Chinese New Year Parade

March 7, 2015 | San Francisco

By Kimberly Maroon

“Do it until someone stops you.” -David Scott Holloway

That was the rule that stuck with me when I stepped onto Market St for the Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco. A photography meetup group told me about a staging area for the parade and they had planned to meet there at about 3:00. In the end, I never found the group, but still made my way to the middle of all the performers and floats lining up. I was at the starting point of the parade surrounded by press, photographers, and TV cameras and everyone was wearing a press badge. I kept my camera out, strapped on my GoPro chest mount, and tried to blend in. No one said anything. Even after I crossed the barricades into the street and stood in front of the crowds.

It was endless colors and textures up and down Market St and the adjoining side streets. Exactly how many people are part of a dragon? How many dragons are there? Where was I going to stand once the parade started, and when would I not be able to cross the street? Many questions that went unanswered. Sometimes you just have to go with it and see what happens.

Hugging a Dragon

Crouched on the ground along the barricade, I didn’t realize how close the performers came to the crowd. Seeing one of the first dragons of the parade (above) was amazing up close. Just the construction that must have went in to making and the number of people needed to move it was crazy. The dragon weaved to the far side of Market St and then all of a sudden I saw the human feet underneath picking up pace and running right towards me. I had no where to go! Looking through the camera helped to squash my initial panic and instinct to jump out of the way. For the one moment that I stood up to balance, the dragon briefly passed around my head and face. So soft!

*I was contacted by the girl carrying the Pearl, Elena from Mills High School. She found my photo of her on instagram later that week. This was her first year carrying the Pearl.

The Staging Area

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High school marching bands start to organize.

Encinal Band of Alameda, CA

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The Crowds

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Parade Kickoff

I was so pleased to attain the best possible location to watch the parade, that I was completely oblivious to the explosives being set up 6 feet away. Chicken wire, safety goggles, and a group of men with jackets donning with the word “pyrotechnics”—I guess this was when I started putting the pieces together. I used my DSLR to cover my face and set my GoPro to video. A few hundred pops of red and one big cloud of smoke later kicked off the parade