TRIBE Magazine update..

The TRIBE Unleashed 2008 Souvenir Magazine is NOW AVAILABLE at the following outlets:

TRIBE Mas Camp - Opening Hours: Mon to Fri 12noon to 6pm

Crosby's - Western Main Rd. , St. James

Kam's - Long Circular Mall

Rhyner's - Piarco Int'l Airport

The following branches of HI LO Food Stores :

* NORTH: Glencoe, West Mall, St. Ann 's, Maraval
* EAST: St. Augustine , Arima ( Ridgewood )
* CENTRAL: Chaguanas
* SOUTH: Gulf City

Overseas Masqueraders: Keep posted to the website for further information.

Cost: TT$50

Souvenir Photos

Carnival 2k8 photos are NOW available at the Mas Camp. (See schedule below):

* Sat. 16th Feb - 12noon to 5pm
* Tues 19th - Thurs 21st Feb - 4:30pm to 7pm
* Sat 23rd Feb - 12noon to 5pm
* Tues 26th - Thurs 28th Feb - 4:30pm to 7pm
* Sat 2nd March – 12noon to 5pm

Photos can also be ordered from carnivalscene.com

For further information, please call 333-8635.


Carnival 2k8 pics can be viewed at:
www.carnivalscene.com
www.trinijunglejuice.com

And here is.. THE BLING!

This year my Carnival preparations included pimping out a H.O. cup (which we later termed the “bling cup"). The cup started life as part of the Bmobile Panorama Lime package; subsequently Bmobile would give away thousands of these cups at fetes, goody bags at the airport and to all Island People masqueraders so I am sure many of you are now in possession of this cup, which can be used for pimping out next year if you so desire!

Anyway, Mystique was the first to come up with the brilliant idea to use this cup as the base for blinging out, and her cup was actually the very first one to be decorated. The metal of the cup made it great for apply decorations with a hot glue gun, and the handle has a neat feature which can clip on to a string or in my case my pouch.

For my cup I used about 180 gems, sequins, braid and swans down for the “fluff”. Hey, it was a H.O. cup so I pimped it out good! The decorations stayed on surprisingly well, none fell off or came loose as I had feared, even with cold drinks poured inside of the cup. At the end of the day my fluff did become wet, in hindsight it was not a practical design element though it did add to my bling factor!

My Bling Cup!

I absolutely loved my cup as the TRIBE cup I got in my goody bag did not match my costume in any way and this cup added to the overall Frontline H.O.ness! Thanks to Franny for this wonderful idea, but apart from Mystique, Afro Chic and myself sad to say I did not see any other Bling Cups on the road! When you ladies are frontline H.O.ing it out you cannot do it half way, you have to go all the way. The job of a frontline H.O. entails having your makeup on point, FAB footwear, cute pouch and now add a H.O. cup to you list for 2009!

Afro Chic's Bling Cup

Mystique's and my bling cup on the road:

Evolution Review

Thanks to one of the ladies who reads the blog for this Evolution review, please, keep the reviews coming, I would like to hear everyone's thoughts on their Carnival exeperience regardless of the band you played with.

Hi,
I love your blogspot.

My friends and I played with IP for last 2 years, didn't go back for obvious reasons. Anyway, we decided to give Evo a shot. Saw the costumes, love at first sight.

Evo. had problems, obviously, ( they new & they sold costumes down to the wire):

1. Most popular section (Teal), costumes were not packed, head pieces ran out, but they delivered eventually.
2. Costumes for 1 section never arrived ( they put masqueraders in another section, some got refunds). Another section was distributed on Carnival Sunday (way too late). I think all the other sections were ok.
3. Problems with food distribution on the road.

BUT, but, on the upside:
1. Mas camp officials were extremely pleasant & welcoming (nobody ain't roll they damn eyes at me or suck they teeth, NO "nasty-tude"),
2. The road music was the BEST I've had in a while (long time I ain't wine so, the DJ and them well show off), we heard soca from everyone, old & new!
3. The music & drink trucks moved at a nice, reasonable pace (I didn't sprint like I was in a DAMN 100m dash with Maurice Greene),
4. We ended around 8:30 pm on both day, which was sufficient time for "jamming" on arbitrary street corners (No lies & excuses about "unexpected traffic & stuff").
5. They eye candy was good, the vibe was nice!

