Scots, nattily dressed

Well, I'm here to report that the Irish walk a whole heck of a lot SLOWER than the Scots do.

Please note that next year if you're planning to attend the Tartan Parade, make sure you're on time. It's only an hour long.

Whereas if your attending the NYC St. Patrick's Day parade, plan for a few hours.

-Bitter

ps. I'm sad I missed the bagpipes.

Tartans, and bagpipes

Rainy Tartan Day Parade, originally uploaded by dustin____.

Guess where I'll be tomorrow.

Yes, you guessed it, the Tartan Day Parade.

To quote Roja Heydarpour at the NY Times from last year's parade:

"Several thousand pipers and drummers in kilts will march up Avenue of the
Americas tomorrow for the ninth annual Tartan Day Parade. A celebration of
Scottish culture, the parade is the culmination of Tartan Week in New York."

The Skinny
Where: 6th Avenue, b/n 45th St. & 58th St.
When: 2:00
Who: Cool people.
Why: Because there are going to be men in skirts, oh, and BAGPIPES!!

Official Tartan Week website

-Bitter

The Mermaid Parade, a fabulous time all around pt. 1

They said about a quarter of a million people would come.



I think at least that many, maybe more came. The above photo was taken from inside the F train, unfortunately through a dirty window... For those of you who don't know, that's Surf Avenue and Astroland in the background.

This is one of the first sights I saw. :) This happy Lady was one of the first picture I took.





The self-proclaimed Squid Boy was a favorite. As were the sea horses below.







There were marching bands being attacked by giant squids.



And accompanying flag girls.



Dead brides, and seamen.




And stinky fish. Yes, there really were dead fish in that tank. I was glad there was a strong breeze that day, and pitied the parade entrant behind him.



Stoic Captains and a first lady.



And cries of Joy!



They even had a fabulous accordian marching band. And yes, they were fabulous. Being the owner of a coupld accordian CD's I know. (don't ask)



It was a grand day altogether.



I have another few hundred photos to sort through before I have all my favorites up on flickr, but if you would like to see the first half that I've posted, then follow the links below. Just a word of caution, not all photos contain clothing, just paint and stickers of some sort... I've posted them in batches of thirty or so.

Mermaid Parade slideshow 1
Mermaid Parade slideshow 2
Mermaid Parade slideshow 3
Mermaid Parade slideshow 4

Enjoy,
-Bitter