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
Leme, Rio de Janeiro leading up to New Year's on December 31 the traditional processions honoring Yemaja begin here. The famous party of Réveillon or New Year's Eve in Copacabana extends completely into Leme as well. Leme, Rio de Janeiro Leme (, "rudder") is an upper-middle-class neighborhood in the South Zone of the City of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, next to Copacabana, Urca and Botafogo. The neighborhood takes its name from a nearby rock formation whose shape resembles the rudder of a ship. In 1975 was built one of the tallest buildings in the Leme beach; the hotel Le Méridien. Le Méridien closed in