Everywhere else it’s just Tuesday, but in New Orleans it’s the explosive fireworks finale of over a month of festivities ending in 7 straight days of parades. There are plenty of Uptown parades on Fat Tuesday – the Krewe of Zulu and Krewe of Rex are 2 of the city’s oldest, but after attending dozens of parades (and me dancing with the Pussyfooters in 2 of them), for us – Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday in French) is for wandering the French Quarter and Marigny taking in all the silly, imaginative and/or beautiful costumes people create. For my husband, it’s his favorite day of the year and he can spend weeks conceiving and preparing his ideas. This year was his most spectacular creation – the St. Louis Cathedral.
Like the year he created the Hard Rock Hotel protest/memorial costume, I was back in my celebrity girlfriend days, stopping every few feet to help take photos of other people with my guy. Things kicked into a paparazzi-like scene when we went to take photos in front of the actual St. Louis Cathedral. Even the occasional cars creeping slowly through the pedestrian-packed streets would grab photos or videos of the costume as they passed. Though his costume was about 6 feet wide, he generally navigated crowds well – sometimes as people yelled out things like, “Make way for the church!”
People’s reactions were my favorite part and made me wish we’d put a GoPro on one of the steeples. Many gasped or exclaimed “Wow” as their jaws dropped. Some burst out laughing at the sheer audacity of the size. MANY mentioned his “commitment.” That was the most used word of the day after wow. Some thanked him. Some bowed in awe or clapped. Others crossed themselves. And many simply said, “You won.” Lots asked how long it took to make. (I have no idea how long it took him to conceive it but it took about 3 weeks for us to execute).
We stopped at a couple house parties and enjoyed red beans and rice, gumbo and King Cake. One home had a 3rd floor balcony and we relaxed watching the chaos below while local music emanated from an outdoor speaker. Back in the streets, we ran into several more friends and many of my Pussyfooters sisters fresh from our recent parades. Spending time with friends is often the best part of Mardi Gras. Some tried walking with us but gave up when they realized how often they’d have to wait for photo ops. The good news is lots of people in cool costumes stopped for us, but many of my photos are of people taking photos or reacting to our cardboard cathedral.
Fat Tuesday ties with the Mardi Gras Indians’ Super Sunday for my favorite photography day. I cut this year’s nearly 600 photos as much as I could but I’m always hoping the bounty of images makes you feel like you’re here. I’ve also included a few shots of my annual Mardi Gras tree and some of the specialty throws we caught this season. Enjoy!
L.A. to N.O.LA 
Fantastic photo set!!
That means so much coming from you!
You have outdone yourself this year, or maybe it is the people of New Orleans? Either way, these pics are SPECTACULOUS!!! I wish I could have heard every costume wearers explanation of their outfit, but oh well…
This is such a creative city – and there are so many different ways to participate in our culture!