Monday, May 4, 2009

I Love a Parade

I have always enjoyed parades, so when the opportunity arose to ride in two parades at the 82nd Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival in Winchester, VA, we were delighted to participate.










We rode in the vehicle shown above, a "deuce and a half" is what the guys call it. I believe it is an old Marine Corps vehicle. The vehicle represented our town's American Legion post.

Below, Cliff and me in the back of the vehicle, awaiting our entry into the Firefighters' parade lineup.

It was fun to see the lovely homes along the parade route and the lawn parties that are a long-standing tradition during the festival.










The drawback of being in a parade is that you don't get to see much of the rest of it. This adorable float was behind us in Grand Feature parade. We had glimpses of other participants but not many.








It was very moving when spectators stood and applauded as the "deuce" passed by, expressing their appreciation for the service of our military and veterans.













The picture at left is the "big apple" that has been a Winchester landmark as long as I can remember.










Winchester, VA is a great place to visit any time of year, and especially in spring during the annual Apple Blossom Festival.



Joanie

1 comment:

Unknown said...

allison and i watched the parade as we stood in front of the big apple and then ran out and got patsy cline's autograph when she passed by as the grand marshal many years ago!
enjoyed the pictures.