Dan told us not to expect a big parade, certainly nothing like the Oktoberfest Parade, which is the parade in KW.
It turned out that we were all surprised at how good it was. I would actually say that it was as good as the Ottawa SC parade mostly because (a) it started on time (what a concept!) and (b) there was actually room to sit or stand and see who and what was going by. The floats were just as good. My favourite was the one by Bethany Church - a live nativity scene. Rumour has it that there was a real camel involved but I didn't spot it. I did see chickens however. The Salvation Army Band was the best band in the parade. And of course the old man himself was the highlight of the show for the kids.
Although the disgusting amount of candy canes given out may have been a close second.
What is going on with all the candy canes? I must have brought home at least 50 of them. When I was a kid, we got one candy cane at the parade. One! Wow, how things have changed.
The weather was amazing, everyone who attended seemed to have a great time and the kids lasted through to the end. Too bad John was feeling a little under the weather. He stayed home and slept. He perked up enough for our foursome to go out for lunch to Grill and Chill - a great hamburger place in Waterloo that we hadn't tried before.
I've posted a lot of photos below. I've chosen ones that for the most part, although not the best photos, represent something very KW specific.
Here is Hope decked out for the merriment:
I'll just point out for a moment that I didn't realize there was a big smudge on the lens until well near the end of the parade (ugh!). We'll all just have to grin and bear it.
Can someone please explain to me what this band is about because I just didn't get it (if you can't read it it says Waterloo Oriental Band. It was a Shriner band. Perhaps that's all the explanation that's needed)?:
I'm looking forward to doing some Christmas shopping at the Christkindl Market, a "typical" German Christmas market held every December in KW leading up to St. Nicholas Day on December 6 (Beth, you'll get to go too!):
As a student in Waterloo back in the 1990s I absolutely loved the Huether and I still do (and now my kids do too):
For me, no parade is complete without some pipers (John would have hated it but he has no idea what he's talking about):
And finally the grand finale (the girls decided he wasn't the real one):
6 comments:
Austin's parade is next weekend, and I definitely want to take Kate.
Did you know that I've been in the KW SC parade? Yessirree. I was dressed as an elf. Pretty sure I was handing out candy canes. hahaha.
And, another trivia point for KW. It was at the Huether that G and I decided to go to city hall the next day and get hitched.
Looks like a great parade. We missed ours this year, but by the sounds of it we didn't miss much.
Christmas is coming! Thanks for sharing your day. Hope you are all surviving the peppermint candy high!
Hey, I was also a student at Waterloo in the early 90s! The Huether was always a favourite. Man, it's been years and years since I've been there. We should pop by next time we're visiting my mom to see how things have changed.
As for the parade, the Kanata one was similar for candy canes -- we got dozens and dozens. Definitely a change from when I was little, and we didn't need the candy...but it did keep the kids VERY interested.
Beth: No, I didn't know you were in the parade once. Were you with the Engineers? They had their solar car in it this year. They all looked like they'd just rolled out of bed.
Lynn: That is so funny that you went to Wloo too. I spent a lot of time in the Huether. I think it has a lot of memories for anyone who was a student here (see my sister's comment above!). It hasn't changed much in the basement but now there is a really nice cafe at street level (Cafe 1842) in the front.
I love the reindeer ears! That would be a good addition the the Ottawa parade. This year it is a night time parade, going down Wellington. We'll see how it is.
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