream is scheduled to set sail from Galveston as soon as August 8, with several subsequent cruises to depart through the month and into next year. However, plans are just plans, as Carnival noted on social media, saying in part:Update on important information regarding our service pause extension. Posted by Carnival Cruise Line on Monday, May 4, 2020โAny resumption of cruise operations โ whenever that may be โ is fully dependent on our continued efforts in cooperation with federal, state, local and international government officials,โ a news release said. โIn our continued support of public health efforts, any return to service will also include whatever enhanced operational protocols and social gathering guidelines that are in place at the time of the resumption of cruise operations.
Local couple worried $1,900 refund from Carnival cruise could be months away
GALVESTON โ One local couple booked what they hope would be a fun cruise. However, they did not expect an adventure to get answers from the Carnival cruise line. On March 30, the couple learned that Carnival was canceling the trip on Facebook than they received an email. To try to get more information on their refunds, they turned to Facebook and were shocked at what they read. "Carnival was responding, telling some people it could be 3-6 months, telling others well it could be 6-9 months," Debbie said.
โWe will be back:' Carnival cruise ship in Galveston lights up with message of hope
The Strandcam in Galveston caught a lit-up Carnival cruise ship with the words โWe will be backโ on Friday night. Carnival is among one of many cruise lines to suspend outbound cruises for 30 days earlier this month. Princess Cruises announced a 60-day suspension in global operations from March 12 to May 10. The Strandcam is located in the Strand National Historic Landmark District which in the late 1800s and early 1900s, โwas the heart of Galveston,โ Galveston.com says. More coronavirus coverageTIPS: The tired parentsโ guide to getting kids through this extended spring breakCOURSES: Scholastic is offering free online courses so your kids can keep learning while schools are closedPERSONAL STORY: โI had COVID-19 and hereโs my story.โ Woman shares details of coronavirus experienceGIVE BACK: How to help Houstonians in need during the coronavirus outbreakHIRING: See which Houston-area grocery stores are hiring temporary workers in high-demandSOCIAL DISTANCING: 25 ideas to keep social distancing from dooming your weekendsQUESTIONS ANSWERED: Here are answers to 48 of your most pressing coronavirus questions