It looks like a parade. Only it's a bit smaller than a typical Carnival parade. I counted only about 10 medium sized floats with generic Halloween themeing.
McMain High led the parade and were the lone marching band.
New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corp President (and current voice of the Louisiana Superdome) Mark Romig served as the parade's King.
The rest of the procession was filled in by a collection of popular Carnival marching clubs; Muff-a-Lottas, 610 Stompers, Pussyfooters, all of those suches and such. Here's a photo of the Dragons who we usually see leading the Tucks parade each year.
Because it uses full sized floats, the parade didn't technically roll through the French Quarter but it did travel down S. Peters street where the big red tour buses are still allowed. And that's fitting, in a way. While everyone there had a nice time, there's something about Krewe of Boo that feels a bit stale.
I caught Krewe of Boo just as it passed in front of the French Market. Because we were (sort of) in the Quarter there, it was a little bit like waiting to see Krewe Du Vieux. Except it was also nothing like that. Whereas KDV is a community organized event whose creative irreverence and brass powered sounds herald the start of a season for celebrating an established order overturned, Krewe of Boo is a promotional event staged by the Kern company and tourism marketers for the express purpose of getting mentioned on listicles like this. So it's considerably more tame which is maybe not exactly the atmosphere you're looking for during Halloween. But the folks seemed to enjoy it.
And, of course, it's "environmentally friendly." The idea is to use fewer Chinese manufactured plastic beads in favor of locally sourced artisanal tchotchkes. But really they just throw food. I caught a Halloween themed bag of Chee-Wees.
And a spooky packet of PJ's coffee.
It's spooky because it's purple... I think.
In any case, the Krewe of Boo was certainly a thing that occurred this Halloween season. Luckily it isn't the only thing. We still have other parades to see and, I guess, trick-or-treating to do, if you're into that sort of thing. And then there's the part where we find the most sincere bar in New Orleans and patiently await the arrival of Rob Ryan dressed as The Great Pumpkin so he can buy everyone a drink.
We might even get around to exorcising the potholes but we aren't sure there's enough money in the budget for that. Or maybe that department is just stuck in the elevator.
Coffee as a throw is a brilliant idea. Combat the hangover.
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