I am not attending the American Library Association’s Annual Conference this year due to the conflict with this trip. While I don’t regret my decision to go to London instead, I am a bit sad that I will be missing the ALA members marching in the San Francisco Pride Parade. So I was very pleased to be able to attend Pride in London this Saturday, and be able to watch the local parade and live entertainment. The event took place immediately after this historic Supreme Court ruling back in the States, and while the ruling had no impact in the U.K., Londoners seemed to be happy to celebrate it just the same. The U.S. Embassy had a float, and when it passed, many in the crowd shouted, “Congratulations!”

Below are some pictures from the event:

This was another experience of being out of my element information-wise. When I’ve attended parades in the States, I’ve always taken for granted knowing the names and logos of at least most of the businesses and organizations sponsoring the floats. Luckily, there were others in the crowd willing to explain what things were to visiting Americans. Also, many of the sponsors were giving out stickers, so I could look things up when I got home. It was also unusual to me that most of the floats, like the embassy one pictured here, were actually double-decker buses.

I was the only member of our group who didn’t get tired before the end of the parade, so I wound up staying until the bitter end and meeting up with people once the whole thing was over. We met some new friends (and their puppy) and stayed talking in an increasingly crowded Soho, until we wisely decided to go grab some dinner somewhere nearby with fewer people.

Overall, a fun, but exhausting day.