They may have bitten off more than they could chew, but they gave a whole hearted effort to ensure that we enjoyed Monday & Tuesday. I am sure Evo. will try to work out their kinks so that their next production will run more efficiently, after all some 3-year old bands have done worse ( ok that was my last pot shot, maybe I'm still bitter about last year)!

It was good stuff, we had a ball!

Mas Jumbies Review

Written by Squeezle:

Overview:

Mas Jumbies (www.masjumbies.com) was conceived by Brian Wong Won, a Trinidadian artist based in Florida. His 2007 J'Ouvert offering was called 'Diable' and my boyfriend and I had such a wonderful experience participating in that presentation that we decided to play in his 2008 band entitled 'JAB'

Costume ordering (price range US$42 to US$60 all-inclusive):This being only the second year that Mas Jumbies has been in existence,they have yet to form the type of following that results in a mad rush for costumes. So I knew I could afford to take my time making a decision about what section to play in. I was torn between the Jab Rouge and Jab Noir for some time, but eventually decided on Noir because of the
impact that our black costumes made last year. The ordering procedure (done via PayPal) was entirely painless and trouble-free, and Brian even gave us a US$10 discount on our costumes, presumably to reward our loyalty. Whatever the reason, his generosity was greatly appreciated.

Costume collection:
I almost feel like I should omit this portion because Brian once again went above and beyond and delivered the costumes to our hotel himself. From what I understand, costume distribution was being handled out of an apartment complex in Cocorite, which would have been easy enough to get to if we needed to pick them up ourselves. It must have been quite a scene in there, and the macco in me was secretly wishing I could have gone over there to take a look. Maybe next year.

The costume components included a headpiece, necklace, short sarong, arm bands and optional standard - matching body paint is provided at the meeting area. Also included were a plastic whistle, metal spoon (I think everybody knows what that's for) as well as small Mas Jumbies towel, a map of Port-of-Spain as and detailed instructions about the meeting area and route.

J'Ouvert morning:
It seems that Mas Jumbies created quite a splash with their 2007 presentation, because our numbers had swelled from 35 masqueraders to about 150 this year. I had heard that the majority of the band would be foreigners, so I was very curious to see how the group would fare on the road. The band was to assemble at 3 a.m. at the back of Victoria Square for a warm-up session with the DJ and tassa band, featuring Irish coffee among the many beverages available, and we were then scheduled to roll
out at 3:45 to make our way to the judging point in town. We arrived at around 3:20 to find a group of masqueraders applying their body paint, while being served the advertised Irish coffee, as well as other beverages and snacks. However, the DJ truck and tassa bands had yet to make an appearance. I have to say this was expected, as this is a new band that is experiencing some growing pains and often has to depend on untested sources for their supplies, entertainment, etc. This was in no
way preventing us from having a good time liming, drinking, taking pictures and chipping around serenaded by the drinks truck's sound system, as Brian and his team made frantic phone calls to locate the missing DJ and tassa band.

After over an hour of waiting, we finally got word that the DJ had made it into Port of Spain and the band was ready to move out. The tassa band was still nowhere to be found, and we later learned that they had been stopped by the police because they had no permit to take their truck into the city at the hour they were travelling. Had they entered Port of Spain earlier (as they were instructed to do) they would not have run into any problems. So the band made a beeline for South Quay accompanied by the DJ truck and an impressively burly group of security staff. The many Germans, Americans and Canadians in the band were having quite a time and most of them were chipping and wining like native-born Trinis in no time at all. Of course there were the few very amusing exceptions, but that only added to the fun.

Since our massive stormer experience of 2007, Brian had taken great pains to make sure that security would not be an issue for us this year, and the staff was totally on-point, complete with ropes surrounding the masqueraders just like a big-time 'pretty mas' band. While waiting to cross the judging point, we were entertaining the crowd, and each other, with our antics and generally having a fantastic time. I was hard pressed to determine which section was the most badly behaved. Jab Bleu, two sections behind us, were throwing down some lewdly hilarious dance moves, but I think that the Imps, in the lead section, were outdoing them with general wildness. We got quite a reception from the crowd, who must have been impressed not only by Brian's avant-garde depiction of jab-jabs, but also with the wining skills of some of these foreigners.

Of course it was the one masquerader who was 'skipping' down the road that got the most news coverage. But we must have made quite an impact in our first year of competition, because, I'm very proud to announce, that we, in our first year of competing, placed THIRD for J'Ouvert Band of the Year!!!!

