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Aggielife
Page 3 • Thursday, February 11,1999
-9099
v.com
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A&M UNIVERSE I
chief
r uentes, Photo Edit®
ha Parekh, Opinion 5.1234 or on net!
filler, City Editor p^oxoffice.tamu.edu
.aGrone, Aggielife
1 Brown. Web Edito'
ith Pariani, Radio P'
R5
n Janik, David Lee, Caleb Mt# *
chard Paddack, Russell W 1 '
ieid, Christian Robbins,Lul*^
ason Starch.
awy Stempien, SailieI#®'®
ry Roberson & Eric Ne**^
: Assistant: JP Beato; K*''
Alagener.
ts - Gabriel Ruenes, W 1,l;
Mike Norfeldt,.
3rs - Carino Casas, Roiul^
y, Danya Day,
irkins, Merrisa
gners- Lisa Kreick, Rort l!
ssica Wegener & Kyle HI*'
sity in the Division of SttfW t
Newsroom phone: 845-33® fi( ‘:
he Battalion. For campus, f
015 Reed McDonald, and oft* 1 *’'''
On sale this week at the
MSC Rudder Box Office
mscopas — Big ■ The Musical Thurs, Feb 11,8p.m.
♦ Stage Center—Alone Together Thurs - Sat. Feb 11-13, T.30 p.m.
& MSC Film Society (htlp://films.tamu.edu/) — Pleasantville Fri.
Feb. 12,7 p.m. ami 9:30 p.m.
• ‘Magtnation Station — McBeth Fri - Sat, Feb 12-13 & 19-20,7 p.m.
and Sun Feb 14 & 21, 2 p.m.
* Singing Cadets — Singing Cadets Concert Fri, Feb 12.7:30 p.m.
❖ MSC OPAS Jr—Billy B Sun, Feb 14 .2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
«$*»*«*. **i#*X:%**,
ihrow
me
some
thing, Mister!” can be heard
throughout the city echoing off the
buildings of crowded streets. Elaborate
floats pass by while beads, candy and
cups are being flung into a crowd filled with
brilliant shades of purple, gold and green. The
sound of a marching band fills the air and soft
blues music can be heard coming from a smoky
club farther down the street. This combination can
only suggest one thing — it is Mardi Gras in New Or
leans.
Mardi Gras festivities begin the 12th night after Christ
mas and continue through Fat Tuesday. It is observed be
fore the Christian Lenten period and has existed for many
years.
The celebration, in New Orleans, began in 1837, when
the first street parade was held. Today, the Mardi Gras cele
bration has experienced tremendous success. Parades,
masked balls, food and a variety of entertainment are in
cluded in the celebration.
Laura Patterson, a senior political science and history ma
jor, said the best way to describe Mardi Gras is as a non-stop
party.
“Mardi Gras in New Orleans is like nothing I have ever
experienced before,” Patterson said. “This will be my sec
ond year to go. I wanted to go again because of how
much fun I had last year.”
Ben Braly, a senior industrial distribution major,
said Mardi Gras is an experience he will never for
get.
“Mardi Gras is that fun and wild.time that
your mother always warned you about,”
Braly said. “I would love to go back if 1 ever
have the opportunity. ”
People come from all over the
country and the world to visit New
Orleans during Mardi Gras and
participate in the festivi
ties.
Patterson
said see
ing so many different types of people also adds
to the atmosphere of the celebration.
“I met people from everywhere — California, New
York, New Jersey, Atlanta and London,” she said. “1 think
so many different kinds of people are attracted to this cel
ebration because it is a time when you can let loose and
basically do anything you want. People can be whoever
they want to be.”
Braly said another reason people are attracted to Mar
di Gras is simple curiosity.
“A lot of people are curious about what Mardi Gras in
New Orleans is like, and this motivates many to go,” he
said. “It is a great place to have a fun time and a chance
to do something different.”
For first time visitors to Mardi Gras, there are several
things to be wary of.
Patterson said students need to remember to pay care
ful attention to their surroundings while in New Orleans.
“An important thing to remember is to stay on Bour
bon Street and do not wander off into the back alleys,”
she said. “Tfy to stay with the group you are with and be
wary of who gives you drinks.
“If everyone remembers these tips, the trip to New Or
leans and Mardi Gras will be one of the best experiences
of your life.”
For Aggies not willing to make the eight-hour journey
to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, there are a variety of oth
er options closer to home.
Two-and-a-half hours south in Galveston, a Texas ver
sion of Mardi Gras has been celebrated for 14 consecu
tive years. Mardi Gras! Galveston is a 12-day event cele
brating Mardi Gras similar to the New Orleans
celebration.
Mardi Gras celebrations in Galveston date back to
1867. The annual celebration was revived in 1985 by
George P. Mitchell. Since its rebirth, Mardi Gras! Galve
ston has grown dramatically in both size and scope.
With the coordination of the city, the Galveston Park
Board of Trustees and 14 participating krewes, the Galve
ston celebration includes parades, masked balls, art ex
hibits, music and theater performances and sporting
events. The 12-day event now attracts over 500,000 par
ticipants.
Braly, who has also celebrated Mardi Gras in Galve
ston, said the celebration is like New Orleans, but on a
smaller scale.
“The two celebrations are roughly the same, but the
Galveston celebration is not nearly as big and the at
mosphere is not as charged,” he said.
Braly
said the dif
ferences between
how New Orleans and
Galveston celebrate Mardi
Gras is that the entire city of
New Orleans seems to be partici
pating in the Mardi Gras festivities.
The city participation in Galveston is not
nearly the same.
“Galveston will give a Mardi Gras-goer a
rough idea of what the New Orleans celebra
tion is like,” he said. “This celebration is a good
substitute for the New Orleans Mardi Gras, but it
is not nearly the same thing.”
Another option for Aggies is Mardi Gras, Brazos
Valley Style in downtown Bryan Feb. 13 from 12-6
p.m. This fifth annual celebration began as a way to
celebrate the popular season in downtown Bryan.
Kali Wood, assistant coordinator of the Bryan Main
Street Project and Coordinator of the Mardi Gras festi
val, said there will be a little something for everyone.
“This celebration is geared toward families and a great
way for college students to kick off the weekend,” Wood
said. “There will be live fnusic at the Palace Theater, chil
dren’s activities and we will even be throwing beads.”
Included in the festivities will be a children’s area
with face painting, food and craft vendors and the In
ternational BBQ Cookers Association Cookoff.
Live performance at the Palace Theater will fea
ture the Red Brick Bunch, Blue Valentine and John
Wick and the Full House Blues Band to add to the
Mardi Gras atmosphere.
“This celebration will be fun for all, and
the cookoff will really add the Texas style
to this Mardi Gras,” Wood said.
Whether the authentic Mardi Gras in
New Orleans is appealing to the av
erage Ag, or staying a little closer
to home at the Galveston or
Bryan celebrations will be
the popular option. Mar
di Gras can be cele
brated by all.
Story by
Beth Focht
Photo Illustrations by
Mike Fuentes
* ,
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