New Orleans Mardi Gras

New Orleans Mardi Gras is Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Louisiana, one of the most famous Carnival celebrations.

Contemporary Mardi Gras

The parade season starts off some three weekends before Mardi Gras Day with the Krewe du Vieux parade.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

There is usually at least one parade every night starting two Fridays before Mardi Gras.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The weekend before Mardi Gras

The population of New Orleans more than doubles with visitors this weekend. Friday night sees the large Krewe of Hermes and satirical Krewe D'Etat parades, as well as small neighborhood parades like the French Quarter Fairy Fey Parade and the Krewe of OAK. Several daytime parades roll on Saturday (including Krewe of Tucks) and Sunday (Okeanos and Toth). The first of the "super krewes," Endymion, parades on Saturday night, with the celebrity-led Bacchus parade on Sunday night.

Related Topics:
Krewe of Hermes - Krewe D'Etat - Krewe of OAK - Krewe of Tucks - Okeanos - Toth - Endymion - Bacchus

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Lundi Gras

Monday is known as "Lundi Gras" ("Fat Monday"). The monarchs of the Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club and Krewe of Rex (who will parade the following day) arrive on the Mississippi River front at the foot of Canal Street, where an all-day party is staged. Uptown parades start with the Krewe of Proteus (dating back to 1882, the second oldest still parading in the city) followed by the music-themed super-Krewe Krewe of Orpheus on Monday night.

Related Topics:
Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club - Krewe of Rex - Mississippi River - Krewe of Proteus - Krewe of Orpheus

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Mardi Gras Day

Celebrations begin early on Mardi Gras Day. Uptown, the Zulu parade rolls first, followed by the Rex parade, which both end on Canal Street. A number of smaller parading organizations with "truck floats" follow the Rex parade.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Numerous smaller parades and walking clubs also parade around the city. The Jefferson City Buzzards, the Lion's Club, and Pete Fountain's Half Fast Walking Club all start early in the day Uptown and make their way to the French Quarter with at least one jazz band. At the other end of the old city, the Society of Saint Anne journeys from the Bywater through Marigny and the French Quarter to meet Rex on Canal Street. The Pair-O-Dice Tumblers rambles from bar to bar in Marigny and the French Quarter from noon to dusk. Various groups of Mardi Gras Indians, divided into uptown and downtown tribes, parade in their finery.

Related Topics:
Jefferson City Buzzards - Pete Fountain - Jazz - Society of Saint Anne - Mardi Gras Indians

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The end of each Mardi Gras

Promptly at the stroke of midnight at the end of Fat Tuesday, a mounted squad of New Orleans police officers make a show of clearing upper Bourbon Street where the bulk of out-of-town revelers congregate, announcing that Mardi Gras is over, as it is the start of Lent.

Related Topics:
Midnight - Police - Lent

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

As Mardi Gras is observed by many New Orleanians who are not Roman Catholic, so too many non-Catholics also follow the custom of giving up certain pleasures, such as chocolate or liquor, for Lent. It is also considered inappropriate and disrespectful to wear Mardi Gras beads during Lent.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ash Wednesday, the day after Fat Tuesday, is sometimes jokingly referred to as "Trash Wednesday" because of the amount of refuse typically left in the streets by the previous day's celebrations. The tons of garbage picked up by the city sanitation department is a local news item and reflects the economic impact of each year's Mardi Gras.

Related Topics:
Ash Wednesday - Refuse

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~