Yet another São Paulo GLBTT Pride Parade came and went! I'd have written about it sooner but a nasty bout of the flu left me unmotivated. It seems like everyone has given up trying to estimate how many people were there, but the general guess seems to be somewhere between three and five million people. That's more than the entire population of New Zealand (where my parents and sister live) or Uruguay, for example.

This was my third parade and unfortunately the event is a victim of its own success. Just a few years ago I could still dance in the street with all my friends, but last year and especially this year that has become simply impossible. It's great that the parade has gotten so much support and visibility, but the flip side is that many people who could care less about gays (or pride) now come for the huge street party it has become, getting way too drunk/drugged and causing lots of problems like fights and robbery. I'm starting to think the Feira da Vieira, a queer cultural fair that happens annually the Thursday before the parade, was more fun and manageable with the 125,000 people that went this year.

Still, I think it's important to participate in the day's activities in one way or another. This year the parade started earlier -- at noon -- in an attempt to prevent the festivities from dragging into the night. The parade starts on Avenida Paulista and then turns onto Rua da Consolação (the street I live on) and makes its way to a plaza downtown. This picture above, taken by a friend of mine, is of Consolação after the parade had already ended!

In related news, below is an interview my boyfriend and I gave with Globo the Friday before the parade: