Things are looking a little differently this Mardi Gras season. With no parades and most likely no big travel plans down South, at least this year may be a little lighter on your wallet.
With that being said, now is the time to try something new! Here are a few fun options for some non-traditional things going on in our community, as well as Ruston!
- The Twin Cities Krewe de Riviere is hosting their first-ever ‘Parade the Park’ on Saturday, February 13 at West Monroe’s Kiroli Park. With live music, dancing, pet costume contest, king cake competition and more, this is sure to be a hit for the whole family! Even better… admission is only $2! Check out their Facebook page for more details.
- Many communities, like our friends over in Ruston, are celebrating with ‘Yardi Gras’ this year! Get out and decorate your yard or business for the upcoming festivities and get your neighborhood involved. One of my favorite things on social media lately has been seeing the efforts in New Orleans where people have totally made-over their yards into their own personal ‘floats!’ Check out @kreweofhousefloats on Instagram for a little inspiration. Click here to see Ruston’s Yardi Gras happenings and a list of participating businesses and homes.
In the latest edition of our Sprout Cents quarterly newsletter, we offered up a few fun Mardi Gras facts. Did you know...
- Historians believe Mardi Gras arrived in North America in 1699 and then spread to New Orleans in 1718.
- "Laissez les bon temps rouler" is the official greeting of Mardi Gras. In French, this means “Let the Good Times Roll!”
- Each parade is run by a different “Krewe.” Monroe and West Monroe have two Mardi Gras Krewes, the Krewe of Janus, started in 1984, and the Krewe de Riviere, which just began last year in 2020! Ruston has a Krewe as well, the Krewe of Allegro.
- Each Krewe creates a different parade theme each year. Each float is decorated to fit into one central theme.
- Why Beads? Legend has it in the 1880s, a man dressed as Santa Claus received such fame throwing beads, that other krewes followed suit.
We hope you have a safe and family-friendly carnival season this year… and eat lots of yummy king cake!
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