*The special VIP section Khus Khus is not pictured.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Trinidad Carnival Updates
Evolution is supposed to be having a band launch after all, I was told it would be later this month for those who were inquiring. The interesting part is that Curtis Eustace is no longer with Evolution!
I see Genesis website is now up, the best thing about those costumes is the price; the females are all under $3000.00 and the males under $2500.00, with the exception of the frontline costumes which for the most part are under $3500.00 I would really love to know what is the VVIP amenities in Desert Rays, frankly I am unaware that Genesis has so many masqueraders that it merits a VVIP! Anyway, lets hope next year that includes music for Carnival Monday.
Trini Revellers it's been several weeks since the band launch and not only is the website not up your masqueraders (and potential masqueraders) are complaining of the lack of costume photos on the facebook group. I see threats from persons that they are going to play with a next band! Funny stuff.
Miami Carnival The Review
Yesterday morning I awoke to the sounds of soca in the air, reaching my room five floors up and what did you know the parade could be seen out the window!
The Hilton Miami Downtown is the perfect spot for the parade, I simply walked like two minutes after exiting the hotel and came smack upon the parade. The hotel was also very close to the venue for Vale Vibe Fete and Blocko and many masqueraders were staying there. It is a decent hotel, if you get it for a great price even better.
My first thought when I decided on Miami was that I would play mas and experience what it is like, that desire changed later on and I decided to be a spectator yesterday which is not an experience for me no matter what country! I simply cannot spectate when I would rather be playing, looking at mas is so much different than participating in it.
The weather was beautiful, when I finally got on the way at 2PM; gorgeous, sunny HOT day. It was HOT, hotter than Trinidad on Carnival Monday and Tuesday. So HOT some masqueraders fell ill. Initially we started looking out for my friend's band, Generation X, her section was Eye Candy (yes THAT section). I kept getting messages from her that they were yet to leave but I knew that the masqueraders were assembled since 10:30AM and after taking in the costumes on the road we headed for the park at Biscayne thinking Generation X were on their way there. Well, what I learned later was that Generation X chose position number 34 to allow more time on the road for their masqueraders, which worked because they did not cross the stage until 10:10PM!! Worse yet is that Eye Candy ladies were told to walk with heels to cross the stage, somehow the message got mixed that the stage was pretty close so some of them wore heels for up to 3 hours, like my friend, because their change of shoe was located in the park!
As for the park, it is like a huge outdoor area that was $20.00 to enter, you could not walk in with water which you were later charged $3.00 for! Someone got a bright idea to make a killing yesterday as the water was the most precious commodity in that heat. Too bad that "someone" was not smart enough to notice the spelling on this sign:
I did not like the set up of the stage or the stands as where they were located the music trucks accompanying the bands essentially blocked your view of the masqueraders when they got to the stage. And the stage was miniscule, but at least they had one and masqueraders played with vicious abandon when they finally got to the stage; how well do I know that feeling! Triniscene carried the parade live until 6PM which was pretty cool if you were not there.
To make a long story short, my entire day (eight hours) was spent at the park as I had to see my friend in Generation X, and they were the last band to make it into the park before the six o clock deadline, though it would be four more hours before they eventually crossed the stage.
look the wee wee truck!
My impression of Miami Carnival is that of a much, much,much, smaller Trinidad Carnival experience with the weather and even some of the more elaborate costumes. The all inclusive bands had wee wee trucks, medic vans and served lunches on the road just as they do for Trinidad Carnival. I also liked that for the most part there were actual costumed bands, I think I saw just one T Shirt band and most of the bands seemed to have a Trinidad origin.
What I found so humorous was that I asked masqueraders what band they were in and only about 10% of the ones I asked actually knew the name of the band! I was happy to see ladies were in their boots and decorated sneakers (with some matching sandals thrown in) and were totally on point with the makeup as well. The masqueraders looked great and looked like they were having LOTS of fun too.
For lots more photos of Miami Carnival click on the picture below:
Sunday, October 11, 2009
DV 8 The Review
I have to say this was the fete I was looking forward to the most on the agenda for Miami Carnival weekend as I had heard much about DV 8 last year and how great an all inclusive it was. Well, let me tell you it did not disappoint!
Our thinking that we needed to be shuttled to the venue from the "meeting point" in Homestead meant we arrived fairly early, which was excellent timing as there was enough time to explore the grounds and absorb the atmosphere. Venue wise the outdoor setting was fabulous, very nice location with grottoes, waterfalls and ponds. The only thing was the mosquitoes were out in force however there was "off" spray at the entrance so you could protect yourself from the inevitable bites; this small detail was a hallmark of the detail that went into the fete.
There was one very long bar, stocked with Johnny and coconut water as well as lots of other spirits such as 1919 for rum drinkers. Another bar was dedicated to wine only, with flavors such as mango. The food service was running a bit late as they were not ready when we arrived but the nibbles came out soon after. I only had the very first set of finger food like mini spring rolls and chicken bites, the lines were not long then. Later on I heard that there were very long lines, but I was lucky enough to have food brought to me, and enjoyed the fare then.
The only caveat to such and expansive venue was the fact that at first the crowd was scattered in pockets throughout, the bar area seemed to be very popular until much later the spot closer to the DJ became filled and then you got an idea of how many people there were; the fete was packed! This was also the fete where I saw probably everyone who I knew that was in Miami for Carnival! I would say DV 8 was like Beach House on a Carnival Thursday in Trinidad.
