Krewes of Babylon and Muses Parades 2019

Because I dance with the Pussyfooters, I haven’t attended the Krewes of Babylon and Muses parades since 2013. Though I was fairly devastated to be too under the weather for hours of dancing, it was kinda wonderful to experience the Thursday parades as a spectator. The rain chased the start time forward and back, finally pushing the Krewe of Chaos out of the evening entirely. Hopes are that they will roll Monday instead. Babylon was beautiful and it was great touching base with meteorologist Margaret Orr as she drove past.

Whereas Babylon is an older more traditional parade shrouded in secrecy, Muses is a loud and proud all-female parade best known for its handmade glittery shoe throws. Patricia Clarkson rode the lighted stiletto float and I finally got to see the rubber ducky floats roll. I loved all the humorous floats and clever riders’ hats and we caught bags and bags of beads, plushy throws and other fun trinkets. It was hard not to jump in when the Pussyfooters arrived on our block but it brought me joy to hear people around me screaming, “It’s the Pussyfooters!”

Carnival is a marathon, not a sprint. I’ll be dancing with my pink sisters again Sunday and attending parades throughout this 7-day weekend. Though I hated missing out on parading, it was wonderful being reminded of why I always choose to be a part of Muses. And it ended up not raining!