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Chilly Mardi Gras paraders (and watchers) whoop it up
February 11, 1997
Web posted at: 5:00 p.m. EST
In this story:
NEW ORLEANS (CNN) -- Shivering in 40-degree temperatures, thousands of revelers huddled together Tuesday chanting the mantra of Mardi Gras -- "Throw me something" -- as gaudy floats with trinket-tossing masked riders inched through the city's packed streets.
The last day of celebration before the Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday kicked off about 7:30 a.m. with walking groups, including famed Dixieland clarinetist Pete Fountain's Half-Fast Marching Club, strolling through the crowds and making bar stops along the parade route.
Lent is the 40-day Christian observance of fasting and penitence before Easter. In some parts of the world, the pre-Lenten celebration is called Carnaval.
New Orleans police predicted more than a million people would take to the streets Tuesday -- a state holiday -- for the glitzy parades, flashing flesh and lavish costumes. "This is the world's biggest street party," said one officer.
"It's a lot of work for us, but it's fun, it's free and even crime takes a holiday for Mardi Gras."
Coffee in one hand, beer in the other
Among the revelers waiting along Fat Tuesday parade routes for the festivities to begin was Bobby Patterson, 38, who held a cup of coffee in one hand and a beer in the other in the chilly morning air.
"What do I care about it being cold? I'm from Chicago. I'd be a lot colder there, and it would just be a workday," said Patterson, who was wrapped in blankets beside the St. Charles streetcar line.
"It's cold, but we get a little warmer with every beer," said two young men, dressed in identical leather g-strings, a few chains and elaborately feathered masks. "The trick is to stay in the middle of a crowd. It cuts the wind."
Let the parades begin
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The non-stop parades began in earnest when the Krewe of Zulu, a predominantly African-American Carnival club, rolled down St. Charles Avenue toward the French Quarter handing out hand-painted coconuts along with the obligatory rubber spears and reams of plastic beads.
The more flamboyant and daring costumes were found closer to the Vieux Carre (French Quarter), while family themes and picnics prevailed away from the center of town.
Many New Orleanians throw themselves whole-heartedly into the street party atmosphere year after year, returning to the same parade-watching spots and costuming every family member from grandmothers to infants.
"I wouldn't miss it for nothin', darlin'," said Edith Danapales of suburban Chalmette as she flipped hamburgers on a portable grill on the St. Charles Avenue median.
"We've been doing this since my grandpa was knee-high to a crawfish," she said. "That's why we all dress like crawfish every year and just add new costumes for those who can't fit in last year's. I think there's 33 of us this year -- maybe 34."
There have been more than two dozen parades since Saturday morning. A dozen more were under way or planned for Tuesday in New Orleans and its suburbs.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- Go Carnaval in Rio - February 3, 1997
- Date with Dionysus: Fat Tuesday a wild time - February 21, 1996
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window- The Official New Orleans Mardi Gras Web Site
- FatTuesday.com
- Everything you need to know about Mardi Gras!
- Mardi Gras City Link
- History of Mardi Gras
- Mardi Gras Links
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