And the evening parade....But first, we had a quick bite to eat at a sandwich shop.
I saw this group of clowns and it reminded me of my parents and their friends. I can totally imagine them getting dressed up and being silly to attend a Carnival parade.
The evening parade was awesome and terrifying and bazaar.
So to help with that, listen to this while you look through the photos.
We also got to this parade a little early, so I let you know when it actually started.
Here is the King of Media.
The Queen of Media and the nearby carnival ferris wheel.
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There were these fiberglass statues on posts around the main parade grounds that changed colors.
Dan couldn't get over the fact there there were no guardrails or anything to keep the crowd back from the parade route.
This caveman was walking around with his date. He was getting quite a lot of photo requests.
This firetruck looks like an old Mickey Mouse cartoon come to life.
There was a dance crew....group...thing that came out to warm up the crowd.
It's our delightful 90's clad MC.
Glitter beard!
He's got light-up shoes!
The kids near us had silly string and confetti.
They seemed to think it was great fun to hit people in the face with them.
I believe the guy in the middle with the microphone is the Mayor of Nice.
He is officially opening the parade. The Parade starts NOW.
With a masssive
amount of
confetti and streamers!
Crazy pencils.
And video cameras.
The King of Media - in an era where media reigns supreme.
He is terrifying.
It's the leaf blowers again.
They added to the confetti and streamer mess.
Parade!
Weird booby women.
The Queen of Media - seen through the lens of the omnipresent celebrity press.
The snail people are back.
Luckily it wasn't as windy over here so they have their follow on balloon monster as well.
Nutcrackers and rag dolls and toys! Oh MY!
Carnival Kid - born in the digital age and nurtured by social media, this hyper-connected kid experiences life through a series of screens.
A giant Duplo with a Gameboy.
Twitters? Tweets? Carrier Pigeons?
The Messengers - Messengers and the media have changed the shape of the world, from Moses to the Arab Spring.
It's the crazy Italian band again.
Here come the gossiping wives.
The title of this float doesn't translate, but I'm guessing it's something like "The Gossip Mill."
Li Fricanassiera de Mado - Nice's ultimate media platform, local radio at its best.
Our red stilt people light up.
An earth golem.
And a wind golem. There was also a fire golem/red golem, but I didn't get a good photo of it.
Mademoiselle Anticyclone - as popular as ever, and the star of the small screen.
Sleazy producers.
Look! I was there!
And robots! Because...why not?
Media Thor - nothing stands between him and the latest scoop, gossip, and other breaking news.
It's the rollerblading band.
The Trap - armed with the power to make or break a career, the brutal spotlight of the media.
Brasil found its feathers!
And my lovely colorful lady found hers too!
Icecream heads?
Money Maker - a capitalist small screen weapon of mass consumption.
I don't know what these people are doing.
Money crazed California Raisin.
A seal in toxic waste.
Weapon of Mass Distraction - a powerful force, trash TV that obscures reality.
This is Twitter and the NSA.
This giant creepy thing is Big Brother - who's watching who?
Forklift puppets.
Anonymous Ship - pioneers of the digital crusade, knights in shining armor or pirates?
So...remember how Dan couldn't believe there were railings to keep the crowd out? It's because security people accompanied each float and would move, sometimes literally shove, people out of the way of the floats.
Here's the Jules Verne tribute.
And then there was a weird alligator cat monster and nightmare jesters.
It was pretty packed down here.
Lou Sourgentin - the history of Nice's media, withstanding and reflecting his spirit.
A grumpy Niçois woman on the left.
Her counterpart on the right seems to be enjoying herself at least.
Lou Sourgentin is a cultural magazine that was founded in the 1970s.
Somebody has to operate the giant float monsters.
And Lou Sourgentin (Little Spring) goes off into the mist.
And then there was juggling.
Here comes a Chinese Dragon!
Pandi Panda Made in China - this gentle panda hides a much less angelic reality.
If you haven't noticed by now, the French are not afraid to poke fun of anything.
The panda is controlled by the Chinese Government, but made by child labor.
In case you needed a USB monster for your nightmares.
The print media is running away!
Because Webmonster is coming to get them.
Webmonster - online media is devouring print and the noose is tightening.
Radios and loudspeakers.
The 3 Monkeys - the media's motto: say everything, see everything, hear everything!
The 3 Monkeys were the end of the parade. We started making our way out of the parade grounds and back to the hotel. The parade was a lot of fun, but also really strange. Normally I'm not the biggest fan of parades. I find them sort of boring, but this was anything but boring.
It was a truly surreal experience.
This concludes our adventures for today.
You can stop the Trance music now if you like.
