Peewee cowboys and cowgirls with pint-size replica ponies and tiny dancers marched through downtown Santa Barbara during the 88th annual Desfile de los Niños on Saturday.
The Old Spanish Days children’s parade brought out about 100 entries in the Fiesta procession that meandered down State Street from Victoria Street to Ortega Street. Mini-floats, tykes on bikes and decorated wagons depicted themes from the community’s cultural heritage.
The parade, organized by the City of Santa Barbara Parks & Recreation Department, is one of several events celebrating Santa Barbara’s homage to its past during the week-long Fiesta.
Some of the biggest crowd pleasers were youth athletic organizations, dance academies and high school participants from throughout the Central Coast. Families were walking side-by-side, dads were pushing some child-filled floats, and various community groups also strolled in the free event.
Several members of Boscutti Ballet Theatre, a Lompoc performing art studio, danced Flamenco along the parade route, which was blanketed with cracked confetti-filled eggs.
“She has been in this parade before, but it’s her first time dancing,” Lompoc resident Angolene Weighill said of her 5-year-old daughter, Santana. “She is probably going to be tired after this, but she is excited.”
Ice cream is what Santana was looking forward to. MarBorg Industries provided parade participants with the free sweet treat when they finished marching along the roughly mile-long route.
According to parade organizers, more than 2,500 children and their families participated this year.
Sofia Basulto, 3, of Los Angeles, rode her “steed” — a stuffed miniature horse toy — accompanied by her dad and mom, who clutched a white lace parasol.
“It has some flowers — yellow, pink, pink and it also has green,” the first-time parade participant said of her horse’s paper wreath.
The toy horse replicated the movement of galloping down State Street.
“It has wheels,” explained her mother, Gaby. “We don’t have a real horse, but we have a horse that can move on its own.”
The Basulto family looked every bit the part of Old Spanish Days with their Fiesta apparel. Sofia wore a black felt Spanish hat, a flower in her hair and a ruffled skirt.
Gaby, a Santa Barbara native, participated twice in the children’s parade when she was a child. She was excited to take part in the procession with her family.
“I’m loving it,” she said.
The 94th Old Spanish Days Fiesta, a Santa Barbara tradition since 1924, kicked off Wednesday and concludes Sunday afternoon. Click here for a complete schedule of events.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