The band then made its way through Independence Square and headed down Abercromby Street. At this point, the drinks truck ran out of Carib, so we switched to a canned rum and cola beverage (the name escapes me) which was quite tasty. I don't think Brian had anticipated the large group of last-minute masqueraders, or the immense alcohol capacity of this mostly European crowd, so it came as no surprise to me when stocks started running low. And anyone who thought that these masqueraders had exhausted their bag of tricks was in for quite a shock. This is where the bad behaviour really escalated. One of the Imps hijacked a passing mud band, stole a bucket of mud and proceeded to anoint any and everyone in her sight. After a few minutes of this, the mud bucket was finally rescued by its rightful owner, but the Imps were not to be daunted. Having spied a large puddle of mud in the street, some Imps then embarked on a mud wrestling/wining escapade on the asphalt that had the rest of us doubled over with laughter (and questioning the sanity of German people in general).

After passing Victoria Square again, Mas Jumbies planned to head back east for another jaunt. But at this point the sun was clearly visible, and the numbers of upright masqueraders had been reduced to about 60 or 70 people, so we decided to make our way back to the hotel to see about the business of washing off the paint and mud and making ourselves presentable for Monday mas. I was somewhat reluctant to leave, but I desperately needed some rest, and the drinks truck supplies were running dangerously low and I didn't want to be around the Imps if that bar bus'. I have no doubt that they would have overturned the drinks truck and drank the gasoline out of the tank!

So with the sun rising quickly behind us, we walked along Tragarete Road back to our hotel, speculating as to what Mas Jumbies has in store for us in 2009. Brian has told me some of his ideas, which I will not divulge without his permission, and they are certainly ambitious and quite appealing. I will only say that if you plan to play in this band in 2009, I hope you look good in red!

TRIBE Unleashed 2008

The TRIBE 2008 Souvenir Magazine is now available for purchase at the Mas Camp on Rosalino Street. The cost is $50.00TT and I was told the magazine will also be available at Hi Lo supermarkets. No word on sales being made available to overseas masqueraders as was done last year.

Anyway, the Magazine has LOTS of photos (they boast over 1001) Black Magic and Goddess of the Chase scoring six pages of photographs each! I spied many, many people I know in the magazine including dougla_1, AnaleieseF, Kevianne, Icahwait,SexyEyes,tommygirl, dctrini,trinigee,amprincess, lethal batty crew along with several of my friends!

If you want to see who else is the magazine you need to get your own copy!

International Carnival Dates 2008

If you are suffering Carnival Tabanca have no fear, here is the listing of International Carnival dates all over the world:

