Easter Parade in NYC Part 1 of 3
Every Easter, at least every Easter for the past three years, I’ve been out to the “Easter Parade”.
It isn’t a real parade. Or, if you prefer, it is the most democratic parade there is. Everyone is part of it. And anyone can be a star. That isn’t any sort of exaggeration. If you want 15 minutes of fame and the attention of thousands, just join the parade. The only qualification: wear a hat.
The bigger/grander/wilder/cooler the hat, the better.
People without hats are desperate to find and look at people with hats. Heck, you can even buy them there and change from the hatless anonymous one to a famed hatted one. But those aren’t the really great hats. But you can borrow a really great hat. Just for asking.
A typical hat brought and worn by a typical wearer.
From about 46th Street up to around 57th Street, Fifth Avenue becomes a mass of hat-searching photographers and voyeurs. And Famous Ankles is proud to be one of ’em again this year. I’ve never worn a hat to it, but it was a pretty cold day with a touch of wind. Not enough to make me wear a hat, though.
Generally, the hats are not on the expensive side, as you can note.
Photographers are everywhere. The woman below was being interviewed when I walked by, you can see the cameraman in the foreground.
I was down there at around 11am to 1pm. The event generally lasts until 4pm or so.
People just mill about on the street. When you see a hatted person, take your picture ASAP.
And the crowd was biiiiiiiiiigggg!
One thing I saw more of this year than usual were men in hats.
Dogs in hats are…old hat. Ouch. I know I’ll catch some grief for that one.
It’s generally the friendliest crowd you’ll ever see. Wanna pose with someone? Just go and pose. Wanna take someone’s picture? Just point your camera. If they spot you, they’ll pose or they’ll grab their friends and all will pose.
The woman above in the big hat was everywhere. After 2 hours, I knew every hat in the place, but I kept seeing her posing alone or with others. She’s a real trooper.
There were other attractions besides people in hats. Below was a gospel duo singing some Easter riffs.
Another thing I spotted more of this year were people doing more of a dressy hat rather than a funny hat.
The first year I went to the Easter Parade, I saw one person with a formal hat. This year, dozens. I really like the trend.
But it was mostly mock-pretention type hats.
A puppetteer…with a hat out for donations.
A group saw me point my camera…
Below are some hats made from discarded “metro cards” (used to go on the subway and buses in New York).
People were lined up to pose with them on. I don’t know if there was a charge or “donation” to use them or if they were there as a promotion or community service. They were pretty popular, though.
More in tomorrow’s post.
-H
Explore posts in the same categories: Events, Manhattan, Mid-town, Parades, Wanderings
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