Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Every year on the first Saturday after the summer solstice, Coney Island’s Mermaid Parade attracts over 100,000 spectators to the streets of Brooklyn. This year, the nation’s largest art parade, celebrating the beginning of summer with sand, sea, salt air, and a bit of nudity falls on June 21st, paying homage to Coney Island’s Mardi Gras which lasted from 1903 to 1954. Regardless of the weather, mermaids of all shapes and sizes, floats, various sea creatures, the occasional wandering lighthouse, and classic cars crowd the streets. A different celebrity King Neptune and Queen Mermaid open the festivities by marching down the beach from the boardwalk cutting through ribbons representing the seasons, and toss fruit into the Atlantic appeasing the sea gods. The Parade is followed by the Mermaid Parade Ball, a post-parade party where costumed participants mix and mingle with the spectators, revel in live music, and watch sideshow acts performed by some of New York City’s hottest burlesque stars. The best thing is that anybody can march as long as they register in advance.
More information on PlanetEye: Coney Island
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