The Procession Of Saints At The Italian Market Festival In Philadelphia On May, 15 2011

On May 15, 2011, the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania held its annual Italian-American/Italian Market Fest within the Italian Market area. This was my first time attending this particular Festival and I had anticipated the day's arrival with great interest. There were a number of vendors selling food, souvenirs, toys and more.



What could have very well been the highlight of the event for many was the Procession Of Saints.

Here you see the Saint Statues being lined up and prepared for the Procession ...

























At this point I saw another Procession following ... this time it was a group of Mexican Catholics. I did not expect to see a Mexican group in the parade since this was an Italian Fest. I suppose it was some kind of Catholic Ecumenical statement.









I passed by a bakery with some nice-looking cakes so I took a couple pictures ...





This is a seated area of the Italian Market (with the Saint Paul Parish in the background):


Approaching the Church where a Mass is about to be held:


Lining up the Statues before they are carried up the steps and into the Church:




Quite a task:


The Church's sign promoting the event:


More photographs can be found at this link: http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u213/portaltothepast/Festivals/Italian/Italian%20American%20Fest%20May%2015%202011/?start=all

Here is a video of the Procession: