New York Thanksgiving Parade: Giant Baby Yoda and Pikachu balloons
- Published
A collection of colourful characters have returned to New York City skies, as giant balloons of Baby Yoda, Pikachu and Snoopy delighted crowds of thousands who packed the streets of Manhattan for the yearly Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. Macy's is a big department store with its biggest shop in New York City.
At ground level, marching bands and performers from a number of Broadway shows, including Wicked, took over the streets. They were joined by the festive dance group The Rockettes and also a giant turkey called Tom, to keep the crowds entertained.
Tom Turkey is the oldest and the most famous float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, having appeared regularly since 1973. He's also the event's unofficial mascot. Tom is an animatronic puppet, meaning his movements are controlled by a series of cables, levers, and ropes. Tom Turkey is also the float that leads the parade.
Baby Yoda from the Star Wars spin-off The Mandalorian, was a new balloon for 2021. The parade route covered 2.5 miles (4km) through Manhattan, with more than 8,000 marchers taking part.
Another first-time float included Pokémon characters Pikachu and Eevee.
Another balloon at the 95-year-old parade was Chase from Paw Patrol.
The parade was a big change from last year, when people were banned from attending in person because of coronavirus. However many performers still had to be vaccinated and also wear a mask, unless they were singing.
Some lucky people were able to watch the whole thing from their home or from inside nearby buildings.
The Snoopy balloon, a regular balloon since 1968, also returned to the parade. The current version - an astronaut - is 14 metres (49 ft) high (about two-and-a-half times as tall as a Giraffe) and has roughly 90 handlers.
Santa showed up too! Father Christmas traditionally makes an appearance at the very end of the parade. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said: "This year, the parade's back at full strength."
- Published28 November 2024
