At the end of fall semester, I went with a couple of friends to a sandwich place called Blues City Deli in search of a soda made in my home state of North Carolina. We certainly enjoyed the Cheerwine, but as we left, we all realized we had been in the presence of something special. All of a sudden, questions filled my mind: How have I not been here before?

We’ve all seen the videos from Mardi Gras down in New Orleans and thought, “I want to be there.” But you don’t have to drive 10 hours for all the fun. After the Big Easy, St. Louis has one of the biggest Mardi Gras celebrations in the country. Located down in Soulard, the events stretch out over the entire week and appeal to everyone from hardcore partiers to families to foodies.

Until recently, I thought I had what it takes to survive a horror film; I don’t answer the phone when I’m home alone, and I never go into a dark room if there seems to be no apparent reason for its lights not to work. However, The Darkness, a seasonal haunted house in Soulard, showed me otherwise. When chased by a man wielding a chainsaw, I will run to the nearest corner, curl up and unsuccessfully hide.

If you live in the Village or on the South 40, the thought of regularly paying 75 cents for an apple and almost $9 for a box of cereal is no longer absurd. While the apple is probably bruised and not of your favorite variety, you’ve learned to take what you can get. And as you bite into it, it smooshes a little under your teeth, and you have to tell yourself, “Keep eating the apple. Just don’t think about it,” trying to ignore the cognitive dissonance emanating from the price-to-quality ratio.

Soulard Market befuddles your senses. Calls of “strawberries!” and “fresh frog legs!” collide and bounce into you. The infinite colors and fragrances swirl so quickly from the stands that you begin to smell the moist greens, yellows and reds of the peppers. What look like ordinary grapes grow to the size of half dollars as you approach the heaped bunches.