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Easter Parade Puts Bonnets and Bunny Ears on Display

By DNAinfo Staff on April 8, 2012 12:36pm  | Updated on April 8, 2012 12:52pm

Liza Young, 23, attends the Easter Parade on Fifth Avenue on April 8, 2012.
Liza Young, 23, attends the Easter Parade on Fifth Avenue on April 8, 2012.
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DNAinfo/Paul Lomax

By Paul Lomax and Tom Liddy

DNAinfo Reporters

MANHATTAN — Fifth Avenue was hopping with old world pageantry Sunday as hundreds of revelers donned bonnets, top hats and even bunny ears under sun-drenched skies for the annual Easter Parade.

The celebration came as Christians around the city marked the solemn holiday by attending mass, including legions of Catholics who packed into St. Patrick's Cathedral.

"My uncle makes Easter hats for the whole family, so I come down here every year to celebrate with my family and all the hat designers of New York City," said Liza Young, 23 of Suffern, NY, who was donning a white dress and a veil.

The parade, which dates back to the 1870s, marched north from 49th Street to 57th Streets, past the cathedral as revelers enjoyed temperatures in the upper 50s.

Gregory Moore, band leader at the Iridium Jazz Club in Midtown, was decked out in a three-piece suit and top hat.

"It's a perfect day to uphold and to be a part of a New York tradition that is 150 years old," he said. "I come here every Easter Sunday."

And the sunny skies and warm temperatures even brought out some skimpy outfits for the festivities.