Voil Jeanettenstoet
Vette dinsdag waarop duizenden mannen verkleed als vrouw met kinderwagens, vogelkooien en lampenkappen door Aalst trekken, vertrek om 15u aan de Grote Markt.
Promote Aalst's quirky carnival tradition to cultural tourists and local event-goers seeking authentic, offbeat European experiences.
- Behind-the-scenes costume prep guides for Voil Jeanettenstoet participants
- Travel guides highlighting Aalst's unique carnival traditions vs. mainstream celebrations
- Local business spotlights: where to eat/shop during the festival
- User-generated content campaigns featuring creative costume ideas
On Tuesday, thousands of men dressed as women take to the streets of Aalst in the Voil Jeanettenstoet. The authentic Aalst Voil Jeanet is easily recognized by his fur coat, pram, birdcage with herring, broken umbrella and lampshade as a headdress; the key element is his mentality to mock everything and everyone. The Voil Jeanet exemplifies the reversal ritual during Carnival where man becomes woman to disrupt conventional social order. The tradition originated at the end of the 19th century when workers, unable to afford costly carnival costumes, borrowed their wives' worn-out clothes.
- Thousands of elaborately dressed men in female outfits with oversized bras, old corsets, broken umbrellas, chamber pots, bird cages with dried herring and strollers flood the city center streets.
- The parade starts at 15:00 on the Grote Markt and passes through Molenstraat, Werfplein (left side) and Vaartstraat.
- In the evening, participants and spectators gather on the Grote Markt for the traditional pop burning (Popverbranding), where Prince Carnival ignites the carnival effigy at 21:00, marking the official end of Carnival.
- A statue erected in honor of the 'Voil Jeanet' is located at the Hopmarkt.
- Participants march through Aalst's streets creating chaos
- they bring homemade wagons or strollers with carnival music, and typical attributes include lampshade headwear, umbrellas, fur coats and dried herring in cages.
- Food stalls along the parade route and at the winter fair (Winterfoor) provide refreshments.