Halloween on Lincoln Road

Tonight I'm going to Lincoln Road in South Beach for Halloween. Sorry, your town probably doesn't do it as well as South Beach.

BEST PARTY OF THE YEAR
Halloween on Lincoln Road
Like all truly great annual traditions, Lincoln Road's Halloween parade just sort of happened. There is no sponsor, no formal organization, no one in charge. It's simply an outgrowth of the Road's late-Nineties transformation from a deserted strip into one of South Florida's prime people-watching spots. For locals who hardly need a holiday as an excuse to pose for a closeup, showing up in their Halloween costumes has become a no-brainer. Consequently veteran attendees know to stake out a sidewalk café seat early. Order dinner and a few drinks -- by nightfall the pedestrian mall is engulfed with dead Elvises, vampires, and every drag queen within a 50-mile radius -- all strutting their stuff for an appreciative audience. Never has the phrase freak show been so apropos, or so enjoyable.

Of course, I hate massive crowds and that's what this is - especially on a Halloween that's on a Friday night. Luckily an acquaintance is having a private party at a nice lounge/bar right on Lincoln Road so I can escape the masses a little bit and hang with proper dorks like me, with some sexy people sprinkled in (me again, ha ha).