Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras in NO (nudity)

[x-ray]

Todays Fat Tuesday so what better way to celebrate, other than being there, than posting pictures of the celebration.

These were from several past Fat Tuesdays in NO. Let’s see your photos too.

All were shot with my M6 and a variety of Leica glass including my 21 Elmarit, 35v4 Summicron, 50 v4 Summicron and 90 Elmarit v1.

 

[MrFujicaman]

Judging from the first image, Satan likes fat women !

 

[x-ray]

Judging from the first image, Satan likes fat women !

I don’t know if you’ve ever been to FT but every kind of crazy winds up there screaming at and heckling each other. In Jackson Square a group of fringe Christians gather and another group of satan worshipers take megaphones and get in their faces screaming and chanting. Gay, straight, you name it, anything goes in public view. People drink till they puke in the street and then keep drinking.

Mardi Gras is more than Fat Tuesday. Family oriented parades start a couple of weeks prior to FT and are amazing. Nudity around the parades is strictly forbidden and as a rule people are well behaved and there with their kids to see the celebration. Catching beads, toys, cups and such are great sport for kids and adults alike. It’s a colorful event with great food and music.

Fat Tuesday is a different story. It’s fun to watch people and make photos but not the place for kids. The trees along the parade tours are covered with beads and the gutter overflowing with beads and trinkets left behind. The trees look like Christmas trees after the parades.

Women earn their needs by exposing their breasts and it’s not uncommon to see women totally draped with beads. Men buy their beads and barter with the women.

 

[rhl-oregon]

Great to see these in particular, and to look forward to your postings— images & experience from a photographic life rich in both—in general.

 

[Bob Michaels]

My sister who is a year younger and I did the Mardi Gras scene in New Orleans as college students. back in the early 60's. In modern times we always believed it was better to remember things as we remembered them and not try to recreate them later in life. But a few years ago, she called me and suggested that we go to "Cajun Mardi Gras" down in the southern Louisiana, real Cajun country. Each little town had its own notable day from Saturday through Fat Tuesday.

We politely wrangled out way into various private parties, some huge. The Travel Channel showed up to film one of them.



Some party with coeds from University of Louisiana - Lafayette and my sister who is 50+ years older.



8:30 AM at tiny Famous Fred's lounge in Mamou Louisiana. If you Google "Cajun music capital of the world", Famous Fred's lounge comes up.



In one little town, the cool clothing was made exclusively from the purple velvet bags that Crown Royal whiskey is sold in.



And, we did ride on a float in the Lafayette parade for a while.

 

[x-ray]

Bob that looks like fun!

 

[Mauro]

I have read about the Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and I am sure it offers many opportunities for interesting and beautiful photos: I hope to be there some day...