Mardi Gras, or Carnival is the celebration beginning on the Twelfth Night of Christmas and leading up to Lent.  There are dozens of parades in the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday and plenty of partying and drinking in the streets.  Costumes are incredible and everyone has beads to give, if you “earn” them.  Crowds from around the world pack the French Quarter and the party goes twenty-four hours a day.  If costume watching is your thing, the Fruit Loop is the place to be on Mardi Gras Day.  People wear costumes from the Gay Mardi Gras Krewes’ Balls and they are definitely worth seeing.  Some are so large that two or more people have to help carry them.  The fun and debauchery is unmatched as the attitude of the season is “Let it All Hang Out!"