the Three Kings Cavalcade 2012

the holiday season in Spain officially ends with the Three Kings Cavalcade, where Melchor, Gaspar and Balthazar take to the streets throwing sweets to the jostling crowd, especially to the children. Since Gibraltar is heavily influenced by Spain, they too have their own cavalcade year after year.

the mister and i braved the cold and the rarity of a crowd in relatively laid-back Gib to grab ourselves some candy and a little bit of fun

there goes Balthazar in his pimped-out camel (didn't quite get a pic of the other two because my camera died on me)

we enjoy a relatively mild winter here in Gib without the hassle of snow (thank God!) but this winter wonderland float was a hit among the kids (the snowman LOOKS scary though and the passengers in his sleigh didn't look like they were amused by his antics)

this float was the over-all winner and is made to look like a Mississippi riverboat or steamboat with its representations of gambling(!) i am not so sure if that's a "yay" or a "nay" but it is very reminiscent of Culture Club's Karma Chameleon music video (remember that Gen X-ers?)


there was a surplus of about three movie-themed floats and "Alice in Wonderland" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" were no exception. there must have been at least two of each in the parade

and of course "The Smurfs"

there was also the odd participation of a teenage rock band, the occasional beauty queen and the rugby-footbal club

it was a beautiful winter night with a bright moon shining above the Rock and the parade ended about 20 minutes after it started (not a lot of floats this year) and then just as quickly as it took shape, the crowd thinned out bringing with them a lot of candy and happy memories :)