St. Patrick’s Parades 2019

The month of Carnival parades just ended on the 5th but we were back in the streets again ALL weekend starting with the Molly’s (Jim Monaghan’s) Irish Parade Friday in the French Quarter. The Pussyfooters were invited to join in the festivities this year and I love any chance to dance. The weather was awful, cold and rainy, but we were grateful for inclusion in the lively second line.

Saturday, we met family at the Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club‘s Irish Channel Parade. The parade features double-decker floats, dancers and bagpipers but the heart of the Irish Channel parade is the many groups of walkers exchanging silk flowers for kisses (mostly on the cheek).

Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Parade 2018

With Mardi Gras parades a month behind us,  the St. Patrick’s festivities offer a city-wide pick-me-up including several parties and parades. Our favorite event is the Irish Channel Parade put on by the Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club since 1947. With floats, throws, dance troupes and walking krewes, the parade includes over 1400 (often drunk) walkers in black suits and green accessories (many in kilts) exchanging silk flowers for kisses from the women and children on the route.

My Niece Visits NOLA – Fun Ensues

We were still in our formal wear at midnight when we got to the airport to pick up my niece and her 2 friends from college. We’d been dancing and dining at the annual Raintree Gala benefitting foster children and the families who care for them. We dropped the kids in the French Quarter and hoped they didn’t get in too much trouble on their Spring Break’s first night. We all enjoyed a tasty brunch at Wink’s Bakery the next morning, finishing our meal with super-tasty donuts and their famous Buttermilk Drops.

As Pelicans season ticket holders, we were invited to their annual appreciation day so we left the kids to the Quarter and headed to the Arena for a day of tours, games, lots of freebies and Pelicans players everywhere.

Irish Channel Parade

The Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club has held a mass and parade for over 60 years. Rerouted due to construction, the over-1400 (often drunk) paraders drew a straight line through the city but still managed to be spread out and entertainingly-less-organized by the time they hit our spot. Wearing black suits with green accessories (many in kilts), walkers exchanged silk flowers for kisses from women and children. Floats toss cabbage, carrots, Moon Pies,  Lucky Charms and Irish Spring soap in addition to the traditional throws of beads, toys and cups.

Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Parade 2015

With the Mardi Gras Indians Super Sunday parade just hours away, I have NO time to write so I borrowed from a past post. Pardon the plagiarism. The Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club was established in 1947 and has held a mass and parade for over 60 years. I’ve been attending for 6 of those. Over 1400 (often drunk) walkers in black suits and green accessories (many in kilts) exchange silk flowers for kisses from the women and children on the route. Then floats pass tossing cabbage, carrots, Oodles of Noodles, pickles, Moon Pies,  Lucky Charms and Irish Spring soap in addition to the traditional throws of beads, toys and cups.

Irish Channel Parade 2014

The Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club was established in 1947 and has held a mass and parade for over 60 years. I’ve been attending for 5 of those, each year adding more trinkets to my costume and more recipes for the cabbage I catch. A friend of mine from college was visiting and it was her 2nd parade ever (her first was the Molly’s parade the day before). She arrived ready in a green shirt and green pinwheels spinning on her head. Not 24 hours in New Orleans and she was already getting the hint that nothing is “too silly” here.

Molly’s (Jim Monaghan’s) Irish parade

Whichever name you call it by, this was its 32nd year. Molly’s at the Market is an Irish pub with game nights, neon cluttered walls and a jukebox full of rock and local favorites. It’s also where the parade was born, begins and ends. A friend of mine from college had just arrived in New Orleans for her first visit to the city. After lunch at K. Paul’s, a visit to Jackson Square, Photoworks Gallery and Maskarade mask shop (all from my list of Fav Things), we headed over for her first parade – ever. The parade is short on floats but big on fun and she loved it.

Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Parade 2013

This is my 4th year celebrating St. Patrick’s in New Orleans. I don’t say St. Patrick’s “Day” because it goes on for longer, up to a week. I’m not Irish but I’ve really caught the St. Pat’s fever beading my fence line, decorating a wreath and wearing wig-to-petticoats green. There are many parades and events but my favorite thus far is the Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Over 1400 (often drunk) walkers in black suits and green accessories (many in kilts) exchange silk flowers for kisses from the women and children on the route. Then floats pass tossing cabbage, carrots, Oodles of Noodles, pickles, Moon Pies,  Lucky Charms and Irish Spring soap in addition to the traditional throws of beads, toys and cups.

Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Parade

After my first full Mardi Gras season here in 2010, I had my first ever St. Patrick’s season here. Much to my surprise in this mostly non-Irish city, the celebrations went on for days with block parties, house parties and a multitude of parades. My favorite moment quickly became the Irish Channel Parade. This, my 3rd Irish Channel Parade, brought my life in L.A. and my life in NOLA together. Preparing for my upcoming part in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, I’ve been spending time with several of my fellow castmates. Though I invited people from many different parts of my life, I spent St. Patrick’s surrounded by Django-ites.

St. Patrick’s Day – Block Party and Parade

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated citywide by Irish and non-Irish alike. The day starts with a block party. For years, the party was hosted by Parasol’s, an Irish pub, but after last year’s festivities, the bar sold and the former owners moved 2 blocks away, opening a new bar on Magazine Street – or rather, reopening an old family bar called Tracey’s. Unaffected by the confusion over old Parasol’s/new Parasol’s, old Parasol’s/new Tracey’s, the block party went on as usual.