Among all the pre-Lenten celebrations that take place around the world in February, the most famous are associated with warm-weather cities like Rio and New Orleans, where revelers party in elaborate costumes during the run-up to Ash Wednesday. It"s a different affair in Quebec City, Canada, pictured here, where participants in the Quebec Winter Carnival enjoy all things winter, from snow sculptures to sleigh races. This former frontier outpost, and little sister to Montreal, is known for its spirited embrace of the coldest, darkest season. So, it"s no surprise that its winter festival is the biggest in the Western Hemisphere. Our homepage image shows the grandiose Château Frontenac hotel, which opened in 1893, towering over the city"s historic Old Quebec neighborhood, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Quebec City for Winter Carnival
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
Celebrating whales—and a whale of a tale
-
World Rivers Day
-
Rays on parade
-
The glowing waters of the Matsu Islands
-
Beethoven s 250th
-
Brotherly cubs
-
Happy Mother s Day
-
Salmon migration in full swing
-
Cetacean Saturday
-
Wander the ancient medina
-
Uredd Rest Area, Norway
-
International Archaeology Day
-
International Surfing Day
-
Red fox
-
The puffin-rabbit connection
-
Celebrating sea otters
-
Rocky mountain pi
-
I ll call for pen and ink
-
Joan charges Riverside Park
-
Midnight sun
-
Martin Luther King Day
-
Monarch butterflies, Pismo Beach, California
-
Greetings from Asbury Park
-
Frozen beauty
-
Goliath heron in Kruger National Park, South Africa
-
Tintern Abbey, Wales
-
A grand event
-
Daylight saving time
-
Aýna, Albacete, Spain
-
Lick Observatory