| 11.19.2017 - In Adelaide, there are a lot of events happening all year round for the reason it was called the “Festival State” of Australia. For someone who has not lived in a foreign land, this was something of a first-hand experience at being part of its biggest festivities happening just in time for the holiday season.
It must be strange dealing with cold morning weather and having a different routine now that living in and out and experiencing new things every single day in the last six months is gratifying. But it is also a grind and you get to see it happen all in the same space with the annual Credit Union Christmas Pageant, and I thought from what I heard it is not a beauty contest. |
The Credit Union Christmas Pageant is an annual event originally known as the Adelaide Christmas Pageant that was established going back to 1933, it is an annual event almost similar in comparison to the Rose Garden Parade in the US, but it is completely different in its way.
This event happens on a second Saturday in November and begins at 9:30 a.m. and comprises a procession of 85 sets and 1,700 volunteers, it is a big event that is announced as early as six months before the announced date. It also includes some 63 floats, 15 bands, 164 clowns, dancing groups, and walking performers, all culminating in the arrival of Father Christmas.
The Holiday Season is a month away and this event signifies the start of that countdown at Christmas time. The pageant is known as a “Heritage Icon” and it is one of the staple events that is annually celebrated in Adelaide and is also considered a “State Institution.” For this reason, people from all over the state are up early waiting for a good vantage point to watch the parade happen.
Chalks All Over the Place
Before the event begins a huge crowd from all over South Australia gathers to take a good location to view this much-loved parade, and sometimes children are impatient, and some of the volunteers hand out some colored chalk to keep them busy drawing on the pavement and the streets before the parade begins. They also hand out other merchandise like a fan and a small box of crayons.
It is going to be a wild event for the whole family to watch another parade that signifies the beginning of the holiday season. It is just challenging waking up in the morning on a cold day to prepare to get to downtown Adelaide and witness this event happen. It must be horrendous to find a parking space if you’re bringing a park. Fortunately, we were early to find good parking before the big event that was already brewing along King William Street.
There will be media all over the place and one familiar van is already at Rundle Mall all set up and ready to broadcast the event while some parts of the area are empty this early in the morning you can see the crowd spill over waiting for the parade to begin in the main street where all the spectacle happens.
Horses, Dancers, and Floats Roll Out
You can see the cheer among the crowd, and it is something I don’t see every day. The morning cold was almost forgotten when things started rolling as you can see musicians and performers slowly crawl along King William Street and it looks good in person. You can imagine how the effort has been put into preparing for this event for the past months and it is something to witness.
The people around were kind of ‘behaved’ in waiting for the next float of performers to arrive in front of them and they also interacted. I can’t imagine what this event would be like if it was held back in Manila. The security detail alone might not be enough to hold off people from going nut as the crowd back there is not like the crowd I see here in Adelaide with more mindfulness on how they carry themselves in public and I couldn’t imagine seeing hecklers or worse.
The Sloe Grind of Pageantry
You have to have patience in seeing this parade and there’s no commercial break like if you are watching it being broadcast live from major channels in Adelaide. This annual event is something to experience in person and it is certainly an entertaining one for the whole family who have been waiting for it since the crack of dawn.
It is something to be entertained and admire how each participating group has labored and practiced their routine for this event. Imagine the preparation has gone through in putting this event together to be seen by people in Adelaide. You get to appreciate this parade more if you see it for yourself and words won’t make you feel overwhelmed. But it is sure a great show to be part of it.
By the time you see the photos, you’ll be wondering how the chalk-drawn streets in Adelaide, particularly King William Street would look like with all the ‘kiddie vandalism’ that transpired before the parade.
At the end of the day, it was a great experience to hopefully see it again as this happens every year and it is worth being part of the experience seeing all the floats, performers, and what makes this Christmas Pageant memorable.
The Credit Union Christmas Pageant happens every second Saturday of November in the City of Adelaide South Australia. For more about the event, you can follow them on social media for updates and details via Facebook and Instagram.
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