Mardi Gras is a series of festivals taking place in southern US during February. The last SPSP conference took place in New Orleans just before the first Margi Gras, and so I got a chance to taste a little bit of the Mardi Gras culture. But even if you’re not in New Orleans you can learn more about Mardi Gras either going into one of the many museums dedicated to the history of New Orleans and MardiGras, or even go visit where some of the Mardi Gras floats are being made – the Mardi Gras World.
A tour will take you through the art of creating one of those truck floats, explaining how Mardi Gras came to be and the creative process behind planning a Mardi Gras parade.
Here’s from the official website :
There are plenty of tours in New Orleans, but only one offers a real, behind-the-scenes look at New Orleans Mardi Gras, and that’s the Mardi Gras World tour. Mardi Gras World gives you an authentic Mardi Gras experience all year round, whether you visit while sightseeing in New Orleans, enjoying a New Orleans family vacation or taking a break from your business trip for a group visit.
Tour allows you to see firsthand the hard work and extensive planning that goes into this grand event. Since 1947, Blaine Kern Studios has built the breathtaking parade floats for major parades not only for Mardi Gras, but for parades all over the world. Mardi Gras parades would be nothing without the fantastical floats that line the parade route year after year. The hard work that goes into making these spectacles is what makes Mardi Gras in New Orleans the greatest show on Earth!
Our knowledgeable guides take the mask off Mardi Gras with an all-access Mardi Gras tour, winding through the massive studio where these magnificent floats are built from the ground up. You’ll learn about the history of this unique and festive tradition and go beyond its reputation to get a deeper understanding of the real Mardi Gras. The whole family will love the experience of touring the space where our artisans create spectacular floats for over 40 parades each year. […]
Tours are offered 7 days a week from 9:30am to 5:30pm. Our day tours run every 30 minutes (with the last tour starting at 4:30pm) and last about an hour. Tours include a display of Mardi Gras costumes, a historic video and a free slice of King Cake (which is difficult to find out of season).
Here are some of my captures of the Mardi Gras floats …
Funky stuff. Go Mardi Gras!