Parades galore!

So, what's all the fuss about Mardi Gras, Carnival, parades, and the like? Okay, well, Carnival starts immediately after the 12th night of Christmas, and fills the gap until the start of Lent, which is itself determined by the timing of Easter, which is set by both the Spring Equinox and the lunar cycle. Confused yet? Look here, it explains it all.

Starting about 2 weeks before Mardi Gras (literally translated to Fat Tuesday), there are parades. Krewes make floats and costumes and march a several mile parade route. Over the two weeks and around the city, there are dozens of these parades. To join a Krewe is a several hundred to several thousand dollar investment, often involving waiting lists and such. See the schedule to get an idea of the scale of this. Now, if I've piqued your interest and you want to read more, this is a good website to get all your questions answered.

Now then, enough lecturing - here's the pictures! I saw three parades last Saturday - it was quite fun, and they pass just two blocks away from my room.

Finally, here is a short video I took that encapsulates the experience. A large float drives by, one of the costumed people tosses me some beads, and before you know it, the next act is right behind.

These floats are crazy to see coming. The crowd rushes up to the sides, clamoring for cheap trinkets, and you can see them launching rapid-fire at all angles from the float. The crowd does pretty well, and catches probably 70-80% of the stuff, which must add up to tons of material. Sadly, it seems to be kind of taboo to pick up stuff that lands on the ground, which means... well, better not to think of it.