Getting ready for the Santa Parade in Toronto is no small affair - with over 20 floats and and an equal number of bands. Here are some "behind the scenes pix" of the people getting ready to put Santa on his way.

The crowd of half a million was waiting for Santa at 12:00 .. for many an hour before the parade would start to come by. But the kids and crowd knew how to keep amused and warm on a chill day.

Well we have finally got all the pictures together and we can show you Santa and all his helper floats and bands on parade!

After the parade the City of Toronto does a remarkably fast clean up of the streets and barricades while the Parade Committee with the help of Canadian Tire quickly whisks the floats away to storage. But most impressive of all ? The Burlington March Band does that while playing full blast as they march to board their buses. In short you have to be fast as we find just a few sights and sounds post parade.

Snow strikes again, in the middle of Spring; maybe retribution for balmy January??