124th Rose Parade

Image from the 2010 Tournament of RosesThe 2013 Rose Parade took place this morning and, as usual, was a spectacular display of organic materials found in nature including flowers, seeds, fruits, and nuts.

The 2013 Rose Parade took place this morning and, as usual, was a spectacular display of organic materials found in nature including flowers, seeds, fruits, and nuts.The theme for this year’s parade was “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” from Dr. Seuss. This iconic parade continued the tradition of having marching bands, equestrian units,and of course, the classic floats covered in roses and other organic material.

British primatologist Dr. Jane Goodall served as the Grand Marshall of the parade. An estimated 700,000 spectators stood by to watch the parade travel down the 5-mile-long parade route.

Highlights from this year’s parade included a teary reunion with a soldier who reunited with his wife and son after returning from a tour in Afghanistan, a live marriage on one of the floats, and the first-ever float entered by the Department of Defense. The Pentagon-sponsored float was a spectacular replica of the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. and cost an estimated $247,000.

The Rose Parade first started in 1890 as a way to celebrate California’s mild winter climate. The parade founders Dr. Francis Rowland and Prof. Charles Holder created a floral festival originally modeled after the “Battle of the Flowers” in Nice, France.

The Tournament of Roses was originally a simple affair with a modest display of flowered-covered carriages and an afternoon of friendly competitive games including tug-of-war contests, foot races, and sack races.

Today the parade has evolved into an ornate display of flowers paired with other organic materials and is a gardener’s dream.

The Tournament of Roses maintains a strict criteria for the floats that are showcased in the parade:

Each float must conform to certain regulations in the areas of height, width, length and thematic design and the entire surface must be covered using a variety of flowers, seeds, bark, leaves and other natural materials.

The 124th Rose Parade aired today, January 1 at  8 a.m. PST. Photos of the floats will also be available online.

If you’d like to see the floats up-close and in-person, they will be on display during the Post Parade: A Showcase of the Floats, January 1-2, 2013. If you go, make sure to wear comfortable walking shoes as the viewing area is approximately 2.5 miles long.