The masks of VeniceRevelry takes to the canals for Carnival celebrationFebruary 23, 1998Web posted at: 2:34 p.m. EDT (1434 GMT) VENICE, Italy (CNN) -- Venice is awash in color, as it has been for almost two weeks celebrating Carnival along with other European and American communities. The festivities culminate on Shrove Tuesday. Venice's party used to begin the day after Christmas and last for six weeks, but conquering Napoleon put an end to Venice's already declining Carnival -- and its centuries-old republic -- in 1797. The festival was revived less than 20 years ago, made from the same mold as its traditional predecessor. Parades, colorful costumes, classic Venetian masks, drums, and flags fill the plazas and the waterways of the city on the lagoon.
And while some try for a tranquil canal ride on one of the city's famed gondolas, other costumed revelers ply the waterways dressed as pirates. The Venice Carnival's heavy play of masquerade dates to the city's earliest history -- a Roman winter festival during which everyone wore masks. After its assimilation into the Roman Catholic calendar, Carnival -- from the Latin "carnem levare," to remove meat -- was the last "hurrah" before the beginning of the austere Lenten season leading up to Easter. One tradition has changed -- a daring acrobat on a tight rope sliding from the top of the Basilica of St. Mark's bell tower, the Campanile, to the nearby Doge's Palace has been replaced by a mechanical bird, which drops confetti on the partyers below. This year's festival of music, dance and abandon honors one of Venice's most famous sons -- Giacomo Casanova, the 18th century adventurer known for his many love affairs. This year is the 200th anniversary of his death. 
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