FOR MANY OF US IN THE DEEP SOUTH, as soon as our countdown to the new year ends, we eagerly begin counting down to the next big celebration: Carnival (or Mardi Gras) season. Kicking off this year on January 6 and running through to Fat Tuesday on February 13th, Mardi Gras is a time of year that feels unlike any other. While many associate this season’s jubilant festivities with the bustling streets of New Orleans, the American origins of Mardi Gras can actually be found in Mobile, Alabama, where the tradition began more than three centuries ago.
The annual tradition was first led by Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville and
