Yes, I am actually doing my weekly update about five days early! Don't worry next week's will likely be late in order to balance it out.
One of the sisters who lives in the convent next door had received an invitation to observe a Mardi Gras Ball, called Sparta, which was held lat night. Since I had never had such an experience, I was invited to go along. It seemed like something out a fairy tale, or maybe a ride in Disney World. First a band played, then everyone stood for the Star Spangled Banner, then the show began with introductions of last year's court, than junior courts, krewes, a knight and his shadow, princesses representing different gods of different ancient cultures, and others before finally this year's "king" and "queen." After each one was introduced they promenade around the room gracefully in gorgeous gowns, or tuxedos and masks in the case of the men (people really do wear those mardi gras masks; in retrospect I'm not sure why that surprised me, but it did.) There is a lot of bowing and clapping. There was a performance by a dance group from Ohio which was quite entertaining. I am grateful for having had the experience. As it was very long, and somewhat drawn out, we left before the very end. I really felt as though I was immersed in a different culture and different time. In many ways it seems light years away from the situations I encountered today doing outreach on the streets.
The pictures and my description can not adequately capture the reality of the pageantry.
1 comment:
Hello from Philly!
Reading your tales of the ball brings back so many memories for me. I had the priviledge of attending one myself in 1993 with a friend who is a New Orleans native. What I treasured and revere about New Orleans culture, is simply that... that it is a city that has still truly retained it's culture. While the Riverwalk mall may be slowly be transforming into the every-day American mall, and chain restaurants pop up here and there... you certainly can not deny that this is a city with a culture all its own. Although I am not there, I would guess this cultural bond has been a large contributor to its survival, despite such desparate situations.
Post a Comment