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
January 2010 Rio de Janeiro floods and mudslides in a lagoon in Rio de Janeiro beginning in January, possibly as a result of local ocean anoxia caused by algal blooms triggered by increased eutrophication from the excess run-off produced by the flooding. January 2010 Rio de Janeiro floods and mudslides The January 2010 Rio de Janeiro floods and mudslides was an extreme weather event that affected the State of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil in the first days of January 2010. At least 85 people died, with at least 29 people in the Hotel Sankey after it was destroyed by landslides, and many more have been injured. More