Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Tuesday) is a really, really big event in New Oleans, and they build up to it for days beforehand. Take a look at Bourbon Street...The costumes and the antics will get wilder as the day wears on. One of the many customs they have is flinging necklaces of beads at each other: https://www.earthcam.com/events/mardigras/?cam=catsmeow2
Later on this evening you'll see groups standing around holding up huge crosses, and other groups with signs saying things like "Believe In Jesus Or Burn In Hell"; "Ban Homo Marriages"; and so forth. Whereas close to them, you'll see people offering nipple-glossing...Crazy.
//oh yes, and in Germany women go round cutting off men's ties. Goodness knows what that's all about//
Altweiberfastnacht is what it's called, ties are cut off as an, err, symbolic gesture to demasculate men! OH lost no end of ties, he usually wore his oldest and most hideous though he once lost a beautiful silk one. Oddly enough there isn't an equivalent ceremony for the women, no great surprise there.
As far as pancakes go, I have seafood pancakes in a cheese sauce in the oven.