Mardi Gras Celebrated

On Tuesday, thousands of revelers partied in New Orleans, with the city still scarred by Hurricane Katrina, says Reuters.

Elegantly decorated floats passed neighborhoods still not fully recovered from when the hurricane struck New Orleans on August 29, 2005, flooding 80 percent of the city and killing more than 1,300 people. People drinking and dancing crowded the sidewalks along the floats. Many of the celebrants wore costumes and begged for beads, called "throws" in New Orleans slang, which were tossed from French Quarter balconies or by masked "krewe" members from the floats.

This year's celebration is the third Mardi Gras since Katrina struck, and each year, city officials have advertised the celebration as another step toward full recovery from the storm.

Experts say 70 percent of New Orleans' pre-Katrina population of nearly half a million now lives in the city, and tourism officials said about 800,000 visitors would come to New Orleans and about 90 percent of hotel rooms would be filled in the final days of Mardi Gras.

The occasion, also known as Fat Tuesday, marks the end of the 12-day Carnival season that precedes Lent.