What is a batizado?

Hey guys,

Batizado's around the corner and most of us that have been doing Capoeira for a while are really anticipating and bringing up our game for this event. So let's use good ole wiki to re-intro the idea of Batizado for us:
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A Batizado (literally baptism in Portuguese, and borrowed from the religious tradition) is normally an annual event for a Capoeira group in a region or country. The practice of Capoeira Batizados originates from Capoeira Regional, but has been extended to other styles.

Batizados are large events and are very important for the group organizing it. It is the point in the year where the new members will be baptized officially into the group and receive their first cords and where the other members depending on their progress will get a new one. A typical batizado will take several days and consist of workshops, the actual Batizado itself and a Troca das Cordas. Often many groups from more than one region will attend a Batizado for other groups. This allows for development of the game by contact with other players, teachers and styles.

In many schools, students are baptized by the floor -- that is, they play against higher level capoeiristas and are subsequently taken down by a rasteira. This is meant to signify a continual process of humility and improvement in the game.
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To the newer Capoeiristas, I hope you'll be able to attend and be blown away when our Zambiacongo Gold Coast come down along with our Mestre... its gonna be quite an exchange and a great experience!

Salve!
Morcego