Starting on Ash Wednesday, some folks will forgo the chocolate, the soda, the yam fries or some other favorite during the 40-day period of Lent leading up to Easter.
Plenty of others would be more than happy to give up the snow, too, if they had a say in the matter.
The annual Mardi Gras event in Hallowell on Saturday helps locals splurge before the sacrifice — and get their minds off a lingering winter.
It’s “a little break in the winter,” said Cary Colwell, co-chair of the Hallowell Mardi Gras committee. “A little cabin fever reliever. People need to get out and have some fun.”
Mardi Gras, which translates to “Fat Tuesday,” has historically been a period of filling up before the 40-day fast; larger cities like New Orleans and Quebec City have become famous for their monster Mardi Gras celebrations.
The event in Hallowell brings the Mardi Gras spirit to Maine.
A regular event for nine years now, it’s morphed from a Mardi Gras ball to a day’s worth of events that include mask making, a parade, art exhibition, book sale and the popular pub crawl. New this year is the “Whatever” Sled Race, which takes place at the Litchfield Road entrance to Vaughan Woods.
Prizes will be handed out for fastest sled and best-decorated sled, so keep speed and craftiness in mind. Race entry is $5 and proceeds benefit Hall-Dale’s eighth-grade trip to Boston.
It wouldn’t be Mardi Gras without plenty of masks, and Hallowell Clay Works (134 Water St.) will host a children’s and adults’ mask-making workshop from 2 to 4 p.m. Handmade masks will be ready and waiting for paint and decor — and some personal flair — and the mask making is free.
Once the masks are properly bedecked, folks can show them off in the Mardi Gras parade at 4:30 p.m. Participants meet in the Hallowell Antique Mall’s parking lot (191 Water St.). The parade will meander down Water Street as a mass of masks, beads and the classic Mardi Gras colors of green, purple and gold.
“We get a good crowd,” said Colwell. “And lots of beads.”
Prizes will be given out for best costume, best mask and most festive, so don’t hold back on the Mardi Gras enthusiasm.
Also during the day, the Harlow Gallery (160 Water St.) will show “Higher Forms of Art,” an exhibition of art by students at Hall-Dale, Kents Hill, Cony, Gardiner, Maranacook, Winthrop and Richmond high schools. The gallery is open from noon to 6 p.m.
The Hubbard Free Library (115 Second St.) will have a book sale from 9 a.m. to noon.
Another kind of parade kicks off at 4:30 p.m. elsewhere in town: the third annual pub crawl. There will be folks in costume and an abundance of beads, similar to the Mardi Gras parade, but the pub crawl includes plenty of stops, goes well into the evening and features adult beverages.
Mom and Dad might want to ask the kids to sit this one out.
“There are 11 pub crawl participants and almost all of them have live music,” said Colwell. “We’re really blessed in Hallowell. We have lots of great musicians.”
Participating bars and restaurants are: Hattie’s Chowder House, 103 Water St.; Easy Street Lounge, 7 Front St.; The Liberal Cup, 115 Water St.; Hoxter’s Music Bar & Bistro, 122 Water St.; Higher Grounds Coffee House, 119 Water St.; The Wharf, 132 Water St.; Joyce’s, 192 Water St.; Slates Restaurant, 163 Water St.; Club 223, 223 Water St.; Francesca’s Italian Restaurant, 234 Water St.; and Kennebec Pizza Co., 144 Water St.
“The places are packed. It’s crazy and it’s also a lot of fun,” said Colwell. “There’s a lot of food, drink specials and live music.”
Bar crawlers are welcome to stop in at any of the establishments to take advantage of specials like the hurricanes at The Liberal Cup; $3 Gritty’s Best at Hoxter’s; $4.50 well drinks at Francesca’s, and free cannolis with a two-slice purchase at Kennebec Pizza Co.
Several of the stops also feature Louisiana-inspired dishes like gumbo and jambalaya. And just as in New Orleans, “the later it goes, the rowdier it gets,” said Colwell. A $10 bar crawl pass lets you take advantage of the specials and can be purchased at any of the participating bars or restaurants in advance or the day of the event.
And while the Mardi Gras grub and revelry is reward in its own right, this year’s event proceeds benefit the Hall-Dale Art & Music programs — because today’s talented local musicians and creative artists (mask makers or otherwise) were once school kids in an art program.
Staff Writer Shannon Bryan can be contacted at 791-6333 or at:
sbryan@mainetoday.com
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