Mardi Gras has become indisputably synonymous with New Orleans. But—at the risk of having a Mr. Portokalos in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, “Now, gimme a word, any word, and I'll show you how the root of that word is Greek” moment—the first Mardi Gras celebrated in the United States actually took place in Mobile, Alabama, in 1703. The first recorded Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans wasn’t until 1837, a fact that has been enthusiastically shared with me by many proud (and rightly so) lower Alabama natives.
So I’ve known for a while now that although Nola may lay claim to the internationally famous festivities every year in the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday and Lent, it was Alabama that really got the party started.
What I didn’t know, and was tremendously thrilled to discover, was that, while in New Orleans the iconic green, gold, and purple beads are thrown from Mardi Gras parade floats, in Mobile toys, candy, and the city’s signature MoonPies are tossed into the eagerly awaiting crowds instead.
That’s right. Moon. Pies. Which begs the question we’re all really thinking but our Southern geniality prevents us from expressing: who in their right mind would rather have plastic beads than the divine creation that is two round graham crackers filled with marshmallow and dipped in chocolate?
I’m not here to answer that question, because frankly I don’t care to know those people. But while we’re on the subject I find it more than worthy of mention that since 2007 Mobile has hosted an annual “MoonPie Over Mobile” celebration on New Year’s Eve. Among many activities and attractions this event culminates with the MoonPie Drop, in which a bright 600 pound electric MoonPie is dropped from a 34-story building at midnight to ring in the New Year.
Your move, King Cake.
Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/02/16/fact.check.mardi.gras/
http://traveltips.usatoday.com/history-mardi-gras-mobile-alabama-21559.html
http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1437
http://meredith.worldnow.com/story/27644030/mobile-ready-for-7th-moonpie-drop
What I didn’t know, and was tremendously thrilled to discover, was that, while in New Orleans the iconic green, gold, and purple beads are thrown from Mardi Gras parade floats, in Mobile toys, candy, and the city’s signature MoonPies are tossed into the eagerly awaiting crowds instead.
That’s right. Moon. Pies. Which begs the question we’re all really thinking but our Southern geniality prevents us from expressing: who in their right mind would rather have plastic beads than the divine creation that is two round graham crackers filled with marshmallow and dipped in chocolate?
I’m not here to answer that question, because frankly I don’t care to know those people. But while we’re on the subject I find it more than worthy of mention that since 2007 Mobile has hosted an annual “MoonPie Over Mobile” celebration on New Year’s Eve. Among many activities and attractions this event culminates with the MoonPie Drop, in which a bright 600 pound electric MoonPie is dropped from a 34-story building at midnight to ring in the New Year.
Your move, King Cake.
Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/02/16/fact.check.mardi.gras/
http://traveltips.usatoday.com/history-mardi-gras-mobile-alabama-21559.html
http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1437
http://meredith.worldnow.com/story/27644030/mobile-ready-for-7th-moonpie-drop
Caroline Morrison is a senior at the University of Alabama, majoring in English and minoring in creative writing. She was born and raised across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco in Marin County, and despite having maternal roots in the Heart of Dixie still feels ambivalent about her attempts at properly pulling off a well-placed “bless her heart.” She is usually an excellent baker and a mostly terrible cook, and above all else a writer who believes in middle of the night great ideas and the power of storytelling strong enough to make even her generation look up from their phones.
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