Guyana February 23

St. Maarten (Dutch) April 12 to May 4

Jamaica Carnival April 13 - 19

St. Thomas, USVI April 20 - 26

Tampa, FL, USA April 26 - 27

Cayman Islands (Barabano) May 4

Cayman Islands (Little Cayman) May 4

Oklahoma City, OK, USA May 16 - 18

Bermuda Day May 24

Dallas/Forth Worth, TX, USA May 23 - 25

Atlanta (Peach), GA, USA May 23 - 26

Oakland, CA, USA May 23 - 26

Orlando, FL, USA May 24 - 25

San Fransisco, CA, USA May 24 - 25

Berlin, Germany May 30 to June 3

St. Petersburg, FL, USA June 14 - 15

Calgary (Carifest), AB, Canada June 8 - 14

Hartford CT, USA June 15

Philadelphia, PA, USA June 21

Port Charlotte, FL, USA June 21

Washington (D.C. Carnival), DC, USA June 21 - 29

Chicago (Bachannal), IL, USA June 27 - 29

Southern California Caribbean Carnival June 27 - 29

St. Johns, USVI July 4

Montreal, PQ, Canada July 5

Syracuse, NY, USA July 5

West Palm Beach, FL, USA July 5 - 6

Houston, TX, USA July 6 - 12

Tortola July 10 - 23

Virginia (Norfolk), USA July 11 - 13

St. Lucia July 12 - 13

SABA Dutch Caribbean July 13 - 15

St. Vincent & The Grenadines July 14 - 15

Barbados (Cropover) July 16 - August 3

Baltimore, MD, USA July 18 - 20

Connecticut July 18 - 20

Puerto Rico (Loiza) July 18 - 20

Toronto (Caribana), ON, Canada July 18 - August 4

York, ON, Canada July 21

Anguilla July 24 - August 3

Virginia (Chesapeake), USA July 26 - 28

Antigua & Barbuda July 26 - August 5

Vancouver, BC, Canada July 27

Jersey City, NJ, USA July 27

Rotterdam, Holland July 27

Netherland Antilles July 28

St. Eustatius July 28

Nevis July 28 - August 4

Detroit, MI, USA August 8 - 10

Edmonton (Cariwest), AB, Canada August 8 - 10

Hamilton, ON, Canada August 8 - 10

Regina (Carisask), SK, Canada August 8 - 10

Winnipeg (Caripeg), MB, Canada August 8 - 10

Virgin Gorda August 8 - 10

Ottawa, ON, USA August 8 - 17

Grenada August 11 - 12

Albany (Carama), NY, USA August 15 - 17

Talahassee, FL, USA August 15 - 17

Chicago (Carifete), IL, USA August 16

East Orange, NJ, USA August 16

Boston, MA, USA August 23

Nottinghill, United Kingdom August 24 - 26

New York (Labour Day), NY, USA August 28 - September 1

Long Island Carnival, NY, USA September 6

Port St. Lucie, FL, USA September 7

Baltimore, MD, USA September 12 - 14

Westchester, MA, USA September 14

Costa Rica October 9 - 12

Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA October 9 - 13

Miami, FL, USA October 9 - 13

Jacksonville, FL, USA October 17 - 19

Los Angeles, CA, USA October 17 - 19

Keywest, FL, USA October 24 - 26

New Orleans, LA, USA October 24 - 26

Bridgwater, England, United Kingdom October 31

St. Kitts December 24 - January 1, 2009

Bahamas December 26 - January 1, 2009

St. Croix, USVI December 26 - January 1, 2009

Island People 2009

Looks like "heavenly" things are indeed in store for Island People Mas in 2009! Can we say MORE wings!!

photo of the IP MAS Guidebook
(compliments ~cb~)

Evoultion letter

I would LOVE anyone who played in Evolution to please send me a review. News reaching me is that costume collection was a nightmare of epic proportions; reports of costumes not being boxed and masqueraders being assigned costume pieces from off the floor, masqueraders being placed in alternate sections (as sections were not in Trinidad for delivery), lines outside the mas camp for entry into the mas camp, costumes not being ready on Carnival Sunday.. so if you played with Evolution I would appreciate a review. Here is the letter Evolution sent out to their masqueraders:

Hello Everyone,


On behalf of Evolution Carnival Band, I would like to extend my most heartfelt appreciation to all of you who supported the band for Carnival 2008.

I know that the journey started off on a very rocky note, but I do hope that everyone did ultimately enjoy themselves on the Road.

Thanks to all of you, the band placed fifth overall in the Large Band Category, which is an extreme achievement for its first time out on the road.

We realised that alot of things should have been better organised and alot of negative occurrences could have been avoided with earlier planning. Please trust however that a thorough evaluation of all of these matters will be done and recitfied for next year.

We are also encouraging everyone to please email us with feedback and suggestions on how we could make things better for you our valued masqueraders.

Please email me with all of your questions, concerns and suggestions. It will be our greatest honour to receive them.

Respectfully yours,

Your Carnival buddy,

Shynnelle

DJ Private Ryan Soca Mix part 2...

The first mix by DJ Private Ryan brought you songs to warm up for Carnival 2008 and now this one brings you the "biggest songs on the road for Carnival. The mix is 1 hour and 15 minutes long and will fit on a regular audio cd, it also includes road mixes, enjoy!

Click the following link:
Private Ryan Road Mix

Earth .............

Letter from IP Mas

Apparently Island People Mas culminated early on Carnival Tuesday heading to the Stadium for their after party. Everyone I know who played with Island People did not really make this change in events an issue, however Island People has sent out this email addressing and explaining what happened:

Dear IP Mas-querader,

We would like to express our overwhelming gratitude to you for bringing Island People Mas' Animal Instincts to life for Carnival 2008. Thank you so much for choosing to play mas with us.

