Thousands in green T-shirts, bowler hats, feather boas, with nary a mask in sight, crowded shoulder-to-shoulder along sidewalks and inside bustling bars Thursday as the South’s largest St. Patrick’s Day parade returned in Savannah following a two-year coronavirus hiatus.
“We needed this,” said 41-year-old Trey Parrish, who showed up at oak-shaded Lafayette Square more than a day early to stake out the corner spot where his family, cousins and friends have celebrated for more than two decades.
All around him, revelers in green blazers and party dresses exchanged hugs and handshakes, often with people they had not seen since the last time Savannah’s 198-year-old parade was held in 2019. The crowd erupted in whoops, clapping and cheers as the procession of marching bands, shamrock-decorated floats and convertibles chauffeuring dignitaries arrived early in its route through the city.
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