The new year starts with the 135th Rose Parade!!
The 135th Rose Parade kicked off Monday as the world ushered in the start of 2024.
With its petal-packed floats, marching bands, and high-stepping horses, the New Year's Day event is traveling 5½ miles along the streets of Pasadena. This year's theme is "Celebrating a World of Music: The Universal Language," a message of hope and harmony in a time of war, labor strikes, and partisan political strife as a contentious American election year begins.
"In a world of different cultures, beliefs, hopes, and dreams, one language unites us all — music," Alex Aghajanian, president of the Tournament of Roses, said. "The sound, texture, rhythm, form, harmony, and expression meld together to move, soothe, excite and delight the world."
Early Monday, hours before the start of the parade, the air along Colorado Boulevard smelled of bacon-wrapped hot dogs — a street vendor staple along the route. Spectators who camped overnight bundled up against the early-morning chill. Children watched YouTube videos on cellphones, and adults sipped Champagne and coffee.
Daniel Caballero, 63, who has been coming to the Rose Parade for two decades, was part of a five-family rotation that staked out a place on East Colorado Boulevard at 6 a.m. Sunday, more than a day before the event. He sat amid makeshift beds and lawn chairs clustered together.
"My kids are in college; the young people grew out of it, and they're not taking interest, so somebody had to stay out here," he said.
It was chilly, just 45 degrees at 6 a.m. Still, he said that the Southern California bragging rights keep him coming year after year — the famously mild winters that Pasadena boosters wanted to show off when they started the parade as a promotional event in 1890.
"The rest of the country, they're snowed in, and there's crazy weather, but usually it's a beautiful day here on New Year's," Caballero said beneath a picture-perfect blue sky.
Security during the parade is tight. Law enforcement agencies say they are prepared for potential protests, from people calling for a cease-fire in Gaza — who have been disrupting traffic in recent weeks near Los Angeles International Airport — to Pasadena hotel workers who went on strike Sunday, during the City's most significant tourist weekend of the year.
Striking hotel workers are represented by Unite Here! Local 11 walked down the parade route before the event began, banging drums as they chanted together.
“Pasadena escucha, estamos en la luche,” they said, circling a Los Angeles Police Department vehicle. "Pasadena, listen! We are in the fight."
A dozen people calling for rent control — chanting, "Rent is too damn high!" — got some cheers and whistles from the early-morning crowd as they marched along the empty streets before the parade.
The Rose Parade is considered a high-level event, which triggers support from federal agencies in security planning, said Lisa Derderian, a spokeswoman for the City of Pasadena. K-9 units patrolled Colorado Boulevard, as were scores of police officers and FBI agents.
"We planned for a worst-case scenario but hope for a beautiful, peaceful parade and game," Derderian said.
Parade organizers are hoping for a return to the gigantic crowds it once boasted — with upwards of 700,000 spectators — after a COVID slump that saw the parade canceled in 2021 and ticket sales plunge in 2022.
Sindee Riboli, president and general manager of Sharp Seating Co., which sells the parade's grandstand seating and the tournament's special event tickets, such as Floatfest and Bandfest, said she believes pre-pandemic crowds will return.
"We will eventually hit those numbers again. It's just going to take a few years," she said. "I am hopeful."
The parade started at 8 a.m., with the crowd roaring as a U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit stealth bomber thundered overhead.
The Honda float, called "Keep Dreaming," was the first to roll down Colorado Boulevard, its speakers blaring the Snow Patrol song "Chasing Cars" — "If I just lay here, would you lie with me and just forget the world?"
Patrick Blackwell, 55, said he was ecstatic when he learned this year's parade celebrated music. The Pasadena resident sang with the Los Angeles Opera and said he attended the Juilliard School with the parade grand marshal, actor, and singer Audra McDonald.
"It resonates very well," he said of the theme. "It warms the soul."
"It's great to celebrate the new year with the beauty of the floats and support my art form."
McDonald, a six-time Tony Award winner originally from Fresno, waved from the back of an open car, heavily adorned with flowers, along with her mother and her husband, actor Will Swenson. The swells of Pipes on Parade: The Massed Pipes and Drums — a massive bagpipe band — filled the air behind them.
The City of Alhambra float was not far behind, called "Dragon Music." It features a giant dragon clutching a globe in its claw, watching over a baby dragon sleeping on a piece of sheet music.
Kate Russell and Jennifer Colvin, wearing crimson and white sweaters with the Alabama Crimson Tide logo, traveled more than 2,000 miles from Tuscaloosa, Ala., to Pasadena, where they will watch the Rose Bowl game after the parade.
Colvin's son, Ira, is a freshman trombone player who will be marching with the University of Alabama's Million Dollar Band. The women, who work together, sat in the grandstands to cheer him on.
"We're very excited to make the trip to the game and parade, and we're excited when we see other Alabama fans ... When we see them, we have to shout, 'Roll Tide!'" Russell said.
Russell wore a button reading, "Make Michigan Our B—Michigan," which, she said, was getting a lot of attention and hollers of approval from other Alabama fans.
Growing up, Donna Patton, 58, always watched the Rose Parade on television with her family in her Texas home, which always smelled of cinnamon rolls and coffee. Now living in Aurora, Colo., Patton wanted to experience it in real life.