As you may know, our official pre-planned Carnival route changed on Tuesday afternoon and we want to inform you of the details. As the band neared Ariapita Avenue, our road managers determined that there were four other large bands at a standstill directly ahead of us. If we had proceeded along this route, we would have been on the Avenue for several hours and found ourselves downtown in the late evening. This would have exposed the band to the infiltration of numerous non-masqueraders, similar to what the other bands experienced later that day. In an effort to maintain our tight "Safe Zone" provided by IP Mas security, our road managers decided to turn right on Ariapita Avenue in an effort to continue down an alternate route. Unfortunately the police did not approve of this and halted our movement after we had veered off the official route. After lengthy discussion, we were forced to head directly towards the stadium.

We humbly apologize if this ended your day earlier than expected. This decision was made in an effort to make your All-Inclusive Carnival experience as safe and enjoyable as possible. Thank you for the patience you demonstrated and we hope that you enjoyed our After Party in the Stadium.

As we continually strive to provide you with a superior carnival experience, we look forward to giving you a heavenly carnival in 2009.

Sincerely,

Island People Mas

Who say TRIBE 2009!!

There has to be a reason that I will not ever think of switching from TRIBE and that is the SERVCE and the fact that they stand by their product; if you are not satisfied they address your complaint and see how best you can be accommodated. This year my issue was collecting my back pack, and even though I eventually got it on Tuesday morning (they would have delivered it to my house on Monday night but I CHOSE to pick it up on the road) TRIBE offered me a refund which I collected yesterday. And if you think I got a refund because of this blog, think again! I was not the only front liner in TRIBE to receive this unexpected compensation. In addition, my friend who is in another section got a refund on Sunday night because she too was told her back pack would be ready on Tuesday.

There was no need to resort to abusing the staff or cursing, I was politely offered compensation for my troubles without even having to ask! Now that is how you address issues when they come up, my hubby was totally impressed and made the statement that now he sees why TRIBE has such loyal customers. Last year I wrote a litany on Feedback to Bandleaders and I was quite surprised to see that many of my suggestions were heeded. I was totally in love with my costume this year, LOVED it and many, many others in the band. On that point TRIBE came good and I am looking forward to even more fabulous costumes in 2009.

Also, they did start registration earlier last year, without a long wait from band launch to actual registration date. In addition we got two weeks for costume pick up and two days for overseas masqueraders though for some reason everyone still shows up on Carnival Saturday which is the day when all the chaos ensues. Even Harts where I was in an out in five minutes on Monday was a mob on Carnival Saturday; seriously, it would do masqueraders well to organise pick up on their designated day if they can. This will help alleviate the problems on the day designated for overseas masqueraders as all those who were lax in picking up their costume usually turn up at the last possible minute to collect.

Harts collection on Monday January 28th


Harts collection on Saturday February 1st


My experience for costume collection went quite smoothly, I had no traffic problems or long waiting period as those who collected on Saturday complained of. Even with two days for overseas masqueraders the situation of traffic gridlock and a long wait could not be avoided I was told. Maybe it is time TRIBE look for a different venue for costume distribution since Cascadia with the one way in/out seems to be a nightmare during peak traffic hours. Also, costume distribution should start earlier than 5:30pm. Though this time is great for those getting off work it means everyone shows up at the same time, causing lengthy waiting periods.

The other issue persons had was with their actual costume being “amended” at the designer’s liberty. I know damage control went into place immediately and many masqueraders who were not satisfied got their costumes adjusted. In future I think it would be best to set up some sort of quality control for “outside/private” sections to ensure that they are indeed producing the costume that was advertised.

Some people arrived for lunch late and as a result have listed this as a complaint against TRIBE. Now, being in the FIRST section has its perks, because as soon as we crossed the Savannah stage my friend and I went to lunch. Being a very large band the sections in the back arrived much later. However, upon arrival at the lunch stop we met many masqueraders who simply did not cross the Savannah stage and went straight to lunch. I am not saying this is a possibility for everyone, but seeing as there is no “stage” to cross at the Savannah, to me, there is nothing to miss by going straight to lunch.

Another remedy to this situation would be to have some snacks severed during the day, instead of only after lunch, but when the trucks turn off at Memorial Park masqueraders will still have to wait until crossing the Savannah to get any refreshments. I certainly do not want to be handed a box of food on the road and have to sit on a pavement to eat so I am all in favour of the lunch stop! TRIBE just has to figure out a way on getting the band there within a reasonable time. But as I said before, if masqueraders were starving they should have skipped the Savannah and gone straight to lunch, beats complaining afterwards that you got to eat too late!


