Mardi Gras 2008 is now just another page in the memory book, but it is a colorful and looooong page from the West Bank!
Saturday was a beautiful day - sunny, mild temperatures - a perfect day for a parade. We packed up the kids and headed over to J&K Cafe and Bar for the tailgate party for the Krewe of NOMTOC parade in Algiers. Mr. John Dugas knows how to throw a party! There was a DJ, dancing in the parking lot, catching up with people we haven't seen in a year and, of course, the parade. Floats filled with very generous riders showered the crowd with throws.
Sunday was another gorgeous day, but with no parades on the West Bank (does anyone remember the Krewe of Poseidon?) we filled an ice chest, piled in the car and headed to Uptown New Orleans for a marathon day of parading. The Krewes of Okeanos, Babylon, Mid City and Thoth paraded down St. Charles Avenue in all of their glory. So many entertaining bands, including the illustrious St. Augustine Marching 100, had the crowd dancing and clapping along to the music. In typical New Orleans fashion, we made new friends with our fellow parade goers, keeping each other's children from venturing too far into the street or too close to a bass drum marching by.
From the Uptown parade route, we headed downtown for a Super Bowl party, then back into the streets for the Bacchus parade, complete with Hulk Hogan for the celebrity guest. What a day!
Monday brought a much needed break during the day, then we were off to Gretna for the Lundi Gras celebration at the Gretna Market. Mayor Ronnie Harris presented the canine royalty from Pawdi Gras and Carnival royalty from the Krewes of Choctaw, Grela and Adonis. A huge crowd filled the market and the surrounding streets, enjoying the food,the music and looking forward to daybreak on Tuesday.
Finally, Tuesday morning. Happy Mardi Gras! We were lucky enough to be able to ride through the streets of Gretna again, with 9 floats for the new krewe, Bes, following the Krewe of Grela.
The weather was warm and although the clouds came and went throughout the day, it was another glorious, exciting, exhausting Mardi Gras. Give me a couple of days of rest and I'll be ready for next year!
Hope your Mardi Gras was as much fun as mine.
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