Despite threatening skies, the Mardi Gras party took place Tuesday in New Orleans, with thousands of costumed revelers cheering the glitzy floats.

Crowds were a little smaller than in recent years, perhaps because of the forecast of rain. But the parades went off as scheduled, even as a fog settled over the riverfront and downtown. There's a heavy police presence in the French Quarter.

Many revelers had drinks in hand before sunrise. Some wore tutus, beads and boas. Many were dressed in the traditional colors of Mardi Gras -- purple, green and gold. One reveler rode through the French Quarter on a bicycle, dressed in a U.S. Postal Service jersey adorned with syringes -- a reference to the Lance Armstrong doping scandal.

Police report no major problems since Saturday night, when four people were shot on Bourbon Street.

Bryan residents were not letting distance from Mardi Gras' epicenter of New Orleans get in the way of a good party.

A big crowd gathered at a party held at the Shipwreck Grill in Bryan to listen to music and celebrate Fat Tuesday.