I was looking online for boots and I knew since the band launch that for my section I wanted to go with a thigh high boots (I'm in Xi'An). However the only ones I find have heels.
I am a bit scared I must say. I have noticed that this year many ladies chipped down the road with heels and I am not too sure if you covered the topic. I would LOVE to have their feedback:
Was it painful, uncomfortable, a bad choice for the road? Would they recommend it? What height and size of heels (how thick)? Would you suggest flats for Monday and heels for Tuesday? And by heels I do not mean wedges.
I would appreciate any feedback.Thanks
Greetings peeps, Kermit here reporting from the Vale Vibe New York 2010. As most of my friends know, I do not usually attend Labor Day festivities but this year there happened to be a confluence of events that made it impossible for me not to be there. Back in the day when I used to attend Labor Day in New York regularly, the main reason I would make the trip north was for Hawke’s Boat ride. This was a most glorious and epic boat ride and my only regret was that I wasn’t in the picture-taking and commentary-writing scene back then otherwise I’m sure those would have been among my best works.Sadly, that boat ride has long since ceased to exist but this year, versions of two of the biggest and baddest Trinidad Carnival fetes were being held in New York on Labor Day weekend and when I heard that they would be back to back on the same night/morning, I knew this was the perfect storm of feteing and I had to be a part of it. The first fete in this dynamic duo is the Vale Vibe then after is Sunny Side Up New York; you will hear lots about my SSU experience in the next installment but first things first, let me tell you about the Vale Vibe.
I arrived in New York that Saturday afternoon and after downing a curry chicken buss-up-shut and a half-bottle of Belvedere, the crew and I readied ourselves and headed to the fete around 11:30 p.m. (ish) and after a brief pause at the door, we were welcomed inside and was immediately struck by the beauty of the venue. The Vale Vibe was being held in a space, the luxurious skylight One Hanson Place, which back in the day, clearly used to be a bank. Now when I say “back in the day” I don’t mean 20-30 years ago; the day I am talking about would be way back before color TV’s and even before man walked on the moon.
The main party room was what would have been the main lobby of the bank and looks like the kind of place where you would expect the Joker to be fighting off Batman as he tried to rob the place. The ceilings soared above us and the graceful arches supported huge ornate chandeliers which looked like they came straight from Notre Dame. The illumination inside was quite creative and definitely enhanced the Gotham City feel that pervaded the event and as I made my way fully into the room I was very impressed with what I had seen so far but since looks don’t quench thirst, I looked around for a bar and lo and behold there was a young lady holding a Hennessy Black bottle and wearing a Hennessy Black dress right in front of me. I sidled over to her and realized than not only was she serving Hennessy, she was also controlling a stock of Belvedere. I took this as a sign from above since I had been consuming that very same spirit earlier and now I can continue with no worries about mixing/clashing different liquors.
After introducing myself (and taking a few pictures of the lovely ladies hard at work at that bar), I sipped my drink and headed over to the right side of the fete where a line had formed for the food. The line stretched about halfway down the length of the party but it seemed to be moving briskly and since I had a drink in my hand and it was fairly early anyway, I decided to lime in the line and see what food choices awaited me.After a short wait, I discovered a plethora of food choices ranging from doubles and poulouri to bake and saltfish, to rice and peas and jerked chicken. There was a wide variety of food and there certainly seemed to be plenty of it immediately available so I took my full plate and retired to the main area to consume.By now, the crowd was starting to arrive and the venue was filling up nicely.The music was sweet and the folks present were having a great time eating and drinking and generally mingling but there was no real hard wining taking place.
This was not too surprising considering that the fete was now getting going and this was the time for patrons to fill up on their fete fuel of choice in preparation for the night’s activities. The reserved temperament of the fete was also a reflection of the type of crowd present as the folks in attendance definitely dressed to impress and their efforts were largely successful. The crowd was full of beautiful, well dressed people and I could see why they would take their time to mix and mingle and see and be seen. I mean, there would be plenty time to palance later but now, while you are as yet un-sweatied, now would be a good time to chill and pose for pics and I was happy to oblige them one and all.
As we all know, this social behavior could not last all night and when Alicia D Dutchess’ introduced Donaeo and he took the stage, the crowd in the front of the fete start to loosen up. I mean, here was the “Party Hard” man singing live not 5 feet away and there was no way you could ignore that vibe. Before long the crowd was swaying and gyrating and hanging on his every word. In my opinion, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back and from that time on, the crowd by the stage was fully engaged in the winery.Interestingly enough, when I made my way to the bars in the back of the fete, the vibe down there was much mellower and laid back. The peeps down here were definitely enjoying themselves but they weren’t wining with the fervor their counterparts up in front were displaying.
This, I think, was a very nice feature in the Vale Vibe; if you wanted to jam down and get on bad, you could go up front and palance to your heart’s content and if you wanted a breather or simply wanted to chill instead, you could gravitate to the rear and lime and observe the Party Harder’s and through all of this, the liquor flowed very liberally right up until the very end of the night’s festivities.