Finally I have heard people berating the band for being “disorganized” when crossing the judges, what a pity people forget how beautiful the band looked crossing IN SECTIONS downtown!! That was where we had enough space to truly show the costumes without having to fight the trucks to do so. Crossing the Savannah was a totally different experience, along with being forced to one side of the roadway, there were many people just standing lining the route. At one point you had no idea where the stage ended (though I think on Monday I saw a sign saying “stage ends here”). For me this argument against the band is quite petty, it does not irk the masqueraders any more or less though it does give the critics something to harp on. Whatever!

At the end of the day no one is forcing anyone to play with one particular band over the other, and every single band has problems. I have realized though that when you are perceived as being “on top” it makes an easier target and your dirty laundry is bandied about for all and sundry to see. I was quite amused that other issues with other bands were kept very quiet, and I too will not rehash the stories I heard or emails I got complaining about OTHER bands since at the end of the day everyone had a great time on the road. To those who did not have a great time with TRIBE for 2009 there are MANY bands to choose from, good luck in finding one that suits you!! And for all those who had an EXCELLENT time with TRIBE, best believe for US it is the BEST BAND EVER!! See you guys in 2009!

Hindsight is 20/20.....

*Always break in ALL Carnival footwear weeks before hitting the road. Just because you are wearing sneakers does not mean they will be the most comfortable to jump up in.

*Remember your Dr Scholls, this will save your feet! The range of products from gel insoles to blister pads are a God send for bruised, tired and aching feet.

*The best makeup for the road is the sweat proof type; Revlon Colorstay makeup NEVER fails. Testament is my fresh looking makeup which lasted all day, and best of all it did not melt, run or cake. The Milk of Magnesia as a primer worked amazingly well to keep oily skin looking matte all day!

*Drink lots of water on Tuesday before hitting the alcohol. After having alcoholic beverages on Monday your body needs the water to recover or else you will become dehydrated.

*Eat a good breakfast on BOTH days, you will need that fuel to keep going until "lunch time".

*SUNBLOCK, SUNBLOCK and more SUNBLOCK!! Don't forget to use the after sun cooling gel to soothe the skin after two days of brutal sun.

* Do not overdo on the feteing. Your body needs the rest and avoid getting wet at parties where the habit is to soak you to the bone! Think about it, most of you are coming from cold weather to a hot and humid country, coupled with sleepless nights and getting wet at various events makes the perfect formula for getting sick!

*Book accommodation for the following year early. Prime areas like Woodbrook and St James are reserved up to a year in advance.

* And finally, start saving the pennies from NOW. Band launchings will start at least 5 months from today with registration close behind. Carnival is an expensive undertaking and the key to surviving financially is planning and budgeting.

Carnival Photos Online

For those still looking for memories to hold unto as you return to the winter cold, check out Trinisoca and Izatrini.com for some Carnival 2008 photos.

TRIBERS the annual TRIBE magazine is due out on Monday!

TRIBE Photos

Many Thanks to "Redz" for me being able to "borrow" her pics !

Mama Dis is "Marse"!

Congratulations to Brian Mc Farlane winner of the Large Band of the Year and Ronnie & Caro who took home the prize for Medium Band of the Year. Mc Farlane’s Earth looked stunning; I loved the translation from sketches to actual costumes, it was quite impressive! On our way to meet TRIBE downtown we passed through Mc Farlane so I was lucky to see the entire band, my favourite sections were Fire, Pestilence and Gloom.

Ronnie and Caro were in front of TRIBE at the Savannah so I was again able to see the entire band; albeit it was a small presentation the costumes looked very vibrant and the entire band was well organized. Of the other bands I only managed to see a few costumes here and there; Evolution looked nice from the little I saw, Orange Appeal and Tantalize in Teal being my picks on the road. From Island People Kingfisher looked beautiful, as well as Egret, Zebra and Silver Fox. I noticed the design on Silver Fox was changed a bit with a piece of jewels added to the middle of the costume from bra to belt; I absolutely loved how this looked in person!

