It is always strange to see families amongst the normal club crowd after dusk in Ybor city, but the families and the club kids had a good reason to be waiting on the side walk and not to be home or in a bar.It was by far the biggest of the three Gasparilla parades this year was the Knight Parade in Ybor City. I wouldn't doubt that more people made an effort to come to the knight parade that the day parade. Any parade goers that wanted to go to the normal Gasparilla parade a week ago were promised to be hit by rain and high winds, but this parade was spared from harsh weather.
The parade was not spaired from the Jesus Freaks that hang near Centro Ybor, spreading religious propaganda. Their group leader was giving his little rant into a megaphone, saying that anyone that was in Ybor to see the parade had a "guilty conscience". He was met by backlash that started across the street from one of the artist in the Ybor Art Colony yelling from a second story window, "Hey listen everybody! That man. Says your all going to Hell cause your here to enjoy a parade.", people started to verbally attack the Evangelical Christians that were pestering the parade goers, forcing them further down 7th avenue.
The night parade had some of the same participants as the one held in the day hours last weekend, though spirits seemed higher than those at the day parade. It seemed like more beads pelted me in the face this time than at the previous parade, and the higher attendance did not help my efforts to photograph this night time celebration. The girl next to me would spread open her arms and lick her lips, old men would give her beads. The group of people that accompanied me thought low of her, and so did the other parade goers. Her efforts got her beads, and that's all she seemed to be interested in, this was very apparent when she went to kneel down to pick up beads as people left after the parade.
This parade was like Gasparilla turned all the way up to eleven. It had every thing: old men, old women trying to look attractive in costume, professionals dressed as pirates, marching bands, people with unlit cigars, dancing firemen, kids on floats that dont throw beads, and some even fighting over beads. And much like most parades, when they come to a close, many spectators stand around and ask "is it over?", and sadly it was over.
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