As for the music, best out of the three fetes for the weekend, the DJ played 2009 soca and not once asked "anyone from Trinidad?" TRIBE Ignite was really good, I had a great time but DV 8 also ranks as one of the best fetes I have been to, both in and out of Trinidad, as well. The fact is it compared to any popular all inclusive in Trinidad and at 50.00 was well worth it! No wonder tickets were so exclusive. If you have never been to DV 8, put this one on your calender for Miami Carnival 2010, it was awesome!
Off to the parade today.....check out pics from DV 8 2009 as well as all the fete pics HERE:
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Black and White The Review
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.....
Friday, October 09, 2009
TRIBE Ignite The Review
The first thing I have to say is any fete that serves Johnny Walker Black and COCONUT WATER ( $12.00US a pop) takes win in my book! The Miami Carnival feteing season kicked off for me last night with TRIBE Ignite at the Opium Club at Hard Rock Cafe.
Now my first impression of Miami Carnival is that all these fetes are far flung in places 25 minutes (at least) from my hotel BUT the vibe was certainly there as many, many, many Trinis represented.
I was told TRIBE Ignite was going to be "stoosh" however it was not in the least, unless my definiton of stoosh means many, many people enjoying some good soca! The highlight of the night was Iwer George's live performance and for the most part the DJS were playing some really good soca mixed in with some dub (huh?) except for Back to Basics who took it back , way, way back... the crowd did not even move for that one!
So, review of TRIBE Ignite was EXCELLENT, great way to start the feteing in Miami, nice venue, great music, cool people and JWB with Coconut Water; what else can I ask for?
Black and White fete later!
The Wee Wee Truck Debate Rages On
So, TRIBE issued a statement on the wee wee truck issue yesterday:
Dear Masquerader,We wish to address the issue of the proposed ban on Mobile Restrooms in Carnival Bands by the authorities. TRIBE was made aware of the issue only on Monday 5th October, 2009 when an article appeared in a daily newspaper. Prior to this, we were not contacted by anyone and no discussions were held.
Many of you have used our Mobile Toilet Facilities and can attest to the high standards of sanitization and hygiene maintained throughout the day while the facility is in use. Safety, security, comfort and convenience is paramount to our masqueraders and we will not sacrifice this in anyway that will affect our masqueraders negatively.We support the authorities in establishing standards for this, but do not support a ban as the first course of action especially without any prior consultation with the Mas Bands.Please rest assured that we will employ all efforts and do all that can be done within the law to ensure that this essential facility continues to be made available to you. TRIBE has in fact met, and shall continue to meet with a number of stakeholders with regards to this issue and we will continue to update you as developments take place.We also wish to thank all of you who have contacted us and those of you who have written to the daily newspapers expressing your concerns. These comments expressed go a long way in convincing the authorities that the masqueraders need the facility.We are confident that the authorities will recognize that the facility is an integral part of the Trinidad Carnival Experience for both locals and masquerading tourists alike. TRIBE has recognized the need for the facility and has improved the Carnival Experience.TRIBE remains committed to moving Trinidad and Tobago Carnival forward.TRIBE Management
And other bandleaders are also speaking on the proposed ban, as is reported in today's Trinidad Guardian, Genesis band leader Ian Mc Kenzie stated he has "immediately canceled" his band's wee wee truck upon hearing the news and Brian Mc Farlane had this to say:
“The idea itself is not a bad one. It is really not the most practical thing to be driving around with these trucks.” Acclaimed masman Brian McFarlane said before all-inclusive bands came up with the idea of “wee-wee” trucks, portable toilets provided by the National Carnival Commission worked very well. “They were well maintained, cleaned regularly, well lit and safe,” he said. Asked whether these trucks were included in his band, McFarlane said abruptly: “I never had them. I would never have them and I am glad they are gone.” He recalled that one year ago his band paraded behind a “bikini and beads” band with a “wee-wee” truck and had to endure smelling filth for the entire mas’ route.
I wonder exactly what public toilet Mc Farlene speaks of, public toilets that were "were well maintained, cleaned regularly, well lit and safe"? As a masquerader before the days of all inclusive bands I can attest to the fact that mythical public toilet never existed nor does it exist today!!
Saucy's sixth sense is telling her this ban is not about the wee wee trucks but the first attempt to disable all inclusive exclusive bikini and beads bands.....Carnival is a reflection of society, always was, always will be. It says something quite profound that the majority of masqueraders love their bikini mas now doesn't it?
Thursday, October 08, 2009
Triniscene Your Ticket to Miami Carnival!!!!
Triniscene.com is the place you wanna be for THE EXCLUSIVE LIVE STREAM of the hottest fetes taking placing this weekend in MIAMI for Miami Carnival!!!
Triniscene.com would be providing Live Stream of the following fetes :
TRIBE IGNITE
Live Stream Starts on Friday 9th Oct at 1AM
Scruples 13th Anniversary Free Drinks Block O
Live Stream starts on Saturday 10th Oct at 1AM
Miami Carnival 2K9 Parade of the Bands
Live Stream starts on Sun 11th Oct at 12PM
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Resurrection The Mas - Prices
Jab Molassie - $2995.00
Burroquite - $4995.00
Red Indian - $3895.00
Stickfighter - $3195.00
Mad Cow -$4195.00
Baby Doll - $3995.00 *Female Only
Fancy Clown - $3895.00
Minstrel - $3895.00
Soumayree - $4795.00
Fire Man - $3795.00
Dame Lorraine - $4295.00
Suck Meh Nose Sailor - $3595.00
Paywo -$4195.00
Black Indian -$3995.00 (F),$4395.00 (M)
Bat -$4295.00
Jab Jab -$4095.00
I am not going to lie, those prices are HOT! Sources say that the materials used in these costumes are expensive; having already seen the finished prototype for most of the sections what are your thoughts on the prices?