Of course I am totally biased to the band I played with and I thought MOST sections in TRIBE looked gorgeous; Lady of the Lake was impressive, when the sun hit the diamante the costume sparkled, Mystique was dazzling as purple is my favourite colour so I really liked how that section looked on the road. Goddess of the Chase is another section that stood out to me along with Water Nymph and Sun Goddess, though I did notice with the latter section some masqueraders got really full headpieces while others got a baby version! Titania looked surprisingly cute, feathered collar and all; I am neutral in my opinion on Pixie Dust and Amalthea. Black Magic I loved on the road, but I still don’t think I can ever play in so much black. I did not see many ladies wearing the wings for Autumn Sprite and to me that is what made the costume stand out, so I didn’t get awed by that costume at all.

The most underwhelming costume was Silver Mist. The costume looked too much like grey with very little silver, considering this was one of the hottest sections in the band initially I expected more glitz. I have to say the frontline Back Pack made the costume stand out, and to those ladies credit the frontliners looked great. Kudos to the Silver Mist ladies who were also able to wear that back pack ALL day, from what I heard it was very uncomfortable with no padding on the straps!

Overall I was generally impressed by the costumes I saw on Tuesday, most of the bands did a very good job and I was certainly pleased with MY costume! Hopefully for 2009 the standard of costuming will only get better with even more spectacular, beaded and feathered costumes for those of us who love our bikini and beads! Mc Farlane will hold down the mantle for the creative “marse” lovers, of course, and I wish that Oracle and other bands of that vein, will indeed offer more options and variety to appease the critics who seem to think that bikini and beads is not “marse”!!! As for me, once I am of able body, mind and health I am looking forward to 2009 with TRIBE!

Carnival Tuesday Recap

Carnival is serious business for me; I mean it may be obvious since I started this blog to document my obsession from band launching to the actual Carnival days. So, I was quite anxious when I collected my costume, but not my back pack. At first we (the other frontline members) were due to collect on Carnival Friday, which turned to Saturday, then Sunday (which was when I finally got my headpiece).. I did not think it was possible to collect on Monday, I mean THIS IS TRIBE after all,but people, I got my backpack on the road Carnival Tuesday!!!

I was pretty cool about the whole thing, since it was finally explained that the designer of the frontline sections was out of commission due to a personal emergency and TRIBE was left having to find a wirebender at the 99th hour. I even felt a bit of compassion towards the employees who had to endure hundreds of calls since my section was not the only one affected, as well as I was grateful that TRIBE addressed the situation by offering compensation to those who endured problems. However, all that graciousness went out the window on Monday night when I showed up at the mas camp, yet again, and could not collect my backpack. At that point I had really had enough and had to emit some sort of release. Now, I am not the type to cuss and carry on, remember TRIBE was being pretty decent about the whole thing, but when I could not get word on where my backpack was and when I was getting it I broke down in tears!!

So, I had a huge release of all that anxiety and eventually went home with assurances that they would deliver my back pack to me. Some of the ladies in frontline did indeed get their backpacks delivered at MIDNIGHT on Carnival Monday, but I live in the East and did not see the sense of having some poor soul drive all the way to my house to deliver my backpack when I could collect it on the road. That was how I ended up getting it on Carnival Tuesday, just before crossing the downtown stage. When I FINALLY got my back pack, it was like Christmas! I was SOOOOOOOOO happy, you all will not believe! And it was absolutely gorgeous, exactly like pictured so I had no problems at all; can I tell you how much I LOVED my costume? It was fabulous!!

Unfortunately my friend Mystique, who also played in Mystique Frontline, did not get her back pack/fin/wing on Tuesday, only the headpiece. I cannot begin to tell you how upset she was; even though TRIBE gave her a reimbursement all she wanted was to have her Frontline costume, every piece of it!! And to add insult to injury one of the girls from the mas camp wore the prototype on the road; note to TRIBE if none of the masqueraders got their back pack do NOT let anyone show up “flaunting” it to the ones that did not get it! Now, I know some of you don’t care about costume, you put on your headpiece to take photographs and leave it at home or you relieve your self of everything but your underwear along the route. Then there are those who care greatly, agonize over costume selection, dream about all the matching accessories for months, plan everything around the costume down to the footwear and wear the entire thing, headpiece, back pack and all, until the last chip on Carnival Tuesday night; I belong to the latter type of masquerader and only others of a similar vein can understand how important having your costume just as you expected is.

