Mardi Gras Madness

Last night was one for the books. We've all heard stories about Mardi Gras and the festivities that ensue, but Sydney, Australia does Mardi Gras a little different. Mardi Gras here is basically the home of the biggest gay pride/rights parade and party in the world. People all over the world and the city of Sydney come out to support the gay community, party, and dress up in costume....me and my roommates were no exception.

We started the party around 1 PM in anticipation for the 7:30 parade in the city. Needless to say, me and the roomies had some of the most ridiculous costumes in the city. Chris wore spandex with pink women's underwear on the outside, a baby shirt that said "cutie pie", a party hat, and had fluorescent pigtails tied into his dreds. Danny on the other hand was a minimalist. He wore stars on his nipples, red pants, with his g-string up around his waist. pretty gross, haha. Tom and I went slightly less gay with booty shorts, some glitter, and tank tops. And as a disclaimer....I am not gay, in any sense of the word.

We got into the city around 4 and IMMEDIATELY having flocks of Asian tourists begging to take pictures with us. While most people got dressed up, we were infamous for our costumes. After spending an hour or so talking and taking pictures with people (gay and straight) from all over the world, we made our way down to the parade. It was pretty amazing. there were THOUSANDS of people and all kinds of crazy floats (again, gay and straight) in the parade.

At some point after the parade, i took a quick nap in the park and then went to Scruffy Murphy's Irish bar with our friends. I got to meet a few ladies from Ireland and Spain, and believe it or not, they didn't judge me at all for my attire. I talked for an hour or so, then me, tom, and alix had an epiphany...we all wanted one of Harry's famous meat pies. So at 2 in the morning, we took the 2+ mile trek to get one of the best meat pies in Australia. After finishing the meaty goodness known as "The Tiger", we walked to the nearest cab and called it a night around 4 AM.

While i know it is pretty easy to make judgements about me and all of the activities I described in this post, i wouldn't change a second of my day. It's nice to meet people entirely different from yourself (i mean, it's kinda one of the ideals studying abroad is built on). In conclusion, Sydney knows how to throw a mean Mardi Gras and I hope to come back to the festival again someday.