By Kenny Bissett
The inaugural Mardi Crawl hit the streets last night, starting off with a parade that went through the entire crawl route of 15 bars in downtown Reno. The parade featured a live brass band playing traditional Mardi Gras songs, stilt walkers, various kinds of other performers and a second line of hangers on who decided to join in on the fun.
“It’s perfect, it’s authentic,” said Phillip Romanelli. “In New Orleans this would be times 50 on every street in the French Quarter, so these guys got the right vibe. The band is tight, they sound great, and the outfits, everything is perfect. These guys got great spirit and I’m just hanging out following them, it’s very cool.”
Romanelli stumbled upon the Mardi Crawl parade when he went out for a walk, and ended up following the party-goers the entire route. Romanelli lived in New Orleans for a couple years and said that it was “very cool” to see a little piece of Mardi Gras here in Reno.
A group of about ten friends traveled to Reno specifically for the new Mardi Crawl and were having a blast, despite the cold weather and snow flurries.
“[The Mardi Gras theme] gives it a little more energy, a little more liveliness,” said Nathan, 37. “On the West coast this is our best chance to have a Mardi Gras-like experience.”
