Today was the 2nd annual Orquídea parade in Cuenca, which officially kicks off Carnaval.  Last year was the first Cuenca Carnaval parade, but we were in Ambato for Carnaval and missed that one (see here for our post on the Ambato parade last year).  When we first approached the parade starting area, we immediately saw numerous vendors selling spray foam and silly string aerosol cans, so it was pretty obvious how the day would unfold. Though almost nobody works during Carnaval (it’s even hard to find an open restaurant), we were surprised to see two workmen putting finishing touches on a building (upper-left above).

The streets started lining up early with families, waiting for the parade to start.  Some were already armed with their spray cans, eager to start attacking anyone within range.

Music is always a big part of any parade in Cuenca.  These musicians kept playing, with big smiles on their faces, as they were sprayed with foam from the audience.

There were a few floats in the parade, though most floats in Cuenca are not very elaborate (center-right above being the fanciest one today).  Lately, every parade has one or more drones taking aerial photography (lower-right above).  So far I have resisted the temptation for one more toy… er, I mean tool for my photography, so I am not flying one up there myself.

This parade had a higher percentage of dancing groups than most parades we have seen here.  There was even a young couple doing pretty fancy dance steps on stilts (lower-left above).

Carnaval is largely an adult’s celebration, and they were more center-stage here than in most other parades in Cuenca.

That didn’t mean kids weren’t involved though, and they all seemed to love spraying and being sprayed.

The first photo set showed enough foam vendors that you knew it was going to be a wet and soapy experience.  Within minutes of the parade starting, the foam started flying.  The parade participants shot the audience, and the audience shot back.

Expats are rare at these parades.  We only account for roughly 1% of the local population, and many expats stay home, afraid of getting soaked, and thus missing out on most of the fun.  One expat woman got in the thick of it today though, shooting everyone in sight.  A free-for-all followed, leaving everyone within range covered in soapy foam.  I have never quite figured out how that other expat in the fray managed to take that photo (lower-right above) when both his camera and eyes were totally covered!?