A promenade is usually a leisurely walk, one taken in a public place as a social activity.

Last Friday, May 19, the students and guests attending Belmont High School's Senior Prom participating in the pre-prom tradition of parading in their finest attire by classmates and family weren't so much on the advertised "promenade" than the running of a gauntlet of flashing cameras, watchful chaperones and very proud parents.

Not that the more than 400 guests – thought to be near a record number for prom – were fazed by the attention. Many smiled or simply wouldn't allow the busy scene affect them: In a short time they would be on buses, ready for a special night of dining and dancing at Boston's Westin Copley Place.