Overview

• Pirates 'invaded' Tampa on Saturday for the annual Gasparilla Parade of Pirates, led by the pirate ship Jose Gasparilla II.
• Mayor Jane Castor surrendered the key to the city to the scallywags of Ye Mystic Krewe.
• Hundreds of pirates with 53 krewes celebrated their victory with a parade along Bayshore Boulevard into downtown Tampa.
• Thousands of people lined the parade route, scrambling for beads and enjoying the floats and festivities.
• The event is named for the mythical pirate Jose Gaspar, who according to legend plundered ships and captured hostages in the Gulf of Mexico from the 1780s until around 1821.