Mardi Gras refers both to a specific day and a season that is an ancient celebration of life. Many cultures celebrate some form of Mardi Gras and Carnival. Traditionally, the Carnival season starts on the day of Epiphany and culminates in a celebration of excess the day before Ash Wednesday, which is forty days before Easter. Mardi Gras is literally translated in French to Fat Tuesday, and it is typically celebrated with alcoholic drinks and decadent foods. Social norms are often ignored or reversed and people wear masks and costumes to celebrate in relative anonymity. 

In New Orleans, Carnival or the Mardi Gras season is celebrated with parties all over the city, and parades of different "krewes" that bring floats through the streets of the city. Krewe members throw beads and other memorabilia to the crowds that gather for each one. King Cake is a ubiquitous part of the Mardi Gras season, and the first one is usually bought on Epiphany to start the Carnival season.