What Would Happen If Macy's Thanksgiving Parade Came To Austin?

AUSTIN, TX — Many of us will watch the famed Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on television, marveling at the elaborate nature of what is arguably the world's most famous procession.

Each year, 3.5 million people attend the parade in New York City, which uses 2.2 million gallons of helium for its various balloons. But what if the parade were to somehow be plunked smack dab in the middle of Austin? How would that work out?

The folks at LawnStarter have taken the time to figure this out, yielding some interesting fun facts on the matter that speak to the massive scale of the annual parade:

• The 3.5 million people actually watching the Macy's parade in person represents 3.7 times more than the population of Austin. That's a lot of people, in other words.
• Local attendees would fill up a space equivalent to 35 UT-Austin football stadiums.
• When filled, the parade's balloons would take up 1.3 million cubic feet of space. By Austin standards, nine sets of those balloons to fill the Texas State Capitol building. Or, 16.2 sets to fill up the Frost Bank Tower.
• The 2.2 million gallons of helium used for the parade is equivalent to 600,000 standard balloons. It would take 2.8 parades worth of helium to fill Barton Springs.
• Side note: Macy's is the second largest purchaser of helium in the U.S., second only to the federal government.
• You could fit 2,494 balloons on the surface of Lake Austin.
• If the Macy's Day parade came to Austin, it would span from the State Capitol to South Congress and Oltorf.

Whether or not you're able to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Patch!