Squirts at six paces as Santa passes

Press, 23 November 1987, Page 1

Squirts at six paces as Santa passes

By

SUE LANCASTER

At least one Christchurch bey was well prepared for the clowns armed with water guns at the Santa parade yesterday. While other children taunted the clowns with cries of “squirt me, squirt me," the small boy smss.sns.r'M His efforts were cut short, however, when one of Cinderella’s ugly sisters made off with his bottle. Thousands of flag-waving

children crammed inner-city streets yesterday for the fortieth Farmers’ Santa Parade in Christchurch. The parade’s promotions co-ordinator, Mrs Paula Huckbody, said that organisers believed there were more people than last year's crowd of 58, 8 H. Some sat on the roof of telephone booths, bus shelters and cars, while others wed hotel balconies, fences, and shoulders to get a good view of the

28-float parade. One man videoed the procession from atop a small wooden ladder, and another group erected their own mini-scaf-folding. A Mount Cook Landline coach, with 28 American tourists aboard, had one of the best across the Armagh and Colombo Street Intersection. The long wait for the parade to begin was quiet and orderly. Many of the children seemed

to have received their Christ-mas-good-behavlour Instructions. As the procession began they waved their flags or stared with open mouths. While some of the young children on the floats looked terrified of the huge crowd, others danced and Shortly after 3 pan. the last of the floats had reached Victoria Square, Santa had ascended his balcony at the Farmers’ building, and the

crowds had shuffled away to their cars. One hour later all that remained were several picnicking families, and dozens of drink cans, ice-cream wrappers and chip bags lining the path the procession had followed. The Ministry, of Transport reporiedthatmotpristsatthe E trade were generally well ehaved. However, there were a few irate drivers who were impatient at the intersections controlled by pointsmen.