Lent excess before Lent begins. Some of the most famous are the Carnival of Barranquilla, the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the Carnival of Venice, Cologne Carnival, the New Orleans Mardi Gras, the Rio de Janeiro carnival, and the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival. The day immediately preceding Lent is variously called Mardi Gras ("Fat Tuesday"), Pancake Tuesday, or Shrove Tuesday. Sometimes, it is the peak of the pre-Lenten festival, while sometimes it is largely occupied with preparations for Lent. The observances vary from culture to culture, and even from town to town. Originally, in Lebanon and Syria, the last Thursday
Rio de Janeiro bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics 2009, the American television network NBC aired the episode """" from the series "", in which a security company, interested in millionaire contracts with the possibility of hosting the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil, bought votes of members of the "Olympic Site Selection Committee" for Rio de Janeiro and murdered a member of the Belgian Olympic Committee. When aired by AXN in Brazil on September 3, 2009, the episode received much criticism. Eduardo Paes called the show "ridiculous and pathetic", while the Rio de Janeiro bid committee condemned the "irresponsible and reckless use" of the city's image. Ahead of the