Apart from the costume hiccups, on the road was great! We crossed downtown with no delays this year and in an effort to not race ahead and leave the sections to the back we took out time crawling up Frederick Street. Along the way I made bathroom stops (hint to frontliners use the handicap bathrooms) and filled up on lots of water. The bands ahead of us were Ronnie and Caro whose costumes looked very nice on the road, and a small Indian band "Indians Fuh Sure" of which the hubby became “KING” of the band and crossed the Savannah stage with them before going to find Harts!!! I have to say crossing that Savannah stage is so “anticlimactic” really; no feeling of being on a showcase to spur you on at all, downtown was the better arena for me. Not to mention we crossed the Savannah pretty quickly and after that I only wanted lunch!

We made a bee line straight to the resting stop, I don’t care which band likes being on the road all day, that stop was rejuvenating to me! After an ok lunch of jerk chicken (the food needs to step up a bit for 2009), collecting two magnums of Heineken that they gave out for free, which promptly went in my friend’s friend car that was parked at the lunch stop, and a powder room refresher it was time to hit the road. We eventually got moving and with a renewed energy it was down the road to Woodbrook! I enjoyed the music, and the drinks, until I infuriated enough people with my back pack, sorry, but when you see a F.H.O. coming move out the way!!! Seriously, I stayed with the band until night fell, and when we got close to where our car was parked it was time to make my exit. I left security trying in vain to battle the stormers at the end!

Free drinks!

To all the bloggers that I met now you know the “secret” section, oh and the Heinekein section did indeed look as lame as the Pall Mall costumes last year, and to ALLLL the people who came up to me and say you enjoy the blog; THANK YOU! I was amazed that you guys made me out on the road (though the blogger band did give it away) as well as the fact that so many people actually read this blog daily! I met a mom and pop who read because of their daughter, and many people who wanted to thank me for the tips in helping them get ready for Carnival. It did my heart proud to see so many ladies in boots, both of mine were super comfortable! And I never saw so many gorgeous ladies on the road, all made up with faces well decorated. Man, I thought I was the only Carnival junkie!!! I SO cannot wait to do this again next year. I LOVE IT.

Oh, and for 2009 I know what TRIBE’s theme will be (though not the name of the presentation), I have always wanted to play in scarlet so I might be in Gail Cabral’s section, but then again, I have played in Super Mo Mo’s section from inception. As for a hint of what to expect, all I can tell you TRIBERS is prepare to take flight!!!

Sorry I do not have photos of TRIBE masqueraders on the road, hubby was the camera man and all he took was photos of me in costume and other random stuff. It would be nice to get a copy of anyone who took a photograph with me, I know I took shots with many of you who read the blog and it would be nice to have a memento as well. Email me a copy at trinicarnivaldiary@yahoo.com.

Carnivalscene.com however will have LOTS of pics, so check them out!!!

Mc Farlane Masquerader

Hubby's adopted band "Indians Fuh Sure"

TRIBERS at the rest stop

HARTS masqueraders

Monday Mas

Was GREAT!!! See allyuh on the road today :)

Bloggers Lime 2008!

Some of you I know and met before, others it was the first time "meeting" in real; the lime was really cool this year, as after a year of Carnival planning, venting, dispensing advice and support in some cases, it was great to finally come together and lime!

Thanks to ALL who showed up (and your guests as well), for those who could not make it hopefully we shall lime again in 2009:

Squeezle
Wajang
Waspwiddifirecracker
~cb~
Sexy Eyes
LB
TrInIgYaL
Dougla_1
Kuntreegal
Trinijam
SaundraQ
Megs
Jap
Monique
Gtwarrior
Tru
Nikki Ann Chunks
Young Mas Addict
Mystique
Prima Donna
Sommer
Jumbie #2
South Redz

Saving Silver Mist

So, yesterday I went to visit a friend of mine who is in the Silver Mist section, the same one who collected her costume and they "forgot" to giver her the back pack! Well, I have to say I was expecting it to look MUCH worse, but after taking her bra back to get some adjustments it looks pretty good.

Some more fur and embellishments were added to the bra, and even though the fur is darker in the sunlight it does not look bad at all:

Apart from the "furry bamsee" of the altered belt, this too can pass;the applique looks much better in sunlight.

The controversial backpack:

The back pack is the saving grace of this costume, it looks really good I must say. However the one disappointment is the scaled down headpiece! I did not get a photograph of what it looks like now, but Carnival Jumbie has lots of photos on her website.

At the end of the day my friend is satisfied with her costume, and that is good to hear. On the flip side one of my other friends actually cried in the mas camp upon seeing her costume and refused to take it... but that is another drama for another day!