Present for more than twenty years, the little hands who build the floats for the Poussan carnival opened the doors of their hangar to us, for the 50th anniversary of the carnival.
In a hangar hidden from everyone’s eyes, at the end of a street in Poussan, lies the treasure of the carnival: the floats. This year, in addition to the totemic pig (read below) there are no less than 14 floats, each more elaborate than the last, which will parade during the cavalcade this Sunday, February 15, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the carnival.
They have been creating tanks for over 20 years
There are many groups, associations or friends who have participated in the creation of floats for more than 20 years. “We even created corners for ourselves with the TV, the fridge and everything we need when we have to stay a long time working on the tanks”says Franck Laurent, member of the Bee Gees group, who, this year, will parade with a float on the theme of the sea. But there is no question of revealing more about the aesthetic, the secret is more than well kept. Everything is thought out to the millimeter. As you pass through the door beyond the huge tanks that fill the hangar, the good mood emanates from under the jail. Loud music, laughter and hot glue guns.
30 years of the Poussan pig
Totemic animals are the emblems of the villages around the Thau basin, among them the Poussan pig. Created by the inhabitants of the village in 1996, it is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. But did you know that there are actually two pigs?
The prettiest, the biggest, the oldest is the one who has been parading for 30 years in the streets of Poussan. But, for the displays of totemic animals, it was necessary to create a second one, smaller and more malleable. “The big one takes up too much space, it doesn’t fit in the narrow streets” de Loupian, confides with a laugh, Didier Navaro, the president of the carnival committee. This year, they will both parade accompanied by a third pig, the piglet, who is covered in flowers and will be led by a group of children.
“We get together in October to define the theme of the float of the year, (each group is autonomous in its choices, Editor’s note) then we decide what we need to ask the town hall for what we need and also define what we can take from home”explains Franck. A longship, a football stadium, boats. Each year the groups demonstrate boundless imagination. But after the defined theme you have to think about the design. “The hangar is so big that sometimes we make tanks too high to take them out. It has happened that we have to remove elements and only put them back once the tank is outside.” The height of the gate is already 4.50 meters, but the Poussanais see things big.
Until the camouflaged tractors
Most of the floats are equipped with speakers to liven up the parade, but three of them took the party even further, by installing a DJ with his turntables on the float. This is the case of Franck and his friends, “In total there are three of us who have done this. It always puts a good mood”he smiles. To move all this, the village farmers lend tractors which pull the tanks. “They will all be camouflaged and dressed to make the parade even more beautiful.”explains Fabienne Michel, elected to the festivities at Poussan town hall. To cover these constructions, thousands of paper flowers of all colors were created. “They are made one by one. We order reams of paper of all colors and everyone pitches in, continues Fabienne Michel. To give an idea, this year we ordered sixteen reams of white paper and with one ream we can make 28,880 flowers.” White is obviously not the dominant color, it’s up to you to do the calculations at the time of the parade.
date: 2026-02-13 11:03:00