So, after another LONG drive to Margate Fort Lauderdale I had really great expectations for Black and White fete, which in the end can be summed up with the words "sweat box",;I swear when the fete reached full sold out capacity the air outside (which is muggy and humid) was cooler than in the venue!
We arrived to meet a line of people awaiting entry to the event, true to form the ladies and men were very stylishly attired in the recommended colour scheme, but I got the impression that the majority of the patrons were there for the food and to socialise as they were either eating or chit chatting when I surveyed the different nooks of the venue. Apparently the roti, jerk chicken and Chinese food on sale were a hit among the crowd. The lay out went like this; a foyer(, main chit chat central) a room off the foyer with the live rhythm section that lead into a main ballroom where the DJs and stage was set up, then the bar opposite the foyer. The layout to me interrupted the flow of the fete as there was no cohesive vibe, which was further exacerbated by the heat later on.
Arriving fairly early meant that we met the venue when the air conditioning and fans were working, the caveat being that we had to suffer through the first DJ of the night who had to be one of the most boring DJs ever! The music picked up when Private Ryan came on followed by Back to Basics who described the ball room as a sauna and he was spot on in that description. To say it was HOT is an understatement.
We eventually had to move out of the ballroom and took up position in the foyer for the rest of the night as that space was cooler, but not by much as other people spilled out of the ballroom and packed the foyer as well. Even the hallway leading to the restrooms, which was significantly cooler earlier in the night, was packed with patrons trying to escape the sweat box of the ballroom. I am thinking they switched off the air conditioning as it was way, way too hot and after a time the ceiling fans were not even spinning!
The good part of the fete was that the bar served Johnny Walker Black and Coconut water (yay, you could easily drink the equivalent ticket price of the fete with this) however the bar was VERY crowded. We found a spot to the very end of the bar where there were no lines and prompt fast service so for me, no issues with the bar at all. Oh, how could I forget, at 3:45AM you could get nothing but juice at the bar! Not to mention the entry /exit was through a narrow door with no order and people spilling into the bar area from either side of the door meant for some jostling and pushing to get into/out of the bar area. Depending on when you made a trip to the bar you were forced to squeeze through the ONE passageway!
I give kudos to the crowd for trying to enjoy the fete despite the terribly inconvenient heat problem, and I managed to enjoy my time there was well,if only thanks to Uncle Johnny, however this fete is scratched off my list for the future. If I go to Miami Carnival next year I am definitely hitting either Blocko or Super Friends. I went to Black and White , experienced it and can totally get the demographics of the crowd which was spoke about when I did my poll on which fete to choose between Black and White and Blocko to be honest, I think "my crowd" is of the latter event patronage.
DV 8 in Homestead today!! This one should be interesting , look out for my review and check out some photos from Black and White.
Bar
I was told it tasted good, in the pic is also
Uncle Johnny and jello shots.
Ballroom
End of the fete.....
5 comments:
the end of fete picture reminds me of school disco dance at the end when everybody outside waitin for their mother to pick them up lol.
sorry d party was a sweat box though
Like dey change the venue?? Thanks for the info..give me open air fete anytime yes...
I agree with Saucy on this one. It was an absolute sweatbox. After dealing with a worse situation the night before at Girl Power, I was hoping this would be different. Overall, I had a nice time, but it really needed to be at an outdoor venue. I tried it, time to move on to something else.
Oh how I need to vent about this fete kindly allow me!
Firstly kudos to Larson for being aware that the place was a sweat box. He was a gracious host/promoter given the conditions. However please tell your partner in crime (yes it's a crime to suffocate ppl in that heat) Colin to be equally sensitive to the complaints of the fete goers after all we did PAY you to attend the party!! I swear he was so obnoxious and discourteous to anyone that approached him to complain, I was about to throw him out the fete myself!
After a rather long drive, we join the long line, get searched by the security and are then told to join another line to collect tickets. You'd think we could just get the tickets some of which were paid for in advance and proceed inside. Wrong! We are instructed to rejoin the original line and be searched again. Total entrance time 33 minutes!
Inside there is a sea of ppl around the bar. There is only 1 bar! Total wait time for first drinks 18 minutes!
Proceed past the foyer and into the ballroom the humidity hits you and drips your makeup off. My friend starts getting an asthma-like-attack breathing problem we exit to the foyer which is easier on the heat but soon gets just as crowded.
We try to salvage the rest of the night setting up shop at the end of the bar and close to the bake n shark lady who would have much rather been partying and let us know by her service.
There could not be enough Johnny to make up for this experience we managed to have the most fun in the parking lot with the rhythm section.
Note to self take in the other the night life of south beach or hardrock on Friday and save the partying for Saturday.
The vibes at the party was great. My group had a ball in the (main room)ball- room. Not to mention the jammin rhythmn section in the next room. I have been attending black & white since its inception and never to socialize but to party! I have been doing Miami carnival for years. We always have a good time. The promoters try year after year to improve on their venue. Yes it was hot but nothing to compare to the stifling heat of girl power. Machel in girl power, claimed he was wet down to his socks and this was no exaggeration! Personally I think the open air venues of the past were better.
Through the years I have complained about the bar in b&w but this year saw marked improvement. I did not have a problem once in getting a drink. There were actually two doors to the room with the bar. There was no jostling at the door I used. It is always important to survey your venue properly so things are easier for you to do or access. I like the idea of the different rooms for different things. Although didnt to like leaving our partying spot to go all the way to the back to the bar but say what, I walk in trini fetes to the bar too!
We spent less than 5 mins in the line to access the party and we were not early to avoid crowds, as some people wld do. If my memory serves me right the bar serves non alcoholic drinks towards the last 15 - 30mins of the party, which I have seen at some all inclusive fetes in trinidad. I think thats a very responsible practice.
Johnny with coconut water was a plus. We had such a good time we limed in the car park afterwards, playing music and chatting.
This fete is very popular now and it is with good reason that it has become popular. Will be there again next year.
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