Street Parade: Zurich, Switzerland (8/14/10)

The Street Parade in Zurich is an annual "demonstration of love, peace, freedom, generosity and tolerance [that] has remained an unfathomable phenomenon even after being repeated 18 times." Angela told me that it reminded her of the parades in San Francisco, and I'd have to agree: it made me feel like I had returned to the Bay Area for an afternoon! It felt like a cross between Halloween (everyone dresses up) and Thanksgiving (it's a family affair, as parents bring their kids).

The day started off with a BBQ at Angela's apartment, which was near the parade in Bellevue.


That's a good-looking' grill!

We then walked out to the parade route. I could not believe how many speakers were mounted on each of the flatbed trucks. I soon discovered a new meaning to "feeling the music."


There was lots of flesh to behold, even though the weather was distinctly un-parade: cold and windy, the day saw the rain intensify into a true storm that evening.


The floats were all super-colorful:




Parents dressed up with and brought their children:

Everyone was packed together, elbow to elbow:

That night, we decided to go to a sit-down restaurant because we had been walking and standing all day. It felt so good to rest my legs!