Walking The Plank

During my trip to Calgary last year as we sat at the parade for Stampede, I made mention of the fact that it was similar to Tampa, except for instead of the city turning into cowboys and riding horses, the city turned into pirates and rode in on large ships. 

It started with just Rachel/Hugues. Then Mom said she'd like to come too. Then my brother decided to drive down from his base. And Jackie and Delane, God love them, skipped a trip to New Orleans for the National Championship game so that they could instead spend their time off in Florida with us.

And so began the Malone/Lefebvre/Stallings Gasparilla Weekend 2012.

We got the weekend started with G. Love & Special Sauce. The McFarlands and the Watsons also joined us that night for some funky blues music. 

 

Good friends and Good Fridays. And the lady in front that totally photo bombed our picture.

Saturday morning it was time to pillage. 

Jadoo got in on the action, too

We all got brunch tickets at the convention center so we could have our own table and watch the invasion up close and personal. Nothing beats coming face to face with sweaty rum-carrying pirates.

Waiting for the pirates to invade

My sister dressed as Tinkerbell, and had mentioned to me that she was "nervous" how people would take it. 

Deep down she secretly knew everyone would love it, and follow her around like paparazzi and get interviewed by a local radio station.

Her husband was Captain Hook.

Best part of the costume? The green chuck taylors.

The pirates invaded, captured the mayor, and stole the key to the city.

It was time to head to the parade route.

This is the part of Gasparilla that always ends up with the best (worst?) stories. Luckily for the Malone/Lefebvre/Stallings clan, it was all good stories since we had reserved seats and had an area to move around with some personal space (Can't say so much for the other side of the street, where debauchery unfolds each year, but let's just say it's not for the kiddos).

It's reported that 400,000 attend Gasparilla festivities each year.  From ages 0 - 100.

Speaking of which.....

*ATTENTION PEOPLE OF THE TAMPA BAY AREA*

Is this your grandmother??

If so, I would like to meet her.

Anyone that can pull off an eyepatch, a nose ring, and a wig with bandana at that age deserves a medal. I want to be like her in 70 years.

The parade began and the beads started flying through the air. It's amazing how little pieces of plastic that probably cost no more than ten cents to make can cause people to hoot and holler and get into fights.

The girls came out with some good loot while the boys were throwing all of theirs to unsuspecting pillagers across the street. 

We can thank the Kraken for that.

It was a long, hot, fun-filled day, and the sun (and the Kraken) got the best of us, so we headed home to rest up.

The rest of the trip we visited with family, went to the beach, scored some great deals at the outlets (Tory Burch dress for $25, what's up!), and went to the Lightning vs Capitals hockey game. 

Sadly, now it's back to the real world. 

But not without a little sunburn. And a little more loot.

A Pirate's Life For Me

The sound of cannons firing into the Bay. The pirates hanging off the masts of the Jose Gaspar Pirate Ship. The smell of rum in the air.The eye patches and shoulder parrots. The sight of beads flailing through the sky to eager spectators along Bayshore Boulevard.

It's Gasparilla time in Tampa Bay.

Gasparilla is an annual tradition in the city of Tampa. It began in 1904 to "commemorate" the legendary pirate, Jose Gaspar, who terrorized the coastal waters of West Florida during the late 18th century. Gaspar, given to calling himself "Gasparilla," served as a lieutenant in the Royal Spanish Navy for five years until 1783 when, upon seizing command of a Spanish sloop-of-war, he with his fellow mutineers set sail for the Florida straits. And so the young Spanish aristocrat-turned-pirate began an adventurous life as an infamous outlaw of the sea.

When Jose Gaspar died, he supposedly left an untold fortune in buried treasure somewhere along the Florida coast. Though that treasure has never been discovered, the story of the swashbuckling Gasparilla was unearthed and his memory revived in 1904 when Tampa's social and civic leaders adopted the pirate as patron rogue of a city-wide celebration. 

Secret meetings gave birth to the first "Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla," who planned to surprise the city with a mock pirate attack on Tampa. Masked and fully-costumed, the first krewe arrived on horseback and "captured the city" during the Festival Parade.

Present day Tampa, The Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla arrives in Tampa Bay aboard the Jose Gasparilla, a 165' pirate ship, firing off their cannons and waiving their swords in the air. 

Here's a video I took last year, to give you an idea: 

After the pirates invade, the krewe jumps off the ship, "captures" the mayor, and steals the key to the city.

With the key in their grasp, the pirates launch their victory celebration  and the Parade of Pirates ensues down Bayshore Blvd to an attendance of over 400,000 of your closest friends.

The parade has floats including over 50 krewes along with other local celebrities, charities, and organizations. They're all dressed as pirates, and all of them are throwing beads - think Mardi Gras, with a pirate twist.

I am beside myself that my entire family is coming down to participate in all the pillaging this weekend! 

Other than Gasparilla, there will be beach time, boat time, and an NHL game thrown in for good measure.

Also as the cherry on top, G. Love & Special Sauce is coming to St Pete on Friday night. His concerts are always epic, and with our crew of about 12 people, it's gonna be ridiculous how much fun we'll have.

Check out his funky blues music here.

This is sure to be a weekend for the record books, y'all.

See you on the high seas! 

Continued here: Gasparilla Weekend Rewind