It’s time for Thanksgiving in New York. Every fourth Thursday of November all people come together and celebrate Thanksgiving with their loved ones. Thanksgiving has been celebrated nationally on and off since 1789, with a proclamation by George Washington after a request by Congress. Thomas Jefferson chose not to observe the holiday and its celebration was intermittent until the presidency of Abraham Lincoln, when Thanksgiving became a federal holiday in 1863, during the American Civil War. Lincoln proclaimed a national day of “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens,” to be celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. Together with Christmas and the New Year, Thanksgiving is a part of the broader fall and winter holiday season in the U.S.
And when it’s Thanksgiving it also means that everybody is freaking out about Macy’s Christmas Parade. This year is the 92nd annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday, November 22, 2018. It starts at 9am and ends at 12 noon. The parade is one of America’s favorite holiday events and a New York City tradition since 1924. The Parade combines a huge collection of performers, participants, and of course, the famous big balloons that are the signature of this event in New York City. Past years have seen around 3.5 million in attendance to see the more than 1,500 dancers and cheerleaders, 1,000s of clowns and 30+ parade floats, a dozen marching bands, and nearly 8000 participants in all.
Santa comes to town as the finale of the parade and now its time to spread holiday cheer, spread good tidings and be merry. During this season in the city there is so much to see and do. Lights twinkle and sparkle in the distance, snowflakes fall from the sky, horses travel about with carriages in tow, and everything is a magical holiday wonderland.
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