|
Not all krewes have
parades or floats but those that do, pay an average of $30,000, for the
float, but it lasts for 30 years, and can be redone, rejuvenated and
even 're-themed' indefinitely (at Mardi Gras World, of
course).
And if you think Mardi
Gras is only on Bourbon Street, well try 70 groups throughout New Orleans!
Carnival
celebrations fall into two categories: public and private. The private
celebrations are balls, held by krewes. Some krewes let anyone join,
while others are exclusive and made up mostly of FONOF (fine old New
Orleans families).
We learn all kinds of Mardi
Gras terms and words, such as Bouef Gras, call-outs, Zulu,
Courir du Mardi Gras and more.
And then there's the story of
the Mardi Gras theme song, If Ever I Cease to Love. Back in
the mid 1800's the Grand Duke Alexis of Russian attended a burlesque
show while visiting New York, called "Bluebeard", and fell in
love with one of the singers, Miss Lydia Thompson.
A few years later, when the
newly formed Rex Group (Rex, king of Carnival, or Rex -
NEVER, King Rex or King of Rex) got wind that the Duke
would attend Mardi Gras, they set the song to march time and it has been
the season's song ever since.
Crammed with knowledge -
tidbits is probably more appropriate - our guide sets us free and
invites us to wander around for as long as we want, and encourages us to
take lots of pictures.
The whole thing is a bit
overwhelming. Everything is sooo big. I'm 5'7" and I'm
barely as tall as Marilyn Monroe's knee! In the maze
of amazing props, heads and 15 foot torsos, we watch the artists
carefully and ceremoniously apply colors, shapes and personality.
Click on them for
a larger view
In the float artists' warehouse, workers are
building and decorating spectacular floats. Some have lots of
glitz and glitter, some are whimsical and charming while others are
patriotic and make statements.
The really big floats take up the length of the entire room and some of
them are broken into several sections for assembly in a larger space.
Click on them for
a larger view
After an hour of looking up and acting silly (it's an
environment that brings out your most childish behavior), flashing
photos for ourselves, and accommodating requests from others to get the
snap for the family album, we leave Mardi Gras World
Until now, I didn't have much interest in attending
Mardi Gras. But now...well, it's funny what a little
knowledge will do. Let's
get some lunch and then see who's
'rising' at the cemetery.
Let's go!
|
