Krewe of Lafitte Illuminated Parade

The United States Navy Cracker Jack Marching Unit led the parade last night. As you can see, I wasn't in a well lit area, but I think you'll get a flavor of the Krewe of Lafitte Illuminated Parade. You may click on any of the photos to see them in more detail.


"Hold on, honey! They're takin' my picture!"


One of several Krewe of Lafitte floats.


I love the Krewe of Lafitte 'Pirate' float!


A GQ pirate.


Guarding the back door.


Here comes the 'Parrot' float, another favorite of mine.


Polly needs a BIG cracker!


Looks like this pirate fell victim to a giant squid!

Yep! That's him, skewered on the front!


Two really cool members of the Order of Zeus

The Krewe of Aquatica float.

Beads, beads, and more beads!

I love this! The Krewe of L.A. - Lower Alabama!

Locals recognize this firetruck. It's leading the Krewe of Seville float and is generally parked in front of Rosie O'Grady's in the Seville Quarter.

Wow. That's a beautiful headdress, but I keep thinking that I could finally dust the top ledge in my foyer with those tall feathers...or should I say 'tail' feathers?

La Savillana looks like a new float entry this year.

What's new, Pussycat?

Uh oh! Mice and cats don't mix.

This cute little Twirler was workin' it! Great job!

Twiggy!

Hmmmm...I think I've seen him in past years.

Krewe of Lafitte costumes are alway top-notch and I really enjoy taking photos of them.

Happiness is...Mardi Gras time in Pensacola!

A handsome conquistador!

A couple of buds, waiting for the parade to start.

The Krewe of Jesters!

Krewe of Andres de Pez: "Greater than de Luna, and even Lafitte, de Pez came for all with his Windward fleet."

Krewe of Andres de Paz

Be sure to read up on Andres de Pez and my previous link to the Krewe. It's very interesting.

Krewe of the Silver Slippers

A couple of 'Slippers'.

Police presence and he's gracious enough to wear some beads.

Order of Zeus float.


Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce float.

McGuire's Bagpipe Band

Get ready, kids. They're bringing out the toy throws!

Fraternal Order of Eagles float

Hey! That looks like one of the Mario brothers!

A Krewe of Seville float.

The Krewe of Warriors Stray Cats float


Ahhh....it's the Krewe of Mystique. I must get some close-ups of them tomorrow.

Dreamland float.

USS Oriskany! Incredible history and a wonderful reason for sport divers to visit Pensacola.

LSU float.

Wait! Are these serious Jesters?

A sorta-smiling Jester!

Hey lady, gimme some beads!

This is one scary-looking truck grille!

Guess I'm going to have to 'pirate' some beads.

Krewe of Lafitte Illuminated Parade

Actually this is just a 'teaser' post. I took many fun photos tonight and have been culling them out, but my eyes are getting pretty heavy at this point.


Great floats and good beads.



Hilarious characters.

Be sure to check back after I've had some sleep!

Lining up for the parades

Driving down to the core area of Pensacola Beach this afternoon, I noticed trucks already being lined up (backed in with truck-bed nearest the road) for Sunday's Krewe of Wrecks Parade on Pensacola Beach.

Are you getting excited?????

"Sorry, babe, move on. This is my spot for the parade!"

Weekend of Mardi Gras Parades

This is the big Mardi Gras weekend for the Pensacola area, full of parades and celebrations.

Tonight is the Krewe of Lafitte Illuminated Night Parade in downtown Pensacola. The parade starts at 8:00 p.m. on W. Garden Street, turns north on Palafox Street for a short distance, then loops back south and continues on Palafox all the way to Main Street. You may click HERE to see photographs from last year's parade.

Tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. will be the Krewe of Kids Parade at Tiki Island - in the Casino Beach area - which was postponed from last week due to heavy rain.

Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. is the Pensacola Grand Mardi Gras Parade which follows the same route as tonight's. Don't forget to bring bags for all your beads, moon pies and doubloons. Believe me, you don't want to be carrying all those beads around your neck! If you do, I've got the name of a great chiropractor for you! You may click HERE to see photos from last year's parade.

The Krewe of Wrecks Mardi Gras parade takes place Sunday at 2:00 p.m. on Pensacola Beach. It may be a bit cool, but at this point forecasters are calling for a beautiful sunny day. Come to the beach for lunch, then stake out your viewing place along the parade route. You may see photos of some of the characters from last year's KOW Mardi Gras parade by clicking HERE.