Parade of stories along Phillies' route

The sun grazed the edges of the city's skyscraper canyon. Confetti blew out of a machine on the back end of the Phillies' trucks, fluttering into the wind and raining down on the crowd.

Christian and Romolo Leomporra aimed their cameras at the passing baseball gods and furiously recorded. Pitcher Jamie Moyer waved to the brothers as if he knew them. And Jayson Werth (duly noted by the women in the crowd to be knockout handsome in person) held his own camera up and took pictures of the adoring crowd.

"For these World Series champions to be looking at us the way we're looking at them," said Christian, "is unbelievable."

- M.D.

From street level, fans could see only half the players - those facing one side or the other of Broad Street. And the Phillies were mixed in with nonplayers, making it hard for some fans to tell who was who.

"I didn't see Cole. I didn't see Victorino," said a disappointed Laura McDermott, 20, of Upper Darby. "I'm really upset."

Tashai Rowe, 23, of Yeadon, wanted most of all to see Victorino, but he was on the other side of the float.

"I'm disappointed," she said.

- Michael Vitez

Charlie Brown, one of 16 horses enlisted by the state police to keep the crowds under control, blinked his enormous brown eyes and stamped his authoritative hoof.

Cpl. Wad Crimbring looked out over the restless sea of red from astride the gorgeous animal.

"The view from up here," he observed, "is better than down there."

- M.D.

Elvis came to the parade.

Dressed in a gold lamé Phillies-accessorized jumpsuit, he stood against the rope line near Broad and Morris Streets, in front of the home of Lisa and David Gonzales.

"Elvis is old-school," Lisa said. "He's wearing a Mike Schmidt jersey."

The lifesize cutout was also wearing Phillies boxers over the jumpsuit.

- M.V.