Personal Thoughts on Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras is touted as "The greatest party on earth!"
My lure to New Orleans was not initially Mardi Gras. It was the city that attracted me. The history, the atmosphere, the food, the music and the party! It's all a part of the New Orleans experience.
However, I was told that to expereince all of what New Orleans had to offer, I had to go to Mardi Gras. It was my friend Michael who told me that I would have a great time and to come up with a fabulous costume for Fat Tuesday. Although I can almost call myself a New Orleans vsiting veteran, I really can't say that I'm very good at Mardi Gras. I've only done Mardi Gras twice and both times, I'd stayed uptown; either in the Garden District or University district.
Many Mardi Gras sites and stories tell about the do's and don'ts of Mardi Gras. Such as what to expect in the Quarter during Gras and how to keep yourself from trouble. They tell you to wear old shoes, don't be surprised if you get groped and  not to argue with the police. They tell you where you might find public bathrooms and that you got your shoes "on your feet". (The answer to: "I bet I know where you got your shoes"). That kind of advice was something I didn't have to think about as much since I steer away from the Quarter during Mardi Gras evenings. Somehow, the drunken funk of some idiots is something I don't particularily like to deal with.
Many people have read and heard about the party on Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras - the flashing, the drinking, the crowds and the insanity. Granted, I did my share of drinking and cavorting, but not on Bourbon Street. (Sorry if I've disappointed some of you.) Think about it. That kind of fun can be had anywhere, it isn't strictly New Orleans. Especially during Mardi Gras, it's mostly a bunch of tourists (usually of the college pursuasion) given another reason to get drunk and tear up and piss on a city. I could experience that up here in Chicago when the Bulls win a season.

The first time I went downtown to see the parade, I was totally overwhelmed. Traci, Sarah and I waited 1 1/2 hours for the parade to come down to Canal and we were mobbed. I was hit in the forehead by an inebriated ass (not the body part) and Traci got trampled on. But I still had a pretty good time with the crowds and the people we were standing with. ("Cinncinati", and Noel & friend.) We weren't able to catch many beads, but we really didn't mind. It was a blast. After the parade had left Canal Street, we had decided to see what the infamous Bourbon Street was like during Mardi Gras. It was much more than the girls and I had anticipated. We were like salmon going upstream.. one point our feet were barely touching the ground. It took us forever to get out of the block we were stuck in, with the masses of people just about drowning us.

If this sounds like a scary scenario, well... admittedly, it was for us. After our ordeal, we found ourselves in a quaint irsh pub on Decatur trying to catch our breath and almost kissing the bartender for such a haven, after what we'd been through. It was too much for a small group of Mardi Gras virgins. I remember telling the girls, "well, this was something we had to do once, and never do again". That part of the evening was an experience that none of us enjoyed. Eventually,  we found out that the parades went right in front of the B&B  we were staying at. We were much more comfortable with the family atmosphere of the parades Uptown. We caught plenty of beads and I even got to meet my future husband there! That, to us was wonderful time.  :)  So that's what I think of Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras weekend.
On Mardi Gras day, we got all dressed up in costumes and masks to celebrate Fat Tuesday. However, we were pretty disappointed that many of the locals didn't get dressed up. It wasn't until a few years later that I found out most of the costuming was done downtown. The Bourbon Street awards are where some of the best and creative costumes are judged. So Bourbon Street isn't all that bad, just the weekend evenings during Mardi Gras.

It also was just recently that I'd become accustomed to bead bartering. I'd always thought that all those beads that were obviously not thrown from floats were bought at all those souvenier shops all over the quarter.. What fun is there just buying a bunch of beads? That's like buying macadamia nuts from Hawaii and not actually going there. It's got a high "so what" factor. Then I'd realized that bartering could be fun. If't really funny how stupid a person can act for plastic trinkets... let alone a purple, green & gold octopus... but that's another story.  :)

So I guess you can say that Mardi Gras is what you make of it. There are parts of Mardi Gras that suits you and parts that don't. I happen to enjoy the parts that most of the locals enjoy. Some people like the madness on Bourbon Street and some people, like me, stay away from that. I don't know if that contradicts the whole Mardi Gras experience. Some people tell me that I just don't get it and maybe I don't. But one thing's for sure, Mardi Gras does not make New Orleans, and New Orleans has it's own special Mardi Gras.
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