The Vale Vibe New York 2010 was an excellent fete as the organizers went to great lengths to provide the patrons with an elegant party experience and tonight, they were 100% successful. Everything from the hot food to the cold drinks to the well dressed yet badly behaved clientele was absolutely on point. The music kept us moving all night and Donaeo provided a nice change of pace and just about the only thing that would have made the night better would have been to keep it going for another couple hours but since greed is a sin, I will be thankful for the several hours I enjoyed courtesy of the Vale Vibe management – well done Vale Vibe, very well done indeed.
Enjoy the pics peeps, because later that morning after a disco nap and a quick shower, I headed to Sunny Side Up New York and had a TIME AND A HALF there but you will soon see and hear all about it.
Kermit out.
I would like to know if it's possible if you would like to start a discussion about carnival and censorship... what I mean is this- our carnival is transforming into a Brazilian type Carnival with wire bras, going topless, and rocking a tapasexo, getting on (pure jamminish style) in front of the eyes of children, elderly and other conservative spectators... do you think that Carnival is really getting out of hand??
And with crime situations, do you think some women (those that are wearing topless, wirebras, thong etc.) are encouraging harm or danger to themselves??
It's just a thought of mine since I noticed that we (as masqueraders) love to be free out on the road, but I do noticed that some spectators were upset and even frowned on the behavior...
GEMS presents
2k11 Conquest of Alexander
@ Callaloo Mas Camp, Chaguaramas
Sat 9th oct, 2010
7pm till..............
Special guest from Jamaica and one of the leading Brass Bands in T&T
For tickets and info contacts 770-1942. 365-5329 or 6254881.
With this being my second Labor Day Carnival, I decided to play with Ramajay Mas because I have to admit, the costumes were on point this year, instead of being cheap, recycled and non-inventive costumes that are prone to be seen on the parkway. My section of choice was Isis Frontline with the full bra.
REGISTRATIONIt took a couple of weeks before the website was operational, and yet still a few more before the registration form was available on the website. Although I emailed a representative of the band through Facebook, the only word on online registration was that it would be available soon. When I noticed this, I immediately emailed the band through its website and inquired about online registration for my desired section. Almost immediately, I received an email response with the confirmation that my section was still available, along with a registration form an directions on how to make the deposit through Paypal. After filling out the form, I made the deposit using Paypal website and returned the registration form to the band and waited for my confirmation e-mail that I was actually registered in Isis. To be honest, to this day, I am still waiting on my confirmation email.
BAND COMMUNICATIONOver all, communication to masqueraders was POOR. I should not have to be continuously calling the camp during business hours and not get an answer. I can remember calling the band when it first launched, and no matter the time I called, the phone would go to voice mail. REALLY, to me this was unprofessional having a cell phone used as the business phone. Granted that the Labor Day parade is only six hours, I still think that the band should have taken out a temporary land line, or even if they used the cell phone, they could have at least have a recorded message letting callers know that they have reached the band at a bad time and how soon a representative would be available to help. Anything other than a computer generated “You have reached the voice mail of (insert number here), please leave a message after the beep.”
During one of my earlier communications, I enquired about collecting my costume on the Sunday before Labor Day seeing that I was driving from Arkansas and the representative from the camp said sure I can make arrangements for that date. However, the week before Labor Day, I called again to make said arrangements and another representative informed me that if the costume was not collect before Saturday 4th, my costume could be sold.
Another area of poor communication skill was in regards to collection, as you will read later on in the review, masqueraders were advised of one thing, yet the complete opposite happened.
On the brighter side though, I must admit that the section leader for Isis, Akin Ross, was very communicative with his section, and he personally called me instruct me on how to measure myself for the wings. This communication from Akin did not stop there, as the morning of the parade he was willing to give me directions on where to meet the band when I was lost. He also made sure to go through each masqueraders box (from what I saw), and made sure each person was satisfied with what they received.
COLLECTIONHummm, where should I start, DISORGANIZED, HECTIC and CHAOTIC cannot even begin to describe what went on at the distribution center. Although my collection date was set for Thursday 2nd, I never got to New York until Friday morning. All paper work that I received from the band indicated that collection started at 4pm. Got to the mas camp at about 4:30pm only to be turned around by the gate man saying no distribution until 6pm. What happen to facebook, twitter or a phone call, I could save my gas if I had known I was not supposed to be there until 6. By the time I returned to the distribution center, there was a number system in place, which I do think was a good idea. After I paid the balance on my costume, I proceeded to collect my costume – which by the way was not there. After a frantic search for my costume, a representative from the band informed me that I (key word I) had to call a number to find out what my costume was…..WHAT. So I pay my money to the band and still I have to find out where my costume is, which by the way was supposed to be there at 4pm. After calling the number, I was told to return at 8pm because my costume should be there then. Luckily I had other F.L.H.O things to take care of, so I went about my business and returned at about 8:30pm.
