When Crissy Whalin and her 12-year-old son, Zephyr Cooke, settled in the New Orleans neighborhood of Algiers Point in 2020, the last thing they expected was a front-row seat to the city's Mardi Gras comeback.
Their neighborhood has emerged as a house float hotbed in recent weeks. There are more than 140 decorated homes within walking distance and thousands more a short drive away.
"I'm from California, where we would just be complaining," Whalin said. "People in New Orleans know how to take the crap and make something great with it."