The Mardi Gras is a very big deal in Sydney; each local I spoke with in the past few days I have been here has mentioned the parade as being a must-see for tourists such as myself. I was excited, as I had never experienced any similar event. Some history on the parade: inaugurated in 1979, hundreds of thousands of people venture into Sydney to watch the parade, a large portion including international and domestic tourists. In fact, the Mardi Gras is one of the largest such festivals in the world. The parade and dance party is New South Wales' second largest annual event and raises over $30 million for the state. With these statistics I became optimistic as to what the night had in store for me.
(Picture from rainbowtourism.com.au)
(Above: I also found a dispenser for "Hot Chockee," a name I enjoyed.)
(Picture from rainbowtourism.com.au) The evening started off well. The parade was set to begin at 8 p.m., and my friends and I bussed into Sydney around 4. We browsed through a grocery store to pick up some snacks, and sat in a park to eat. I discovered Crocodile, Kangaroo and Emu jerkey - especially surprising, as Kangaroos and Emus are Australia's national animals; I can't imagine eating Bald Eagle Jerkey in the States.
(Above: I also found a dispenser for "Hot Chockee," a name I enjoyed.)Sitting in the park, I observed locals and tourists alike fluttering about with excitement. It was easy to identify those in the tour, as they were heavily painted in make-up and dressed in costumes a mere spectator wouldn't dare to wear. (Aside from the hubbub of the parade, I was just giddy with excitement to be spending the day in a park in Sydney Australia!) Around 6 p.m., we headed off towards the parade to attempt to find a place from which we could see the event. We spotted a photo op, and I forced my housemate, a Sydney native, to take a picture with me.
We scouted around and spotted what seemed like an excellent place to stand - a mere few feet away from the parade and right on a curb, which allowed us a boost to see over the people in front of us. It didn't take long for it to dawn on me that we were going to have to stand there until the parade started in two looming hours. We snapped a quick picture while the light was still favorable.
Eventually the time had passed and it was 8 p.m., the start of the parade. A motorcycle flew down the street at the speed of light, grabbing everyone's attention to indicate the beginning. More motorcycles began entering the street, at a slower pace, revving their engines and honking their horns. Riders included gay, lesbian, and straight couples as well as singles. I was surprised to learn these riders were called - forgive me as I quote the official name - "Dykes on Bikes." (I suppose the name isn't as sensitive when the crowds are gathering in support of the demographic.) I was also initially taken aback to see a gay and lesbian parade showcasing straight couples on several motorcycles, but then I came to understand the underlying theme being unconditional acceptance. This demonstration went on for a very long hour, all the while an increasing number of individuals began showing up, pushing and shoving one another to get the best view.
I couldn't help but notice the shockingly wide range of demographics in attendance. There were the expected groups of teenage girls, wearing bright tutus and acting in ways they and only they perceived as "Cool." (Hey, we've all been young once - no judgement here.) To my right was a middle aged couple, passing back and forth what smelled like plain Vodka which had been poured into a water bottle. Behind me was an elderly group of individuals standing on the bench of a bus stop, thus being able to see over the crowd, seeming to enjoy themselves (until a policeman asked them to step down). Somehow as the night progressed a middle aged Chinese tourist had, quite strategically, snuck her way in front of me to snag the ideal spot on the curb. She had the clever strategy to hone in little by little, instead of attempting one swift shove, as was the simple plan of the rest of the crowd. I wondered what could possibly attract this particular woman, conservative in appearance, to a parade that would be classified as wild for an event where valid IDs weren't required. This woman was absolutely enthralled in the parade, reaching her tiny arms as high as they could go to snap picture after picture. Fascinated by her fascination, I had no problem with her poaching my spot, and I was several feet taller than her so my view wasn't impaired anyways. As the night progressed, I noticed she was in attendance with another woman. Not wanting to jump any guns, I wondered if the reasoning behind her desperate clicking of the camera was because she was a lesbian. I'm not sure how tolerant China is as a whole, but simply her age alone would indicate that she may have had to hide her identity for some period of time - if not still currently. It must have been a beautiful event for her, and any others in that situation, to be in attendance of such a large crowd celebrating people as they are.
I, on the other hand, was quite bored. Although I didn't necessarily care to catch every glimpse of the motorcyclists, who were still circling around and honking, it was difficult to see, even from our ideal location, which was a bit discouraging. I wondered how the hundreds of thousands who didn't have good spots and couldn't see a thing left thing felt. Finally, after a little over three hours of being planted on the curb, the floats began to make their way down the streets, and my boredom became coupled with confusion. This hugely popular event seemed to mainly consist of transgender individuals in extravagant costumes strutting down the street paired with shockingly average-appearing floats. I couldn't help but to wonder: all these people really flock to Sydney for this? (To be fair, perhaps growing up in the San Fransisco Bay Area caused the site of fabulously dressed transgenders to be less foreign to me than others in attendance - such as the Chinese woman next to me, stretching her eyes as wide as they could open, lifting up on her highest tippy-toes and craning her neck to soak up every second.)
Each float was attended with individuals in varied amount of clothing, generally implementing random, un-choreographed dancing. It was easily distinguishable which inhabitants were gay and which were straight (perhaps the latter simply couldn't - or didn't know how to - say no upon receiving an invitation). My favorite float was one with a pole which featured a man and a woman dancing a very difficult synchronised routine. That, in my opinion, is entertainment - as opposed to the other multiple hours' worth of floats which were simply individuals dancing randomly and taking go-pro videos of the crowds.
My apprehensions were intensified by new series of floats beginning to drift down the street full of seemingly random religious and political campaigns. "Christian Church for Gays," was trailed by a line of crosses, followed closely behind by a float titled "Athiests Support Gays," written on a giant inflatable airplane that was trailed by "Praise Darwin" signs. "Republicans for Gay Rights" appeared, followed by "Vote Democrat" activists. Huh?! It appeared to me to be straying from the theme, and slightly overwhelming in advertisements. (Perhaps the advertising organizations make up a bulk of the revenue brought in).
At this time my friends and I decided to hit the road. Maybe parades just aren't my thing. I can accept that, and I absolutely still appreciate an event that brings joy to hundreds of thousands of people.
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