Blondes take to the streets in Riga

Oskars Magone

RIGA - Hundreds of blondes from throughout Latvia donned pink and fluffed up their poodles over the weekend to take part in a parade aimed at improving morale in the crisis-stricken country.

This was the second annual parade organized by the Latvian Association of Blondes. Unlike last years march, which was originally intended to be a one-off event, this year the parade was extended to cover two days on May 28 and 29 and to include concerts and a Marilyn Monroe look-alike competition.

Attendence was also up this year, with about 800 blondes taking part in contrast to the 500 that attended last year's event.