Friday
A LITTLE BACKGROUND
It's the Mother of all Parties, where you'll never know if that buxom woman standing next to you is really a man! Or vice-versa.
While it is only the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday in most places, in the Crescent City it is Mardi Gras Day. However, don't be fooled and think that Mardi Gras is just a one-day event.
It all begins on January 6th and continues until Midnight on Fat Tuesday, which can fall at any time from early February through early March. And why "Fat Tuesday?" Well, in years past it was customary to offer up a fatted calf on the Tuesday before the start of the religious season of Lent. Hence the name "Fat Tuesday."
Reflecting the dichotomy of New Orleans, the exact timing of Mardi Gras is actually based on the church calendar. The date is driven by Easter Sunday, which is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the first day of Spring. The dates of Fat Tuesday for the next few years are:
2005: February 8
2006: February 28
2007: February 20
2008: February 5
2009: February 24
2010: February 16
2011: March 8
2012: February 21
2013: February 12
2014: March 4
2015: February 17
2016: February 9
2017: February 26
Parades roll through the streets of New Orleans for several weeks before Mardi Gras Day. And on Fat Tuesday, they begin early in the morning with the Krewe of Zulu, followed by Rex, which is followed by the popular truck parades.
While Mardi Gras is celebrated throughout the city of New Orleans, the lower French Quarter is the home of the Gay Mardi Gras. It's here that you can see the more outrageous costumes on Mardi Gras Day, or in some cases, the lack of costumes.
Ground-zero of the New Orleans gay community is The Bourbon Pub and The Parade, located at the corner of Bourbon and St. Ann Streets. It is the longest continually-operating gay nightclub in the United States, and some of the top circuit party DJs in the world perform there throughout Mardi Gras weekend. This is also where you can find gorgeous dancers and porn stars on the bar tops day and night.
While it is only the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday in most places, in the Crescent City it is Mardi Gras Day. However, don't be fooled and think that Mardi Gras is just a one-day event.
It all begins on January 6th and continues until Midnight on Fat Tuesday, which can fall at any time from early February through early March. And why "Fat Tuesday?" Well, in years past it was customary to offer up a fatted calf on the Tuesday before the start of the religious season of Lent. Hence the name "Fat Tuesday."
Reflecting the dichotomy of New Orleans, the exact timing of Mardi Gras is actually based on the church calendar. The date is driven by Easter Sunday, which is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the first day of Spring. The dates of Fat Tuesday for the next few years are:
2005: February 8
2006: February 28
2007: February 20
2008: February 5
2009: February 24
2010: February 16
2011: March 8
2012: February 21
2013: February 12
2014: March 4
2015: February 17
2016: February 9
2017: February 26
Parades roll through the streets of New Orleans for several weeks before Mardi Gras Day. And on Fat Tuesday, they begin early in the morning with the Krewe of Zulu, followed by Rex, which is followed by the popular truck parades.
While Mardi Gras is celebrated throughout the city of New Orleans, the lower French Quarter is the home of the Gay Mardi Gras. It's here that you can see the more outrageous costumes on Mardi Gras Day, or in some cases, the lack of costumes.
Ground-zero of the New Orleans gay community is The Bourbon Pub and The Parade, located at the corner of Bourbon and St. Ann Streets. It is the longest continually-operating gay nightclub in the United States, and some of the top circuit party DJs in the world perform there throughout Mardi Gras weekend. This is also where you can find gorgeous dancers and porn stars on the bar tops day and night.