By then it was pure madness as costumes were not completed and representatives were still making bras, headpieces, and belts to satisfy the masses that ensued. When I got to the Isis station (more like the space they had for Isis distribution), I was greeted by a rasta guy (whose name I can’t remember) and he proceeded to put my box together.
In the box, I received my costume, some Carol’s Daughter shampoo and a thank you letter from Akin Ross and Theif Head Crew (sp). I also received the jewelry that was advertised on the website and two costume jewelry rings.
Now when I looked at my bra and I looked at my ta ta’s and I said “na this eh go work.” Apparently the bras made by the distributors ran small and a lot of the big breasted masqueraders had the same problem as I. To solve the problem, Akin was willing to have masqueraders with bra issues, bring in their own bra and redecorate them. I applaud him for this, as some of the other sections were not willing to do this and a lot of females were very upset.
After getting my box, I did have to wait about another hour and a half because the person who was supposed to fit the wings to ensure that they were correct was not at the distribution center and was “coming just now” for about an hour.
After waiting and getting fitted for my wings, I went home and I must say that I was satisfied with the product I paid for, however, the belt was measured incorrectly (a lot of females had this problem also) and while I thought my bra could have worked it did not.
When I returned to the distribution on Saturday, it was worse than Friday night. The line was ridiculous and they were only letting people in six at a time. I saw this as a good move as it would cut down on confusion and keep clutter out of the small space that they were working with.After waiting about two hours in line, I was finally able to get inside and when I told Akin of my problem, he gave me his number so that I could organize with him at his own work space to convert a gold monokini that I had into a costume.
Now I do not know or do not want to know what happened when I left the distribution center as there were a few people requesting refunds because the product they received was not completed or did not fit correctly. I know of a few individuals who had to wait a couple of hours because their costumes would not be at the venue until about 11pm.
ON THE PARKWAYThe parkway would be the parkway and I really thought Ramajay could have had everything in control after the confusion that was happening for three nights straight. To be honest I do not know where the band was scheduled to meet as my section held a breakfast party at the Tikki Village. Because I had to do my own makeup and get my face decorated, I opted to meet the band at East New York and Rockaway Parkway, where the parade begins. At about 2pm, several masqueraders were asking where the band was and finally, by word of mouth (I don’t know who started it) everyone found out that the trucks were actually at Buffalo and Rockaway.
For the duration of the parade, the rope men were kinda doing a good job a keep stormers out, except one point where I just thought the band was a t-shirt band. I must say that the mike men on the truck did stop the music to discourage stormers and also instructed the rope men on what areas needed securing and the importance of keeping the stormers out.
One particular point that pissed me off was to see a stormer tell the security that she not getting out the band and he did nothing. WTF, so you mean to tell me Mr. Big Strappin man, a STORMER tells you she not getting out the band and you said OK. Ramajay I want back my money for security because obviously you guys did not tell your men that a stormer is a stormer no matter race, creed, color or nationality. It reminded me of how I felt in regards to the security putting out stormers in Harts this year: security picked and chose who was a stormer.
AFTER THOUGHTSOverall, I think Ramajay have some serious kinks to work out, mainly security, customer service and also communication. It makes no sense to have on a company distributed collection list that distribution starts at 4pm when in all reality it starts at 6pm. It is no fun the day before the parade and your costume is still being worked on. It is no fun having a sweaty stormer winning up on me when I paid my money to enjoy myself in the band. I am not saying that there is a band out there without some problems, but for Ramajay, the problems that masqueraders had outweighed the beauty of their costumes.
Another thing that I notice was a topic you talked about in the past Saucy. I saw backline babes with wings, and frontline H.O.’s with backline belts (gasp), but that is a whole nother topc.As far as a grade, I would give the band a D+. And to the dougla girl who was making the Lakshmi costumes (yes I calling she out), next time better customer service is needed from you. If yuh hadda frown yuh face, you should be in the back gluing on the decorations on the bra because your attitude was definitely not needed.
I am happy that I choose Isis because the section leaders tried their best to satisfy and rectify all costume problems unlike some other sections that I saw. I am thoroughly please that instead of having my ta tas making their debut on the parkway, the designers worked with me in putting a fit together that I was satisfied with.
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YUMAs: Thank U for your patience & feedback. The wait is over! REGISTRATION GOING INTL NOW! YUMA ONLINE REGISTRATION begins 12noon (EST) Sept. 2 2010 & will be available noon-6pm daily through SATURDAY (subject to costume availability). Note: Mas camp/ online registration is NOT available on Sundays or Holidays.
PAYMENT INFORMATION
REQUIRED INFORMATION FOR REGISTRATION
ALL FEMALES:
ALL MALES
ALL PERSONS SUBMITTING CORSETS/ OWN BRA PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING:-
• No Tankinis nor Whole Suits
SPECIAL MEASUREMENTS & SIZING ISSUES BY COSTUME
PLEASE NOTE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON ONLINE REGISTRATION CAN AND WILL BE SHARED VIA THE YUMA FACEBOOK PAGE www.facebook.com/yumavibe and/or the YUMA website YumaVibe.com
