A staple in St. Paul since 1886, the oldest Winter Carnival in the United States kicks off this weekend.
And what would the Saint Paul Winter Carnival be without a huge ice throne by sculptor John Njoes?
"We started with 14 blocks on Monday, in boxes, and we'll come back on Friday," he says. "Make sure between now and then the weather's not too bad, wrap it up."
Royalty is a key component of the carnival with King Boreas and the Queen of the Snows.
"It's sort of an easy piece for people to understand, you know, and you sit in it and you take your pictures," says Njoes.
"But won't that be a little cold on the - um - back end?
"Yeah, there'll be a pad and then kind of like think like a faux furry rug situation to make it comfortable and your butt doesn't get wet," says event coordinator Nikki Auer.
The St. Paul Winter Carnival has events taking place throughout the city including ice sculptures in Rice Park, a Vulcan Snow Park at the State Fairgrounds, the Royal Coronation at the St. Paul RiverCentre, and of course the King Boreas Grande Day Parade which this year will travel down Grand Avenue for the first time.
Saji-Ya restaurant is located along the parade route and co-owner Niki Auer is excited for all the new foot traffic they'll see.
"I think having it on Grand Avenue this year is going to showcase all of the restaurants that really need the showcasing on Grand Avenue, and we can show off what we have," says Auer. "We're building the ice throne just kind of just have the piece de resistance there, but I think we're just excited to have the foot traffic and have people come down."
There will also be other snow-centric activities, live music performances, and more. The two-week St. Paul Winter Carnival kicks off Saturday with the Parade down Grand Avenue. The State Capitol grounds will host a Red Bull snowboarding competition next weekend.