6 Reasons Why I Love Carnival So Much
As a soca lover I find myself living my year based on when carnivals are. At the beginning of the year we have the biggest carnival the Caribbean has to offer, Trinidad & Tobago. Not forgetting other carnivals such as Carriacou and Dominica, T&T carnival just catches my soul.
On my return from Trinidad, when the carnival finishes, the booking for Berlin carnival takes place. Let me point out that in-between Trinidad and Berlin there is usually Luton and Reading carnival, great little ‘fillers’ for an insatiable carnival addict like me. After Berlin the warm up for Notting Hill carnival, Cropover, Vincy Mas & Spicemas starts to kick in.
Once August has passed, there’s Miami carnival and at the end of the year is Montserrat’s Jump up.
Yes there are a whole host of other carnivals in-between, Rotterdam, Birmingham, Bristol and many more. Life as a carnival lover is seriously never dull. So as the build up for the next lap starts, hear are my 6 reasons why I love carnival so much.
1. The people. Everyone (vast majority of people) are at carnival for the exact same reason. To free-up and have as much fun as possible. This shared reason creates a unique feeling which can not be recreated anywhere else. A oneness! I also get to see friends and family who I only ever see at carnival.
2. The music. Soca has the ability to make you happy on your saddest day. Its the powerful art form that makes people drop on the ground and roll, jump up high and wine down low. It is simply, life’s best cure to everything.
3. The view. Mas, is an amazing and beautiful thing to see. From traditional mas to the bikini, beads and feather mas I love seeing them all. I get to appreciate the love and passion people have for the Caribbean culture and this love spills out on the road with happy masqueraders palancing up, down, left and right, all over the place, intoxicating even bystanders with their antics.
4. The food. At most carnivals you will find the right food to tantalise your taste buds (and soak up the alcohol – corn soup, yes after a long ‘hard’s day of playing mas or soaking in the atmosphere).
5. Alcohol. Everyone has it in all of its many flavours and percentages. Everyone whats to share it with you, yet most are never too drunk to still have a good time. Lets face it if we drank as much alcohol on any other day we would probably end up in hospital.
6. Freedom. Born on the spirit of freedom, carnival is all about letting go, forgetting all your problems and letting the mind and body go.
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These above are my 6 reasons. I recently asked my friends on Facebook “What is it about carnivals that makes you love it so much?” and here is what some of you had to say:
Abigale CawleyGent – The Vibes,Freedom and lack of inhibitions
Jennifer Holas – Nice vybz!! Great music , friendly people, pretty costumes, great lime
Invaders Mass – Costumes , music and the unification of cultures
Shanice Lucian-Dancer Alber’t – The Soca Music!
Val GC – wine bampaz and soca !
Dean Stephens – Costumes, The People, The Music, Not 4getting The Rum Rum Rum Rum Rum sweet Liquor!!! Its we ting
Patricia Yatunde Sawyerr – The celebration of history and the infusion of culture. Liberation!!!
Nathalie Jürgen – unity & happiness
Rodel Mc Dowall-Pitt – The frenzy of colours, pulsating steel pan, sweet soca vibe and the united front we have as a people
Tamika HotSkull Joseph – the soca… the truck… the people.. the atmosphere…. the vybz… freedom and the only day i can wuk up and get on stink
So people, as the pace builds up “What is it about carnivals that makes you love it so much?”
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