Amstedam Canal GAY PARADE
Remember when “gay” used to mean happy and joyful?
Just got reminded of that when I covered the Amsterdam Canal Gay Parade 2009
held August 1, Saturday … at Prinsengracht ….the place to be for the best viewpoint.
A mixed crowd of people came either to watch ….
celebrate….
or join the highlight
of the week long celebrations of Gaypride…. the Amstedam Canal Gay Parade.
It was a day of fun and festivities for one and all… gay or straight
men and women…
young and old …
clothed or half clothed.
No holds barred.
It was a day to party together … have fun and be merry.
And have fun.. the people did.. participants and bystanders alike..
dancing non-stop… the music playing continously…
on the boats parked on both sides …while waiting for each float to come…
stopping the music only when the float that arrived had its own music.. (This boat is representative of the gays of Rotterdam, another big city south of Amstedam.
and restarting the music once again..after it had passed … the amplifiers on full blast
dancing… singing…drinking.. partying!
Staying Alive… Staying Alive…ah..ah..ah.. ah… ♫·´´·.♫·´´·.♫·´´·.♫·´´·.♫
The atmosphere was so festive you must have been anesthetized…. if you were there and didn’t move your body to the beat and the rythm… even just for once.
The Gay Parade this year is the 14th time since it started in 1996 which is held around the end of July til the beginning of August.
There were more than 80 boats that participated in the event this year and some surprise participants like the Dutch singing artist Gerard Joling (d one w/ d big wristwatch) and the Dutch celebrity Patricia Paay (the one on a little silver dress).
And the gay police boat which did it the first time this year.
There was also the gay soldiers boat.
The Secondary School boat protesting instances of discrimination against gay teachers.
The Amnesty International boat with their “Gay Rights are Human Rights”….
And ” All People Have Rights” signboards.
Other boats are representatives of the different gay/ lesbian alliances and some “gay-friendly” big companies in the Netherlands.
The signboard held by the orange-clad lady on the left side of the boat says : “Miss, when are you coming out of the closet?”
that are ever present yearly … trying to outdo themselves
with their well-thought up boat designs..
colorful and lavish costumes…
and excellent music and dance choreography.
After all the floats had passed which took about 4 hours…
the bystanders on their own boats started their gears and
followed the parade in the direction of Amstel and Stoper the canals
which filled the canal with the merrymakers and was another amazing sight to behold.
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LMAO. gay soldiers & police??? Unexpectable
Well, you will never know.. unless they are close to you, right? But then I admire people who can show their “true colors” and still be comfortable with it.