The parade.

I think it was safe to say that we had imagined to expect from participating in a parade in Frankfurt was clearly a departure from what really took place. The picture above had been taken of our group before the craziness began in full.
We were set up in parade order like normal parades, then as the actual time for the parade to begin approached, the streets around us began to swell with people. Again, that seemed normal for us having been in parades enough. The energy that was emanating from the participating groups was contagious. A group behind the circus were Slovenian and they started pitching girls into the air. Chris Ries and Jason Hubbard, inspired by the Slovenians, pitched Chris into a handstand in Jason's hands. Suddenly, a crowd had formed a circle around Jason, Chris, and Becca Nemecek and the Slovenians. The Slovenian group responded to Jason and Chris's handstand trick with one of their own. The spectators who were swelling the streets began to chant for more. What soon followed can only be described as a friendly show down of acrobatic skills, with a Danish group joining the fray and each trying to top the next. This went on for an estimated 30 minutes and resulted in having all the circus troupe members pulled in to stack 3 highs, and diamond head tricks.
The crowd was in such a fervor, the parade organizers had to be called into action and force us into our line again to begin the parade.
Once the parade started, our girls took turns standing on the shoulders of our performers waiving the flag. The parade route was over 2 miles long and we were greeted by throngs of people who regularly cheered, "Yes we can" and "USA, USA, USA!"
Upon reflection, some members refer to the experience as "one of the most amazing experiences of my life and a highlight of the trip."