Get Out! Parades Are Back for the 4th of July!

 by Peggy Robin

It’s not by a long-shot the biggest of the area's Independence Day events -- and it may not even be the cutest or the funniest (arguably, that honor goes to the Takoma Park, MD Fourth of July Parade). But at 54 years, it might just be the oldest of the neighborhood parades -- and even if not, I have no hesitation calling it the nicest.

What is it?

The 54th* Annual Palisades Parade!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/palisades-july-4th-parade-tickets-161109277185  

It’s got everything you want in a Fourth of July parade: Marching bands. Fun floats in all shapes and sizes. Dancing troupes in colorful costumes from around the world  -- costumes so heavy you have to wonder how they can move so fluidly in the heat, wearing all those ruffled layers! Minor celebrities sitting in cars. Horses! People throwing out star-spangled beads, little candies, and trinkets. People handing out water bottles and paper fans to help you keep cool. Politicians – like the Mayor and a bunch of council members. Bicyclists, scooterists, maybe even some unicyclists or other crazy wheelers. Regular people who have a club, a hobby group, or sports team, who march together and invite you to try out their activity. Plus lots of other stuff – can’t think of it all.

It's all happening on Sunday, July 4 -- with groups lining up starting at 11 AM at the corner of Whitehaven Pkwy NW & MacArthur Blvd NW. The parade should kick off around noon and will proceed along MacArthur Boulevard about one mile, ending at the Palisades Recreation Center at Edmunds St and Sherier Place NW. See route: https://goo.gl/maps/zRr6Nbyae2BHQXCH7   

There will be a cook-out at the end with hot dogs, watermelon, special event T-shirts for sale, and a whole lot more!

How we missed it last year!

If that’s not enough for you, and you want to find out about other options – and of course, fireworks displays at night! – then this DCist article has got everything you could possibly want:
https://dcist.com/story/21/06/26/july-fourth-2021-dc-fireworks-parties-grilling-national-mall-parades/ 

* NOTE: It would be the 55th if last year’s parade had not been cancelled due to the pandemic.
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The “Get Out!” events column is posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Thursdays.