After years of stagnant wage growth, rising living costs people in England and Wales have an average of just Â£7,780 in savings, according to figures from Halifax. Rising costs: The average cost of a funeral as risen by 80 per cent since 2004.
The first Mardi Gras festivities in Louisiana were held on March 3, 1699. On that day, a group of French explorers set up camp on the west bank of the Mississippi River, about 60 miles downriver from what is now New Orleans.
SAY: In Louisiana, Mardi Gras* is celebrated the day before Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras began as a festival to enjoy the things a person was giving up for Lent. During the parades, beads are tossed from the floats to the onlookers.