"It's a celebration, a connection to home and family and different parts of the country," said Patton, a youth pastor who came to the parade alone. "It's about coming together and being happy, regardless of differences."
Patton's flight landed Sunday night, and she got to her spot on Colorado Boulevard and North Hill Avenue at 9 p.m. The community feeling was already there, she said.
The group next to her — there to watch a family member ride a horse in the parade — took her in, replacing her blue, airport-purchased blanket with a foldable chair and fluffy brown blanket, and they introduced her to bacon-wrapped hot dogs.
As the Goodyear blimp flew overhead, she pointed excitedly and ooohed. This excitement, she said, was why she traded the TV screen for the real thing this year.
"Sometimes we hold back on doing new adventures," Patton said. She had recently gone through a divorce and was now ready to branch out and connect with others.
Mary Soucey, 82, sat beside a space heater and a ping-pong table near Terrace Drive as the morning sky lightened.
The Rose Parade has a special meaning for Soucey and her family. She married her husband, Paul, in the early hours of New Year's Day 2009, near Colorado Boulevard, before the Rose Parade started.
They met at a roller rink. Paul said he could immediately sense Mary's kindness, and "if you find the right mate — thank God for that."
Just feet from where they were wed, the couple camped overnight with their 39-year-old daughter and a few friends.
"My husband has been coming here for 40 years, and he got me started," said Soucey, who traveled from Buena Park to watch the parade.
They brought camping cots, tarps, and plenty of layers.
"We refuse to be uncomfortable," Paul said. "To have fun at the Rose Parade, prepare."
Near El Molino Avenue, Francisco and Martha Ramos of Pasadena said they have been camping overnight for 15 years.
"Others complain about the weather and leave because it's too cold," Francisco, 54, said in Spanish. "But you won't get the same experience sitting at home on your couch."
"This only happens once a year; it's worth the sacrifice being here," added Martha, a 55-year-old El Salvador native. "You can smell the flowers; sometimes, the floats drop them as they go by. They are fresh to the touch."
One year, a heap of roses fell at her feet. She took them home.
As always, some of the crowd's biggest cheers were for the pooper scoopers trailing the equestrian units. Michigan fans near Colorado Boulevard and Fair Oaks Avenue enthusiastically chanted, "Clean that poop!" every time they passed.
The 135th Rose Parade has officially started, and it's not just any old Monday—it's the day the world welcomes 2024! Imagine a 5½ mile stretch in Pasadena transformed into a flower-fueled fiesta with floats that could give a botanical garden a run for its money, marching bands that make you want to strut, and horses that have clearly mastered the art of high-stepping.
This year's theme is like a musical hug to the world: "Celebrating a World of Music: The Universal Language." It's a symphony of hope and harmony amidst war, labor strikes, and the usual political kerfuffle of an election year. As the Tournament of Roses' Big Cheese (let's call him Alex) puts it, music glues us all together. It's like the universal Wi-Fi connecting our hearts.
Meanwhile, early birds to the parade were greeted with the scent of bacon-wrapped hot dogs (because nothing says 'festive' like street food). Spectators camped out in the cold, kids glued to YouTube, adults balancing Champagne and coffee – talk about a multitasking morning! There's this guy, let's name him Daniel, who's been a Rose Parade regular for two decades. He's the spotkeeper, camping out with his lawn chair and makeshift bed. His kids are in college and apparently too cool for the parade now. Still, Daniel's not giving up his Pasadena winter sun bragging rights.
Speaking of weather, it was a chilly 45 degrees at dawn, but hey, it's better than being snowed in, right? Security was tighter than a drum; we're talking K-9 units, the FBI, and the works. They were prepared for anything, from protests to... more protests. Different causes, same passion.
Before the parade, drum-beating hotel workers were on strike, and rent control protestors were chanting about sky-high rents. It's like a warm-up act with a social conscience. And let's remember the Rose Parade is a big deal, so much so that it's got federal security backup.
Ticket sales for the parade have been a rollercoaster, thanks to our not-so-dear friend COVID-19. But parade organizers are the eternal optimists, hoping for a crowd comeback. And the parade kicked off with a bang and a stealth bomber flyover. The first float was a dreamy Honda creation, blaring Snow Patrol and setting the mood.
Imagine a Pasadena local, Patrick, who's all about opera and music. He's buddies with the grand marshal, a six-time Tony winner, cruising down the street on a flowery float. Following closely was a float with a giant dragon, a musical theme, and a sleeping baby dragon – talk about fantasy meets parade.
Then there's the Alabama Crimson Tide fan club, Kate and Jennifer, who traveled over 2,000 miles for the parade and a football game. They're the ultimate fan duo, with themed sweaters and a slightly aggressive button slogan about Michigan.
Donna, a youth pastor from Colorado, decided to swap her TV for the actual parade experience. She found community, comfort, and, of course, bacon-wrapped hot dogs. The Goodyear blimp was the cherry on top of her parade experience.
And then there's the couple, Mary and Paul, who got hitched right before the parade back in 2009. They're parade veterans, complete with camping cots and a refusal to be uncomfortable. Nearby, Francisco and Martha, parade regulars, talk about the magic of being there in person, even if it means braving the cold.
As for crowd favorites, it's not just the floats that get the cheers. It's the unsung heroes – the pooper scoopers following the horses. Because nothing brings people together like a chant of "Clean that poop!" at a parade.
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Beer Birthdays 6.21
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